Laurie Burns
Board Member | Division President | C-Suite Executive | Strategy | P&L | Real Estate
- Role
- Independent Trustee (Board Member), Chair of Compensation Committee at Service Properties Trust
- Location
- Orlando, FL, US
- LinkedIn followers
- 500 followers
About Laurie Burns
Board Member, Division President, and C-Suite executive officer with 30+ years of experience in the restaurant and hospitality industry and a record of success leading a business unit and accelerating growth. Expertise in various business models and capital allocation strategies, real estate development strategy and implementation, turnarounds, and enhancing operational execution/brand positioning.Select AccomplishmentsAs Chief Development Officer for Darden Restaurants (2014 – 2016), optimized real estate value; completed spin-off of 424 properties into a separate, publicly traded REIT (NYSE: FCPT) and sold 64 properties individually as sale leasebacks which enabled retirement of ~$1Bn of debt. As SVP, Specialty Restaurant Group Strategic Platform & Development (2012 – 2014), drove total sales growth of 58% in 2013 (including the Yard House acquisition) and 25% in 2014 by opening 24 and 27 new restaurants respectively across the SRG brands. As President of Darden’s Bahama Breeze business unit (20••••12), was charged with the brand’s turnaround at a time when sales were declining and operating losses were widening. Quickly achieved profitability (contributing 25% of Darden’s operating profit growth in year two) and improved restaurant-level returns by 500+ basis points by clarifying the brand positioning and enhancing operational execution, enabling accelerated growth of the business.Responsible for the opening of over 600 restaurants (QSR through fine dining) and 27 limited service hotels. Specialties: turnaround, P&L, transformational leadership, division president, brand positioning, real estate, development, strategy, brand positioning, REIT, sale lease backs
Experience
Independent Trustee (Board Member), Chair of Compensation Committee
Feb 2020 — Present · Newton, MA, US
Service Properties Trust (Nasdaq: SVC) is a real estate investment trust, or REIT, which owns a diverse portfolio of hotels and net lease service and necessity-based retail properties across the United States and in Puerto Rico and Canada with 185 distinct brands across 24 industries.
Education
University of Florida
Bachelor of Science in Business Administration
University of Florida
Master of Business Administration (MBA)
Find verified contacts for anyone on LinkedIn
Unifers gives sales teams verified emails and direct dials, enriched profiles, and outreach that lands in the inbox.
Free plan included · No credit card required
This profile is compiled from publicly available professional sources. Unifers is not affiliated with or endorsed by LinkedIn. Request removal of this profile.