Patricia O’Callaghan announced as new CEO of Tourism and Events Queensland
Lauded for her outstanding work during the most difficult periods of tourism history, a born-and-bred Queenslander has just landed the industry’s most coveted role.
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QUEENSLAND’S peak tourism body has a new CEO with one of the industry’s rising stars appointed to the coveted role.
Destination Gold Coast boss Patricia O’Callaghan will be announced as the new head of Tourism and Events Queensland by Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk on Friday.
Raised in the outback town of Mount Isa, Ms O’Callaghan has already carved out an impressive tourism career, first with a nine-year stint as the head of Townsville Enterprise before guiding Destination Gold Coast through the dark days of the coronavirus pandemic.
Ms O’Callaghan will replace outgoing TEQ boss Leanne Coddington, who is retiring at the end of the year after a 25-year career with the organisation, the last nine as CEO.
Ms O’Callaghan’s appointment caps a changing of the guard in the industry, with Ms Coddington’s retirement following the departure of longstanding Queensland Tourism Industry Council CEO Daniel Gschwind in April.
The State government’s own director general of tourism, John Lee, has also stepped down in recent weeks.
Ms Palaszczuk said she was excited to welcome Ms O’Callaghan, 38, to the high-profile post at a time when the shadow of the pandemic is now finally in the rear view mirror.
“Patricia will head up our state’s lead tourism marketing organisation and lead it through the post-COVID-19 tourism landscape where we are well positioned to cement our reputation as Australia’s best holiday destination,” she said.
“It’s also a really exciting time as we race towards the 2032 Olympics and Paralympics which is expected to bring a $4.6 billion boost to trade and tourism for our state.
“I congratulate Patricia on her new role and look forward to working with her as we continue our post-Covid economic recovery and promoting Queensland around the world.”
Tourism Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said Ms O’Callaghan had an expert understanding of Queensland’s visitor economy.
“Ms O’Callaghan knows what appeals to visitors and has a clear understanding of what makes Queensland’s competitive domestic and global tourism markets tick,” he said.
“With an intimate knowledge of the diversity of the State’s visitor experiences, Ms O’Callaghan is an obvious choice to lead TEQ and turbocharge Queensland’s tourism recovery.”
Mr Hinchliffe thanked Ms Coddington for her contribution to the industry.
“Ms Coddington’s tourism expertise has been tremendously valuable to operators navigating the once-in-a-lifetime challenges of the pandemic,” he said.
TEQ Chair Brett Godfrey said Ms O’Callaghan would be tasked with guiding TEQ and the wider Queensland tourism industry through the post-Covid era.
“TEQ and the Queensland tourism industry is perfectly placed to capitalise on the opportunities ahead of us, including maximising the tourism value of the 2032 Olympics,” he said.
Ms O’Callaghan will start her new post in January.
Attention will now turn to finding a replacement for Ms O’Callaghan at Destination Gold Coast.
Former Gold Coast Bulletin editor Rachel Hancock has impressed many city and industry leaders since joining Destination Gold Coast as head of stakeholders and strategy in January and would be considered one of the frontrunners for the high-profile role.
QTIC’s new CEO Brett Fraser said Ms Coddington’s departure represented the end of an era among Queensland tourism’s most experienced executives.
“Leanne has done an outstanding job, particularly in some very difficult circumstances the past few years,” he said.
“it’s something of a new era now and a new time for tourism with a lot of changes in the market.
“We need to continue to drive that.”
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Originally published as Patricia O’Callaghan announced as new CEO of Tourism and Events Queensland
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