Tags: sorenson | marriott | pancreatic cancer | obituary

Arne Sorenson, First Outsider Leader of Marriott, Dies at 62

Arne Sorenson, First Outsider Leader of Marriott, Dies at 62
(Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Tuesday, 16 February 2021 09:37 AM EST

Arne Sorenson, the first non-family member to be chief executive officer of Marriott International Inc., the world’s largest hotel chain, has died. He was 62.

Sorenson died on Feb. 15, the company said in a statement on Tuesday. He disclosed a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer in May 2019, saying doctors had caught the disease early, and that he intended to continue working while undergoing treatments.

Earlier this month, Marriott said that Sorenson would limit his work schedule to undergo demanding cancer treatments.

Stephanie Linnartz, 52, group president for the company’s consumer operations, technology and emerging businesses, and Tony Capuano, 55, group president for global development, design and operations services, will continue to oversee day-to-day operations, the company said.

The board expects to appoint a new CEO within the next two weeks, according to the statement.

Sorenson took over as CEO in 2012 from J.W. “Bill” Marriott Jr. as only the third person to hold that title since the company was founded in 1927 by J. Willard Marriott. After leaving the practice of law in 1996, Sorenson worked for the Bethesda-based company the rest of his life.

In his biggest transaction, the former merger and acquisition lawyer managed the $14 billion takeover in 2016 of Starwood Hotels & Resorts, which included the Sheraton, W and Westin chains.

The deal made Marriott the industry’s largest player and pushing competitors like Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. and Accor SA to add new brands in a bid to keep up.

“He’s a global leader, a man with a conscience, a person who connects with his people,” Fred Hassan, former chairman of Bausch & Lomb Inc., said when he announced that Chief Executive magazine had named Sorenson CEO of the year for 2019.

The Starwood acquisition gave Marriott a popular loyalty program. Marriott also inherited a reservation database that was hacked. The cyber-attack, which was discovered in 2018 and involved the data breach of hundreds of millions of customers, created a public-relations crisis for Sorenson, who took responsibility for it and instituted new security measures as he dealt with consumer lawsuits.

The year he took over as CEO, Sorenson told the Miami Herald that his biggest challenge was how to respond to global growth in the competitive hotel business. The purchase of Starwood was a response, but it brought with it hard work beyond shoring up the reservation system. Key among the tasks was how to re-brand the aging Sheraton line of hotels, which made up about half the acquired company, while continuing its customer-friendly tradition.

Sorenson also had to respond to the burgeoning home-rental business to compete with companies such as Airbnb Inc., whose customers were attracted by lower prices. He instituted pilot home-rental programs in Europe and in 2019 in U.S. resort cities.

Arne Morris Sorenson was born in October 1958 in Tokyo while his parents, Morris and Dorothy, were in Japan as Lutheran missionaries. He moved to the U.S. at age seven, received a bachelor’s degree from Luther College in Iowa and earned a law degree from the University of Minnesota. After a judicial clerkship, he joined the Latham and Watkins law firm in Washington as an associate specializing in M&A deals.

He met Bill Marriot while advising the company on a legal case, and Marriott invited him to join Marriott in 1996. He was worked as senior vice president of business development and was promoted to executive vice president and chief financial officer two years later.

He assumed the additional title of president of continental European lodging in January 2003. In 2009, he became president and chief operating officer. When he was named CEO, he retained the title of president.

He was married to Ruth Sorenson. They lived in Chevy Chase, Maryland, and had four children: Astri, Esther, Isaac and Lars.

© Copyright 2025 Bloomberg News. All rights reserved.


StreetTalk
Arne Sorenson, the first non-family member to be chief executive officer of Marriott International Inc., the world's largest hotel chain, has died.
sorenson, marriott, pancreatic cancer, obituary
629
2021-37-16
Tuesday, 16 February 2021 09:37 AM
Newsmax Media, Inc.

Sign up for Newsmax’s Daily Newsletter

Receive breaking news and original analysis - sent right to your inbox.

(Optional for Local News)
Privacy: We never share your email address.
Join the Newsmax Community
Read and Post Comments
Please review Community Guidelines before posting a comment.
 
Get Newsmax Text Alerts
TOP

Newsmax, Moneynews, Newsmax Health, and Independent. American. are registered trademarks of Newsmax Media, Inc. Newsmax TV, and Newsmax World are trademarks of Newsmax Media, Inc.

NEWSMAX.COM
MONEYNEWS.COM
© Newsmax Media, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
NEWSMAX.COM
MONEYNEWS.COM
© Newsmax Media, Inc.
All Rights Reserved