Jalil Mekouar

Jalil Mekouar is a visionary, customer obsessed, and forward-thinking global leader with a passion for people, excellence in hospitality, wellness, innovation and technology.

With three decades of international hospitality, real estate and wellness leadership experience spanning over 35 countries in 6 continents with Public Listed and Fortune 500 companies, Mekouar was most recently a CEO with Majid Al Futtaim Group – a leading international retail, real estate, hospitality and leisure conglomerate based in Dubai with over US$ 16B of assets.

Mekouar has spent over 10 years with the world’s largest global hospitality operators such as InterContinental Hotels Group (LON: IHG) and Marriott International (NASDAQ: MAR) holding senior leadership roles in Europe, Middle-East/Africa and Asia-Pacific, 10 years with leading hospitality, real estate and wellness investors/owners/developers in Asia-Pacific and Middle-East/Africa such as Minor International PCL (BKK: MINT) and Majid Al Futtaim Group, and 10 years as MD/President/COO for Middle-East/Africa and the Americas with the world leaders in hospitality and real estate investment advisory and asset management such as Jones Lang LaSalle (NYSE: JLL) and CHMWarnick, managing asset portfolios of over US$ 25B.

A trusted advisor to a variety of investors, owners and operators, from private equity groups, to governmental institutions, high-net-worth individuals, family offices, institutional investors, investment funds, and sovereign wealth funds, Mekouar has developed an extensive global network of relationships and successfully established partnerships, businesses and JVs internationally.

As a respected thought leader and a multi-lingual / multi-cultural world citizen, Mekouar has been invited to speak at over 30 international conferences in the US, Europe, Middle-East/Africa, and has lived 10 years in Europe, 10 years in Middle-East, 10 years in Asia-Pacific, and over 5 years in the US and Canada with his wife and twin-boys.

Mekouar graduated from Cornell University and France’s Leading Business School ESSEC with an MBA and has obtained a double degree in Finance and Hospitality/Tourism management. He has also complemented his ivy league education with continuous professional and personal development with the likes of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cornell University, Euromoney and the American Academy of Financial Management on topics such as Artificial Intelligence, fund/asset management, hospitality and real estate finance/investment, and he has obtained a Director of the Board Certification for Public Listed Companies.

With his passion for wellness, hospitality, and technology, Mekouar is working on his WELL Accreditation, and he serves as an Ambassador of the Global Wellness Institute and the Global Wellness Day. He is also a member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), the Hospitality Asset Managers Association (HAMA), and the Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP).