Mark Southern
Innovator - Creator - F&B Professional
Hello,
a bit about me:
Mark currently works on the Contract Services side of Food and Beverage for Unidine, a division of Compass Group the world's largest foodservice provider. He supports 14 upscale communities across the US.
Previously Mark was Vice President of Food & Beverage for a Luxury Senior Living Company. Vi Sr. Living was formed by Hyatt Hotels to create world-class accommodation and amenities to the senior residential industry. Mark’s role is to ensure that the restaurants, bars and events are operated at a level on par with the world’s finest restaurants and hotels. Using his strong corporate and entrepreneurial background to lead a team of International Chefs, Maitre D’s and Sommeliers, he has elevated the offering and increased resident satisfaction.
Before Vi Senior Living, Mark was the Director for Brand Programs - Global F&B at five of Hilton’s Hotel Global Brands. He led a team that had one foot planted in the future and one foot firmly in the present. His role was to create the futureof the Branded Food and Beverage Experiences while ensuring operation efficiency for a system of over 4200 franchised hotels. Mark launched two brands during his tenure with Hilton, creating unique F&B offerings to match the DNA of each concept.
Before joining Hilton, Mark operated his own restaurant company. He created multiple concepts from drawing board to full operation. His passion for world-class service and masterful cuisine allowed him to develop a group of 10 restaurants across 4 states. Mark operated the group for 15 years, creating a franchise organization to operate the units, and eventually sold the entire enterprise.
Prior to his entrepreneurial career, he was selected to participate in a Fast Track Management Training Program with global hospitality leader Intercontinental Hotel Group, immediately after university. Quickly completing the program, Mark led multiple hotel teams at that excelled at outstanding service and operational efficiency. He championed a task force to drive customer service across the enterprise, based upon system he had developed for his own hotels.
A committed lifelong learner, Mark is pursuing his Masters at Harvard University Extension School, while holding an under-graduate degree in Hospitality Business Management from Washington State University. He recently led an industry association to develop global F&B metrics for the Hospitality Industry, that have been selected as the industry accounting standard. He has lectured at Oklahoma State University, University of Memphis and Washington State University as well as numerous industry and innovation conferences.
Finally, he is an accomplished Chef, having apprenticed in Germany at a Michelin Starred Restaurant.