Brian Parmelee, 38, is known in the hospitality industry as an innovator and creative thinker. Those abilities are reflected in the way he runs Carlsbad’s Four Seasons Resort Aviara, where guest services and employee welfare are his highest priorities.

During his tenure as general manager, the resort has earned a number of top industry awards for quality, including the AAA Five Diamond Award for the third consecutive year. But besides these tributes, the San Diego Society of Human Resources Managers was so impressed with the resort’s work environment that last year it created its first-ever grand prize to honor Parmelee and his team for excellence in employee affairs. He believes in creating a comfortable and enriching environment for the people who work for him.

“If you take care of your people, your people will take care of your product,” he says. “And it will make your business successful.”

Parmelee, a graduate of Cornell University with a degree in hotel administration, joined Four Seasons Hotels and Resort in 1986 and has held company positions in Santa Barbara, Nevis and Philadelphia. At Four Seasons Resort Aviara, he has overseen the construction of a new resort pool, expansion and renovation of the spa and fitness center, and development of the resort’s second 80-villa residential community. Parmelee describes the Four Seasons corporation as “the best in the business. My values perfectly match the values of the company,” he says.

Outside the office, Parmelee oversees the annual Four Seasons-sponsored Terry Fox Golf Tournament and Run/Walk, which raises money for cancer research in San Diego. He also serves on the boards of the Carlsbad Library and Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce, and offers professional advice as a member of the advisory committee for San Diego State University’s Hotel and Tourism Management program.

He and his wife, Susan, live in Encinitas with their three children: Brandon, 11; Trevor, 9; and Melissa, 7.

— Manny Cruz