January 23, 2012

Head of Four Seasons to give Leaders + Legends lecture

Kathleen Taylor, president and chief executive officer of the Four Seasons Hotel and Resorts, is the featured speaker for the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School’s Leaders + Legends lecture series on Wednesday, Jan. 25. The event will take place at 7:30 a.m. in the Legg Mason Tower in Harbor East.

Taylor, who joined Four Seasons in 1989 as corporate counsel, was appointed to her current positions in 2010, and oversees all aspects of the company’s global operations. In her more than two decades with Four Seasons, she has proved a linchpin in its success, with the company now comprising 85 hotels and resorts in 35 countries, and more than 50 projects in either the planning or development stage.

Prior to assuming the role of CEO, Taylor was chief operating officer. She also served for seven years as president of worldwide business operations, overseeing hotel and residential product design, construction and development activities; managing the company’s acquisition and corporate planning; and overseeing corporate finance and legal affairs, human resources and administration.

Previously, Taylor practiced corporate securities and competition law at Goodmans LLP, including a secondment to the Ontario Securities Commission.

Recognition accorded Taylor during her career includes the Women’s Executive Network: Canada’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women Award, 2011; HOTELS magazine Corporate Hotelier of the World, 2011; International Society of Hospitality Consultants Pioneer Award, 2011; Hennick Centre for Business and Law Medal for Career Achievement, 2010; Forbes 25 Most Influential Women in Travel, 2008; Canadian General Counsel Award for Business Achievement, 2006; and Schulich Award for Outstanding Executive Leadership, 2001.

Taylor holds two degrees from York University in Toronto: a law degree from the Osgoode Hall Law School and an MBA from the Schulich School of Business.

She is a director of the Royal Bank of Canada, serving as chair of its Human Resources Committee and a member of its Audit Committee. Her community affiliations include serving on the boards of The Hospital for Sick Children Foundation in Toronto and the United Way of Toronto, and as benefactor of the Harris-Taylor Reading Room at York University’s Osgoode Hall Law Library and of the University of Toronto Jack and Adrienne Taylor Scholarship for Undergraduate Students.

The Leaders + Legends lecture series, which features today’s most influential business and public policy leaders addressing topics of global interest and importance, is designed to engage business and community professionals in an examination of the most compelling issues and challenges facing society today.

Admission to the lecture, which includes breakfast, is $35. To register and for more information, go to carey.jhu.edu/leadersandlegends.