SAN ANTONIO, Texas – JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa has welcomed a new general manager, a new director of catering sales, and promoted an existing team member to director of marketing and public relations.
Doug Gennardo joins the property as general manager, following the retirement of Doug Ridge. Formerly hotel manager at the Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center, Gennardo’s leadership has consistently delivered results within Marriott International. With a 35-year career spanning various strategic roles at several of Marriott’s leading luxury brands, such as The Ritz-Carlton, JW Marriott, and EDITION Hotels, he most recently achieved record-setting results at the Gaylord Texan with events and catering revenue exceeding $100 million and record-breaking ticket sales for ICE!, the resort’s signature holiday experience. Since graduating from Cornell University and establishing a career in senior leadership positions within Marriott International, Gennardo has achieved professional milestones and remained dedicated to initiatives that positively impact communities. One such passion project is Project SEARCH, a workforce program for children with intellectual disabilities, which he championed and helped establish during his previous role. In his new role, Gennardo will lead the hotel’s overall strategy and oversee all hotel operations, including guest and employee satisfaction, human resources, financial performance, sales, and revenue generation.
Clarissa Cervantes returns to the resort as director of catering sales, where she will lead the resort’s department and manage its social catering associates and sales efforts. She first joined JW Marriott San Antonio in 2012, where she honed her skills in front office operations as a front desk agenda and room controller. With extensive experience in the hospitality industry, Cervantes will now oversee a team working with small social and business groups of less than 20 people up to large conferences with more than 6,000 guests. In a previous position at Marriott Marquis Houston, Cervantes was director of catering sales and led her team to place fifth in the United States for local catering sales, and was also ranked number one in sales in the southcentral region for two consecutive years.
Nina Shokrian has been promoted to the position of director of marketing and public relations from her prior role as senior marketing manager. In this role, Shokrian will lead the strategy and execution of the resort’s marketing and public relations efforts as well as the resort’s growing marketing department. During her time at the property since 2021, Shokrian has been recognized by Marriott International as a top performer for her success in digital marketing, and in 2023 was recognized by the property leadership team for her contributions to launching the resort’s first-ever global distribution system advertising campaign, strengthening collaboration efforts with social media influencers, and developing guest packages. Shokrian earned her degree in advertising from the University of Texas
at Austin and brings more than 20 years of marketing and advertising experience to the position. Before joining JW Marriott San Antonio, she worked with advertising agencies working with large national retail brands.
