Choice Hotels Names Dominic Dragisich President and CEO

# What happened Choice Hotels International's Board of Directors has appointed Dominic Dragisich as president and chief executive officer and named him to the Board, effective August 31, 2026. He had been serving as interim CEO since May 20, 2026.

# Why the Board chose Dragisich The Board says it ran a comprehensive search and reviewed both internal and external candidates. They selected Dragisich based on nearly a decade of roles at Choice Hotels and his performance while interim CEO. The chairman, Stewart Bainum Jr., highlighted Dragisich's progress advancing strategic priorities and building a performance-driven culture during the interim period.

# Dragisich's background at Choice Hotels Dragisich's roles at Choice Hotels include chief financial officer, executive vice president of operations and chief global brand officer, and chief growth and strategy officer. The company credits him with helping lead major acquisitions and strategic initiatives that expanded Choice's portfolio and competitive position, and that created long-term value for franchisees and shareholders.

Before Choice Hotels, Dragisich was CFO at XO Communications and held senior finance and operations roles at Marriott International, NII Holdings, and Deloitte Consulting.

# What Dragisich says he'll focus on Dragisich framed the next phase as building on existing momentum. He identified specific priorities: disciplined execution, accelerating growth, strengthening brands, and capitalizing on commercial investments to support franchisees and improve guest experiences.

# Immediate context and timing Dragisich became interim CEO on May 20, 2026, after the prior CEO's departure. The Board's announcement makes that interim arrangement permanent starting Aug. 31, 2026.

# What this means for stakeholders Franchisees: The company emphasizes continuing initiatives intended to create long-term value for franchise owners and to support operations and brand strength. Dragisich's record in growth and strategic work as reasons he can drive long-term shareholder value. Dragisich's track record on talent development and a performance-oriented culture.

# Bottom line Choice Hotels selected an internal candidate with broad company experience and recent interim leadership to carry forward current strategy and growth plans. The change is immediate in governance terms (Board seat) and operational terms (permanent CEO as of Aug. 31, 2026), and the new CEO signals a continued focus on execution, brand strength, pipeline quality, and franchisee and shareholder value.