Francis Davidson Co-Founder and CEO Sonder Board Member since: 2014 Francis Davidson is the Co-Founder and CEO of Sonder. He is the visionary behind Sonder's charge to revolutionize hospitality by offering impeccably designed spaces powered by seamless modern technology — all at an attainable price point. Under his leadership, Sonder has scaled globally across 40+ top-tier cities in 10 countries. Despite trying times for the hospitality industry, his leadership during the pandemic resulted in over 200% growth from 2019-2022, and after taking the company public in 2022, Davidson has been focused on achieving positive Free Cash Flow. He has been named one of the 100 most powerful people in global hospitality and was included in Forbes' 30 Under 30. Martin Picard Co-Founder and Chief Real Estate Officer Martin Picard is Sonder's Co-Founder and Chief Real Estate Officer He was previously CEO of Adzura, and prior to that held the roles of Finance Manager at Ned Davis Research and Senior Financial Auditor at Deloitte. Martin is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting from Concordia University. Dominique Bourgault Chief Financial Officer Dominique Bourgault is the Chief Financial Officer at Sonder, overseeing all finance functions of the company including Accounting, FP&A, Treasury, IR, Internal Audit, Financial Operations, Tax, and Procurement. Dom brings 30 years of experience from a variety of roles and functions in organizations ranging from public accounting to technology startups, to growth oriented global ecommerce enterprises. Prior to Sonder, Dom was CFO at Blue Nile, Inc., a pioneer retailer in online diamonds and fine jewelry, where he was instrumental in rebuilding the finance function and systems, steering the capital allocation process through the ups and downs of COVID, preparing the company to go public via SPAC, and ultimately leading the strategic sale of the company to Signet Jewelers. Before Blue Nile, Dom spent 18 years with Expedia Group, serving as CFO of Hotels.com, SVP of Corporate Finance, and CFO of the Retail group, the largest division by revenue and profitability within Expedia Group. Dom received his BBA from École des Hautes Études Commerciales in Montreal, Canada and is a Chartered Professional Accountant in Canada. Deeksha Hebbar Chief Operating Officer Deeksha leads all operations functions including market teams in North America and EMEA, as well as central teams such as supply chain, new project openings, design and development, guest experience, and hospitality. She started at Sonder in 2017 as a Regional General Manager before moving into her current role. Prior to Sonder, she spent several years at Luxe, an on demand parking and valet service acquired by Volvo, in several roles -- including Vice President of Business. She also spent several years as a consultant at McKinsey & Company in their technology/media practice and as a product marketer at Google. She holds a B.S. in Economics and B.S.E in Engineering from Wharton and the School of Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania’s Jerome Fisher Program in Management and Technology and an MBA from Harvard Business School. Katherine Potter General Counsel Katie is General Counsel and Secretary at Sonder. She brings more than two decades of legal and leadership experience to the Sonder team in industries such as commercial real estate, health and wellness, and hospitality. After serving as its General Counsel for almost a decade, Potter was most recently Chief Executive Officer at AlerisLife Inc., a national provider of health and wellness services to older adults, where she guided the organization through the pandemic and diversified revenue while improving the customer experience. Katie also held executive leadership positions at The RMR Group Inc., a leading US alternative asset management company uniquely focused on commercial real estate and related businesses. In addition, Katie is a frequent advisor for organizations across the health and wellness, hospitality, and travel and leisure industries. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Government & Politics from the University of Maryland at College Park, a Juris Doctorate from Syracuse University College of Law and a LL.M. in Banking and Financial Law from Boston University Law School. Outside of work, you’ll find Katie traveling the world, exploring new restaurants, and cheering for Boston sports teams. Shruti Challa Chief Revenue Officer Shruti Challa is Chief Revenue Officer at Sonder. Shruti has played a pivotal role both in the company’s growth and approach to weathering the pandemic, which has hit the travel industry especially hard. Shruti spearheaded Sonder's strategy to weather the height of travel restrictions through an Extended Stay initiative, which allowed the company to maintain RevPAR outperformance of over 2x traditional hotels through 2020. As the future of travel relies on tech more than ever, Sonder has been an early leader in creating a digital guest experience since day one. In addition to her role at Sonder, Shruti is also an avid investor in tech startups boasting investments like SpaceX and Robinhood, a published author in publications like Forbes and TechCrunch, and an advocate for disenfranchised populations. Before landing at Sonder, Shruti was on the leadership teams at two companies that were acquired; one by Booking.com and the other by Groupon. She has a degree in economics from Stanford and (almost) finished her masters in predictive analytics at Northwestern. Arthur Chang Chief of Staff & Vice President of Strategic Initiatives Arthur is a hotel ops leader turned entrepreneur and startup generalist. After launching Sonder in Vancouver in 2015, Arthur led Sonder's global expansion into over 30 markets and now oversees the company's strategic initiatives. Prior to Sonder, Arthur invented and co-founded Soarigami, the most innovative travel product in the world as deemed by IATA and over 1,000 global publications in 50+ countries. Prior to that, Arthur was a Vice President at Coyle Hospitality, overseeing business development, operations, and client care. He has personally helped hundreds of major hotel, restaurant, and travel brands improve their guest experience. While he was pursuing his B.Sc. in Hotel Administration at Cornell, he put himself through school by managing the world-renowned Statler Hotel. Arthur was born in Hong Kong; has lived in multiple international cities, and is now based in Montreal with his family. He is a connoisseur of the violin, Wing Chun Kung Fu, and rocambolesque adventures. Mèlika Carroll Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs Mèlika Carroll is Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs at Sonder. She leads the team responsible for the company’s global strategy for sustainability, corporate communications and public policy. Prior to Sonder, Mèlika worked for several Fortune 500 technology companies. In these roles, she has helped position companies, CEOs and other C-level executives before policymakers in North America, Europe, Asia and Latin America. In addition to her experience in the private sector, Mèlika has worked for national elected officials in Canada and the U.S.; has guest lectured at Harvard Law School, Georgetown University and The Washington Campus; and co-founded the Global Women’s Innovation Network, www.globalwin.org. Mèlika holds a Bachelor in Political Science and Public Administration from the University of Ottawa in Canada and a Masters of European Affairs from the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium. Bonnie Samuels Vice President of Human Resources Bonnie Samuels is responsible for all people strategies and operations, quality of leadership, and organizational design at Sonder. She started her HR career in publishing before moving to the digital industry, where she specialized in the technology and communications space, working internationally with teams across brands such as Apple, Samsung, Adidas, Starbucks, Amazon and eBay. Bonnie joined Sonder in 2019 and is passionate about organizational behavior, and shaping cultures in dynamic human systems. She received her M.A. in Human Resources Management from the University of West London, and her B.A. in Business Studies and Finance from the University of South Wales. Mac Golonka Vice President of Product Mac Golonka is responsible for all product management across technology. His areas of focus include defining Sonder’s overall product strategy, maximizing the impact of tech investments and leading the delivery of product roadmaps. He brings nearly two decades of experience in product leadership, engineering and data science, at USAA, Microsoft and Amazon. Prior to Sonder he was a tech executive at Amazon Video division, responsible for customer growth and monetization. Mac received an MBA from the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University and his undergraduate degree in Computer Science and Mathematics from Texas A&M University.
Francis Davidson Co-Founder and CEO Sonder Board Member since: 2014 Francis Davidson is the Co-Founder and CEO of Sonder. He is the visionary behind Sonder's charge to revolutionize hospitality by offering impeccably designed spaces powered by seamless modern technology — all at an attainable price point. Under his leadership, Sonder has scaled globally across 40+ top-tier cities in 10 countries. Despite trying times for the hospitality industry, his leadership during the pandemic resulted in over 200% growth from 2019-2022, and after taking the company public in 2022, Davidson has been focused on achieving positive Free Cash Flow. He has been named one of the 100 most powerful people in global hospitality and was included in Forbes' 30 Under 30.
Martin Picard Co-Founder and Chief Real Estate Officer Martin Picard is Sonder's Co-Founder and Chief Real Estate Officer He was previously CEO of Adzura, and prior to that held the roles of Finance Manager at Ned Davis Research and Senior Financial Auditor at Deloitte. Martin is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Accounting from Concordia University.
Dominique Bourgault Chief Financial Officer Dominique Bourgault is the Chief Financial Officer at Sonder, overseeing all finance functions of the company including Accounting, FP&A, Treasury, IR, Internal Audit, Financial Operations, Tax, and Procurement. Dom brings 30 years of experience from a variety of roles and functions in organizations ranging from public accounting to technology startups, to growth oriented global ecommerce enterprises. Prior to Sonder, Dom was CFO at Blue Nile, Inc., a pioneer retailer in online diamonds and fine jewelry, where he was instrumental in rebuilding the finance function and systems, steering the capital allocation process through the ups and downs of COVID, preparing the company to go public via SPAC, and ultimately leading the strategic sale of the company to Signet Jewelers. Before Blue Nile, Dom spent 18 years with Expedia Group, serving as CFO of Hotels.com, SVP of Corporate Finance, and CFO of the Retail group, the largest division by revenue and profitability within Expedia Group. Dom received his BBA from École des Hautes Études Commerciales in Montreal, Canada and is a Chartered Professional Accountant in Canada.
Deeksha Hebbar Chief Operating Officer Deeksha leads all operations functions including market teams in North America and EMEA, as well as central teams such as supply chain, new project openings, design and development, guest experience, and hospitality. She started at Sonder in 2017 as a Regional General Manager before moving into her current role. Prior to Sonder, she spent several years at Luxe, an on demand parking and valet service acquired by Volvo, in several roles -- including Vice President of Business. She also spent several years as a consultant at McKinsey & Company in their technology/media practice and as a product marketer at Google. She holds a B.S. in Economics and B.S.E in Engineering from Wharton and the School of Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania’s Jerome Fisher Program in Management and Technology and an MBA from Harvard Business School.
Katherine Potter General Counsel Katie is General Counsel and Secretary at Sonder. She brings more than two decades of legal and leadership experience to the Sonder team in industries such as commercial real estate, health and wellness, and hospitality. After serving as its General Counsel for almost a decade, Potter was most recently Chief Executive Officer at AlerisLife Inc., a national provider of health and wellness services to older adults, where she guided the organization through the pandemic and diversified revenue while improving the customer experience. Katie also held executive leadership positions at The RMR Group Inc., a leading US alternative asset management company uniquely focused on commercial real estate and related businesses. In addition, Katie is a frequent advisor for organizations across the health and wellness, hospitality, and travel and leisure industries. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Government & Politics from the University of Maryland at College Park, a Juris Doctorate from Syracuse University College of Law and a LL.M. in Banking and Financial Law from Boston University Law School. Outside of work, you’ll find Katie traveling the world, exploring new restaurants, and cheering for Boston sports teams.
Shruti Challa Chief Revenue Officer Shruti Challa is Chief Revenue Officer at Sonder. Shruti has played a pivotal role both in the company’s growth and approach to weathering the pandemic, which has hit the travel industry especially hard. Shruti spearheaded Sonder's strategy to weather the height of travel restrictions through an Extended Stay initiative, which allowed the company to maintain RevPAR outperformance of over 2x traditional hotels through 2020. As the future of travel relies on tech more than ever, Sonder has been an early leader in creating a digital guest experience since day one. In addition to her role at Sonder, Shruti is also an avid investor in tech startups boasting investments like SpaceX and Robinhood, a published author in publications like Forbes and TechCrunch, and an advocate for disenfranchised populations. Before landing at Sonder, Shruti was on the leadership teams at two companies that were acquired; one by Booking.com and the other by Groupon. She has a degree in economics from Stanford and (almost) finished her masters in predictive analytics at Northwestern.
Arthur Chang Chief of Staff & Vice President of Strategic Initiatives Arthur is a hotel ops leader turned entrepreneur and startup generalist. After launching Sonder in Vancouver in 2015, Arthur led Sonder's global expansion into over 30 markets and now oversees the company's strategic initiatives. Prior to Sonder, Arthur invented and co-founded Soarigami, the most innovative travel product in the world as deemed by IATA and over 1,000 global publications in 50+ countries. Prior to that, Arthur was a Vice President at Coyle Hospitality, overseeing business development, operations, and client care. He has personally helped hundreds of major hotel, restaurant, and travel brands improve their guest experience. While he was pursuing his B.Sc. in Hotel Administration at Cornell, he put himself through school by managing the world-renowned Statler Hotel. Arthur was born in Hong Kong; has lived in multiple international cities, and is now based in Montreal with his family. He is a connoisseur of the violin, Wing Chun Kung Fu, and rocambolesque adventures.
Mèlika Carroll Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs Mèlika Carroll is Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs at Sonder. She leads the team responsible for the company’s global strategy for sustainability, corporate communications and public policy. Prior to Sonder, Mèlika worked for several Fortune 500 technology companies. In these roles, she has helped position companies, CEOs and other C-level executives before policymakers in North America, Europe, Asia and Latin America. In addition to her experience in the private sector, Mèlika has worked for national elected officials in Canada and the U.S.; has guest lectured at Harvard Law School, Georgetown University and The Washington Campus; and co-founded the Global Women’s Innovation Network, www.globalwin.org. Mèlika holds a Bachelor in Political Science and Public Administration from the University of Ottawa in Canada and a Masters of European Affairs from the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium.
Bonnie Samuels Vice President of Human Resources Bonnie Samuels is responsible for all people strategies and operations, quality of leadership, and organizational design at Sonder. She started her HR career in publishing before moving to the digital industry, where she specialized in the technology and communications space, working internationally with teams across brands such as Apple, Samsung, Adidas, Starbucks, Amazon and eBay. Bonnie joined Sonder in 2019 and is passionate about organizational behavior, and shaping cultures in dynamic human systems. She received her M.A. in Human Resources Management from the University of West London, and her B.A. in Business Studies and Finance from the University of South Wales.
Mac Golonka Vice President of Product Mac Golonka is responsible for all product management across technology. His areas of focus include defining Sonder’s overall product strategy, maximizing the impact of tech investments and leading the delivery of product roadmaps. He brings nearly two decades of experience in product leadership, engineering and data science, at USAA, Microsoft and Amazon. Prior to Sonder he was a tech executive at Amazon Video division, responsible for customer growth and monetization. Mac received an MBA from the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University and his undergraduate degree in Computer Science and Mathematics from Texas A&M University.