Erin R. Mobley-McMillan
Erin R. Mobley-McMillan is a hospitality sales leader and Director of Sales for Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants with more than 20 years of experience driving revenue growth, market expansion, and high-performing group sales strategy. In her current role, she leads commercial performance for a 217-room boutique hotel with IHG Hotels & Resorts/Kimpton, overseeing total group sales strategy, pipeline development, key account management, and revenue optimization. Known for her analytical approach and strong commercial leadership, she has consistently delivered measurable results across competitive hospitality markets while strengthening client partnerships and elevating brand presence.
Erin’s career journey reflects a purposeful evolution shaped by both passion and foundational learning experiences. She originally aspired to become a menswear fashion designer and attended the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York to pursue that goal. While balancing school and work, she supported herself at a country club, where an influential mentor introduced her to the hospitality industry and its dynamic private club environment. After graduation, she relocated to Charlotte and began her career with Hyatt Hotels Corporation. There, a pivotal early experience came when a general manager, after hiring her into sales, required her to first work in a server role—teaching her the importance of understanding the business from both back-of-house and front-of-house operations. Though unexpected, that experience became the foundation of her client-facing success and long-term leadership approach.
Throughout her career, Erin has held progressive leadership roles with Hyatt Hotels, Starwood Hotels, and later within the Marriott ecosystem, building deep expertise in sales strategy, operations, and customer engagement. She attributes much of her growth to mentors who recognized her potential and placed her in roles that challenged her to expand both operational and leadership capabilities. For the past nine years, she has thrived with Kimpton Hotels, where the company’s culture and core values have allowed her to fully step into her authentic leadership style. Erin is known for her ability to balance strategic business decisions with genuine relationship-building, empowering teams, and delivering exceptional service to both internal and external clients—an approach that continues to define her impact and success in the hospitality industry.
• The State University of New York (SUNY), Fashion Institute of Technology - BSBA in Marketing Management
• The State University of New York (SUNY), Fashion Institute of Technology - AS, Fashion Buying & Merchandising
• Diamond Circle Award for IHG (top producer)
• Charlotte Hospitality Ambassador of the Year
• Leader of the Year (twice at Kimpton)
• Manager of the Quarter (at Hilton)
• National Coalition of Black Meeting Planners
• NAACP
• Active in church hosting committees for large conventions
• National Baptist Convention host committee
• Ambassador Program for citywide events including Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority events
What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to the foundational lesson I learned early in my career when a general manager at Hyatt Hotels hired me for a sales position but started me as a server in the restaurant. He told me that to truly sell the business, I needed to know it from the back of the house to the front of the house, and that the client-facing contact I'd experience would catapult me to where I wanted to be. I didn't want to hear that at the time, but having that operational experience became the backbone for my success in selling and dealing with clients. I'm eternally grateful to him for that. I've also had really good mentors and bosses along the way who saw my potential and put me in positions where I could grow and learn - not just how to deal with customers, but also how to work with internal clients. I think that's one of the things that makes me successful. But where I've really been able to thrive is at Kimpton Hotels, where I've been for nearly 9 years now. Their core values of allowing me to be my authentic self has really enabled my success - not just with sales and in leadership roles, but with developing teams. I can be a little quirky, but as long as I'm authentic and make good business decisions and take care of my internal customers, it allows me to take care of the external customers. I just love what I'm able to do and who I've become since joining Kimpton.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I ever received came from a general manager at Hyatt Hotels early in my career. I had just graduated with a marketing degree and interviewed for a sales position. He hired me on the spot, and I was thrilled thinking I was going into sales right away. But then he took me to get a server uniform for the restaurant. Before he left, he turned to me and said, 'You have great potential, but in order to learn this business and to sell it, you're gonna need to know it from the back of the house to the front of the house. That client-facing contact that you'll see in the restaurant will catapult you to the level that you want to be at.' I didn't want to hear that at the time, but it was the best thing that anyone could have ever done for me. Knowing the operational side and having that operational experience became the backbone, the foundation, for selling and dealing with clients. I'm eternally grateful to him for that lesson.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
My advice to young women is that you can have a successful career in any field that you choose, regardless of what you think you're going to go into while being in college. I went to school for fashion - I wanted to be a menswear fashion designer and take the world by storm. But while working at a country club during college, there was one general manager who changed my idea and gave me a bright, wonderful career in hospitality instead. I also want young women to know that it's important to have someone tangible and approachable who can impact their lives. My youngest niece is 8, turning 9 next month, and she's biracial. My brother said something very important - that while we can give her every opportunity, one thing we can't do for her is show her what it takes and what it looks like to be a successful African American woman. So I want to model the way for her and any other young lady, whether they're 8, 28, or 58 like me - to have someone that is tangible to them, that is approachable and open to maybe impacting their lives, whether it's just a conversation, a mentorship, or just a lunch. That's important to me.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenge and opportunity in my field right now is staying nimble and flexible in an ever-changing market. The market has changed since COVID, it changed since last year, and it changed since the end of last year. We have to be fluid - we cannot be rigid in our business decisions. We can't rely on 'well, you know what, that really worked for us two years ago, let's just keep with it.' You have to be nimble and flexible, and you have to be open. You have to know the market. My key role is working closely with the director of sales and marketing at the hotel from a positioning and potential perspective, and also from a revenue aspect, making sure that we're taking key factors into account so that the right pieces of business we book into the hotel impact the total asset. It's about being adaptable and understanding that what worked before may not work now, and being willing to adjust our approach accordingly.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values most important to me are authenticity, mentorship, and family. In my work life, being able to be my authentic self has been crucial to my success at Kimpton. I can be a little quirky, but as long as I'm authentic and make good business decisions and take care of my internal customers, it enables me to thrive. I love being able to drive sales - it's my passion - and I love the hunt, the thrill, and showcasing the property. But equally important is mentoring and developing the associates who report to me. I love being able to show my associates the basics, the ABCs of selling and doing business, because you don't know what you don't know. I'm glad I'm able to model the way for them. One of my proudest recent moments was helping one of my associates who wanted to do more - we found the right position for him, and now he's working as a regional person in LA. Seeing him achieve his goals is one of my greatest achievements. In my personal life, family is everything. I love spending time with my nieces and nephews - they've become an extension of my household and are amazing people. And I love spending time with my dad, who just celebrated his 80th birthday. We gave him a big party that was supposed to be for 20 people but wound up being 83 because he's such an amazing person. I also have a very important role in my youngest niece's life as her godmother, and I take that very seriously. I want to model the way for her and show her what it takes and looks like to be a successful African American woman.