Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts has promoted Christopher Norton to the newly created role of executive vice president of global products and operations. Effective April 1st, the position includes responsibility for worldwide hotel operations, product, design, construction, and procurement. 

The appointment builds on Norton’s 25 years of experience with Four Seasons-most recently as president of hotel operations for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. 

“Chris is a visionary leader who has helped enhance the quality of our product across the region while staying true to the values that have been central to the company’s success,” says Allen Smith, president and CEO of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. “The creation of this new role reflects our increased focus on product and service differentiation and long term growth as we continue to align leadership talent with key business priorities.”

A graduate of the Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne in Switzerland, Norton joined Four Seasons in 1989 as an executive assistant manager at the former Le Quatre Saisons, Montreal. Since then, he has managed several properties across the globe, including Four Seasons Resort Bali at Jimbaran Bay and Four Seasons Resort Bali at Sayan.

In 1999, Norton was appointed regional vice president, and from 2007 to 2012 served as general manager of one of the company’s flagship properties, Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris, while also overseeing properties in Europe, North Africa, the Indian Ocean, and the Middle East as regional vice president. In 2012 he was appointed president of hotel operations for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Commenting on his new role, Norton says, “My focus will be on enhancing how we design products, services, and experiences, and-equally as important-how we deliver them. This means continued recognition of the integral role our employees play in anticipating and shaping a guest’s mood and delivering the extraordinary experiences that are synonymous with Four Seasons.”

Norton will be relocating to the company’s headquarters in Toronto.
