Bill Marriott

John Willard "Bill" Marriott Jr. (born March 25, 1932) is an American billionaire businessman who is the executive chairman of Marriott International, of which he owns 11.28%. He is also an Eagle Scout and recipient of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award.

In 1954, Marriott earned a BS in finance from the University of Utah. While there he met his wife, the daughter of a professor.

Upon graduating, Marriott went to a Navy training school in Georgia.

Effective March 31, 2012, Marriott assumed the role of executive chairman of the company and relinquished the role of chief executive officer to Arne Sorenson.

Awards In 2001, Marriott was named The Industry Leader of The Year by Broad College of Business, Michigan State University.

On May 4, 2006, Marriott received an honorary doctorate of humanities from Weber State University and delivered the commencement speech.

On June 2, 2009, Marriott received the Icon of the Industry award from Cornell University School of Hotel Administration.

On November 19, 2016, Ernst & Young named Marriott the National/Overall Entrepreneur of the Year.

In 2018, Marriott received the Distinguished Service Award by the National Maritime Historical Society.

Personal life Marriott was married 70 years to Donna Garff, who died in 2025. They had four children—all of whom work for Marriott International.

In 2018, Bill's son John Marriott III sued both him and his uncle, Richard Marriott, for allegedly cutting John out of the family fortune, in part for divorcing his wife without approval of his father. The lawsuit was settled out of court.