Anthony Rutledge

Responsible for the Company’s overall performance and leadership, Anthony oversees all aspects of HEI, including corporate strategy, capital formation, Human Resources, investor relations, design and construction and the firm’s overall investment and property management.  Anthony led HEI’s private equity funds with HEI Fund 3 earning returns in Prequin’s top 10% of peer vintage funds. After being promoted to CEO in 2012, Anthony’s vision was to create the leading independently owned hotel operator and investment firm in the upper upscale, luxury, independent and premium select service space and top MSAs.  Under Anthony’s leadership, HEI grew its portfolio through third-party hotel management agreements and/or joint venture equity platforms from approximately $2B in 2012 to over $20B today. Anthony credits that success entirely to HEI Loves, a culture based on true employee empowerment, development and advancement based not on words, but action.  Under HEI Love’s, HEI’s more than 16,000 associates have consistently ranked HEI as one the top 5% in terms of associate satisfaction scores.  For Anthony, hiring, retaining, and developing the very best people in our industry is what continues to propel HEI’s outsized returns to its ownership and branding partners.  Under Anthony’s stewardship and results, HEI has garnered repeat transactions with the most prominent, sophisticated, and diverse grouping of institutional investors in the hotel industry.  

Prior to joining HEI in 2004, Anthony was a senior associate with the law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher and Flom, LLP, in its New York office. At Skadden, Anthony is credited with structuring and closing over $10 billion in real estate investments. Anthony’s experience includes the most complicated hospitality finance, mezzanine, preferred equity, hotel operations, historic tax credit, adaptive re-use, joint venture participation and structured financing arrangements. Anthony sits on several industry and charitable boards.