CLIA has named Maritz Travel CEO Christine Duffy to be the new head of the organization, succeeding Terry Dale, the outgoing president and CEO.
Dale, who stepped down as CLIA’s top executive this month after seven years at the helm, is the new president of the U.S. Tour Operators Association, effective Jan. 1.
Maritz Travel said that Duffy’s new role at CLIA would be effective Feb. 1. She leaves after a decade with St. Louis-based Maritz Travel, a leading meeting, event and incentive travel company.
“Christine is a true leader in the travel industry, and has helped Maritz Travel and the entire travel industry weather tough economic times during the last decade,” the company’s chairman and CEO, Steve Maritz, said in a statement.
"The cruise industry is extraordinarily fortunate to have Christine Duffy become the next president of CLIA,” said Howard Frank, chairman of CLIA's executive committee and COO of Carnival Corp. “She has demonstrated exceptional ability to lead and is extremely well-known and admired throughout the travel industry. She also has thorough knowledge of how travel, and cruises, are marketed and sold through the agency distribution system, and a firm grasp of the issues facing the industry.”
In accepting her new position, Duffy said, "The cruise industry has a remarkable record of growth and success, and tremendous potential for the future. Without a doubt, this industry's bold, visionary leaders have created the most exciting, innovative and value-added vacation experiences available to consumers today, whether they are singles, couples, families, multigenerational and social groups, or shipboard meetings and incentives. It is an enormous privilege to lead CLIA in the years to come."
Duffy will be based in CLIA's office in Washington, D.C., and also will work from the association's office in Fort Lauderdale.
Duffy rose to the position of Maritz CEO in 2004, helping the company build its strategic meetings management business and meetings effectiveness solutions, Maritz said.
In addition to serving as CEO, she oversaw Maritz’s pharmaceutical/healthcare sector activities, focusing on integrating and customizing solutions to offer the healthcare industry.
Maritz's website said that Duffy was, “very active in the meetings industry. Through her expertise, vision and approachable communication style, she is empowering meeting professionals around the globe to elevate their profession and prove their strategic value to their company’s bottom line.”
Duffy has served on the Meeting Professionals International board of directors for six years and was chairwoman in 2005 and 2006. She founded MPI’s Women’s Leadership Initiative and served as its inaugural chairwoman.
Maritz said that the St. Louis Business Journal recognized Duffy as one of the 25 Most Influential Business Women, and last year she was named one of Meetings News magazine’s “25 Most Influential People in the Meetings Industry” for the fourth time.
She was named one of Corporate Meetings and Incentives magazine’s “Top 10 Women Leaders in the Meeting Industry” in 2001.
Prior to joining Maritz in 2001, Duffy served as president and COO of McGettigan Partners, which was acquired in November 2001 by Maritz. At McGettigan, she grew sales more than 154% between 1996 and 2001, Maritz said.
Maritz said that Duffy would remain an executive advisor to Maritz.