Mark W. Brugger

Founder and Managing Partner

Mark co-founded DiamondRock Hospitality (NYSE: DRH), led its initial public offering, and served as its chief executive for more than fifteen years, taking the company from zero to $1 billion of revenue, $3.5 billion of assets and 9,000 rooms through two full cycles. Before DiamondRock, he was a Vice President of hotel transactions at Marriott International, where he was a lead negotiator on billions of dollars of transactions.

Over that tenure he oversaw more than $1 billion of capital projects and led the brand conversions, de-flaggings and operator changes set out on the Track Record page. He was named to Forbes' America's Most Powerful CEOs 40 and Under and has served fifteen years as a public-company director.

$7Bcareer real estate transactions

$3B+hotel acquisitions underwritten and closed

$2Bdebt financings completed

$1.5Bequity raised, including the NYSE IPO

$1B+capital projects, renovations and repositionings overseen

$1Bcapital distributed to public shareholders

Career: DiamondRock Hospitality, President, Chief Executive Officer and Director, 2008 to 2024.
DiamondRock Hospitality, co-founder, Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, 2004 to 2008; led its NYSE IPO.
Marriott International, Vice President, hotel transactions; also Chief Executive Officer of Synthetic American Fuel Enterprises, then Marriott's largest non-lodging business unit by revenue.
Earlier: institutional multifamily investment sales at Transwestern; residential land development at Brookfield Residential.
Education: J.D., American University. B.A., University of Maryland.
Affiliations: Urban Land Institute. The Real Estate Roundtable. American Hotel & Lodging Association. Marriott Ownership Advisory Council. Maryland Bar.

Board experience

Fifteen years as a public-company director, including a chief executive's seat through two cycles and an independent seat through a merger and sale.

DiamondRock Hospitality

NYSE: DRH · Director, 2008 to 2024

President, Chief Executive Officer and Director for more than fifteen years, through the financial crisis, the pandemic and the recovery that followed. Led the company's capital allocation, strategic reviews, investor relations and governance as a public company.

Chambers Street Properties

NYSE: CSG · Independent Director

Chair of the Compensation Committee and member of the Audit Committee. Approved the company's merger with Gramercy Property Trust; the combined company was subsequently sold to Blackstone.

Industry roles

Associations and councils

Director, American Hotel & Lodging Association. Member of the Marriott Ownership Advisory Council, the Urban Land Institute and The Real Estate Roundtable.

Mark is available for independent REIT and private-company directorships and for interim or fractional executive roles. Where he serves as a director, Elmsworth takes no advisory fee from that company. Board and executive roles

Selected DiamondRock acquisitions and repositionings

Hotels acquired or repositioned by DiamondRock under Mark Brugger's leadership; not Elmsworth assets.