Inside Newport’s Compass Circle Councils: Turning Collaboration into a Competitive Advantage

By bringing together property leaders and corporate executives, Newport Hospitality Group is creating a collaborative leadership model that strengthens strategy, improves performance, and delivers greater value for hotel owners, associates, and guests

By Whitney Altizer, Senior Vice President, Chief Commercial Officer

Often great ideas in hospitality originate at the property level, not the corporate office. They come from the people working directly with guests, meeting planners, owners, and hotel teams every day.

At Newport Hospitality Group, we believe those frontline perspectives deserve a seat at the table. That’s the philosophy behind our Compass Circle Councils, a collaborative leadership initiative that brings together property and corporate leaders to strengthen communication, share expertise, improve accountability, and shape the future of our organization.

The Compass Circle Councils are divided into two distinct but closely connected groups. The Horizon Council focuses on commercial strategy, sales leadership, and revenue growth, while the Operations Council concentrates on guest satisfaction, property performance, team engagement, and operational excellence. Although each council has a unique mission, they were intentionally designed to work together because great hotels are built when sales and operations move in the same direction.

Sales creates opportunity by bringing guests through the doors. Operations delivers the experience that keeps those guests coming back. When those two disciplines collaborate from the beginning rather than working independently, hotels perform better, teams communicate more effectively, and owners ultimately benefit.

What makes Compass Circle Councils different is that they are not traditional meetings where information simply flows from corporate leadership to the field. They are working groups made up of experienced hotel leaders who actively contribute ideas, challenge assumptions, and shape future strategy. The program was developed at the corporate level, with the executive team playing an active role in facilitating each council’s progress and clearing roadblocks property leaders may encounter.

Within the Horizon Council, Directors of Sales from across the Newport portfolio openly share what’s working in their individual markets, discuss emerging challenges, identify new business opportunities, and provide meaningful input before company initiatives are launched. More importantly, they share proven sales strategies that can be replicated throughout the portfolio. A successful approach developed at one hotel may create new opportunities for dozens of others. Instead of every property solving the same challenges independently, the council allows hotels to benefit from each other’s experiences while giving corporate leadership a clearer understanding of emerging trends and customer expectations across multiple markets.

That collaborative approach leads to stronger decisions because they are built upon real-world experience rather than assumptions made from a distance.

One of the Horizon Council’s earliest accomplishments demonstrates the value of this model. As budget season approached, council members recognized an opportunity to better align commercial planning with operational goals. Together, they developed a more comprehensive planning tool that combines sales strategy, revenue forecasts, market intelligence, and property objectives into a single planning document.

The result is more than a budgeting exercise. It provides DOSs and GMs with a shared roadmap for the year ahead, encouraging strategic conversations earlier in the planning process and creating stronger alignment between commercial objectives and hotel operations.

The council is also developing a portfolio-wide lead generation initiative designed to encourage cross-selling throughout Newport’s collection of hotels. By sharing opportunities, resources, and market intelligence across the portfolio, the company is positioning every property to benefit from collective knowledge rather than competing in isolation.

That spirit of collaboration extends well beyond individual projects.

One of the council’s greatest strengths is its ability to create greater consistency across the Newport portfolio. Best practices developed at one hotel can quickly be shared with others. Innovative sales strategies can be adapted across multiple markets. Challenges become opportunities for collective problem-solving rather than isolated obstacles.

Equally important, communication no longer flows in only one direction.

Collaborative Culture

Compass Circle Councils have created an ongoing dialogue between property leaders and the Newport corporate office where ideas, market intelligence, opportunities, and concerns are exchanged openly. That continuous feedback allows corporate leadership to make more informed decisions while giving hotel leaders confidence that their experience and perspectives genuinely influence the company’s direction.

Just as importantly, the councils strengthen corporate oversight without creating unnecessary bureaucracy. Leadership gains greater visibility into what’s happening across the portfolio, allowing successful ideas to spread more quickly, potential challenges to be identified earlier, and strategic priorities to remain aligned across every hotel. Rather than directing hotels from a distance, Newport is creating a partnership where corporate guidance and property expertise continuously inform one another.

The benefits extend beyond organizational strategy.

For many DOSs, participation on the Horizon Council provides an opportunity to contribute beyond the success of their own property. It exposes them to different markets, different leadership styles, and broader business challenges while encouraging strategic thinking and professional growth. Rather than simply executing company initiatives, they become active participants in creating them.

That level of engagement strengthens leadership throughout the organization while reinforcing Newport’s culture of collaboration and shared ownership.

Greater Value for Owners

Owners ultimately see the greatest return from this collaborative approach. When best practices are shared across the portfolio, commercial strategies become more consistent, operational priorities remain aligned, and leadership teams make better-informed decisions. Corporate leaders gain greater insight into property performance while hotel teams benefit from the collective expertise of the entire organization.

The result is stronger execution, greater accountability, improved financial performance, and long-term value creation for every asset Newport manages. Rather than each hotel operating independently, every property becomes part of a larger network that continuously learns, improves, and raises the standard for the entire portfolio.

When sales strategies become more consistent, communication improves, and best practices are shared across the portfolio, hotels are better positioned to deliver stronger financial performance. Greater alignment between property teams and corporate leadership supports more informed decision-making, stronger execution, and long-term value creation for every asset Newport manages.

As the hospitality industry continues to evolve, no single leader or department has all the answers. Market conditions shift quickly. Guest expectations continue to change. Technology is reshaping nearly every aspect of hotel operations and commercial strategy.

Organizations that consistently outperform will be those that create environments where ideas can move freely, expertise is shared openly, and leadership is developed at every level.

That is exactly what the Compass Circle Councils were designed to accomplish.

Looking ahead, the councils will continue serving as incubators for innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement. New ideas will be tested, best practices will be refined, and commercial and operational strategies will be strengthened before they are implemented across the portfolio.

Most importantly, Newport’s future growth will continue to be shaped by the people who know its hotels, understand its guests, and recognize opportunities firsthand, all while remaining united by the company’s mission to enrich lives and redefine hospitality excellence.