Her Story
About Christina
Christina Gambini is a distinguished hospitality executive with more than 25 years of experience driving commercial growth, strategic partnerships, and global sales transformation across the hotel and travel industries. As Vice President of Global Sales at Hyatt, Christina leads the company's worldwide enterprise and corporate sales strategy, overseeing Hyatt's top global accounts, transient corporate business, and luxury, lifestyle, and leisure sales channels. Managing a multibillion-dollar revenue portfolio, Christina is recognized for developing innovative commercial strategies, strengthening customer relationships, and building high-performing global teams that consistently deliver measurable business results.
Christina began her career immediately after high school at the front desk of the Salisbury Hotel in New York City, where she developed a deep appreciation for hospitality and guest service. She steadily advanced through reservations, concierge, revenue management, sales, and marketing leadership roles before spending a decade on the travel agency side of the business, where she built and managed global hotel programs while serving on advisory boards for leading luxury brands, including Four Seasons, Ritz-Carlton, and Park Hyatt. Returning to Hyatt, Christina held successive leadership positions overseeing luxury, lifestyle, and leisure sales across the Americas, followed by regional sales operations for Latin America and the Caribbean, before assuming her current global leadership role.
Throughout her career, Christina has earned a reputation for relationship-driven leadership, commercial excellence, and an unwavering commitment to developing future leaders. She champions an inclusive leadership style that empowers teams, encourages collaboration, and creates opportunities for others to grow. Recognized with Hyatt's Inclusive Leadership Award, Christina credits her success to her determination to embrace challenges outside her comfort zone and to the mentorship of industry leader Barry Lieben, whose guidance broadened her understanding of the travel agency business. Today, Christina continues to shape the future of hospitality through customer-centric innovation, strategic partnerships, and a passion for mentoring the next generation of industry professionals.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Christina
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to my drive and willingness to keep learning. Although I'm naturally an introvert, every role I've taken has pushed me outside my comfort zone, helping me grow, expand my knowledge, and continuously improve.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I’ve received came from my mentor, Barry Liben. He believed in helping people become their best and took the time to mentor me beyond my role, exposing me to different aspects of the agency business. His guidance taught me the value of continuous learning, curiosity, and investing in others.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
My advice to young women entering this industry is to never give up. While women may still face unique challenges, it is absolutely possible to build a successful career while also embracing other important roles in life. Most importantly, remember to take care of yourself—your well-being is the foundation for everything else you hope to achieve.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
One of the biggest opportunities and challenges in my field is the rapid advancement of AI and emerging technologies, which are transforming the way we work. At the same time, attracting and retaining the right talent remains a challenge, particularly in the hospitality industry, which continues to recover from the workforce disruptions caused by the pandemic.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values that matter most to me are family, balance, and being present for the people I love. While I am deeply committed to my career, my greatest priority is being a wife and mother to my two boys. Whenever I'm not traveling for work, I make it a point to be there for them, including picking them up from school each day.
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