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The Travel Career Connexxions Opportunities Newsletter
10/19/04 The only weekly newsletter detailing essential trends, news and top executive moves in travel. Opportunities is a free newsletter that provides you with the vision to "see" travel industry opportunities in the making. Whether you are in sales, business development, guiding your company's growth or managing your career, reading opportunities will give you the advantage to succeed. Opportunities is another innovative tool brought to you by Travel Career Connexxions. For more information, visit http://www.TravelExecutive.com This week in Opportunities:
USTOA Survey Sees Growth in Tour Sales To ensure that you always receive this newsletter and other communications from Travel Career Connexxions, please add our address to your Address Book (newsletter@travelexecutive.com). This will keep most email filters from misinterpreting and discarding these emails. Did you know? As of 10/19/04 there are 113 executive-level travel jobs published in the Travel Career Connexxions employment report. Positions include Product Manager (10/12), VP of Finance (10/19), VP of Acquisitions and Development (10/11), VP Design & Construction (10/11), VP Hotel Operations (9/30), CEO, Chief Marketing Officer and more. It only takes one person to fill the job of a lifetime - and that someone could be you! http://www.TravelExecutive.com
OPPORTUNITIES NEWS & TRENDS USTOA Survey Sees Growth in Tour Sales There's growth ahead in the tours segment. The United States Tour Operators Association (USTOA) reports that, by the year's end, 2004 sales of packaged vacations and tours will have increased over 2003. According to a recent informal survey of the organization's member companies, 42 percent of respondents say that overall sales will increase more than 25 percent over last year. Among the winners are cruise-tours and sales to Central and South America. Thirty-seven percent of respondents predict increases of more than 25 percent to Central and South America, while 25 percent of respondents see an increase of cruise-tour sales by more than 25 percent. Another 25 percent report cruise-tour sales increases of 5-10 percent. More modest sales increases are reported for Western Europe, with 35 percent of respondents citing increases of 10-25 percent, while 38 percent say domestic sales would increase by the same amount. Fifty percent of respondents see escorted tour sales increasing by 10-25 percent, while family travel is expected to increase slightly, with 30 percent of respondents reporting sales increases of 10-25 percent. Sales of student travel and travel to Mexico are expected to remain the same. One-third of respondents see Canada sales increasing by 5-10 percent, while another third see Canada sales remaining the same. Tour and vacation prices increased slightly this year over 2003. Forty-seven percent of respondents said their North America prices increased by 5 percent, while 33 percent said prices remained the same. More than 40 percent said their Europe prices increased by 5-10 percent. While the high value of the euro has not affected tour and vacation package sales this year (54 percent said the high euro is not affecting sales), 65 percent of respondents expect the euro to impact travel sales in 2005. Nearly 60 percent said those Eastern European countries scheduled to adopt the euro still remain somewhat of a bargain. Looking ahead, independent tours, FIT arrangements, and combination escorted tours with free time and flexibility built in were cited as areas expected to represent the highest growth in the coming year. When asked which type of travel would represent the highest growth in five years, the combination escorted tour came in first, with independent tours and FIT arrangements tied for second place. Survey respondents represented an estimated two-thirds of USTOA's membership, or 80 of the top brand names in packaged travel. For more information, visit www.ustoa.com. Getting on the Cutting Edge of Space Tourism Want to be on the absolutely cutting edge of the tourism industry? The Space Tourism Initiative, a new organization chartered with the growth of the emerging space tourism industry: privately funded spaceships dedicated to carrying commercial passengers on space flights, announced the Space Tourism Summit, a trade-only event for professionals in the emerging space tourism industry, and the Space Tourism Conference, an event for would-be space tourists. Both annual events kick off in 2005. The Space Tourism Initiative serves two purposes: The first is producing trade events allowing industry leaders and professionals to interact and drive the industry forward. The second is providing potential space tourists opportunities to meet and evaluate with space travel companies the variety of options available so tourists can select those most suited with their needs and interests. The Space Tourism Summit brings together leaders from private industry and state and federal governments to discuss issues pertaining to the emerging space tourism industry. The first Space Tourism Summit program will include: continuing the momentum of the industry, mitigating risk, capital requirements and sources, long-term ROI, regulatory issues, international considerations, workforce resources and the growth of traditionally government-owned travel medium. Non-tourism opportunities opened by spaced tourism will be discussed as well. For more information, visit www.SpaceTourismSummit.com. The Space Tourism Conference will provide would-be space tourists the opportunity to directly meet with a variety of space flight companies and independent experts in a single location to evaluate and understand the options available now and in the near future. Space tourist packages will soon be made available by a number of space flight companies offering a wide range of services and space travel options. For more information, visit www.SpaceTourismConference.com. For more information on the Space Tourism Initiative, visit www.SpaceTourismInitiative.com Wyndham Shakes Up Top Management Team Wyndham International, Inc. unveiled major changes in its organization as part of what it called a corporate "right-sizing" program. Wyndham said the changes reflect a steady transition into a hotel operating company with a more balanced portfolio of owned, managed and franchised properties, part of the company's strategic plan of selling non-strategic assets while growing its distribution through third-party agreements. Fred J. Kleisner, chairman and chief executive officer, remains, but departing executives include Theodore Teng, president and chief operating officer, whose position will not be replaced. Kleisner will assume Teng's duties upon his departure. Other executives leaving the company include Joseph Champ, executive vice president of business development and chief investment officer, and Patricia Smith, executive vice president of human resources, whose responsibilities will be reassigned. In addition, Donna DeBerry, executive vice president of diversity and corporate affairs, will be leaving the Company in connection with the reorganization but will continue to guide Wyndham's industry-leading diversity initiative as a consultant. Wyndham also announced that Richard Smith, executive vice president and chief financial officer, has resigned to become chief financial officer and executive vice president of FelCor Lodging Trust Incorporated (see below). Smith's resignation was unrelated to the company's planned changes in its organizational structure. Wyndham has appointed Elizabeth Schroeder as executive vice president and acting chief financial officer, with the expectation that her permanent appointment to this position will be confirmed by Wyndham's board of directors in early 2005. Schroeder was formerly Wyndham's senior vice president of finance, strategic planning and investor relations. In related appointments, Timothy Fielding, former senior vice president and corporate controller, will be named executive vice president and chief accounting officer, and Michael Higa will be named corporate treasurer. Judy Hendrick, former senior vice president and treasurer, will be named executive vice president and chief investment officer in connection with the reorganization. Since 1999, Wyndham has sold nearly 150 properties for gross proceeds of over $2 billion. Upon completion of its disposition strategy, Wyndham will have a balanced portfolio of owned, managed and franchised properties within the brand's total distribution. Retaining its trophy assets through the disposition process, a strong base of 35 upscale and luxury properties will continue to be owned by Wyndham, comprising 25 percent of its total brand portfolio. Northwest Unveils New Executive Team Structure Northwest Airlines announced a new executive team structure following the naming on Oct. 1 of Doug Steenland as president and CEO. The new executive team reporting to Steenland includes: Andy Roberts, formerly senior vice president of technical operations, becomes executive vice president of operations with responsibility for technical operations, engineering, flight operations/systems operations control, customer service and materials management. Tim Griffin, executive vice president of marketing and distribution, assumes additional responsibility for sales and customer relations; Phil Haan, previously executive vice president of international, sales, and information services, is now executive vice president of international, alliances and information technology. He also becomes chairman of NWA Cargo, responsible for the airline's alliances, cargo, information services, and in-flight services activities. Bernie Han continues as executive vice president and chief financial officer. Barry Simon joins Northwest on Oct. 20 as executive vice president and general counsel. Simon will be responsible for the airline's legal, facilities and airport affairs functions. Simon joins Northwest from The Seabury Group, an investment bank and consulting firm that specializes in the transportation industry, where he served as managing director for the past year. Previously, he was a senior executive at Continental Airlines and its affiliated companies from 1982 until 2003.Other appointments include Mike Becker, senior vice president of human resources; Robert Brodin, senior vice president of labor relations; Ken Hylander, chief safety officer; Mary Carroll Linder, senior vice president of corporate and brand communications; and Andrea Fischer Newman, senior vice president of government affairs. As a result of Roberts' promotion, the following operations executives have been given new duties: Kris Bauer has been named senior vice president of technical operations and will report to Roberts. Bauer has been with Northwest Airlines since 1996 and has held several management positions in operations, planning and finance and most recently as vice president of base maintenance operations. John Bendoraitis has been promoted to vice president and will replace Kris Bauer as vice president of base maintenance operations. Bendoraitis has been with Northwest since 1984 and has held a number of management positions, most recently as managing director, Minneapolis/St. Paul line maintenance operations. Dale Wilkinson has been promoted to vice president of materials management. Wilkinson has been with Northwest since 1995 and has held positions in technical procurement and contracting and most recently as managing director of procurement and contracts for technical operations and corporate purchasing. Hotel Opening: Renaissance Sets a Las Vegas Debut The $100 million Renaissance Las Vegas Hotel opens on Dec. 3, 2004. Constructed by Perini Building Company, builders of some of the most luxurious hotels and resorts throughout the world, including Trump Taj Mahal, the Renaissance Las Vegas Hotel is opening three months ahead of schedule. Slated as the largest non-gaming hotel in Nevada, the Renaissance Las Vegas Hotel offers travelers access to 14 stories of accommodations, including 548 rooms and 30 suites, a spa, and restaurant and bar. The hotel is adjacent to the Las Vegas Convention Center and boasts more than 20,000 square feet meeting space. For more information, visit www.renaissancelasvegas.com. Hotel Opening: Omni Orlando Resort Opens Doors The Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate in Orlando has opened, finishing construction despite the trio of hurricane hits from Charley, Frances and Jeanne. The luxury hotel brand has a flagship hotel 10 minutes from the gates of Walt Disney World in one of the top tourism markets in the country. The new property, expected to be one of the premier golf resorts in the country, includes more than 70,000 square feet of meeting space, a 10,000 square-foot European-style spa, two par-72 championship golf courses, the National and the International, designed by golfer Greg Norman. The Mediterranean-style resort features 730 guest rooms and suites, more than 70,000 square feet of meeting space and a 10,000 square-foot European-style spa. Caesars Entertainment Sets London Expansion Plan In its first move into Europe, Caesars Entertainment unveiled plans to develop and operate a luxury casino resort in London, adjacent to the redeveloped Wembley National Stadium and the Wembley Arena. The project is part of a major redevelopment effort intended to transform the historic sporting area into an international leisure and tourist destination. Caesars' partner in the casino project is Quintain Estates and Development PLC, one of the United Kingdom's leading property investment and development companies. Each company will own 50 percent of the planned joint venture. Quintain specializes in strategic property acquisition, redevelopment and asset management across the U.K. The $600-million Caesars Wembley, to be built on 13 acres in the 58-acre redevelopment area, will comprise a world-class casino, a 400-room luxury hotel, and spa and swimming pool, a collection of designer shops, convention and meeting facilities and a wide variety of restaurants, bars and lounges. InterContinental Boosts Asia Pacific Portfolio InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) is growing again. The company has signed 25 management contracts in the Asia Pacific region within the first nine months of this year. The signings add two InterContinental Hotels, seven Crowne Plaza Hotels, 13 Holiday Inn Hotels and three Express by Holiday Inn Hotels to the group's growing portfolio of hotels. IHG has firmly re-established itself in Malaysia's capital city of Kuala Lumpur with Crowne Plaza Kuala Lumpur. The country's northern resort state of Penang will see a new InterContinental Resort Penang. Another key addition to the portfolio is Crowne Plaza Karon Beach Phuket. IHG also is growing its presence in China with Express by Holiday Inn, which appeals to value-conscious domestic travelers and international visitors. IHG claims to be the world's largest and most global hotel company, with more than 3,500 hotels and 538,000 rooms in 100 countries. It currently has 150 hotels in Asia Pacific, catering to business and leisure travelers in key gateway and secondary cities. New Luxury Rep Company Makes Debut with 150 Hotels Distinguished Hotels International (DHI), a new marketing and management consortium of more than 150 independent hotels around the world, will officially launch in London Nov. 8-11 during World Travel Market 2004. The company will be headquartered in New York, and will operate sales office in New York and London. The creation of DHI represents the merger of United Kingdom-based Grand Heritage Hotels International with Distinguished Hotels International in the United States, which features seven hotels managed by the Magna Hospitality Group LLC. The new company will offer corporate and leisure travelers a prestigious collection of luxury properties in the United Kingdom, Ireland, mainland Europe, Africa, the West Indies, and North America. William Burruss, who founded and served as president of Grand Heritage Hotels International until the company was sold in 1997, will oversee the company along with Timothy Hadcock-Mackay, the current owner and CEO of Grand Heritage Hotels International in Europe. As president, Burruss will handle the day-to-day operations for DHI, and Hadcock-Mackay will serve as chairman, focusing on new hotel membership. Although DHI will manage some of the properties, its central role out of the New York sales office will be to market its hotel affiliates to potential visitors, including leisure travelers, business travelers, company executives, government dignitaries, celebrities, and meeting and trade show planners. Grand Heritage hotels that will be members of Distinguished Hotels International include The Hotel Le Tourville in Paris; The Palazzo Abadessa in Venice; The Hotel Ambassador in Vienna; The Royal Park Hotel in London; and The Dalhousie Castle & Spa in Scotland. Magna Hospitality-managed hotels that will be members of Distinguished Hotels International are The Tides, The Kent, Casa Grand Suite in Miami; The Eastland Park in Portland, Maine; The Hotel Lawrence in Dallas; The Cartwright in San Francisco; and Le Grand Lodge in Mont-Tremblant, Quebec. Thirty Thirty in New York and The River Terrace Inn in Napa, California are also new DHI member hotels. For more information, visit www.distinguishedhotels.com. Link with Hotel Marketing Execs at HSMAI Internet Event Want to know more about hotel Internet marketing and network with top hotel marketing types? The Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International is staging the third annual Hotel Internet Marketing Strategy Conference on Dec. 7, 2004 at the Millennium Biltmore in Los Angeles, immediately preceding the 2004 HEDNA Conference. The day's program will feature a welcome and introduction, lunch, networking break and closing session. The following topics are scheduled to be discussed: Inventory Management: Taking Control Back - the InterContinental case study; Trademark Protection: The latest on protecting your brand online; Dynamic Packaging: Is it for you?; Search Marketing: How will search marketing evolve in 2005?; Affiliate Marketing: Does it work? Is it worth the time and trouble? The registration fee is $195 for HSMAI members and $350 for non-members, the latter which includes a year of membership to HSMAI. Rates are effective until Nov. 24, at which time they increase by $50. For more information on HSMAI, to participate in the Hotel Internet Marketing Strategy Conference, or to learn about HSMAI's resources for Internet marketing professionals, contact the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International, 8201 Greensboro Drive, Suite 300, McLean, Va. 22102, or call 703-610-9024; fax 703-610-9005, or visit www.hotelinternetmarketing.org. Discover Hot Travel Web Trends at PhoCusWright PhoCusWright Inc., an independent travel, tourism and hospitality research firm specializing in consumer, business and competitive intelligence, will feature a "star-studded cast" of presenters at its upcoming conference--the cream of the crop of the Internet travel world. The 11th annual PhoCusWright Executive Conference on Nov. 16-17, at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel in Hollywood, Calif., is expected to generate 800 attendees from 33 nations. You can network with some of the top names in travel technology, as well as top executives from every segment of the industry. Presenters include Adam Aron, chairman and CEO of Vail Resorts Inc.; amela Arway, executive vice president and general manager, Corporate Travel North America, American Express Corporate Services; Jean-Claude Baumgarten, president, World Travel & Tourism Council; Erik Blachford, President and CEO, IAC Travel; Jeffery Boyd, president and CEO, priceline.com Inc.; Sean Donohue, head of Ted and vice president, United Express, Ted Airlines (operated by United Air Lines); Sam Gilliland, president and CEO, Sabre Holdings Corporation; Danny Hood, president, WorldTravel BTI; Jeffrey Katz, chairman, president and CEO, Orbitz Inc.; Samuel Katz, chairman and CEO, Travel Distribution Division, Cendant Corporation; Gary Loveman, President and CEO, Harrah's Entertainment Inc.; Jonathan Miller, chairman and CEO, America Online Inc.; Curtis Nelson, president and COO, Carlson Companies Inc.; Daniel Rosensweig, COO, Yahoo! Inc.; and Vincent Wolfington, chairman and CEO, Carey International Inc. Securities analysts from CIBC, Thomas Weisel, Standard and Poor's, Credit Suisse First Boston, Goldman Sachs and Legg Mason will kick off the program. For more information, call 860-350-4084, ext. 500, or visit www.phocuswright.com/events. See Top Marketers at TIA's Marketing Outlook Forum Yet another top industry event featuring marquee names in the business is the annual Travel Industry Association's Marketing Outlook Forum. James "Jay" Rasulo, president, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, will share with delegates how the travel industry can capitalize on new travel trends and build on the industry's growing momentum. The Forum, to be held in Phoenix/Scottsdale Arizona, Oct. 27-29. Another featured speaker, Delos Smith, senior business analyst with The Conference Board, will provide a glimpse into his employer's closely watched Consumer Confidence Index. Also addressing the Forum will be incoming TIA National Chair Barbara Richardson, vice president and chief marketing officer at Amtrak. Richardson will provide an overview of the comprehensive 2005 See America Marketing program. The Marketing Outlook Forum is sponsored by the Travel Industry Association of America (TIA), the Washington-based national non-profit that unites all components of the $552 billion U.S. travel and tourism industry. The Forum will be held Oct. 27-29 in Phoenix/Scottsdale, Ariz., at the Westin Kierland Resort & Spa. For more information or to register, visit www.tia.org. OPPORTUNITIES EXECUTIVE MOVERS! AIRLINES: Alaska Airlines has appointed William MacKay as senior vice president/Alaska. A 28-year veteran of the company, MacKay will reside in Anchorage and continue to be responsible for the airline's public and government affairs division systemwide. In addition, he will support the carrier's operating divisions by providing oversight, coordination and assistance to the divisions statewide. Formerly vice president of public and government affairs at the airline's corporate headquarters in Seattle, MacKay's appointment is part of a recent restructuring of the airline's overall management structure. Reporting to MacKay in Seattle to oversee the day-to-day activities of the public and government affairs department will be Joe Sprague who has been promoted to staff vice president of public and government affairs. Sprague, most recently managing director of government affairs in Washington, D.C., is a former Anchorage resident and served as director of sales for the airline in Alaska. prior to assuming his duties in Seattle, MacKay had served in Alaska as a regional vice president and as an assistant vice president of sales for the carrier. A 38-year veteran of the airline industry, MacKay has been with Alaska since 1976. He began his career in the airline industry with Continental Airlines in 1966...UAL Corporation, parent of United Airlines, said Lori Fox has been named manager of government affairs for its Mountain Region. In this role, she is responsible for state and local government relations for United in Colorado, as well as United's locations in neighboring mountain states. Fox most recently served as senior associate at GBSM in Denver, where she provided high-level strategic counsel and planning to Fortune 500 companies, government entities and non-profit organizations. In addition, she has worked in Washington, D.C., for the Vice President of the United States, the Secretary of Transportation and the Secretary of Energy. UAL Corporation also announced that Carol Fernandez has been named manager of government affairs for its Eastern Region. In this role, she is responsible for state and local government relations for United in Virginia, as well as most East Coast United locations. Fernandez, a 26-year veteran at United, most recently served as United's general manager of customer service at Ronald Reagan National Airport and as project manager at Washington Dulles International Airport in the areas of customer service, facilities management and airport security processes. She has also served as a United manager at Baltimore Washington International Airport and as manager in reservations, both in the U.S. and internationally. Fernandez is based in Washington, D.C., and reports to Margaret Houlihan, director of state and local governmental affairs, who is based in Chicago. HOTELS & RESORTS: Boykin Management Company named Joseph Smith as chief operating officer at its headquarters, located in Cleveland. Most recently, Smith served as executive vice president of operations for the Western Region of Boykin Management Company. He began his career with Boykin in 1985 at the Beachwood Marriott as director of restaurants. He subsequently served as general manager of the Columbus Marriott East and Columbus Marriott North hotels before serving as corporate food and beverage director. During his tenure with Boykin Management Company, Smith has held the position of regional vice president, general manager, corporate director of food and beverage, and food and beverage director, among others. Prior to Boykin, he held various positions within both T.G.I. Fridays and American Airlines. Boykin Management Company operates first class and upscale hotels, condominium hotels, and resorts throughout the United States...FelCor Lodging Trust Incorporated appointed Richard Smith as chief financial officer and executive vice president. Smith, was most recently with Wyndham International as executive vice president and chief financial officer. He was responsible for the company's financial strategy and operations. Smith joined Wyndham International in September 1999 as senior vice president and treasurer. He previously worked with Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Worldwide, Inc., where he was vice president of corporate finance. Prior to that, he worked for Atlantic Richfield Company and Coopers & Lybrand. FelCor is the nation's second largest hotel real estate investment trust and the nation's largest owner of full service, all-suite hotels...After eight years as general manager of the Hotel Adlon Kempinski in Berlin, Gianni van Daalen is assuming the positions of managing director of the owning company and general manager of the Hotel Baltschug Kempinski in Moscow. Due to the unexpected death of Hans Sebesta, the Baltschug's general manager, van Daalen's transfer to Moscow will occur within the next few weeks. His replacement at the Adlon will be announced shortly. The Hotel Baltschug Kempinski in Moscow is a key anchor in the Kempinski network. Van Daalen was named general manager of Hotel Adlon Kempinski in 1996. Under his successful direction, the Adlon celebrated its reopening in 1997 and was completed in the following years with reconstructions and expansions. He also oversaw the development and opening, in 2003, of the Kempinski Grand Hotel Heiligendamm on the Baltic Sea... Pan Pacific Whistler Mountainside and the soon to open Pan Pacific Village Centre announced the appointment of Carol Eberhard as the new director of sales and marketing for the two properties. Eberhard previously worked at Tourism Whistler from 1995 to 1998, prior to departing for Tourism Vancouver where she continued to work closely with the tour and travel market, airline and industry partners and travel agents. She then returned to Whistler, accepting a position with the opening team of the Westin Resort and Spa as tour and travel sales manager, then transferring to the corporate, association and incentive markets. In 2003, she moved to the Sundial Boutique Hotel as the opening director of sales and marketing. Her core responsibility with Pan Pacific will be to lead the sales and marketing team in developing and implementing the two properties' sales and marketing strategies...Grace Bay Club in Providenciales, Turks & Caicos, has named Nikheel Advani as general manager. Grace Bay Club is transforming itself from a 21-room luxury suite resort to a full-service resort with 80 villas and suites, three restaurants, water and land sports, a bar and lounge, and a new spa and fitness center. Advani was most recently hotel manager at Raffles Hotel in Singapore after an earlier position as vice president, food and beverage. Prior to joining Raffles in 2002, he was in charge of food and beverage at the Ritz Carlton, Battery City, in New York. He began his career at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Millenia Singapore as a banquet operations manager. He was subsequently responsible for the food and beverage openings of Ritz-Carlton properties in Singapore; Kuala Lumpur; Osaka; Philadelphia; Washington, D.C.; Sarasota and New York-Battery Park. TRAVEL AGENCIES: Cynthia Valles, senior vice president and general manager of American Express Travel, the leisure side of the travel giant in New York, has been promoted to executive vice president-customer services international, running American Express' international card program out of London. American Express reportedly has a shortlist of candidates to replace Valles in New York...Gabrielle Richard has been named director of sales and marketing by the Malmberg Travel Companies (MTC). Richard joins Malmberg Travel with a strong background in sales and marketing worldwide. She worked for nine years at Business Wire, the global news distribution service, where she opened and managed the London office, managed the Washington D.C. bureau and worked in the company's San Francisco headquarters. Born in Bombay, India, and a native of Britain, Richard was raised in Bahrain in the Persian Gulf and earned a journalism degree from the University of Natal in South Africa. She worked as a journalist for The Star in Johannesburg, the largest daily newspaper in South Africa, and moved to the United States in 1982, where she founded and managed The Ultimate Dining Guide of San Diego and worked in corporate sales and public relations for San Diego hotels and gourmet caterers. MTC is composed of the Malmberg Travel Group and Superior Choices, USA. The Malmberg Travel Group, incorporated in 1986, is a leading provider of luxury leisure travel products and services and premium corporate travel management. Superior Choices USA is a supplier of upscale, customized itineraries to southern Africa and the islands of the Indian Ocean. MTC has headquarters in Boston and offices in Pretoria, South Africa. TOUR OPERATORS: RCG Companies Incorporated, one of the largest leisure travel tour operators in the U.S., said Dennis Werner has been named president and CEO of RCG's wholly-owned subsidiary, Vacation Express. Werner began his 25-year career at American Express Company, Travel Related Services in 1973. Over a 12-year period, he grew the sixteen-state southern region of Amex Travel into a multi-billion dollar revenue business. The majority of RCG's revenues are currently derived from its wholly owned travel service organizations, SunTrips and Vacation Express, which deliver leisure and vacation travel packages. RCG is also involved in the technology services sector through its wholly owned software and information technology services segment, Logisoft Corp....International travel specialist Fausto Braganti has been appointed as regional sales manager, New England for Central Holidays. Braganti joins Central Holidays with more than three decades of experience in the travel industry, including key management positions with Alitalia Airlines and CIT. He is responsible for driving Central Holidays' revenue and group sales across the six New England states. Braganti began his professional career with Alitalia Airlines, including managing the airline's largest district office in New Jersey and New York. For the last six years, he has worked as manager of the group department of CIT, North America. Founded in 1972, Central Holidays offers travel programs, value and service to Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Greece and Turkey, plus dozens of cruise itineraries and ski programs. TRAVEL TECHNOLOGY: Sabre Travel Network, the Sabre Holdings business that connects travel suppliers and agents through the GDS, said Chris Kroeger has been appointed senior vice president of the North American division of Sabre Travel Network, effective immediately. In this role Kroeger is responsible for the sales, account management and customer service and support for the division. For the last year Kroeger has led the launch and development of Jurni Network, the leisure travel agency consortium. Prior to his role with Jurni Network, Kroeger was senior vice president of the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) division of Sabre Travel Network, where he was responsible for sales, service, marketing, emerging businesses and joint ventures throughout the region. Previously he served as senior vice president for Sabre Travel Network's Latin America division and as vice president for the U.S. national accounts sales and service organization. Kroeger began his career with Sabre as a summer intern in the market research department. Subsequent positions included senior marketing analyst for airline products, manager of sales planning and administration, regional sales manager and managing director of the Western division of Sabre Travel Network. Kroeger replaces Hugh Jones who has accepted a new appointment as senior vice president of operations for Sabre Travel Network and Sabre Airline Solutions....Separately, Sabre's Jurni Network said Mike Baldwin has been named as its new general manager, following Chris Kroeger's appointment as senior vice president of the North American division of Sabre Travel Network. As general manager of Jurni Network, Baldwin is responsible for sales and marketing, member and supplier relationships, customer service and management of Jurni Network. Most recently he served as senior vice president for performance management for Sabre Holdings with responsibility for business process improvement and strategy execution for Sabre Travel Network and Sabre Airline Solutions. Prior to that he was senior vice president, Asia Pacific, for Sabre, with responsibility for expanding Sabre Airline Solutions and Sabre Travel Network businesses throughout the region. Baldwin also served as vice president of distributed applications development in the U.S. and managing director of global agency solutions in product marketing. Before joining Sabre, he worked for American Airlines in the passenger sales organization with responsibility for a team of sales managers serving hundreds of agency accounts on the West coast. He began his career as a nuclear engineer for the U.S. Navy in Washington, D.C.... Travelocity, a Sabre Holdings company, said Damon Tassone has been named president of its Travelocity Europe operation, replacing Dirk Hauke, who has accepted a non-related-travel position with the Otto Group, Travelocity's joint venture partner in Germany. Tassone most recently served as senior vice president of distribution at Travelocity, where he was responsible for subsidiaries Site59.com and World Choice Travel, as well as the company's relationships with distribution partners America Online, Yahoo! and other leading travel suppliers. Travelocity completed the acquisition of the remaining 50 percent of the Travelocity Europe joint venture it did not already own, excluding the operations in Germany on October 4, 2004. In Germany, the company continues its joint venture with the Otto Group business Otto Freizeit und Touristik GmbH (OFT). Tassone will be based in London and will report directly to Sabre Holdings CEO Michelle Peluso. He will assume responsibility for all Travelocity's European businesses outside Germany, and for Travelocity's 50 percent shareholding in the German operations. Before assuming his most recent role at Travelocity, Tassone held key positions at Site59, which revolutionized the last minute space in online travel, eventually serving as its general manager. Prior to that, he worked for beer and spirits giant Guinness and was a consumer products and retail advisor at Boston Consulting Group... Discount travel site Hotwire.com announced that Brenda Barnes has joined the company as vice president of air and car rental operations. In the newly created position, Barnes will oversee partner relations, leading Hotwire's air, rental car and global distribution system operations teams. Barnes comes to Hotwire with more than 12 years of experience in the airline and hotel industries. During her airline career, Barnes led teams in pricing, revenue management and distribution for American Airlines and Delta Air Lines. More recently, she served as vice president of global revenue management and distribution for Starwood Hotels & Resorts, where she led efforts to improve pricing and revenue management strategies, implement better revenue management systems and streamline business processes. DESTINATIONS: LA Inc. The Convention and Visitors Bureau has appointed Stephanie Van Fossen as senior director of client services, responsible for the day-to-day coordination of LA Inc.'s client service efforts including servicing LA convention center and self-contained clients, assisting with and facilitating sales site inspections and overseeing client event operations. Van Fossen was a manager in both the special events and convention sales and regional sales and marketing divisions at Universal Studios Hollywood. At Universal Studios Hollywood, she was responsible for soliciting and booking all convention and special event business from the Northeast and Midwest regions of the United States for the Universal Recreation Group. Previously, she was director of undergraduate admissions at Azusa Pacific University, overseeing and managing the admissions staff of 18 people...South African Tourism named Deborah (Debbie) Parker as the new trade relations manager for the East Coast U.S.A. Parker will be responsible for developing and maintaining relationships with the trade, coordinating SA Tourism's participation in trade shows, making trade presentations, and organizing and conducting travel agent seminars, workshops and familiarization trips. She will be the primary contact between South African Tourism and its travel industry partners, the tour operators and travel agents. A native of South Africa, Parker has worked with a variety of companies, including Nokia, Sybase, Allied Communications and Dialog Custom Media. She also served as a consultant to Polo Ralph Lauren Department stores.
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