Who We Are

Our Mission

The mission of Avion Hospitality is to pursue a culture built on relationships, accessibility and transparency while providing the highest quality of service and exceptional results for our owners… which starts with our people.

Our story

Avion Hospitality was created to capitalize on the opportunity to bring together top performers with amazing talent, a limitless combination. The expertise and knowledge of our team is unparalleled, and we place unprecedented importance on trust and transparency. Now more than ever, owners want to place their trust within an organization that values being high touch, nimble and accessible – and these principles form the core of Avion Hospitality.

We have created a platform on the basis that we will provide the highest level of service starting on day one, by placing infrastructure in front of growth, being vulnerable as to challenge ourselves to where we need to excel and continuing to attract top talent to Avion. In turn, our quality will propel our growth.

Our team

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Robert Burg

Principal/President & CEO

Robert Burg brings 30 years of hospitality management experience and industry knowledge, providing the foundation for Avion Hospitality’s core strength of producing superior results.

Burg recently served as President of Aimbridge Hospitality, overseeing all North American assets and representing 200 ownership groups among 1,400 hotels. Burg was a founding member of Aimbridge since the company’s inception in 2003. While at Aimbridge, Burg oversaw all operations, sales and marketing, revenue management, owner relations, human resources, and capital/project planning for all properties under 32 hotel brands.

Prior to Aimbridge Hospitality, Burg served as Senior Vice President of Operations for Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, managing operations of luxury, full-service, select-service and extended-stay properties. Burg was also Senior Vice President for the Summerfield Suites Brand leading the entire chain in operations, development, and revenue for the upscale, extended-stay product.

Burg served on Hyatt Hotels and Resorts Owners Advisory Board, Hilton’s Operations Advisory Board for Embassy Suites, Marriott’s Owners Advisory Board for Sheraton Hotels, the MINA Board of Directors, and Hilton’s Owner Advisory Board for All Suite Brands. Additionally, he served on the Board of Directors for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation for 13 years as well is a volunteer pilot for multiple charitable organizations.

Robert resides in Plano with his wife Elsa and has a daughter Nicole and step son, Kyle. The name Avion is born from Robert’s passion for aviation.

Robert Burg

Principal/President & CEO

Robert Burg brings 30 years of hospitality management experience and industry knowledge, providing the foundation for Avion Hospitality’s core strength of producing superior results.

Burg recently served as President of Aimbridge Hospitality, overseeing all North American assets and representing 200 ownership groups among 1,400 hotels. Burg was a founding member of Aimbridge since the company’s inception in 2003. While at Aimbridge, Burg oversaw all operations, sales and marketing, revenue management, owner relations, human resources, and capital/project planning for all properties under 32 hotel brands.

Prior to Aimbridge Hospitality, Burg served as Senior Vice President of Operations for Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, managing operations of luxury, full-service, select-service and extended-stay properties. Burg was also Senior Vice President for the Summerfield Suites Brand leading the entire chain in operations, development, and revenue for the upscale, extended-stay product.

Burg served on Hyatt Hotels and Resorts Owners Advisory Board, Hilton’s Operations Advisory Board for Embassy Suites, Marriott’s Owners Advisory Board for Sheraton Hotels, the MINA Board of Directors, and Hilton’s Owner Advisory Board for All Suite Brands. Additionally, he served on the Board of Directors for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation for 13 years as well is a volunteer pilot for multiple charitable organizations.

Robert resides in Plano with his wife Elsa and has a daughter Nicole and step son, Kyle. The name Avion is born from Robert’s passion for aviation.

Principal/President & CEO

Lynne Roberts

Principal/Chief Investment Officer

Lynne Roberts is the Co-Founder and Chief Investment Officer at Avion Hospitality. As Chief Investment Officer, Lynne is responsible for generating high-quality growth for Avion’s business partners. This strategy focuses on strengthening a diverse portfolio of differentiated brands, building scale in key markets and creating lifetime client relationships.

Prior to Avion, Ms. Roberts was the Senior Vice President of Development at Aimbridge Hospitality. During her tenure, Lynne grew Aimbridge’s portfolio organically from eight to over 200 hotels and twenty-five owners in six years.

Most recently, Lynne served as Executive Vice President of Capital Markets, where her focus was developing and expanding the company’s relationships with institutional and private investors, high net worth individuals, family offices, fund managers, and publicly traded real estate investors.

Lynne’s industry affiliations included being a member of the Board of Governors for the University of North Texas College of Merchandising, Hospitality and Tourism, Hilton Curio Owners Advisory Council, Marriott Element Franchise Advisory Committee, and the AHLA Hospitality Investment Roundtable.

She and her husband, Greg, are proud parents of a son and daughter who enjoy tournament fishing and motocross outside of school activities. While they reside in Plano, Texas their east Texas ranch is the family working playground.

Lynne Roberts

Principal/Chief Investment Officer

Lynne Roberts is the Co-Founder and Chief Investment Officer at Avion Hospitality. As Chief Investment Officer, Lynne is responsible for generating high-quality growth for Avion’s business partners. This strategy focuses on strengthening a diverse portfolio of differentiated brands, building scale in key markets and creating lifetime client relationships.

Prior to Avion, Ms. Roberts was the Senior Vice President of Development at Aimbridge Hospitality. During her tenure, Lynne grew Aimbridge’s portfolio organically from eight to over 200 hotels and twenty-five owners in six years.

Most recently, Lynne served as Executive Vice President of Capital Markets, where her focus was developing and expanding the company’s relationships with institutional and private investors, high net worth individuals, family offices, fund managers, and publicly traded real estate investors.

Lynne’s industry affiliations included being a member of the Board of Governors for the University of North Texas College of Merchandising, Hospitality and Tourism, Hilton Curio Owners Advisory Council, Marriott Element Franchise Advisory Committee, and the AHLA Hospitality Investment Roundtable.

She and her husband, Greg, are proud parents of a son and daughter who enjoy tournament fishing and motocross outside of school activities. While they reside in Plano, Texas their east Texas ranch is the family working playground.

Principal/Chief Investment Officer

Ila Smith

SVP Revenue and Commercial Services

Ila Smith is the Senior Vice President of Revenue and Commercial Services. With more than 30 years of hospitality experience, she brings a deep and varied experience to Avion clients as an expert in hotel operations, revenue management, sales and cost efficiency. For the last six years, Smith has served as the Vice President of Sales & Marketing for Aimbridge Hospitality. She has worked with the likes of Goldman Sachs, The Blackstone Group, Crow Holdings, AVR Realty Group and Highline and holds close relationships with Hilton, Marriott, Hyatt and IHG. She and her husband, Mark reside in Phoenix, Arizona and are doting grandparents. Smith is an avid hiker and tennis player, and enjoys spending time her shadow, a 14-year-old white lab, Willie.

Ila Smith

SVP Revenue and Commercial Services

Ila Smith is the Senior Vice President of Revenue and Commercial Services. With more than 30 years of hospitality experience, she brings a deep and varied experience to Avion clients as an expert in hotel operations, revenue management, sales and cost efficiency. For the last six years, Smith has served as the Vice President of Sales & Marketing for Aimbridge Hospitality. She has worked with the likes of Goldman Sachs, The Blackstone Group, Crow Holdings, AVR Realty Group and Highline and holds close relationships with Hilton, Marriott, Hyatt and IHG. She and her husband, Mark reside in Phoenix, Arizona and are doting grandparents. Smith is an avid hiker and tennis player, and enjoys spending time her shadow, a 14-year-old white lab, Willie.

SVP Revenue and Commercial Services

Faisal Kamal

Vice President, Operations

Faisal Kamal is Avion Hospitality’s Vice President of Operations. Kamal was the Regional Vice President of Operations for Aimbridge Hospitality since 2009 and has more than 30 years of experience in the hospitality industry. His list of awards is long, including eight consecutive Blue Chip Award wins for surpassing financial goals and 12 consecutive Outstanding Assurance Evaluation Award wins. He is currently serving his fourth term as Director of the Board for the Hotel and Lodging Association of Greater Houston. While at the property level Faisal has earned the awards of GM of the Year, hotel of the year (on multiple occasions), President Award for Marketshare excellence (10 different times) as well as numerous Brand recognitions and advisory board roles. He shares two daughters with his wife of 26 years, Afifa, and enjoys completing house projects and gardening.

Faisal Kamal

Vice President, Operations

Faisal Kamal is Avion Hospitality’s Vice President of Operations. Kamal was the Regional Vice President of Operations for Aimbridge Hospitality since 2009 and has more than 30 years of experience in the hospitality industry. His list of awards is long, including eight consecutive Blue Chip Award wins for surpassing financial goals and 12 consecutive Outstanding Assurance Evaluation Award wins. He is currently serving his fourth term as Director of the Board for the Hotel and Lodging Association of Greater Houston. While at the property level Faisal has earned the awards of GM of the Year, hotel of the year (on multiple occasions), President Award for Marketshare excellence (10 different times) as well as numerous Brand recognitions and advisory board roles. He shares two daughters with his wife of 26 years, Afifa, and enjoys completing house projects and gardening.

Vice President, Operations

Chad Tiedt

Vice President, Sales

Chad Tiedt is the Vice President of Sales at Avion Hospitality. His proven record of exceptional financial and market share results spans 30 years of experience both at the property level and above property level with companies including Aimbridge Hospitality, Crestline Hotels and Resorts, Marriott International, Interstate Hotels & Resorts, Meristar Hospitality, Capstar Hospitality and Medallion Hotels. Accomplished in the areas of sales and marketing, hotel operations and revenue management, his extensive list of accolades include recognition as Director of Sales of the Year, Hotel of the Year and Revenue Management Team of the Year. He is an active member of the Texas Business Travel Association and Katy Chamber of Commerce and enjoys spending time with his wife and two sons in addition to being an avid golfer.

Chad Tiedt

Vice President, Sales

Chad Tiedt is the Vice President of Sales at Avion Hospitality. His proven record of exceptional financial and market share results spans 30 years of experience both at the property level and above property level with companies including Aimbridge Hospitality, Crestline Hotels and Resorts, Marriott International, Interstate Hotels & Resorts, Meristar Hospitality, Capstar Hospitality and Medallion Hotels. Accomplished in the areas of sales and marketing, hotel operations and revenue management, his extensive list of accolades include recognition as Director of Sales of the Year, Hotel of the Year and Revenue Management Team of the Year. He is an active member of the Texas Business Travel Association and Katy Chamber of Commerce and enjoys spending time with his wife and two sons in addition to being an avid golfer.

Vice President, Sales

Stacey Brown

Vice President, Human Resources

Stacey Brown is an accomplished leader 20+ years of experience in human resources. Her experience extends to HR people operations in corporate and consumer-facing environments within professional services, hospitality, sales, technology, and restaurant industries. In her current role, Stacey is responsible for leading the overall human resources strategy, talent acquisition, leadership development, diversity and inclusion, organization design and cultural development, compensation and benefits as well as employee relations.

Stacey contributes to the success of organizations by understanding the business goals and driving organizational excellence through agile, aligned HR practices. She is known for strategic planning and seamless execution of actionable ideas and for proactively collaborating with leaders to identify, develop, and implement strategies to ensure that the functions have the right talent, structure, and processes to fuel growth.

Stacey holds an undergraduate degree in communications from the University of Texas at Austin and an MBA from Texas A&M University. She is SHRM-SCP and SPHR credentialed. In her spare time, Stacey enjoys searching for sea glass along the gulf coast and spending time with her senior rescue dog Riley.

Stacey Brown

Vice President, Human Resources

Stacey Brown is an accomplished leader 20+ years of experience in human resources. Her experience extends to HR people operations in corporate and consumer-facing environments within professional services, hospitality, sales, technology, and restaurant industries. In her current role, Stacey is responsible for leading the overall human resources strategy, talent acquisition, leadership development, diversity and inclusion, organization design and cultural development, compensation and benefits as well as employee relations.

Stacey contributes to the success of organizations by understanding the business goals and driving organizational excellence through agile, aligned HR practices. She is known for strategic planning and seamless execution of actionable ideas and for proactively collaborating with leaders to identify, develop, and implement strategies to ensure that the functions have the right talent, structure, and processes to fuel growth.

Stacey holds an undergraduate degree in communications from the University of Texas at Austin and an MBA from Texas A&M University. She is SHRM-SCP and SPHR credentialed. In her spare time, Stacey enjoys searching for sea glass along the gulf coast and spending time with her senior rescue dog Riley.

Vice President, Human Resources

Linh Lai

Vice President of Accounting

Linh is responsible for the company’s financial functions and centralized hotel support functions. With 20 years of experience in accounting and 13 years in hospitality, Linh has the expertise and insights required to govern all aspects of the company’s accounting and financial matters as well as assist with hotel ownership’s financial needs. Linh has proven to be a well-respected and effective leader, mentoring and developing many talented individuals throughout her career.

Prior to Avion, she served as VP of Accounting at Aimbridge Hospitality. Under her leadership, she directed a team of 40 people, in addition to overseeing 200 hotels and 100 owners at once. During her tenure there, she managed the accounting for some of their largest full-service assets and complex limited-service portfolios. Linh established strong working relationships with ownership groups and leaders of all departments within the organization.

Linh has a life-long passion for personal development, and she recently received her life coach certification in October 2021.

She and her husband, Robert, are the proud parents of two sons. In their spare time, she and her family enjoy biking, hiking, swimming, and playing board games. Linh is also an avid poker player.

Linh Lai

Vice President of Accounting

Linh is responsible for the company’s financial functions and centralized hotel support functions. With 20 years of experience in accounting and 13 years in hospitality, Linh has the expertise and insights required to govern all aspects of the company’s accounting and financial matters as well as assist with hotel ownership’s financial needs. Linh has proven to be a well-respected and effective leader, mentoring and developing many talented individuals throughout her career.

Prior to Avion, she served as VP of Accounting at Aimbridge Hospitality. Under her leadership, she directed a team of 40 people, in addition to overseeing 200 hotels and 100 owners at once. During her tenure there, she managed the accounting for some of their largest full-service assets and complex limited-service portfolios. Linh established strong working relationships with ownership groups and leaders of all departments within the organization.

Linh has a life-long passion for personal development, and she recently received her life coach certification in October 2021.

She and her husband, Robert, are the proud parents of two sons. In their spare time, she and her family enjoy biking, hiking, swimming, and playing board games. Linh is also an avid poker player.

Vice President of Accounting

Joy Gideon

Director of Accounting

Joy is responsible for the company’s centralized hotel support and financial functions. She has 10 years of experience in accounting and eight years in hospitality. Her experience spans across multiple industries, including commercial real estate. In her career, she managed accounting for some of the largest full-service assets and complex limited-service portfolios. Joy has vast experience and expertise with audits, multiple systems migration and integration.

Joy is a proud alum of Texas A&M University-Commerce. She graduated Summa Cum Laude with a bachelor’s degree and MBA.

She enjoys spending time with her family, exploring new locations and trying new cuisine.

Joy Gideon

Director of Accounting

Joy is responsible for the company’s centralized hotel support and financial functions. She has 10 years of experience in accounting and eight years in hospitality. Her experience spans across multiple industries, including commercial real estate. In her career, she managed accounting for some of the largest full-service assets and complex limited-service portfolios. Joy has vast experience and expertise with audits, multiple systems migration and integration.

Joy is a proud alum of Texas A&M University-Commerce. She graduated Summa Cum Laude with a bachelor’s degree and MBA.

She enjoys spending time with her family, exploring new locations and trying new cuisine.

Director of Accounting

Nayab Rasheed

Area Director of Human Resources

Nayab Rasheed is Avion Hospitality’s Area Director of Human Resources. She has served as the Area Director of Human Resources, Assistant General Manager, Front Office Manager, Sales Manager for the last 13 years. Rasheed has scored 100 percent in brand training for the past 15 years and is known for her critical thinking skills and passion for boosting employee morale. She is an adventurer who has traveled to London to see a Texans game and can be found off-roading, swimming with the dolphins or zip-lining. Her next adventure is motherhood, she and her husband are expecting a daughter in the Spring of 2022.

Nayab Rasheed

Area Director of Human Resources

Nayab Rasheed is Avion Hospitality’s Area Director of Human Resources. She has served as the Area Director of Human Resources, Assistant General Manager, Front Office Manager, Sales Manager for the last 13 years. Rasheed has scored 100 percent in brand training for the past 15 years and is known for her critical thinking skills and passion for boosting employee morale. She is an adventurer who has traveled to London to see a Texans game and can be found off-roading, swimming with the dolphins or zip-lining. Her next adventure is motherhood, she and her husband are expecting a daughter in the Spring of 2022.

Area Director of Human Resources

Aaron Perkins

Sr. Revenue Manager

Aaron is a certified revenue management executive with over 10 years of hospitality experience having had property level and corporate management roles. He specializes in full-service and limited service properties working with multiple brands under the Marriott, Hilton and Wyndham umbrellas. When not working Aaron enjoys competing in triathlons, ultra-runs, and formation skydiving.

Aaron Perkins

Sr. Revenue Manager

Aaron is a certified revenue management executive with over 10 years of hospitality experience having had property level and corporate management roles. He specializes in full-service and limited service properties working with multiple brands under the Marriott, Hilton and Wyndham umbrellas. When not working Aaron enjoys competing in triathlons, ultra-runs, and formation skydiving.

Sr. Revenue Manager