Jan-Paul Kroese, FIH

Global Hospitality Executive | General Manager | Hotelier | Senior Events & Project Management | Team Leadership | Facility Management | Director Netherlands Pavilion, Expo 2025 Osaka, Japan

Amsterdam Area

About

Global hospitality executive with nearly 30 years of international experience across 4 continents, leading diverse and complex operations in luxury hotels, events, and diplomatic environments. Proven track record as General Manager of iconic 5-star hotels and as Director of a €27 million international government pavilion (Expo 2025, Osaka Japan). Strong management skills, strategic commercial insight, and cultural awareness built through tenures in The Netherlands, UK, USA, Kenya, China, and Japan. Entrepreneurial, diplomatic, and commercially driven. Recognized for building and enabling high-performance teams, repositioning prestigious brands, and delivering results in complex stakeholder environments. Currently project lead of a €19 million hotel development project in the Amsterdam metropolitan area.

Experience

  • JPK Consulting - hospitality & beyond (7 yrs 6 mos)
    • Consultant hospitality & beyond
      Oct 2019 - Present · 6 yrs 9 mos

      As a senior freelance hospitality executive, I deliver comprehensive management and consulting services tailored to the wider hospitality sector, often on a project or contract (interim) basis. My focus includes managing (hotel & event) operations, leading (event) projects, and facilitating pre-openings from design/development phase until post-opening. Furthermore I step into leadership roles to drive strategic projects. An example was my appointment as Director of the Netherlands Pavilion at Expo 2025, Osaka, Japan.

    • Project lead development new hotel / short stay, U Vastgoed
      Jan 2026 - Present · 6 mos

      Currently I am contracted as project lead for a new hotel / short stay construction in the Amsterdam region. This experience has so far honed my skills in project management, marketing and operational strategy.

    • Strategic Advisor Expansion Hotel Division, U Vastgoed
      Sep 2023 - May 2024 · 9 mos

      In this full-time role, I prepared adding a hotel portfolio to the business mix of U Vastgoed (Real Estate Development & Investment Company), on a freelance project basis. Some potentially great succeses are still in the pipeline to grow and come to fruition over the next period.

  • Director Netherlands Pavilion Expo 2025 Osaka at Netherlands Enterprise Agency
    May 2024 - Dec 2025 · 1 yr 8 mos

    For this exciting project, together with a small project team, I was responsible for the construction process, contract management and the organization & operations of the Netherlands Pavilion at the 2025 Expo in Osaka, Japan. The first period I was based in The Hague, and from October 2024 onwards, I was detached to the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and based in Japan.

  • Consul, Netherlands Consulate General in Osaka, Japan at Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken
    Oct 2024 - Oct 2025 · 1 yr 1 mo

    Between October 2024 and October 2025, I was based as a Consul at the Netherlands Consulate General in Osaka, Japan on a detachment from RVO. This was part of my role as Director for the Netherlands pavilion at Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan.

  • General Manager at Amstel Hotel
    Aug 2018 - Nov 2019 · 1 yr 4 mos

  • General Manager at Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, A Belmond Hotel
    2015 - 2018 · 3 yrs