BTMI searching for new CEO

The Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. (BTMI) on Thursday confirmed that chief executive officer (CEO) Dr Jens Thraenhart’s employment at the agency ended almost a month ago, as international reports indicated that he had taken up a position elsewhere.

In a brief statement, the BTMI said that its board of directors “mutually agreed to part ways” with the German Canadian tourism practitioner on July 14, and the agency’s chief financial officer Craig Hinds is acting in his stead until a replacement is found.

Thraenhart joined the BTMI less than two years ago, on November 1, 2021.

“We have reviewed the BTMI’s business operations and strategy going forward and we have agreed that the BTMI needs to go in a different direction to ensure the growth of Barbados tourism,” Chairman of the Board of Directors, Shelly Williams said as she thanked the former CEO for his service.

“According to the Central Bank, tourism continues to drive the economy in Barbados, through employment and generating business. Our focus is on making sure we deliver growth by looking at new and emerging markets, increasing airlift and cruise business, and all of the ways that will allow Barbadians to see the financial returns from tourism.”

When contacted about the development, Minister of Tourism Ian Gooding-Edghill said Williams had already addressed the matter and he would comment at a later date.

A source close to the BTMI told Barbados TODAY that Thraenhart’s replacement could be named within a month.

According to an article posted on Wednesday on eturbonews.com, a global travel industry news website, Thraenhart has been appointed to the executive board at the African Asian Union (AFASU) for Tourism, Crafts, Research, E-Commerce and Development and will be based in Bangkok, Thailand. AFASU aims to grow the tourism sector and improve people’s lives, according to the organisation.

A press release posted on its website states that the former BTMI CEO and Founding Partner of bespoke strategy consulting firm Chameleon Strategies was also appointed as a member of the AFASU Golden Awards Committee.

While the BTMI statement made no mention of Thraenhart’s accomplishments during his tenure, and local sources told Barbados TODAY there were questions about his performance, AFASU’s press release stated that he had scored “impressive short-term successes, from winning the Green Destinations Award in the category of climate change and the environment, the launch of an innovative employee engagement programme, a data and performance measurement process, and strong recovery numbers coming out of the COVID pandemic”, in just a little more than a year of leading the national tourism marketing organisation.

“Under his leadership, the organisation has rebuilt tourism by staging world-class BTMI-owned events such as the Food and Rum Festival and Run Barbados, the largest marathon in the Caribbean. His unique video blog, showcasing the island destination, going into communities, visiting small businesses, and learning from Barbadians about the history and culture of the destination set him on a path to leadership success,” it added.

Prior to joining the BTMI, Thraenhart had for nearly eight years served as the Executive Director at the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office (MTCO) owned by the governments of Thailand, Viet Nam, Cambodia, Lao, Myanmar, and China, and founded private sector-led regional tourism board, Destination Mekong.

He also served on the Board of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) and was a past Chair of PATA China.

(SZB)