Welcome to the bench

Our team

Jonathan Worsley

Chairman & CEO
The Bench

Profile

Matthew Weihs

Commercial Director
The Bench

Profile

Ali Shahid

Marketing Director

Profile

Daria Smith

Portfolio Director

Profile

Marina Franolic

Head of Investor Relations
The Bench

Profile

Jon Howell

CEO and Founder
AviaDev

Profile

Michelle Turney

Head of Sales & Partnerships, Saudi Arabia

Profile

Sally Marwaha

Operations Director

Profile

Mala Patel

Event Director - Africa

Profile

Tanja Millner

Production Director

Profile

Olja Nicholl

Head of Sales, FHS World

Profile

Muhammad Ahmed

Senior Digital Marketing Manager

Profile

Diala Chamandi

Sponsorship Sales Manager

Profile

Jay Green

Sponsorship Sales Manager

Profile

Son-Trang Nguyen

Production Manager

Profile

Joan Calimpong

Investor Relations Manager

Profile

Laura James

Finance

Profile

Asma Eladaoui

Account Manager

Profile

Anna Kucharska

Data Assistant

Profile

Usama Aslam

Marketing Manager

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Abdur Raffey

Marketing Manager

Profile

Bilal Haider

Operations Associate

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Muhammad Ibrahim Mohsin

Marketing Associate

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Lyza Rashid

Marketing Associate

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Saim Rehman

Digital Content Associate

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Fatimah Ilahi

Production Associate

Profile

Innara Perwaiz

Production Associate

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Jana Bader

Advisor: Saudi Arabia

Profile

Jennifer Pettinger-Haines

Advisor
The Bench

Profile

SAHIC team

Arturo Garcia Rosa

President & Founder

Profile

Florencia Rufino

Managing Director

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Pablo Garcia Rosa

Business Development Manager

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Veronica Bracchi

Finance Manager

Profile

Graciana Garcia Iribarne

Strategic Advisor

Profile

Our journey

1998

Jonathan Worsley co-founds IHIF (International Hotel Investment Forum) in Berlin

2001

The data benchmarking company, The Bench is founded in London

2006

AHIC (Arabian Hotel Investment Conference) launched in Dubai hosted by the Jumeirah Group

2008

The Bench merges with STR Global. Sally Marwaha and Jennifer Pettinger become first employees of the business

2010

AHIF (Africa Hotel Investment Forum) launched in Casablanca, let by Matthew Weihs

2012

The Bench's Dubai office becomes operational

2015

The Bench acquires 50% of the SAHIC (South America Hotel Investment Conference)

2016

AviaDev Africa is launched with Jon Howell and Mala Patel in Kigali, Rwanda

2017

Digital Marketing division is launched by Ali Shahid

2018

Saudi Arabia Hospitality Investment Conference launched, hosted by DUR Hospitality

2019

The Bench acquires 100% of the Adriatic Hotel Investment Forum (now IDEEA, led by Marina Franolic)

2020

Launched the Digital Hospitality Tomorrow Series in April 2020 to 6000 industry delegates around the world.

2020

Future Hospitality Hybrid Summit launched with the G20 Secretariat

2021

The Bench Saudi Arabian offices become operational with Saudi national, Jana Bader, as General Manager

2021

Startup Den launched at Future Hospitality Summit in Dubai

2023

FHS Saudi, hosted by Al Khozama, takes place at Al Faisaliah Hotel for the first time to over 1000 delegates.

Our Values

01

We delight our customers by going the extra mile

02

We innovate and facilitate connections

03

We care about our communities and the environment

04

We create valuable experiences

05

We nurture relationships

The Bench Advisory Board

John Blakey

Founder – The Trusted Executive Foundation

Profile

Jennifer Fox

Industry Executive

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David Keen

Founder & CEO
QUO

Profile

Marloes Knippenberg

Chief Executive Officer
Kerten Hospitality

Profile

Gerald Lawless

Ambassador
World Travel & Tourism Council

Profile

Haitham Mattar

Managing Director MEA & South West Asia
IHG

Profile

Anita Mendiratta

Special Advisor to the Secretary General, UNWTO

Profile

Gaurav Sinha

CEO & Chief Strategist
Insignia Worldwide

Profile

Nick van Marken

Managing Director
van Marken Consulting

Profile

Young Leader Advisory Board

Adnan Aleid

Senior Director, Royal Commission for Riyadh City

Profile

Nivesh Bhagtani

Founder, Young Hotelier Network

Profile

Shenin Hamid

Founder & CEO, Inspire Events

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Stella van Toor

General Manager, Sustainable Hospitality Challenge

Profile