Appointments

Gerald Lawless Jean-Paul Scheuer

French multinational pharmaceutical company Sanofi has appointed Jean-Paul Scheuer as its country chair and the general manager of Sanofi Gulf. He will overlook operations in the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman and Yemen. Scheuer’s immediate focus will be to build partnerships with health authorities and launch new products to meet patients’ needs. Scheuer joined Sanofi in 2008 as the general manager of the Ukraine division and has 20 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry. The World Travel & Tourism Council – a forum for the travel and tourism industry – has announced the election of Gerald Lawless as its chairman. Sharing his immediate plans, Lawless stated that over the next two years he intends to pursue the issue of visa restrictions and support the worldwide e-visa programme while placing an emphasis on security. Currently Lawless heads the tourism and hospitality group at Dubai Holdings and is the former chief executive officer of the Jumeirah group.

Juan Bezon

PCCI Group, a multinational business process outsourcing company based in Dubai, has appointed Juan Bezon as its chief commercial officer. Bezon will direct the company’s operations in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and work to increase its market share in the region while continuing to tap into emerging markets. Bezon has significant experience in the field of customer engagement as well as digital technologies. He previously worked with Sapphire, a subsidiary of Saudi Telecom Company, as well as Telefonica and IBM for 15 and 10 years respectively.

Benjamin Oppl

Meliá Hotels International has chosen Benjamin Oppl as development director of its Middle East and North Africa operations. To mark its 60th anniversary, the hotel has launched its global expansion proposal and Oppl has been assigned the task of consolidating these expansion activities. Oppl brings a wealth of experience in hospitality, tourism and real estate investment, having worked at the travel division of the Emirates Group. May 16-18