Kong brings more than 20 years of experience to the legendary hotel
CHICAGO – (April 1, 2024) — Hilton Chicago is pleased to announce the appointment of Misoon Kong as general manager. She is the first woman to hold the position at the hotel in the property’s 97 years of history, rounding out National Women’s History Month. In her new role, she will oversee all aspects of hotels operations and provide comprehensive leadership to uphold Hilton’s commitment to delivering exceptional guest services and achieving financial success for the 1,544 guest room hotel, which features more than 234,000 sq. ft. of meeting space. Most recently, Kong served as complex general manager of Juniper Hotel Cupertino, Curio Collection by Hilton and DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel San Jose, where she was responsible for optimizing hotel revenue and enhancing the guest stay experience.
Kong brings more than 20 years of hotel industry knowledge and expertise to her new role at Hilton Chicago. She has a successful history running hotels in the U.S. and Korea, with a diverse background in hotel operations, sales and marketing, rooms and revenue management, complemented by broad experience in leadership positions at resort, airport, and luxury hotels. Her tenure as a hotelier includes additional postings at JW Marriott Seoul, Marriott Seattle, and Marina del Rey by Marriott.
In 2022, Kong was recognized by Hilton and the California Hotel & Lodging Association as “Outstanding General Manager of the Year.” During her career, Kong has been the recipient of numerous awards and accolades including recognition for operations excellence, best profitability, environmental efforts, and has been named a recipient of and first-time recipient for California Hotel Lodging Association’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Award.
“It is a great honor and milestone to be appointed as the first female general manager at Hilton Chicago and cemented within its long history, especially during National Women’s History Month,” said Kong. “I am excited to take this step into the next iteration of my career with Hilton and continue to lead with Conrad Hilton’s vision of spreading the light and warmth of hospitality, while fostering the already strong foundation of diversity, equity and inclusion with the Hilton Chicago team. I look forward to leading the operations of this highly regarded hotel in Chicago, and to sharing my passion for mentoring and development, creating revered guest experiences and exceeding ownership expectations.”
Kong holds a bachelor’s degree in Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management from Penn State University. She loves mentoring upcoming leaders in the hospitality industry and continues to have many mentees. In her leisure time, Kong enjoys spending time with her daughter Katie, who is following in her footsteps, perusing a hotelier career in sales. An avid dog aficionado, she is eager to begin exploring Chicago with her 160 pound Saint Bernard, Noah, who has been bestowed the honor of Hilton Chicago’s resident VIP (very important pup).
For more information about Hilton Chicago, please visit Hilton.com. Read more about Hilton Hotels & Resorts at stories.hilton.com.
