According to WCG founder and CEO Patrick Nesbitt, the company's naming of Upshaw as COO comes as WCG, over the last several months, has sharpened its focus in an effort toward "maximizing our efficiency on all levels." Nesbitt says in a statement, "Given the current economic conditions, we believed it was necessary to hone our attentions on operational efficiency. The time has also come to enhance our sales and marketing programs while putting more emphasis to our e-commerce capabilities."

Upshaw, who was introduced by Nesbitt and his longtime associate Lou Weckstein at Windsor's recent quarterly board meeting, started his hotel career with Marriott International Hotel Corp. For more than 10 years he worked primarily in food and beverage as restaurant manager and food and beverage director. From there, he became food and beverage director with the Mariner Corp., which was a hotel owner/operator franchisee that operated under Marriott, Hilton and a number of other major flags.

After Mariner, Upshaw worked for the Durbin Cos., a private, family-owned owner/operator of branded franchise hotels, much like Windsor. Durbin's founder was Jim Durbin, who was president of Marriott International for 25 years. During his eight years with Durbin Cos., Upshaw helped grow the portfolio to 22 hotels. When it merged with Crestline Hotels, Upshaw started as regional vice president and later became senior vice president. During his time with Crestline, its portfolio grew from 32 to 69 properties.