WTTC appoints new CEO as Gloria Guevara steps down
Gloria Guevara is stepping down as president and CEO of the World Travel and Tourism Council
International Airlines Group Chief of Staff, Julia Simpson (pictured) will take over the helm on 15 August from the former tourism secretary of Mexico, who has led the global tourism body for four years.
Guevara led WTTC through a transformational agenda over the past years, including the difficult times of the Covid-19 pandemic. She helped define a path for the recovery.
Simpson brings extensive experience of the travel and tourism sector, having served on the boards of British Airways and Iberia. She also previously worked as an advisor to the UK Prime Minister.
May 12th 2021, 13:49
The World Travel & Tourism Council president and chief executive Gloria Guevara (pictured right) is to step down after four years leading the global tourism body.
She will be replaced by International Airlines Group (IAG) executive committee member Julia Simpson (pictured below). She will take over as president and chief executive from August 15, 2021.
Guevara, the former tourism secretary of Mexico, has led the WTTC through a period of significant change and its most difficult year in history, as a result of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the sector.
Simpson has served on the boards of British Airways, Iberia and most recently as chief of staff at the International Airlines Group. She previously worked at a senior level in the UK government, including as advisor to former UK prime minister Tony Blair.
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Gloria Guevara is stepping down as president and CEO of the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), the group announced today.
She will be replaced by Julia Simpson, an executive committee member and, most recently, chief of staff for International Airlines Group, the parent company of British Airways, Iberia, Aer Lingus and Vueling.
WTTC said Guevara, a former tourism secretary of Mexico, departs the organization at the end of this week following four years at the helm. Simpson takes over as president and CEO effective Aug. 15.
Guevara s departure comes just two weeks after WTTC held its global summit in Cancun, one of the travel industry s first major in-person events since the start of the pandemic.
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On the heels of wrapping up its most challenging year yet as the world’s leading organization for tourism’s private sector counting over 200 executives and leaders across diverse sectors as members the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) is readying to welcome new leadership.
Julia Simpson, executive committee member of the International Airlines Group, will take over the organization as its new CEO on August 15. Simpson joins at a pivotal time for the travel industry when tourism will have restarted by this summer but with ongoing uncertainty in many parts of the world where restrictions continue as the pandemic drags on and vaccines continue to lag.