Where Dawn Still Rises.
Ready for a New Day.

See: In 2024, I took the opportunity to helm Hotel Julien Dubuque, Iowa's oldest , to lead its renovation and return the asset to its place as the city's cultural center. Recognizing the value of continuity, my previous ownership group retained me as a strategic consultant for their $250M portfolio (The Warrior, Hotel St. Louis, Hotel Blackhawk, The Current Iowa). The goal: sustain the high-performance culture and revenue strategy we had built, even as I executed a turnaround in Dubuque.

Shape: I transitioned from day-to-day operations to Asset Strategy. My scope bridged the gap between ownership and operations: coaching General Managers, serving as a liaison for staff, and finalizing annual operating budgets. I focused on keeping vital community partnerships alive and designing the "activation calendars" that allowed the properties to manufacture demand rather than just capturing it.

Sell: This hybrid model delivered results on both fronts. While driving Hotel Julien to "Business of the Year" status, I simultaneously engineered 22 precinct-wide activations for the consulting portfolio, driving a 6% TRevPAR increase. It proved that "Experience Design" is scalable, allowing me to guide the financial and cultural performance of ~900,000 sq. ft. of combined real estate while revitalizing a separate historic icon.

See: The Warrior Hotel was stunning, a restored icon as part of Marriott's Autograph Collection. But it needed to become more than a building. It needed to become a benchmark. The opportunity: create an operation so consistent, so guest-focused, that it would define excellence for the entire market.

Shape: Systems that supported the vision. Every department aligned around one shared goal. Labor forecasting tied to occupancy. Menu engineering balancing quality with cost. Guest recovery programs transforming feedback into loyalty. Culture and performance moved together.

Sell: RevPAR lifted 25%. RGI increased 19.6%. Guest satisfaction rose 20 points. Named Top Hotel in Iowa by U.S. News & World Report in both 2024 and 2025. Awards followed, but what mattered was that excellence had become habit.

See: The Warrior Hotel reopened in June 2020, mid-pandemic, to an empty town square. Zero buzz. Zero community connection. The question wasn't how do we get guests? It was how do we become part of this place?

Shape: We didn't do one ribbon cutting. We did six weeks of them. Spa ribbon cutting. Restaurant ribbon cutting. Rooftop bar ribbon cutting. Each one invited a different slice of the community. We turned opening weekend into opening season.

Sell: Over 2,000 people walked through the property in six weeks. The local paper ran five separate stories. City council started bringing delegations for tours. Community buy-in became the foundation for every dollar that came after.

See: Hotels treat activations like one-offs: a wine dinner here, a holiday party there. No compounding. No system. I saw an opportunity to build a calendar where every month has a signature moment, where guests return because they know what to expect.

Shape: We built three layers. Recurring series: Ladies Night, Sunday Brunch, Trivia Wednesdays. Seasonal tentpoles: 12 Days of Christmas ($60K raised), Halloween Spooktacular, Grandparents Day Brunch. Premium experiences: Chef's Table series, Eclipse Weekend (213 rooms, $87K revenue), NYE Gala ($47K, sold out).

Sell: $1M+ in activation-driven revenue from 2022–present. We shifted the perception from we're here if you need us to you need to be here for this. That's when hotels stop chasing demand and start manufacturing it.

See: Hospitality's retention crisis isn't about pay. It's about meaning. People leave because they don't feel seen, don't see a future, and don't believe their work matters. What if we built a culture where people actually wanted to stay?

Shape: Multi-layered recognition: Monthly Employee of the Month with real rewards. Weekly department-level shoutouts. Annually: service celebrations, holiday parties, team outings. Career pathing infrastructure: high-potential identification, mentorship tracks, promotion pathways.

Sell: Retention climbed to 80%. Leadership retention increased 24%. 14 associates mentored to management positions. Stable teams mean consistent service. Guests feel the difference in every interaction.