Three new appointees, Brett Godfrey, Mark Stone, and Didier Elzinga will join the board of Tourism Australia from 1 July 2010.
Minister for Tourism, Martin Ferguson AM MP announced today at the Tourism Futures Conference in Brisbane, he has also appointed existing Board Members Mr Geoffrey Dixon (formerly Deputy Chair) as Chair and Ms Kate Lamont as Deputy Chair.
Thanking the outgoing board members Mr Grant Hunt, Mr Peter O’Brien, and in particular the outgoing Chair Mr Rick Allert AO for their hard work Minister Ferguson also noted their contribution during the difficult period of the global financial crisis.
“While global demand for tourism dropped by four per cent in 2009 international visitor numbers in Australia remained steady,” Minister Ferguson said.
"This was a great result which the incoming members, Mr Godfrey, Mr Stone, and Mr Elzinga, can now set their sights on building upon. They join Tourism Australia at a very important time.
“Tourism Australia has recently launched the second phase of its $150 million There’s nothing like Australia global marketing campaign.
“The new board will have an important job to do maximising our return on this significant investment in Australia’s tourism future.
“Tourism is an important industry. It contributes $41 billion to our bottom line and employs nearly half a million Australians.
“The Board of Tourism Australia plays an important role directing the organisation in successfully marketing Australia as a premier visitor destination.
“They are also pivotal in encouraging companies to back Government investment with increased private sector expenditure – working together to drive the industry forward both at home and abroad.
“I am confident the new board members will be up to the task and will bring to the board the depth of knowledge, skill and experience required to achieve solid results for our tourism industry.”
Tourism Australia is also working on greater alignment between the demand and supply sides of the industry through the implementation of the National Long-Term Tourism Strategy.
Short biographies of the board members are attached. Further information on Tourism Australia is available at www.tourism.australia.com
Biographies
Brett Godfrey is a leading aviation industry figure who until recently was Chief Executive Officer of Virgin Blue. He has a strong financial background and has won a number of awards including: the Centenary Medal 2003 for services to the Queensland tourism industry, CEO of the Year 2004 for the Customer Service Institute Awards and Outstanding Chartered Accountants in Business Award 2003. Mr Godfrey’s strong corporate leadership will provide valuable guidance to the Board.
Mark Stone is currently the Chief Executive of Parks Victoria, the park management agency responsible for over four million hectares of the State's environmental, recreational and tourism assets. These assets total over $1 billion and cover 17 per cent of the total area of Victoria attracting 80 million visitors per year to its various locations. With his wealth of natural resource and tourism investment and infrastructure experience, his previous senior positions in four natural resource management agencies, and roles in many Victorian regional and metropolitan locations, Mr Stone is highly suited to a position on the Board.
Didier Elzinga is a leading Australian software and new technology expert. As former Chief Executive Officer of Rising Sun Pictures, he oversighted digital effects for popular and successful films, including Lord of the Rings and The Last Samurai. Mr Elzinga is also the founder and CEO of Culture Amp, a people development software company that delivers a radical new way of approaching performance reviews to fast growing companies worldwide. He will bring to the Board strong skills in harnessing current and emerging technologies, as well as business, financial management, marketing and promotional skills.
Geoff Dixon is the former Chief Executive Officer of Qantas Airways; he also has considerable experience at board level in the media, general business and philanthropic sectors with Consolidated Media Holdings Limited, Crown Limited, the Business Council of Australia, Mission Australia and the Starlight Foundation.
Kate Lamont is currently the Chair of Tourism Western Australia and a Director of the Committee for Perth. She is a past winner of the WA Telstra Business Woman of the Year. Ms Lamont brings a wealth of industry and business expertise to the Board.