CONNECTING EARLY ADOPTERS AND DISRUPTORS ACROSS THE PLACE BRAND INDUSTRY
Welcome to the City Nation Place Advisory Group, a network of global leaders across place branding, economic development, and destination marketing organisations.
Learn more about how our group is fostering connection between place leaders around the world, opening new doors for collaboration, and driving new research to support the growth of the industry.
What is the CNP Advisory Group?
We’re a network of leading decision makers from place brand, economic development, and destination marketing organisations from around the world.
The Advisory Group is made up of invited place branding leaders from around the world and thanks to the support of our City Nation Place Champions, we are now able to extend the programme to more participants.
Fostering connection & inspiration among place leaders
Members of the Advisory Group are invited to attend online meetings throughout the year. During these virtual meetings, place leaders collaborate to share ideas, challenges, and opportunities across the full remit of place brand and marketing strategies.
Through these conversations, place leaders are able to sense check their strategic vision and identify areas of common interest to drive new research and initiatives that strengthen the implementation of place brand strategies around the world.
How can you get involved?
There are two options for joining these discussions:
Advisory Group
Participation in the Advisory Group is free, although to maintain the balance of the group membership, the City Nation Place team will inform you if your application has been successful. Benefits include:
Connecting with place leaders from around the world on monthly calls to share learnings
The opportunity to suggest and shape future initiatives
Early access to City Nation Place reports and research
10% discount on our conference tickets
Champions
This is an enhanced package for the long-term supporters of City Nation Place’s mission who have kindly donated to help fund the development of these initiatives.
Alongside the benefits all Advisory Group members receive, Champions receive:
Branding on all published reports and at City Nation Place conferences
A representative on the CNP Awards jury
Unlimited logins to the Place Brand Portfolio for their organisation
A tailored presentation for their team / stakeholders on key trends and learnings from the year’s Awards finalists and winners
And a complimentary conference ticket to an event of their choice
If you would like to be involved within either membership tier, please get in touch by emailing stephanie@citynationplace.com or completing our form below. We’d love to learn more about your work.
Our goals and initiatives
We’re working together with these industry leaders to identify the emerging challenges and opportunities that should be top of the agenda for place professionals.
Since the creation of the Advisory Group, we’ve launched a number of initiatives focused on helping the place industry measure, engage and organise. Learn more about our most recent initiatives below and explore our archive of free place branding and place marketing resources made possible by the City Nation Place Champions and Advisory Group.
INITIATIVE ONE:
Developing a toolkit for citizen engagement
We’re delighted to publish a new, free toolkit that curates best practice in citizen and community engagement by place brand and marketing organisations around the world.
This report includes fifteen case studies, gives you how-to advice and links to a range of tools and resources used by each of the places who have shared their stories with us.
INITIATIVE ONE:
Developing a toolkit for citizen engagementWe’re delighted to publish a new, free toolkit that curates best practice in citizen and community engagement by place brand and marketing organisations around the world.
This report includes fifteen case studies, gives you how-to advice and links to a range of tools and resources used by each of the places who have shared their stories with us.
INITIATIVE TWO:
Understanding and leveraging private sector engagement in place branding
Combining a survey approach with qualitative interviews with engaged private sector leaders, this report will aim to understand why and how companies value place attractiveness and the organisations which promote it. We’ll explore how places can inspire private sector partners to become place ambassadors and promote place attractiveness. The Report will also include case studies of effective private sector ambassador programmes and include a specific focus on place of origin strategies.
INITIATIVE TWO:
Understanding and leveraging private sector engagement in place brandingCombining a survey approach with qualitative interviews with engaged private sector leaders, this report will aim to understand why and how companies value place attractiveness and the organisations which promote it. We’ll explore how places can inspire private sector partners to become place ambassadors and promote place attractiveness. The Report will also include case studies of effective private sector ambassador programmes and include a specific focus on place of origin strategies.
INITIATIVE THREE:
Mapping organisational structures and governance for place branding and marketing
We recently published The Structure & Governance for successful place branding and marketing report, which provides a summary of a survey of just under 40 organisations around the world and seven in-depth interviews to provide a better understanding of the pros and cons of different approaches. Learn what’s working, where the challenges are, and how places are adapting their structures and funding to better support their evolving objectives.
INITIATIVE THREE:
Mapping organisational structures and governance for place branding and marketingWe recently published The Structure & Governance for successful place branding and marketing report, which provides a summary of a survey of just under 40 organisations around the world and seven in-depth interviews to provide a better understanding of the pros and cons of different approaches. Learn what’s working, where the challenges are, and how places are adapting their structures and funding to better support their evolving objectives.
INITIATIVE FOUR:
KPIs for the impact of place branding
Harnessing the collective wisdom of the Advisory Group, we aim to develop an industry benchmark for setting and monitoring KPIs around the impact of place branding. Driven by a design thinking mindset, this initiative aims to explore what expectations different governments and place organisations have regarding KPIs and to develop a framework to standardise the reporting on place branding around the world.
Watch this space for more information as we continue to develop this initiative.
INITIATIVE FOUR:
KPIs for the impact of place brandingHarnessing the collective wisdom of the Advisory Group, we aim to develop an industry benchmark for setting and monitoring KPIs around the impact of place branding. Driven by a design thinking mindset, this initiative aims to explore what expectations different governments and place organisations have regarding KPIs and to develop a framework to standardise the reporting on place branding around the world.
Watch this space for more information as we continue to develop this initiative.
Meet the CNP Advisory Group
City Nation Place Champions
This work would not be possible without the financial support of our City Nation Place Champions: Brand Tasmania, Destination Cleveland, Essential Costa Rica, New Zealand Story, VisitPITTSBURGH, Slovenian Tourist Board, We are Staffordshire, and Wesgro.
Stay tuned for more to come
We look forward to continuing to connect with our City Nation Place Advisory Group and Champions over the coming months and creating new resources to support the development of place branding as an industry. Watch this space for more news.
Questions? Feel free to reach out to stephanie@citynationplace.com to learn more about The Advisory Group and opportunities to get involved.
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Adriana Acosta is the Marketing and Communication Director of PROCOMER (The Costa Rican Foreign Trade Promoter) and oversees the strategic direction of the country brand Essential Costa Rica. Adriana has more than 20 years of experience in marketing and advertising, and she had been the head of conception and development of strategies for brands of diverse sectors such as real state, wines and distillates, premium brands, services, and fast-moving consumer goods.
Prior to joining PROCOMER, Adriana as a Marketing Director and Senior Executive, developed marketing strategies, frame and conduct marketing research, develop customer journeys and lead the social media and advertising strategy for different clients and companies. She also explored her entrepreneur side creating and managing her own advertising agency for 8 years.
Adriana is graduate of the Costa Rica University of Communication and Advertising program and has an MBA in Marketing. She has experience developing new business, leading marketing teams, managing the relation with advertising, social media and public relations agencies, commercial partners, press media and events agencies and has served as the spokesperson of different companies.
David Andrews is Director of the Great West Way, a Discover England Funded project to create one of the world’s premier touring routes between London & Bristol. This project has been led by VisitWiltshire where David is also Chief Executive. Previous tourism management and marketing roles include working at The Mersey Partnership and the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority. Before that David worked in VisitBritain / VisitEngland roles based in London, Singapore, Chicago and Amsterdam.
Todd Babiak is CEO of Brand Tasmania. He made the switch from place branding and economic development consulting, with Story Engine and Places are People, where he had worked with clients in North America, Latin America, Europe, Africa, and Australia. Why did he move to Tasmania, to join his former client as CEO? He had never implemented a strategy before, and he was inspired to understand why people didn’t always take action on his “brilliant advice.”
Now he gets it.
See tasmanian.com.au and toddbabiak.com.
Jerad Bachar has close to thirty years of tourism and economic development experience in an array of countries and business environments. He has worked in both developed and emerging markets in the areas of destination branding and marketing, economic development and diversification, and workforce development.
Jerad began his tourism development career at VisitPITTSBURGH in 2004. In 2008, he became Director of Business Tourism for the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing where he led the development of the city’s strategy for business, sports, and leisure events. In 2015, Jerad became an Executive Director at the Bahrain Economic Development Board where he was responsible for economic development of the travel, healthcare, education, and real estate sectors.
Jerad returned to Pittsburgh in January 2019 as the Executive Vice President of VisitPITTSBURGH, and as of May 2020 became President and CEO of the organization. Jerad holds an MBA from the University of Liverpool.
Camilla Bark is Director of Marketing and Talent Attraction at Invest in Skåne, the official trade and investment promotion organisation for Skåne, the southernmost part of Sweden.
Invest in Skåne help international companies invest and expand in the region, and attract valuable talent to secure a skilled, diverse and competent workforce in Skåne and the Greater Copenhagen region.
In addition, Invest in Skåne has the task of promoting Skåne and the Greater Copenhagen Region internationally as an attractive, dynamic and world-class region for business, research and innovation, and which provides a gateway to, not just the Nordics, but Europe as a whole. Camilla leads a team responsible for marketing, communications, PR and talent attraction/retention. She holds a double Bachelor degree in Business Administration and Human Resources (with a focus on Competence Resourcing) and has several years of experience working with international marketing and branding within B2B as well as competence resourcing and Employer Branding.
Christian Biller is a Brand Strategist at the Swedish Institute (SI), based in Stockholm. With a career at SI that spans over fifteen years since 2007, he has been working with the marketing and communication of Sweden through a variety of strategic initiatives. One of Christian's contributions includes the communication concept, "Pioneer the Possible," aimed at bolstering Sweden's position in export and investment promotion.
Currently, he is part of the Unit for the Image of Sweden Analysis, where he holds a specialized responsibility for the business sector, Sweden’s overall brand strategy and Sweden’s visual identity.
Asbjørn Overgaard took up the position as CEO in Copenhagen Capacity on 1 June 2020 being at the forefront of attracting and retaining foreign companies and talents, with the aim of creating growth and development in Greater Copenhagen. Throughout his career, Asbjørn has worked in both private companies and public organizations and close to the political decision-making process. Asbjørn has a long experience from positions as Director of Danish Shipping, a number of positions in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including Private Secretary to the Minister of Trade and Investment, Deputy Ambassador and Deputy Director of Invest in Denmark.
With over 30 years of experience in the retail, hospitality and tourism sectors, Royce has focused the last 15 years of his career in senior leadership roles at the national, provincial, and now the civic level of destination management organizations. After spending 10 years at Travel Alberta, Royce relocated back to his hometown Vancouver to take on the role of President, CEO, and team leader of the newly transformed Destination Vancouver in July of 2020.
While at Travel Alberta Royce oversaw the development and launch of the award winning (remember to breathe) destination brand that resulted in increased awareness and visitation for Alberta. While at the Canadian Tourism Commission, Royce was part of the team that brought the Canada brand to life for millions of viewers and attendees of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics helping to put Vancouver and Canada on the global tourism bucket list.
Before that Royce developed extensive experience working in corporate, franchise and start-up business in operations, sales, and marketing in various leadership roles.
Royce volunteers on Destination British Columbia’s Tourism Marketing Committee, Expedia Media Select Advisory Board, Business Improvement Association Downtown Vancouver Board Member, and SAIT Dean’s Hospitality and Tourism Council.
Michael is a recognized leader in travel and tourism in Canada. In his current role, he leads Ottawa’s official destination organization, which spearheads sales and marketing initiatives for attracting visitors to Canada’s capital, while also making investments in the long-term stewardship and development of the destination.
Prior to joining Ottawa Tourism, Michael served as Senior Vice President with InterVISTAS Consulting, where he was responsible for the firm’s airline, air service development, and tourism practices in Canada. Michael has over 15 years experience at the management level with two of Canada’s major airports, the Winnipeg Airports Authority and the Ottawa International Airport Authority.
Michael is very active within the tourism industry and other business groups. He is a Board member with Destinations International, the Ottawa Convention Centre, the Ottawa International Hockey Festival, and the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario (TIAO). He is the Co-Chair of the Canadian Destination Leadership Council. He is a volunteer member of the Advisory Council for Meeting Professionals Against Human Trafficking and the Advisory Committee for the Hospitality & Tourism Management Degree Program at Algonquin College.
Michael is a Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, he is a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, and he is an inductee to the Order of Ottawa.
Michael has a Master’s degree in Geography from the University of Manitoba, and he is a Certified Barbecue Judge.
Melanie De Vocht is place brand manager at the City of Ghent (Belgium). She has a PhD in communication sciences and works since 2016 at the City of Ghent where she started working on city marketing and strategic communication. In 2019 she took up the project lead in the development of the place brand strategy of Ghent.
Melanie is co-chair of the Flemish Network for Place Branding, founded in 2023 by the City of Ghent and the City of Roeselare.
Brad Dean, originally from Illinois, holds a Bachelors Degree in Accounting from the University of Illinois and a Masters Degree from Moody Bible Institute. Brad began his career in Puerto Rico, where he worked for General Electric. Brad also worked for Hard Rock Café as a Unit Controller and General Manager. In 1998, he joined the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, a regional DMO, where he first served as CFO, then as CEO. Brad has 20+ years of experience in the travel & tourism industry.
David Downs, CMInstD
Genetically Modified Optimist
David has had a successful career in the private and public sector and is now CEO of The New Zealand Story, an ambitious government-funded organisation marketing New Zealand to the world. He also acts as a consultant and is a director on several boards, including as Chair of The Icehouse, and the Hi-Tech Trust. David is an ex-comedian, TV and radio actor, semi-finalist for New Zealander of the Year, cancer survivor and a published author of the books No.8 Re-wired, No.8 Recharged, A Mild Touch of the Cancer, and Silver Linings. David founded SOS Business, a hugely successful not-for-profit initiative to help cafes and other small businesses during covid-19.
Journalist from the University of Chile, she has a broad background in the field of Communications and extensive experience in Communication Management, Corporate Affairs, and Political Communication, where she has built a career as an advisor to political authorities.
She has held positions such as Communications Director for the Chilean Chamber of Deputies, Communications Chief at the Ministry of Cultures, Arts, and Heritage, Communications Advisor to three Presidents of the Chilean Chamber of Deputies, and advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Chile for the national and international communications campaign on the implementation of the Chilean Vote Abroad. For over 10 years, she was a press advisor to former President Ricardo Lagos.
She is also a writer and published her first novel, “Pasajeros en Tránsito,” in 2012, and the second, "Honorables,” in 2020. Since January 2023, is the Executive Director of Imagen de Chile Foundation.
Mark’s role as CEO of Explore Seattle Southside enables him to interact with an engaged team of experienced destination marketers in a region south of the Seattle Washington metro core. Mark’s background includes managing hotels and multi-hotel portfolios for 35+ years prior to transitioning into destination marketing.
Explore Seattle Southside is a unique destination marketing organization. The organization’s public funding via a lodging assessment provides stability for the organization to plan multi-year marketing campaigns. The region it markets experiences over 50 million visitors a year, surpassing many other larger and more well-known destinations. The organization has been recognized as one of the best workplaces in the State of Washinton for the past several years – unheard of for a governmental authority.
David Gilbert serves as President and CEO of Greater Cleveland Sports Commission, an organization dedicated to making Greater Cleveland the nation’s foremost destination for amateur sporting events and activities, and Destination Cleveland, the region’s destination marketing and management organization. He re-established the Sports Commission in 2000 and assumed his role with Destination Cleveland in 2011. From April 2015 through December 2017, David also served as the president and CEO of the Cleveland 2016 Host Committee for the Republican National Convention.
Greater Cleveland Sports Commission is responsible for attracting, creating, managing, and enhancing significant sporting and competitive events. Since 2000, the organization has attracted over 200 events including the NFL Draft, MLB All-Star Game, NBA All-Star Weekend and NCAA Women’s Final Four in addition to the upcoming 2024 Pan-American Maters Games. These events have contributed more than $820 million in local economic impact.
At Destination Cleveland, Gilbert is responsible for carrying out the organization’s mission to drive economic impact and stimulate community vitality by positioning and promoting Cleveland as an exciting, vibrant destination. Under his leadership, visitation and economic impact increased dramatically for nine consecutive years (2011-2019) before the onset of the COVID-19 global pandemic. During that time, annual visitation grew at a pace greater than the U.S. visitation growth rate.
Gilbert serves as vice president on the board of the International Children’s Games, based in Lausanne, Switzerland, and sits of the boards of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland and the U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board of the Department of Commerce. He was named by Crain’s Cleveland Business as one of Cleveland’s “30 influencers of the past 30 years,” Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year and in 2016, he received the SME Cleveland Business Executive of the Year Award.
Gilbert has a Bachelor of Arts degree in marketing from The Ohio State University and an MBA from Cleveland State University.
Sarah was appointed CEO of NewcastleGateshead Initiative (NGI) in 2020. Sarah oversees all aspects of NGI, the destination and inward investment agency that delivers for Newcastle, Gateshead, and the wider region.
Prior to NGI, Sarah was the Director of Regions and Nations at CBI. She qualified as a lawyer with Clifford Chance working Hong Kong, London and Shanghai and has a MSc in Urban Regeneration and an MBA. Sarah is also currently completing a PhD scholarship at Durham University, studying the social impact of small businesses on the rural economy.
With a passion for improving the visitor economy, advocate for social mobility and enabler of economic growth in the North East, she sits on the Tourism Industry Council, is an Independent Advisory Board member at Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums (TWAM), a council member at the National Trust and a non-executive director at Ryder Architecture.
My background is in political science and integrated communication.
I have more than 15 years experience in communication working within different areas - public and digital diplomacy, stratcom, government affairs, media relations, PR, country branding.
Together with my team in 2019 we have launched a new brand strategy and platform - Lithuania Co-Create.
Luuk works for the municipality of The Hague as City Branding Program Manager. His background is in the field of public administration and urban development. In his current job, Luuk and his colleagues, help to apply The Hague’s brand values in initiatives coming from inside and outside City Hall. They also carry out projects to strengthen the image of The Hague and city pride. They work closely with our destination marketing organization: The Hague & Partners.
Kristen Reynolds has been at the helm of Discover Long Island, the official regional organization charged with furthering Long Island’s $6.3 billion tourism economy, for seven years. A transplant from Arizona, her experience as a destination leader spans more than 25 years in roles at the state tourism level, in corporate and luxury resorts and as the statewide lobbyist for tourism and economic development advocacy.
Kristen and her team at Discover Long Island work to promote a positive perception of Long Island across the globe, which draws lucrative visitors, stirs business attraction, and drives economic development throughout the region – all for the overarching purpose of improving the quality of life for Long Island residents. During her tenure at Discover Long Island, collaborations with local, regional and state business and industry leaders have led to many national and global awards and enhanced economic vitality.
Kristen serves on the Board of Directors for Destinations International, as the incoming President of the New York State Destination Marketing Organizations (NYSDMO), as a board member of NYSHTA (New York State Hospitality & Tourism Association) and has been named to the Top 50 Women in Business on Long Island’s Hall of Fame, Top 100 Power List of Long Island and City & State’s Top 100 Long Island influencers. She is a graduate from the acclaimed Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University and is a Certified Destination Management Executive (CDME). Her favorite pastime is discovering Long Island with her blended family and reigniting the passion of Long Islanders for the place they call home.
Nakyoung Kim is a city branding specialist and the Chief of the Brand Planning Team of Goyang city, Korea.
She believes that city branding is not just about city logos and slogans, but all the works that improve the competitiveness of a city and the value of citizen’s lives, and that the ultimate goal of city branding is to create a sustainable and livable city.
In addition to managing city branding, she has a 4-year career of destination marketing experience at MICE industry department. During this time, she ran the Destination Competitiveness Forum with Goyang CVB and she contributed to the designation of the Goyang International Meeting Complex Zone by the government. After transferring to the city branding department, she is in charge of the World Cities Forum.
In recognition of her contribution to fostering the MICE industry, she received a commendation from the Governor of Gyeonggi-do.
She holds a BA in English Language and Literature in Korea and a Master’s Degree in Events Management from Bournemouth University, UK.
Clare has been a member of the Calgary Municipal Land Corporation team since 2010 – an organization tasked with the revitalization of Calgary’s Rivers District. Together with her team, they have successfully led the rebranding of Calgary's East Village, a 49 acre brownfield site that has attracted more than $3 Billion in private investment, transforming the area into one of the City's most vibrant neighbourhoods.
As VP of Marketing and Communications, Clare leads the corporate communications and public engagement strategies. In addition to the ongoing effort in transforming East Village, she oversees strategic communications in the delivery of the broader Rivers District Master Plan, a 20-year master plan for Calgary’s emerging Culture and Entertainment District, including project communications for the BMO Convention Centre Expansion, 17th Avenue Extension, and new Event Centre.
Global Communications Manager at Slovenian Tourist Board
With over 15 years of expertise in media, TV production, PR, and acclaimed marketing projects, she thrives on creativity and remains attuned to emerging trends in communication strategies. At the Slovenian Tourist Board, she's deeply engaged in promoting Slovenia as a premier tourist destination, collaborating with international journalists, preparing press trips, and contributing to numerous creative projects, making her role nothing short of a dream job.
Amanda Lumley is Chief Executive of Destination Plymouth. She has a wealth of experience in tourism from leading UK national attractions such as Chester Zoo and Leeds Castle, to regional tourism partnerships Visit Essex, Visit Kent and most recently Plymouth, Britain’s Ocean City where she was involved in the Mayflower 400 programme for over 9 years.
As well as being the voice of the city’s visitor economy, she leads on the city’s brand strategy, Visitor Plan, marketing and digital strategy, events, major development projects, public space and place making.
Amanda is Immediate Past President, a Director and a Fellow of the Tourism Management Institute, a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing and Co-Chair of the Great South West Tourism Partnership.
Fiona Macdonald is the Head of Strategy at VisitBritain/VisitEngland, guiding the strategy for the national tourist board. Working there for 8+ years, she previously lead the international marketing for Britain and England’s business events sector as part of the GREAT campaign. Fiona has seen many global place brands, having started her career in New Zealand’s tourism sector at the then Ministry of Tourism, and also during her time at Reed Exhibitions (headquartered in London, UK) where she guided the strategy and growth of the global travel events including World Travel Market, International Luxury Travel Market and IBTM World.
Sithembile Ntombela has been part of the Brand South Africa team for over a decade. A prolific marketer with over 22 years of marketing experience in private and public sector and has a deep understanding of the marketing and brand environments.
She has extensive classical marketing experience in FMCG, global marketing, and destination (Nation Brand) marketing. A leader with the mission to innovate and improve overall company performance. She is a prudent decision-maker and an inspiring leader that strives to build high performing teams.
Sithembile has held senior managerial positions from diverse companies and her experiences include developing and implementing impactful, successful, and sustainable brand strategies.
Sithembile completed her Marketing undergraduate qualification at Mangosuthu University of Technology in KZN. She later pursued and completed a Post Graduate National Diploma in Marketing and BPHIL Honours in Marketing through the Institute of Marketing Management (IMM) and a Masters in Commerce (MCOM) from MANCOSA.
She is a Chartered Marketer (CM-SA) with the Marketing Association of South Africa (MASA) and a member of Black Management Forum.
She is also an Advisory board member the CMO Council (Sub Saharan Africa) and City Nation Place where she continues to share her insights relating to dynamics in brand and marketing world.
Larissa Perdomo has been head of the Uruguay Country Brand team since June 2014. She has been Image and Communications Manager at the Uruguayan investment and export promotion agency (Uruguay XXI) since 2009, contributing to the creation and management of the Uruguayan country brand project, and coordinating this activity from Uruguay XXI with the Interministerial Advising Committee for Foreign Trade. In recent years she has taken part in Country Brand international forums and workshops with specialists in Nation Branding. She coordinates the Jeremey Hildreth consultancy for “Redibero Region Image” Project (Ibero-American Network of Trade Promotion Organizations) within the framework of IDB Regional Public Goods programme. Larissa has worked as a professor of corporate communications and public relations in the Uruguayan Association of Marketing Executives (ADM) and has trained many executives from companies and organizations in their relationship with the media. She also lectures on country branding for the Tourism degree program at the Universidad Católica del Uruguay.
Claire is Head of Marketing for Brand Scotland at the Scottish Government. Brand Scotland is a strategic marketing and communications partnership that brings together the communications efforts of the Scottish Government and key partners in building Scotland’s global brand and reputation. Brand Scotland is very proud to have won Best Communications Strategy – Place Brand at the most recent City Nation Place Awards in 2022.
Prior to this, Claire spent 7 years leading award-winning behaviour change campaigns for the Scottish Government across climate change, health, road safety and justice, and also has extensive agency experience having spent 5 years as Account Director at one of Scotland’s leading advertising and creative agencies.
Claire is also vice Chair of the Marketing Society Scotland Advisory Board.
Louisa Shaw is the Place Brand Manager at We Are Staffordshire, a new approach to promoting and marketing the county, funded by Staffordshire County Council.
Louisa is working with Staffordshire’s Place Board of business leaders and partners to develop and promote a vibrant new place brand and narrative for Staffordshire, maximising opportunities to promote inward investment, support visitor economy, and generate economic growth across the county.
With over a decade's experience in destination marketing, Louisa has led complex marketing and community engagement programmes for major infrastructure and regeneration developments in the Midlands and wider UK.
Anu Syrmä is the Director for Brand, Marketing and Communications for Helsinki Partners, a company owned by the city of Helsinki, attracting international visitors, talent and investments to Finland’s capital. Before joining Helsinki, Anu has worked in various leadership roles doing international sales and marketing eg. for brands Reima, Nokia, Coca-Cola, L’Oréal.
Irina Tolstousov is a seasoned professional as the Head of the Country Brand Promotion Department, boasting a rich history of success in both public and private sectors. With expertise in marketing strategy, public relations, and brand promotion, she stands out as a strong marketing professional, adept communicator, and collaborative team player.
Specializing in the economic field, Irina has actively contributed to European Union projects related to the DCFTA implementation. Notably, she holds the distinctive role as the first and sole individual in Moldova entrusted with managing the country's brand.
At the Invest Moldova Agency, Ms. Tolstousov leads efforts to promote the Republic of Moldova as an investment magnet, export hub, and tourist haven. Her dedication to this unique role is highlighted by her exclusive responsibility for Moldova's comprehensive brand management.
Irina holds a Bachelor's and a Master's Degree in Marketing Management, with her master's thesis focused on the branding of the Republic of Moldova. Additionally, she served as a jury member for the prestigious City Nation Place Awards in 2023, the foremost platform for place builders. This further attests to her influential role in shaping global perceptions of regions and nations.
Sirpa Tsimal is an economic development and foreign direct investment specialist. Currently, she is Director for Investment Promotion at Switzerland Global Enterprise (S-GE), where she leads the Global Marketing team.
At S-GE, Sirpa focuses her work on emerging technologies and ecosystems such as AI, blockchain, health and robotics in attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) to Switzerland. Sirpa is a board member of the Home of Blockchain initiative, on the steering committee of the Swiss Biotech Report, and on the advisory board of CityNationPlace. She is a frequent speaker at industry events.
Sirpa has 18+ years of experience working with and leading international teams in marketing communications, business development, market entry and strategic innovation projects. Prior to S-GE, Sirpa was the founder of The Location Lab, an innovation consultancy, and co-founder and Managing Partner at TSIMANN LLC, a communication agency in New York/Washington DC. Sirpa worked as a consultant for various economic development agencies such as BaselArea and Health Industries South Australia. She also ran and scaled the mentorship program at two health tech accelerators, in New York City (ELabNYC) and in the State of Connecticut (ABCT).
Sirpa graduated from the University of Zurich in 2003 with a master’s degree in communication sciences, international law and social anthropology.
Kata Varblane is a dedicated brand envoy of Estonia. She leads the newly founded Country Promotion Department at Enterprise Estonia, a government agency under the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications. The Country Promotion Department is responsible for developing the Estonian country brand and boosting the cooperation between Enterprise Estonia’s international marketing and PR units (tourism, FDI, trade, talent, startup, e-residency). For 8 years, she worked as the Deputy Director of Marketing and International Relations at the Estonian Investment Agency. She continuously pioneers digital tools and solutions that redefine the client journey, embodying the essence of creative and efficient e-Estonia. She is dedicated to helping innovative businesses and people benefit from the most advanced digital society in the world by spreading the word about Estonian developments and telling Estonian stories.
Jos Vranken (1967) has been NBTC’s Managing Director since 1 September 2007.
NBTC is the Dutch national destination management organisation, responsible for the development, branding and marketing of the Netherlands as a destination.
After graduating from the Breda University of Applied Sciences, Jos Vranken started his professional career in 1990 at the former Netherlands Board of Tourism (NBT). In 1996, having held various positions, he joined Stayokay, the Dutch hostel chain, as its Sales & Marketing Manager and member of the Management Team.
In 1999, he moved to London to head up NBTC’s UK & Ireland office. Soon after, his role was extended to Regional director for the Nordic countries. Following a five-year tenure in London, Jos Vranken returned to NBTC head office to take on the role of International Marketing Director and joined the Management Team.
Early 2005, Jos Vranken accepted a new challenge at the contract catering company Avenance Nederland (which has since become part of Compass Group), where he fulfilled the position of Commercial Director and was a member of the Board.
On 1 September 2007, Jos Vranken re-joined NBTC as its Managing Director.
He is a member of the Dutch Hospitality Association and the Validation Committee for the development of a Professional Doctorate in Leisure, Tourism & Hospitality. He also holds a non-executive role in the Supervisory Board of the Dutch Football Association (KNVB) and the Economic Board West Holland.
Rose Wangen-Jones is the Managing Director, Marketing & Destinations at London & Partners, the official promotional agency for London. Working with the Mayor of London and a network of partners, she promotes London as a leading world city in which to study, invest, work, and visit. Previously, she was the CEO of The Writer, a global brand language consultancy. Before joining The Writer, she was Global Business Director at WPP, responsible for the communications and marketing of one of the group’s largest global accounts. She has spent most of her career in the private sector, leading the development of marketing communications for top national and multi-national brands in the US, Latin America and Europe. Rose holds a BA in Economics and an MBA (Marketing).
Andrew currently serves as Executive Vice President, Destination Development at Tourism Toronto, where he has worked for 14 years, previously as EVP and Chief Marketing Officer and earlier as Vice President, Communications. In his new role, Andrew leads planning and advocacy for the visitor economy in Toronto, seeking new ways to elevate the visitor experience and forge stronger connections among the businesses of the visitor economy, other business sectors and government partners.