Arne Sorenson Archives - The Travel Vertical

Marriott Loses a Leader, People On the Move, 101 Jobs, and ‘See Tomorrow’

February 16, 2021 by Laurie Jo Miller Farr Leave a Comment

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In Memoriam :: Marriott International President & CEO Arne Sorenson, 62, has died after a two-year battle with pancreatic cancer. Widely respected, he became the third CEO in Marriott’s history in 2012, and the first without the Marriott surname.

Mr. Sorenson led the U.S.-based global hotel company through its growth trajectory as the world’s largest and steered Marriott policy on causes: diversity, equity and inclusion, environmental sustainability and human trafficking awareness. The Marriott Board is expected to appoint a new CEO within two weeks. Company news release here.

Jackie Saunders, AVP Marketing, National Harbor in Washington, D.C., has joined the eTourism Summit Advisory Board. Her previous industry roles include Visit Loudon and the Canadian Tourism Commission.

Mark Mezzapelli, VP Business & Partnerships at CrowdRiff, has joined the eTourism Summit Advisory Board. Based in Toronto, he was an early staffer at CrowdRiff, joining the team in 2014.

Michael Davidson, Executive Director of eXplore Lawrence, Kansas, has announced his upcoming retirement this spring. Davidson served in his current role since 2016 and previously led tourism bureaus from coast-to-coast including Long Island, NY and Walla Walla, WA. A nationwide search committee will work to fill the role.

Louisville Tourism has selected Dan Kyle as information technology manager, a new position in which he will be responsible for the support, maintenance and enhancement of the CVB’s technology infrastructure. He had previously been with Experience Grand Rapids.

Allison Reedy Wolfe has joined Chattanooga Tourism Co. as Partnership Director. She joins from theCO, an entrepreneur center serving 60 rural counties across Tennessee.

Gracelyn Woods has joined Bellweather Agency as COO. In addition to her work with the Apollo Theater and Sundance Festival, Woods had been a producer at NYC & Company. With offices in New York City, Philadelphia, and San Diego, Bellweather is a women- and minority-owned creative agency for travel, tourism, and government partners.

Suzanne Clark is named President & CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce where she currently serves as president. She succeeds Thomas J. Donohue, who led the organization for 24 years.

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President & CEO — Explore Fairbanks

President & CEO — Visit San Antonio

Chief Executive Officer — Bermuda Tourism Authority

President & CEO — Pacific Area Travel Association (PATA), Bangkok

President & CEO — VisitGreenvilleSC

Executive Director — Greater Wilmington Convention & Visitors Bureau

Chief Executive Officer — Experience Olympia & Beyond, WA

President & CEO — Washington County Visitors Association, OR

Vice President Marketing — Visit Florida

Vice President Marketing & Communications — Experience Kissimmee

Director of Marketing & Communications — Discover Long Island, NY

SVP of Multicultural and Community Development — Broward County / Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau

Vice President of Sales — Explore Asheville

Chief Marketing Officer — Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce

Executive Director — Explore Lawrenceville, KS

Executive Director-Tourism — Visit Frederick, MD

Executive Director — Visit St. Mary’s, Leonardtown, MD

Executive Director — River Parishes Tourist Commission, LA

Executive Director — Acadia Parish, LA

Executive Director — Park County Travel County, Cody, WY

Director — Emporia Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, KS

Chief Marketing Officer AND Finance & HR Manager AND PR & Communications Manager AND PR & Communications Intern — Visit SLO CAL, San Luis Obispo, CA

Vice President Marketing — Discover Halifax, Nova Scotia

Director of Communications — Colorado Tourism Office

Director of Content Strategy — Choose Chicago

Director of Tourism and Business Development — Town of Ocean City, MD

Director of Marketing & Public Relations — Visit Stockton, CA

Public Relations Manager — Visit California

Digital Marketing Specialist — Monterey County Convention & Visitors Bureau, CA

Digital Content Specialist — Destination Toronto

Marketing Manager — Experience Columbus, OH

Marketing Manager — Placer Valley Tourism, Rocklin, CA

Tourism Director — Discover Front Royal, VA

Creative Director — Memphis Tourism

Business Analyst — Visit Grand Junction, CO

Business Development Manager — Discover Kalamazoo, MI

Conference Sales Director — Valdosta-Lowndes Co. Conference Center & Tourism Authority, GA

Sales & Services Manager — Santa Monica Travel & Tourism, CA

Small Meetings & Events Sales Manager — St. John the Baptist Parish Economic Development Department, LA

Sales and Marketing Manager – Louisiana’s Cajun Bayou

Communications & PR Manager AND Marketing Assistant — Visit Durango, CO

Communications Manager – Alexandria/Pineville Area CVB, LA

Public Relations Coordinator — Virginia Tourism Corporation

Public Relations Manager — Heber Valley Tourism, Economic Development & Chamber of Commerce / Wasatch Valley, UT

Social Media Coordinator — San Diego Tourism Authority

Marketing Assistant — Visit Durango, CO

Diversity Apprenticeship — Visit Baltimore

Senior Director-Industry Marketing — Freeman, in Chi/SF/Wash.DC/NYC/Dallas

Director of Marketing — Skift, Remote in USA

Director of Marketing — Chicago Art Institute

Director of Marketing & Communications — Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History

VP – Brand Digital & Social at Phoenix Suns — National Basketball Association, Phoenix

General Manager — Spectra, Terre Haute, IN

Director of Marketing — Sesame House/SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment — Philadelphia

Marketing Manager — Summit One Vanderbilt, NYC

Sales & Marketing Manager — Kings Dining & Entertainment, Boston

Marketing & Social Media Manager — The Howard Hughes Corporation, Las Vegas

Director of Content Strategy — Toptal, Santa Cruz, CA

Content Strategist — San Francisco Chronicle

Director of Communications — Colorado State University, Fort Collins

Director of Consumer Insights/Corporate — Hornblower, NYC

Sr. Manager Marketing/CBM Product Strategy — Universal Orlando Resorts

Manager, Marketing Analytics (Digital & Social) — HBO Max/WarnerMedia, Burbank, CA

VP – Operations — Kensington Tours, NYC or Chicago

Director — The Austin Film Festival Film Competition

Director of Audience Development — Mythical Entertainment, Los Angeles

Manager Group & Tourism Sales — Legends, Atlanta

Manager PR — Cirrus Aircraft, Nashville

Digital Marketing Manager — SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park, Los Angeles

Program Manager — Off the Grid, San Francisco

Marketing Project Manager — Destination Think, Austin

Marketing Coordinator — Destination America (The Travel Corporation), Cypress, CA

Sales Reps — GetYourGuide, San Francisco and NYC

Sr. Marketing Manager/Travelocity — Expedia Group, Dallas

Account Manager, Sarasota AND Marketing Operations Coordinator — Miles Partnership, Remote

Research Analyst — Longwoods International, Columbus, OH

Software Engineer — Entrada Insights, Salt Lake City (or remote)

Content Manager — Miles Partnership, Remote

SEO Analyst — Simpleview, Remote

Global Brand Marketing & Social Media Director — Groupon, Chicago

Market Research Specialist/Project Leader — Delta Air Lines, Atlanta

Destination Marketing Manager — Wagstaff Media & Marketing, Los Angeles

Sr. Public Relations Account Manager — DVA Advertising & Public Relations, Bend, OR

Senior Account Executive, PR & Marketing — Development Counsellors International (DCI), Northeast

Senior Account Executive Lifestyle, Arts, Culture PR — BerlinRosen, NYC

Director-Social Media — VMLY&R, Chicago

Associate Digital Marketing Manager — The University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill

Director of Marketing — Pacific Hospitality Group, Napa, CA

Director of Marketing — Fairmont Miramar Hotel & Bungalows, Santa Monica, CA

Travel Industry Sales Manager — Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, Boston

Director, Corporate Communications — Sonder, Dallas

Head of Content Business Innovation & Market Intelligence — Spotify, NYC

VP – Global Customer Marketing, North America AND Web Strategist, Integrated Marketing (Small Business) — Facebook, San Francisco

Content Strategist — Google Ads, Boulder, CO

Senior Content Strategist/Help Center — TikTok, Los Angeles AND Platform Strategist, Global Business Marketing — TikTok, NYC

Director, Marketing Communications — Microsoft, Redmond, WA

The Week That Was: Pfizer, Plus People, Travel Sentiment, News, Jobs

November 10, 2020 by Laurie Jo Miller Farr Leave a Comment

::: PEOPLE :::

Entrada Insights welcomes Josh Collins as Head of Community Education. Recognized as an outstanding communicator, Josh’s digital and activation background includes Streetsense and Visit Franklin, TN. Since the pandemic’s onset, Josh’s skills have been instrumental in moderating the “Stay Connected” webinar series for Connect Travel and—by popular demand—a good number of eTourism Summit live and virtual sessions over the past few years.

David Goldstein has been appointed CEO of Travel Alberta. He recently served five years as president and CEO of Destination Canada in addition to his nearly five years as president and CEO of the Tourism Industry Association of Canada.

Boston Mayor Martin Walsh announced that Boston has launched a $2 million advertising campaign fuelled by CARES Act funds to showcase the city as a safe destination. Partners are Greater Boston Convention and Visitors Bureau and Colette Phillips Communications, the city’s oldest minority-owned communications firm.

Charlie McIlvain has announced his January retirement as president & CEO at Kerrville Convention & Visitors Bureau. Known for a rebranding to “The Capital of the Texas Hill Country,” McIlvain has served in his post since 2012.

In Kentucky, Ashland Convention and Visitors Bureau appointed Brandy Clark as executive director. Clark is currently the social media and web content manager and move into the position vacated by Sue Dowdy who is retiring at year end.

Ted Molter has announced his early retirement as chief marketing officer at San Diego Zoo following 22 years at the attraction.

::: NEWS :::

According to the latest Longwoods International tracking study of American travelers, fielded during the week of Nov. 4th and supported by Miles Partnership, 58% have plans to travel in the next six months, the lowest percentage since the beginning of the pandemic in early March.

“Record new coronavirus case levels continue to weaken travel demand,” said Amir Eylon, president and CEO. “Concern about the virus is the driving force in decision making about upcoming trips, including during the holidays.” Fewer American travelers plan to take a trip during the holidays: 53% are not planning any travel during the holiday season, up from 48% a month ago. Some 38% are planning to travel by car during the holiday period, while 17% will travel by air. Get more details here.

The ongoing COVID-19 rollercoaster can present new challenges to our mental well-being and overall health, while disrupting social relationships and removing the important restorative outlet of vacation and travel, activities, seeing friends and family, visiting new places. President & CEO of Destination Analysts, Erin Francis-Cummings, was joined by Dr. Jonathan Horowitz, clinical psychologist and founder of the San Francisco Stress and Anxiety Center, to discuss the latest findings from Destination Analysts’ Coronavirus Travel Sentiment Index Study to share tips on how we can better deal with stress and anxiety. Watch the video here.

With several large hotel groups offering rooms as workspaces, U.S. hotel occupancy industrywide dropped to its lowest weekly level since mid-June during the last week of October — to 44.4%, according to the Wall Street Journal. With about 94% of Marriott hotels worldwide now open, CEO Arne Sorenson believes the timing of a full recovery “remains unpredictable.” The world’s largest hotel group returned to profitability in the third quarter and expects to see a rebound in bookings in early 2021.

Markets went wild on Monday with Pfizer‘s “game-changer” announcement that early data on an initial clinical vaccine trial proved to be more than 90% effective. No surprise, that there were big stock market gainers and losers.

Movie theater chain AMC skyrocketed 60%
Concert promoter Live Nation was up more than 20%
Cruise lines Carnival, Norwegian, and Royal Caribbean soared
Southwest, American, Delta, and United were all up
Disney, Booking.com, Marriott, and Hilton all up
Uber and Lyft were all up, too

Zoom plunged 15%
Clorox fell 8%
Also down: Peleton, Amazon, Netflix, Roku, Slack

Travel magazine Afar grew its audience across platforms by 130.2% from September 2019 to September 2020, the largest increase of 100 magazines. “Magazine Media 360°” is the source of a report from the Alliance for Audited Media, measuring magazine media audiences across platforms. Backpacker, Veranda, and The Atlantic also witnessed big gains in audience.

::: JOBS :::

President & CEO — Visit Orlando

VP Marketing — Visit Florida

President — Oklahoma City Convention & Visitors Bureau

President & CEO — Destination Madison

President & CEO — Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce

President & CEO — Sedona Chamber of Commerce & Tourism Bureau

VP Human Resources — Destination Cleveland

Executive VP & Chief Sales Officer — San Francisco Travel Association

Chief Sales & Marketing Officer — Bermuda Tourism Authority, NYC

Director of Research & Market Intelligence — Virginia Tourism Corporation

VP Sales — Visit Corpus Christi

Director of Convention Development — Visit El Paso

Director of Sales — Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau

Marketing Rep / Mid-Atlantic Region — Visit St Pete Clearwater

PR & Communications Manager — Visit SLO CAL, San Luis Obispo, CA

Manager, Social Media — Discover the Palm Beaches

Digital Communications Manager — Visit York County, Rock Hill, SC

User Experience Designer — NYC & Company

Business Development Manager — Lee County, Fort Meyers, FL

CVB Marketing Specialist — Geary County, Junction City, KS

Tourism Program Specialist — West Virginia Division of Parks & Recreation, Charleston, WV

Parks and Recreation Public Relations Manager — State of Utah

Sales & Marketing Director AND Marketing & Admin Assistant — Visit Durango, CO

Small Meetings & Events Sales Manager — River Parishes Tourist Commission, LaPlace, LA

Social Media & Digital Marketing Coordinator — Colorado Parks & Wildlife, Denver

Director of Sales & Marketing — Greater Columbus Convention Center, OH

Sales Manager — Midlands Authority for Conventions, Sports & Tourism, Columbia, SC

Tourism & Marketing Communications Intern — Cambridge Office for Tourism, MA

VP – Marketing & Communications — National Landing Business Improvement District, Arlington, VA

Assistant Digital Marketing Manager — San Jose International Airport, CA

Senior Director Marketing — Arrivalist, New York City

Product Manager — Simpleview, Tucson

Chief Marketing Officer AND Senior Content and Interpretation Manager — San Diego Zoo Global

Head of LEGOLAND Vacations —Merlin Entertainments, Carlsbad CA, Winter Haven FL, or Goshen NY

Digital Marketing Director — Hershey Entertainment & Resorts Company, Hershey, PA

Chief Experience Officer — Brightline Trains, Miami

Communications Specialist — Oakland Museum of California

Marketing & Social Media Coordinator — Kentucky Derby Museum, Louisville

Digital Marketing Manager — SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park, Los Angeles

Director of Marketing — Arizona Biltmore Resort, Phoenix

Director of Marketing & Communication — Enchantment Group (Hotels), Scottsdale

Director of Marketing — Pacific Hospitality Group (Hotels), Napa, CA

Senior Marketing Manager — Associated Luxury Hotels International, Plano, TX

Brand Marketing Manager — Lyft, San Francisco

Senior Brand Marketing Manager – LinkedIn, San Francisco

Social Media Lead, Editorial AND Manager, Branding & Content — Google, Mountain View, CA

Director, Public Relations — Apple, Cupertino, CA

Director of Integrated Marketing Campaigns — Salesforce, San Francisco

Director of Performance Marketing — Neiman Marcus Group, NYC or Dallas AND Senior CRM Marketing Manager, NYC

Senior Campaign Manager — Macy’s Media Network, NYC

Analytics Manager, Digital Marketing — Penn National Gaming, Inc. Wyomissing, PA or Las Vegas

Communications Manager, Jordan Vineyard & Winery, Healdsburg, CA

Digital Media Buyer — Make Noise, Sanibel Island, FL

Performance Marketing Specialist — Mediagistic, Tampa

Email Marketing & Analytics Manager — MissionStaff, Fort Lauderdale

VP Marketing & Social Media — Audible, Newark, NJ

Manager, Digital Marketing — Warner MusicGroup, Los Angeles

Director, Consumer Marketing — Oprah Winfrey Network, Los Angeles

People in the News Right Now

March 24, 2020 by Laurie Jo Miller Farr Leave a Comment

Marriott International President and CEO Arne Sorenson delivered a hard-hitting and emotional message last week. Widely praised for his lesson in leadership, he shared the devastating news that the coronavirus has hit the world’s largest hotel company business worse than 9/11 and the Great Recession combined. Watch the message here.

Stepping up with another corporate coronavirus response a week ago, this one from jetBlue President and Chief Operating Officer Joanna Geraghty. (The Wall Street Journal has predicted domestic airlines will temporarily stop service.) Watch the message here.

Hawaii’s Lt. Gov. Dr. Josh Green says #StayHome. He is also an emergency room physician and he’s dead serious. The state government is considering suspending all non-essential travel and to quarantine any arrivals to the Aloha State.

Mona Juett has been appointed deputy commissioner for the Kentucky Department of Tourism. Most recently, Juett served as the assistant director for resorts with the state’s Department of Parks. She has worked for the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet since 2007 in multiple roles, including research director, legislative director and deputy commissioner of the Department of Tourism. Prior to her career in state government, Mona was marketing manager for The Council of State Governments in Lexington.

Entrada Insights has hired Esra Calvert as Chief Data Advisor. Formerly director of research at Virginia Tourism Corporation, Calvert led consumer research, economics and insights services to influence decision making. After completing her Ph.D coursework in hospitality and tourism management at Virginia Tech, she taught at both Virginia Tech and Virginia Commonwealth University. Calvert serves on the International Board of Travel and Tourism Research Association, Marketing Outlook Forum Planning Committee, Research Taskforce and ESTO Planning Committee with U.S. Travel Association.

A warm welcome to Amrita Gurney, VP of Marketing & Community at CrowdRiff, who has now joined the eTourism Summit Advisory Board.

Matt Parsons has joined Skift as corporate travel editor. Based in London, Parsons has been in B2B publishing, including TTG Media, for 15 years. He can be reached at mhp@skift.com.

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