The Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre has appointed two new top executives - Debra Simkiss joins as director of operations and Ekta Gandhi has been named marketing and communications manager.

With over 25 years in the hospitality and convention industry, Simkiss brings with her a wealth of knowledge from game lodges to luxury hotels to convention centres. Her career took a turn to the convention business with the opening of the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa in 2000. She worked her way from senior event co-ordinator to event manager and then in 2008 to the executive role of director of operations until 2017. During this period she was directly involved in some of the largest events in the centre including the World Summit on Sustainable Development, The Arnold Classic, Southern African Development Commission and The United Nations World Tourism Organisation Summit and has rubbed shoulders with some of the world’s most powerful leaders.

Simkiss' core values focus on empowering others and a commitment to service excellence. Simkiss has been recognised in the industry as she was named one of the “Top 40 Women in Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Events” in 2016. Simkiss also has a certification in business coaching and looks forward to using these skills in her new postion.

Gandhi, who tkes on the role of marketing and communications manager, brings over eight years of experience in the tourism industry. Working in luxury hotels and resorts, Gandhi brings with her a solid understanding of marketing and communications within Oman. She moved to Oman in 2013 and joined the award-winning Chedi Muscat as its marketing and communications executive. In 2015, Gandhi joined the pre-opening team for Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar Resort as their yougest department head in the entire team, and successfully opened the resort as its marketing and communications manager, attracting media recognition from all corners of the globe.

In her role at the Oman Convention & Exhibiton Centre, Gandhi will be responsible for overseeing the marketing department and supporting the Business Development team. A Canadian national of Indian origin, Gandhi has a Bachelor’s degree in Hospitality Management from the Insititut Vatel in Nîmes, France, as well as further Hotel Mangement diplomas from Montreal, Canada including the prestigious Canadian Millenium scholarship based on merit for her leadership skills.

OCEC development is owned by Omran, Oman’s Tourism Development Company and operated by AEG Ogden. The venue set to unveil a tiered theatre with 3,200 seats, a 450-seat auditorium, two ballrooms for banquets for up to 1,200 guests, 20 meeting rooms with a capacity of up to 360 delegates, hospitality suites and a VIP pavilion. - TradeArabia News Service