New members appointed to Brand USA board of directors

WASHINGTON, Dec. 5, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Brand USA, the destination-marketing organization for the United States, has announced the appointment of two new board members and the reappointment of two existing members. The new board appointees join a group of tourism industry leaders each with designated expertise in specific sectors of the travel industry including: hotel accommodations; restaurants; small business or retail or in associations representing that sector; travel distribution; attractions or recreations; state-level tourism office; city-level convention and visitors bureau; passenger air; land or sea transportation; and immigration law and policy. The newly appointed and reappointed members include:

• Alice Norsworthy, chief marketing officer, Universal Orlando Resort and executive vice president, international brand management, Universal Parks & Resorts (new appointment, representing the attractions or recreations sector).
• Thomas O'Toole, senior fellow and clinical professor of marketing at the Kellogg School of Management of Northwestern University (new appointment, representing the passenger air sector).
• Andrew Greenfield, partner, Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen and Loewy, LLP (re-appointment, representing the immigration law and policy sector).
• Barbara Richardson, chief of external relations, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (re-appointment, representing the land or sea transportation sector).

The appointments were made by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce in consultation with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Homeland Security as provided for in the Travel Promotion, Enhancement, and Modernization Act of 2014. Each appointment became effective Dec. 1, 2016, for a term of three years.

"We are very fortunate to have talented newly appointed board members like Alice Norsworthy and Tom O'Toole joining us as we continue to see Brand USA grow into the premier destination marketing organization in the world and stimulate greater international tourism resulting in both jobs and export dollars for America," said Tom Klein, president and CEO of Sabre Corporation and Brand USA board chair.   "We are also pleased to have Barbara Richardson and Andrew Greenfield continue their capable service for another term.  Finally, we thank Randy Garfield and Mark Schwab for their many years of service on the board of Brand USA. Their contributions to Brand USA since its founding have been significant and were critical to Brand USA's long-term success."

"We look forward to working with Alice and Tom as the newest members of Brand USA's board of directors. Both are industry leaders and come from two partner organizations that have and continue to be integral to our success," said Christopher L. Thompson, president and CEO of Brand USA. "Each brings to the board a unique level of insight as we enter into the next phase of our development in fueling the nation's economy by driving international tourism to the USA. Their perspectives combined with the continued experience of Andrew and Barbara will be a valuable asset to the board."

Thompson also acknowledged the contributions of outgoing board members Mark Schwab, CEO of Star Alliance Services GmbH; and Randy Garfield, retired/former executive vice president, worldwide sales & travel operations, Disney Destinations, and president of Walt Disney Travel Company. "Randy and Mark have provided invaluable leadership and guidance to Brand USA since our early days as the destination marketing organization for the United States," said Thompson. "We are eternally grateful for their commitment and contributions from our formative years to today, which has left a lasting positive mark on the organization. As founding board members, they each helped build Brand USA into what it is today, and I am confident the foundation they helped set will serve us well in our future growth."

The newly appointed and re-appointed board members will join the current board members at the next board of directors meeting on Dec. 9, 2016, from 11:00 AM EST to 12:15 PM EST. Members of the public are invited to participate by conference call as follows:

• U.S./Canada toll-free participants dial-in number: (866) 242-2798
• Required conference ID/passcode: 24140675
• To additionally register for the webinar and view the meeting presentation, please click here to register or cut and paste the following URL in your browser: https://cc.readytalk.com/registration/#/?meeting=cwx16v1cz5yx&campaign=poh18awlchpf

Each year, Brand USA deploys a number of marketing platforms and programs to increase in-bound visitor travel to the United States and drive tourism dollars to communities in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the five territories, as well as to promote tourism to, through, and beyond the gateways. To accomplish this, Brand USA utilizes a combination of brand marketing, public relations, travel trade outreach, and cooperative marketing programs that provide opportunities for partners of all types and sizes to participate.

According to a study released by Oxford Economics, over the past three years, Brand USA's marketing efforts have generated more than 3 million incremental international visitors to the United States, benefiting the U.S. economy with nearly $21 billion in total economic impact, which has supported, on average, 50,000 incremental jobs a year.

As the number one services export for the United States, tourism to the United States currently supports 1.8 million American jobs (directly and indirectly) and benefits virtually every sector of the U.S. economy.

About Brand USA

Brand USA, the destination marketing organization for the United States, was established by the Travel Promotion Act as the nation's first public-private partnership to promote the United States as a premier travel destination and to communicate U.S. entry/exit policies and procedures to worldwide travelers. The organization's mission is to increase international visitation to the USA in order to fuel the U.S. economy and enhance the image of the United States worldwide. Formed as the Corporation for Travel Promotion in 2010, the public-private entity began operations in May 2011 and does business as Brand USA. According to studies by Oxford Economics, over the past three years Brand USA's marketing initiatives have helped welcome more than 3 million incremental visitors to the USA, benefiting the U.S. economy with nearly $21 billion in total economic impact, which has supported, on average, 50,000 incremental jobs a year.

For industry or partner information about Brand USA, visit TheBrandUSA.com. For information about exceptional and unexpected travel experiences in the United States, please visit Brand USA's consumer website VisitTheUSA.com (global).

About the Newly Appointed and Re-appointed Board Members

Alice Norsworthy is chief marketing officer at Universal Orlando Resort and executive vice president, international brand management for Universal Parks & Resorts. Norsworthy is responsible for the oversight of Universal Orlando's Marketing and Sales divisions and reports to Tom Williams, chairman and chief executive officer for Universal Parks & Resorts. In that capacity, Norsworthy oversees all brand and retail marketing, trade and distribution programs, as well as corporate communications, consumer insights and corporate partnerships for Universal Orlando Resort. She also helps to guide international brand management efforts for Universal's international theme park destinations.

Since joining Universal Orlando in September 2008, Norsworthy has led numerous successful brand positioning and attraction launch campaigns including The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Despicable Me Minion Mayhem, and TRANSFORMERS: The Ride-3D, along with supporting significant hotel, retail, and dining expansion in Orlando. Previously, Norsworthy served as senior vice president of marketing for Royal Caribbean International. During her time there, she led the development and implementation of the marketing programs that grew the Royal Caribbean brand and launched the Freedom Class of cruise ships. She also held a variety of senior marketing and operations roles at Walt Disney World.

Norsworthy has been recognized by Advertising Age as one of America's Top 50 marketers, "who broke through the clutter and delivered real impact (and ROI) for their brands."  She has also been named one of the 100 Most Powerful Women in Travel three times by Travel Agent Magazine. A graduate of the University of Florida in Gainesville, Norsworthy serves on the board of directors for the Universal Orlando Foundation as well as the national board of directors for Big Brothers Big Sisters, and the advisory board for the Eric Friedheim Tourism Institute at the University of Florida.

Thomas F. O'Toole is senior fellow and clinical professor of marketing at the Kellogg School of Management of Northwestern University. At Kellogg, he is engaged in advancing the development, practice and teaching of subjects including digital enterprise transformation, big data and analytics, growth strategy and the future of marketing. Until his retirement in late 2016, O'Toole was chief marketing officer, senior vice president and president, MileagePlus of United Airlines. At United, he was responsible for all brand strategy, marketing, product development, digital channels, ancillary revenue, loyalty, co-brand credit cards, customer data analytics, marketing systems, partnerships, and onboard media. He joined United in 2010 as chief marketing officer and senior vice president.

Before United, O'Toole was chief marketing officer and chief information officer for Hyatt Hotels Corporation, where he was responsible for Hyatt's marketing, loyalty, distribution, information technology and related functions worldwide. He joined Hyatt as vice president of marketing in 1995.

O'Toole serves on the board of directors of Alliant Energy (LNT), an S&P 500 company providing electricity, natural gas and renewable energy; and LSC (LKSD), a global leader in printing, retail supply chain and related digital technologies. Additionally, he serves on the boards of the CSU Foundation, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Windows on the World Communication (WTTW/WFMT), and the Big Shoulders Fund of Chicago.

O'Toole earned a master of applied communication theory and methodology, as well as his bachelor of arts in communication research from Cleveland State University.

Andrew Greenfield is the managing partner of Fragomen's Washington, DC, office and a member of the firmwide executive committee that manages business across more than 40 offices in 20 countries. He has over two decades of experience advising domestic and multinational employers on U.S. immigration and nationality law, regulation, policy and compliance, as well as worldwide immigration program management. Andrew counsels clients on visa and work permit matters and on the immigration consequences of mergers and acquisitions and other corporate reorganizations, as well as I-9/E-Verify, H-1B/LCA and PERM compliance. He also advises international treaty organizations, their officers and employees regarding the application and limitations of diplomatic privileges and immunities, related State Department law and policy, and U.S. work authorization and residency planning for G-4 visa holders and their dependents.

As the head of Fragomen's DC-based tourism and hospitality practice group, he assists hotel and hospitality companies in ensuring the seamless movement of key personnel into the United States in support of the seasonal and long-term demands of domestic and international tourism.  

Andrew has been recognized as a leading immigration lawyer by Best Lawyers in America, The International Who's Who of Business Lawyers, the Legal Times, Chambers USA, Super Lawyers, and the Legal 500.  He received his bachelor's degree, cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania, and his J.D. from the George Washington University Law School.

Barbara Richardson is the chief of external relations of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (Metro), the nation's second largest transit system. Richardson's transportation career spans more than 25 years with much of it in branding, marketing, communications, and strategic planning. As Metro's chief of staff, Richardson leads the agency's short and long-term strategic planning, including championing Metro's strategic plan and business planning process, as well as overseeing government and external relations. In addition, Richardson serves as management's liaison to the board of directors, oversees the day-to-day management of the office of general manager, and leads the executive leadership team in implementing agency-wide initiatives.

Richardson joined Washington Metro in 2010 as the assistant general manager for customer service, communications and marketing, where she led a number of initiatives, including the interior design of Metro's new railcars, an expanded customer research program, the introduction of social media to improve the agency's two-way conversation with customers, and the launch of the Metro Forward campaign.

Prior to joining Metro and being a marketing consultant, Richardson was with Amtrak for 12 years, where she served as vice president for marketing and sales; chief of staff; vice president of marketing and communications for the northeast corridor; and senior director of communications of the northeast corridor. Earlier in her career, Richardson also served as director of public affairs for the Federal Railroad Administration, director of communications for the New Jersey Department of Transportation, and director of public information for the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority. Richardson is a past national chair of the U.S. Travel Association and a member of the Destination DC board of directors. She is also a member of the Washington Board of Trade's Transportation and Land Use Committee, and the Women's Transportation Seminar.

About the Brand USA Board of Directors

Brand USA is governed by an 11-member board of directors appointed for a maximum of two consecutive three-year terms by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce in consultation with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Homeland Security. To allow for staggered term expirations, of the members first appointed to the board, three were appointed for terms of one year, four were appointed for terms of two years, and four were appointed for terms of three years. All members of the board are United States citizens and are either current or former chief executive officers, chief financial offers, or chief marketing officers, or have held equivalent management positions.

Designated board members have leadership expertise in specific sectors of the travel industry including: hotel accommodations; restaurants; small business or retail or in associations representing that sector; travel distribution; attractions or recreations; state-level tourism office; city-level convention and visitors bureau; passenger air; land or sea transportation; and immigration law and policy. At least two members of the board are audit committee financial experts. In addition, at least five members of the board have expertise in international travel promotion or marketing broadly representing various regions of the United States. Brand USA board members receive no compensation for their service on the Brand USA board and, although eligible to seek reimbursement for actual travel expenses and per diem, have voluntarily elected not to seek reimbursement for allowable expenses.

MEDIA CONTACT: 
Anne Madison
Brand USA
202.695.5351 mobile
AMadison@TheBrandUSA.com

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161205/445797

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20161205/445798  

SOURCE Brand USA