Home > Our Company > Information and Press Room > Executive Management - Penny Pritzker, Kevin Poorman, Randal Richardson, Gary Smith, Stephanie Fields, William Sciortino, Meg Ostrom, Jean Solomon, Diane Cook
Executive management.
Penny Pritzker, Chairman and Founder
Penny Pritzker, chairman of Classic Residence by Hyatt, founded the company more than 20 years ago to bring a high level of service and hospitality to luxury senior living. Today, the company is dedicated to providing high-quality environments, services and programs to enrich the lives of older adults.
Penny Pritzker serves as president and CEO of Pritzker Realty Group, the developer of Chicago’s Hyatt Center; chairman of TransUnion Corporation, a credit data and information management business; and chairman of The Parking Spot, an off-site airport parking management company. She sits on the board of Global Hyatt Corporation.
Dedicated to improving Chicago’s public education system, Pritzker is vice chairman of the Chicago Public Education Fund, chairs a Blue Ribbon Task Force for Chicago Public Schools entitled “Leading to Great Principals,” and is a founding board member of Young Women’s Leadership Charter School. Through the Pritzker Traubert Family Foundation, Penny Pritzker and her husband, Dr. Bryan Traubert, are funding three programs designed to benefit Chicago students but that can be extended nationally if validated by results.
A member of the Chicago 2016 Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games, Penny Pritzker also is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Real Estate Roundtable, and the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago. She is a life trustee and former Chairman of the Board of the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art.
Penny Pritzker currently serves as National Finance Chair for the Barack Obama presidential campaign.
Pritzker earned her bachelor's degree in economics from Harvard University and J.D. and M.B.A. degrees from Stanford University. She was admitted to the Illinois bar in 1985.
In his position as vice chairman, Kevin Poorman oversees all legal and policy issues for Classic Residence by Hyatt and other Pritzker-owned companies. He is also an officer and director for multiple Pritzker family-owned entities.
Poorman serves on the board of trustees of Loyola University of New Orleans and is a member of the American, Illinois, and Texas Bar Associations. In law school, he was a member of the Order of the Coif, the Oklahoma Law Review, and the American Indian Law Review. He received his B.S. and J.D. degrees from the University of Oklahoma, graduating from law school with highest honors.
Randal J. Richardson, President
Randy Richardson leads Classic Residence by Hyatt’s strategic growth initiatives, which are designed to enhance the economic value of the company and further position the company as an industry leader. Under his leadership, the company has completed or initiated over $1 billion of new development. Richardson’s operations experience has enabled the company to establish itself as a first-class operator of senior living communities.
Richardson has an extensive background in property development, management, and marketing. Before joining Classic Residence by Hyatt, he served as senior vice president of asset management for General Growth Properties, Inc. In this position, he was responsible for a portfolio of properties located nationwide with a market value in excess of $4 billion. Richardson was responsible for all operational issues as well as several development, acquisition, and expansion projects in his portfolio.
Richardson also serves on several industry trade organizations and earned his bachelor of science degree from Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, majoring in marketing/economics.
Gary Smith, Chief Financial Officer
Gary Smith is responsible for directing the company's fiscal functions and performance, including development and implementation of operational and financial strategies and systems, budgeting, financial analysis, cash management, procurement, capital requirements and funding/cash-flow resources.
Smith has more than 25 years of experience in the real estate industry. Most recently, he served as vice president of finance for Northbrook Corporation in Chicago, an affiliate of JMB Realty. His accomplishments included successful restructurings, negotiating and closing more than $1 billion in financing, and playing a key role in acquisitions and sales. Prior to that, Smith served as portfolio manager at Northbrook. He also has experience as a senior audit manager with KPMG, a Big 4 public accounting firm.
Smith graduated summa cum laude from Northern Illinois University with a bachelor of science degree in accountancy. He is a certified public accountant.
Stephanie W. Fields, Senior Vice President and General Counsel
As senior vice president and general counsel, Stephanie Fields provides legal oversight of Classic Residence by Hyatt's operations, transactions, and risk management.
Prior to joining Classic Residence by Hyatt, Fields served as assistant vice president and senior counsel for Hyatt Hotels Corporation, where she supervised commercial litigation. In this position, she also provided legal representation for the company's risk management, sales, marketing, and public relations departments. Fields has additional experience as an associate at Phillips, Lytle, Hitchcock, Blaine & Huber, L.L.P. in New York City, where she focused on commercial and bankruptcy litigation.
A graduate of Boston University, Fields earned her J.D. from the Boston University School of Law.
William S. Sciortino, Senior Vice President of Operations
As senior vice president of operations, Bill Sciortino oversees Classic Residence by Hyatt's 18 operating communities. His corporate and community-based teams plan and deliver administrative, hospitality (dining, housekeeping and transportation), resident care, lifestyle programming, information technology, and facilities management services. Additionally, he is responsible for defining long-term operating goals and planning for future strategic growth and revenue generation.
Previously, Sciortino served as chief information officer for Classic Residence by Hyatt. As CIO, he created the company's first strategic information systems plan, enhanced its nationwide IT infrastructure, and led the implementation of several core applications used to manage the business today. Sciortino's 20 plus years of experience in real estate and information systems includes chief information officer and chief financial officer positions in the real estate and construction sectors.
Prior to joining Classic Residence by Hyatt, Sciortino served as the first chief information officer for Ecker Enterprises, Inc, a senior manager in Ernst & Young, LLP's real estate technology group and general manager and chief financial officer for Crest Masonry, Inc.
Sciortino graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor of arts degree in business management from Hiram College in Hiram, Ohio.
Meg Ostrom, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing
As senior vice president of sales and marketing, Meg Ostrom is responsible for revenue generation, occupancy, and sales and marketing efforts for Classic Residence by Hyatt’s operating communities and new community developments. She also oversees corporate marketing, brand and new development strategies, and public relations and corporate communications efforts.
Prior to joining Classic Residence by Hyatt, Ostrom held senior business and marketing positions at Sears Holdings Corporation, including the vice president role in several merchandising units. She joined the company in 1993 as national director of marketing to launch the award-winning Softer Side of Sears campaign and led the women’s apparel marketing organization. Her 20 plus years of retail experience include marketing, merchandising and field operations for department store and mass retailers.
She serves on the board of directors for Kids in Distressed Situations (K.I.D.S.), a New York-based children’s charity.
Ostrom earned her bachelor of science degree in design and merchandising from Drexel University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Jean Solomon, Senior Vice President of Development
Jean Solomon oversees development of new Classic Residence by Hyatt communities. Her responsibilities include identifying new project opportunities, pre-construction, design, and construction activities for the company.
Solomon has more than 25 years of real estate development and business management experience and has held several leadership roles involving the design, development, and construction of major mixed-use and residential projects.
Most recently, Solomon served as senior vice president of architecture and design and mixed-use development at Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc., where she managed a department that supported the opening of 50 hotels, provided technical services for over 240 hotel projects, developed five prototype hotels, and provided design services for eight brands. Prior to that, Solomon was responsible for the planning and construction of the Museum of Modern Art’s recent 635,000 sq. ft. expansion and rehabilitation project in Manhattan. For four years she worked as a real estate investment banker at the Praedium Group and Credit Suisse First Boston. She was also president and co-founder of Solomon Equities, a real estate management and development company in New York City that developed over five million sq. ft. of new construction.
Solomon earned her bachelor of architecture degree from Cornell University and master of science degree in architecture and urban design from Columbia University.
Diane Cook, Vice President of Human Resources
As vice president of human resources, Diane Cook oversees Classic Residence’s human resources function, including compensation and benefits, training, leadership development, and recruitment. In addition, she leads Classic Residence by Hyatt communities from coast to coast in effective execution of the employee relations strategy.
During her career, Cook previously served as a regional human resources director at Classic Residence by Hyatt in addition to her 20 years of human resources management and legal experience. Before joining Classic Residence by Hyatt, Cook served as vice president of human resources and general counsel for Cookeville Regional Medical Center near Nashville, Tenn. Cook has also served as human resources director and labor relations counsel for ACS and for Cummins, Inc.
Cook holds a J.D. from the University of Tennessee and practiced law for several years before transitioning to human resources management.
Classic Residence by Hyatt Press Kit