Travel Weekly publisher Bob Sullivan was one of three industry leaders inducted into the Tourism Hall of Fame last week by Tourism Cares, a nonprofit that strives to preserve and restore natural and historic sites.
Sullivan, Northstar Travel Media executive vice president and publisher for the Travel Group, joined Phillip Gordon, chairman of the Globus Family of Brands, and Steve Gorga, president and CEO of Travel Impressions, as the newest inductees in the Hall of Fame.
The three were honored May 29 at a gala dinner reception at the Crowne Plaza Times Square Hotel in New York.
In accepting the honor, all three recipients shared credit for their success their with family and colleagues.
Gordon’s early years as a tour escort were parodied in a video clip of him giving an excruciatingly detailed tour of Globus offices to visitors.
Gorga said his management philosophy was shaped in large measure by his father, who would tell him about mistreatment of lower-paid workers he had observed. Gorga said he worried at one point that he was too much of a nice guy to succeed as a manager, so he toughened up for a few days.
“I found that when I did that, I was thinking about me,” he recalled. “When I was nice, I was thinking about employees.”
The latter, he concluded, was more in keeping with his personality and philosophy.
Sullivan said, “This is such a distinguished honor. To be inducted into the Hall of Fame along with Phillip and Steve, two travel executives I have such incredible respect for, is truly humbling.”
He said his career goal was to leave the industry in better shape than he had found it. Over time, he said, he had concluded that embracing content platforms that provide the industry with independent editorial and analysis was the way he could have the most significant impact.
He singled out Travel Weekly Editor in Chief Arnie Weissmann; Northstar Travel Media Chairman and CEO Tom Kemp; Senior Vice President of PhoCusWright Research Lorraine Sileo; Vice President and Group Publisher Tim Reid; and Travel Weekly Events Vice President Alicia Evanko-Lewis as the colleagues most responsible for his success.
“I’ve been so fortunate to work with world-class brands and some tremendous talent,” Sullivan said. “Surround yourself with great talent and brands and it certainly makes the course toward success a lot easier.”
Sullivan concluded by tipping his hat to Tourism Cares, saying, “They do some great work and deserve to be supported.”
He asked the attendees to “please do what you can to contribute so that Tourism Cares can continue to be a difference-maker for years to come.”
The Tourism Hall of Fame recognizes individuals who have had a profound personal and professional impact on the travel and tourism industry through philanthropic, volunteer and mentoring activities.
Sullivan’s induction was cause for celebration last week in the offices of Travel Weekly and its parent, Northstar Travel Media.
“I’m very glad to see Bob get this recognition,” Weissmann said. “In the dozen or so years that I’ve worked with Bob, I’ve seen him provide support to the industry in countless ways. Bob has made a deep and positive mark on the industry.”
Kemp spoke of the pride the entire company felt “that our colleague and friend Bob Sullivan is being honored.” He added: “Bob is passionate about the travel industry and has created lifelong friends in the business. There is no one more deserving of this recognition nor devoted to the success and growth of global tourism.”
All three inductees have decades of experience in the travel industry.
Sullivan, who has 20 years of travel-trade publishing experience, joined Travel Weekly in the fall of 2000 and has since been responsible for overseeing all business issues pertaining to the Travel Weekly Network and its portfolio of products.
Gordon, who has spent 30 years with the Globus Family of Brands, became the company’s chairman in 2009.
Gorga was named one of the travel industry’s “25 Most Influential Executives” in April 2000 by Leisure Travel News.
The Hall of Fame event coincided with the 10th anniversary celebration of Tourism Cares’ annual “Tourism Cares for America” volunteer project, which took place on May 30 and 31. For this year’s project, volunteers helped repair damages suffered by Brooklyn’s Coney Island when Hurricane Sandy ravaged the New York and New Jersey area last fall.
A portion of the proceeds from the May 29 reception and silent auction will benefit nonprofit tourist sites that also were damaged by Sandy.