Samuel E. (Ted) Knighton
Chief Operating Officer
Interstate Hotels & Resorts

Ted Knighton is chief operating officer for Interstate Hotels & Resorts, responsible for overseeing and integrating operations of the company’s nearly 400 hotels worldwide which currently spans 10 countries. Through November 2011 he served as Interstate’s president of hotel operations, a position he held since 2006, responsible for Interstate’s North American portfolio, the company’s largest region.

A 21-year veteran of Interstate, Knighton was previously executive vice president, operations-full service hotel division. Prior to that he was executive vice president of the company’s investment fund/joint venture portfolio. Earlier, he served as executive vice president of operations for Interstate’s Crossroads division, encompassing hotels in the select-service, extended-stay, and mid-market segments.

Prior to joining Interstate Hotels Corp., a predecessor company, in 1990, Knighton was vice president of operations for Radisson Hotels. He also has worked for Hyatt Hotels Corporation.

Knighton holds a bachelor’s degree in hotel administration from Cornell University.