Veteran hospitality executive brings more than 25 years of experience to support Ocra’s expansion of AI-powered hotel parking revenue management solution

 

Chicago, IL – Ocra announced the appointment of James Hansen as Head of Partnerships. Hansen will be instrumental in leading strategic partnerships as the company scales its AI-powered parking revenue management platform across the hotel industry.

Hansen brings more than 25 years of experience in hospitality and hotel management, with a career spanning sales, marketing, operations, and finance. He has a proven track record of exceeding revenue, growth, profitability, and return objectives for hotel asset owners while driving strategic partnerships and market expansion.

Most recently, Hansen focused on strategic growth initiatives as Vice President of Development at Reeco, where he drove unprecedented growth in ARR and customer acquisition while positioning the company as the leading AI-driven procure-to-pay solution in the industry. Prior, he served as Chief Development Officer at OTH Hotels & Resorts, where he led the growth and development of a portfolio of 15+ hotels across the United States. His previous roles include leadership positions at Hotel Equities, Kolter Hospitality, and Interstate Hotels & Resorts, where he developed deep insight into hotel ownership, management, and operational realities.

In his new role at Ocra, Hansen will focus on building and expanding partnerships with hotel asset owners as Ocra propels into its high-growth phase. His appointment underscores Ocra’s commitment to helping hotels unlock incremental, high-margin revenue from underutilized parking assets through AI-powered revenue management and global inventory distribution.

“After meeting James at an industry conference a few years ago, it was clear that he understood the value Ocra drives in the hospitality sector,” says Ethan Glass, CEO & Co-Founder of Ocra. “We first had the pleasure of working with James when he was at OTH Hotels & Resorts as a client, then we saw the incredible impact he made on the technology side at Reeco. When the opportunity presented itself for us to bring James on board, it was a no brainer. He’s been an extraordinary champion from the start, and we couldn’t be more excited to have him on our team.”

“I’m beyond excited to join such an elite team of thought leaders and a company that is truly leading innovation in the space,” says James Hansen, Head of Partnerships. “I’ve been an advocate for Ocra for nearly two years now. Parking is a massive ancillary revenue stream and profit center for hotels, and one that’s been overlooked for too long. I’m excited to help the industry recognize and maximize this untapped opportunity to grow NOI.”

Hansen’s hire indicates momentum for Ocra expanding its footprint in the hotel sector, partnering with assets to unlock parking as a high-margin revenue stream through hands-on revenue management, sophisticated software, robust platform integrations, and AI-driven pricing strategies.

About Ocra
Ocra is an AI-powered Revenue Management System (RMS) and Global Distribution System (GDS) purpose-built for hotel parking assets. Hotels use Ocra to sell underutilized parking inventory to non-guest customers using online marketplaces (“parking OTAs”) to find parking near airports, venues, and other hotspots. Ocra’s team of parking revenue management experts drives growth without adding labor or disrupting operations, helping hotels increase net operating income (NOI) while never compromising guest parking.

20+ hotel groups partner with Ocra to achieve optimum yield of their parking assets – including MCR, Starwood Capital Group, Aimbridge, Stonebridge, Highwood Properties, Concord Hospitality, and OTH Hotels & Resorts. Ocra has raised $10M in strategic funding to date – $3.5M in an oversubscribed round in April 2024 led by MCR and Parker Technology, and $5M led by Trestle Partners with significant follow-on from MCR in August 2025.

For more information, visit getocra.com or email info@getocra.com.

Media Contact:
Sarah Becherer
VP, Marketing
Ocra
sarah@getocra.com