Alabama-based hospitality industry
veteran Pedro Mandoki has been honored as the Resort Executive of the Year
for 2004 by hospitality and resort industry professionals convening at the
2005 Resort Management Conference at Pointe South Mountain Resort in
Phoenix, AZ. Mandoki, president and CEO of Plantation Resort Management,
Gulf Shores, Ala., and current chairman of the American Hotel & Lodging
Association, is the 31st individual to receive this coveted award. The Resort Executive of the Year is awarded to the resort executive who
has demonstrated superior management ability, a commitment to staff
training and motivation, active participation and leadership in lodging
industry association activities, support of legislation beneficial to the
lodging industry, and leadership within his or her community. The
presentation of the award is one of the highlights of the annual Resort
Management Conference sponsored by the University of Denver.

Mandoki oversees all operations of Plantation Resort Management, which is
a leading vacation rental and property management company. The company
manages the Gulf Shores Plantation resort, one of the largest condominium
resorts in Alabama. A 40-year lodging industry veteran, Mandoki has spent his entire career
fostering the growth of the travel and tourism industry in Florida and
Alabama. Among the honors conferred on Mandoki during his distinguished
career in tourism:

* Florida Hotelier of the Year, bestowed by The Florida Lodging
Association in 1981.

* Recipient of the Alabama Hospitality Award, presented by the Alabama
Hotel & Motel Association, 1994.

* Recipient of the Alabama Tourism Award, presented by the Alabama
Hospitality Association, 1999.

* American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) Most Valuable Volunteer,
representing Alabama, 2000.

* Recipient of the 2001 Distinguished Service Award, presented by the
Alabama Gulf Coast Area Chamber of Commerce.

* Induction into the Alabama Tourism Hall of Fame, by the Alabama Tourism
Partnership, 2002.

Mandoki has served with distinction in tourism leadership roles in both in
Florida and Alabama for decades. He is a past chairman of the Florida
Governor’s Tourism Advisory Council and past president of the Florida
Lodging Association and the Alabama Hotel & Motel Association. He has
dedicated considerable energy to hospitality education, serving as a guest
lecturer at Gulf Coast Community College, Panama City, Fla., Florida State
University, Auburn University and the University of Alabama.

He was the founding chairman of the Alabama Gulf Coast Convention &
Visitor’s Bureau, and remains on the organization’s Board of Directors.
Mandoki has also contributed substantial time and effort to civic and
trade organizations in both Florida and Alabama. In 1999, Mandoki co-authored “Resort Condominium and Vacation Ownership
Management: A Hospitality Perspective,” the first book published by the
AH&LA’s Educational Institute on Condominium and Vacation Ownership
Management.

Born in Hungary, Mandoki emigrated to Mexico at a young age. He is a
graduate of the University of Morelos, Mexico, and embarked on his career
in the hospitality industry in the United States in the early 1960s. He
has served in operations, administration and related capacities with some
of America’s leading hotel and resort operators.

Mandoki’s selection was made by a committee of peers from within the
lodging and hospitality industry, including Jerry Cohen, Vice-Chairman of
Canyon Ranch; Richard Cotter, Executive Vice President of Hotel Operations
for Wynn Las Vegas; Bill McCreary, President of Tishman Hotel Company;
Paul Schultz, Managing Director of the San Luis Resort and the 2003
recipient; and Dr. Peter Rainsford, director of the Hospitality,
Restaurant and Tourism Management Program at the University of Denver.
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