A career built in hospitality. A life shaped by ownership.
Hotel executive. Investor. Entrepreneur. Author. Speaker. Husband and father. Different roles, one commitment to lead with accountability.
Awet Sium · Hospitality executive and author
From behind the desk to leading the building.
Awet Sium has spent nearly three decades leading luxury hotels and resorts across the United States and the Caribbean. His experience spans Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, Grace Bay Club and Parrot Cay.
As General Manager of Kimpton Vero Beach Hotel & Spa, he leads a complex oceanfront operation spanning service, people, financial performance, capital planning and owner relationships. His portfolio experience also includes strategic asset-management oversight involving Eagle Mountain House and Taconic.
His work has included property openings, turnarounds, major renovations and the development of future hotel leaders. He serves on the American Hotel & Lodging Association General Manager Committee and has been an AHLA “GMs to Watch” nominee.
Beyond hospitality, Awet is an investor, founder of Guest Excellence Group and HotelAMP, author of Own Your Story, and a speaker on accountability and leadership. He lives in Florida with his wife and son.
Leadership built across luxury hospitality.
A career shaped by the guest experience, rigorous operations, people development and the long-term interests of ownership.
Kimpton Vero Beach Hotel & Spa
General Manager, with owner-facing operational and capital stewardship and broader multi-property asset-management experience.
Kimpton General Manager Roles
Led the Donovan Hotel in Washington, D.C., and Tideline Ocean Resort & Spa in Palm Beach, Florida.
Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts
Held Hotel Manager and Resort Manager roles at Four Seasons St. Louis, Boston and Nevis, developing people and elevating luxury service standards.
Kimpton & Caribbean Luxury Resorts
Served in general management, rooms and food-and-beverage leadership positions across Vero Beach, Baltimore, Washington, D.C., and Turks & Caicos.
National Hospitality Leadership
AHLA General Manager Committee member and “GMs to Watch” nominee. View career history on LinkedIn ↗
What experience has taught me.
People before titles.
Careers develop when leaders set clear standards, give honest feedback and create opportunities for others to rise.
Performance is personal.
The best operational decisions protect the guest, the team and the long-term value of the asset.
Build what you wish existed.
Turning firsthand operational problems into practical businesses, products and solutions.
The standard follows you home.
Accountability is not a professional costume. It matters as much in marriage and fatherhood as in the boardroom.
Why I wrote Own Your Story.
Because the decisions that change us rarely happen under a spotlight. They happen in the moment after we make a mistake, when we choose between explaining ourselves and examining ourselves.
Own Your Story brings those lessons together in stories and practical exercises built around accountability.
Explore the Book