Marriott International said on Wednesday that Stephanie Linnartz, the company’s president and a 25-year veteran, would leave in February to become president and CEO of the clothing brand Under Armour.
“I admire so much about Stephanie — she has this great combination of grit, grace, and humanity — qualities that make her an exceptional leader,” said Marriott CEO Anthony Capuano. “To say she will be missed is an understatement.”
Linnartz led Marriott’s multibillion-dollar digital transformation. Under Armour said it was interested in leveraging her digital expertise as the company seeks to become more digitally nimble.
Some analysts will see the news of Linnartz’s departure as a message to the travel industry that if it doesn’t put women in top roles they will leave for industries that are more welcoming. Others will see it as natural that some executives may seek other jobs after long tenures and a grueling pandemic, as witnessed by IHG saying in October that it would lose its chief financial officer and long-time executive, Paul Edgecliffe-Johnson, to take a comparable role at Flutter Entertainment, a sports betting and gaming operator.
Linnartz has been president of Marriott since 2021, heading the company’s brand, marketing, sales, revenue management, customer engagement, digital, information technology, emerging businesses, and loyalty. She also oversaw the strategic growth of the company’s lodging brands.
“It has been one of the most significant and best experiences of my life to build a career at Marriott,” said Linnartz.
Below is a video of Linnartz talking about her work on adapting technology for the strategic needs of a hotel giant at Marriott during the Skift Tech Forum in San Francisco in 2019.