Beck Appointed President and CEO Of San Francisco Travel Association
Scott Beck will succeed Joe D’Alessandro as president of the San Francisco Travel Association. D’Alessandro will retire in December after nearly 18 years at the helm of San Francisco’s official destination marketing organization.
Beck will join San Francisco Travel on Oct. 30, 2023. Currently, he is President and CEO of Destination Toronto. He joined Destination Toronto in 2019 to lead the sales and marketing efforts for Canada’s most visited destination and North America’s fourth-largest city, overseeing an annual operating budget of US$28 million and working in support of Toronto’s US$7.6 billion visitor economy.
As President and CEO of San Francisco Travel, Beck will oversee one of the country’s largest membership-based tourism promotion organizations. San Francisco Travel has a current annual budget of US$33 million. The association’s sales and marketing initiatives help drive US$8 billion in tourism spending.
Commenting on his appointment, Beck said: “San Francisco is one of the marquee cities of the world for U.S. and international travellers, and I am thrilled to be joining the team at San Francisco Travel to continue to showcase everything it has to offer.”
And he continued: “A strong tourism industry is vital to the city’s economy, local businesses and neighbourhoods, and I am passionately committed to helping steward San Francisco’s ongoing tourism recovery.”
“After a rigorous international search, we are delighted to appoint Scott to lead San Francisco Travel at this pivotal time. He is a proven destination sales and marketing leader and will be a strong champion for San Francisco,” said Terry Lewis, chair of San Francisco Travel’s CEO search committee and Complex General Manager at Hilton San Francisco Union Square and Parc 55 San Francisco. Lewis will begin her term as San Francisco Travel’s Board Chair in January 2024.
San Francisco Travel Board Chair Randy Reynoso said, “With more than 35 years of experience in the convention and tourism industry, Scott brings a wealth of knowledge to this role and proven expertise in attracting events, meetings, and international and domestic visitors to destinations. This is critically important given the diverse leisure and business travel markets that fuel San Francisco’s tourism industry as well as our local economy.”
Go to www.sftravel.com for more.
