TORONTO — Destination Toronto’s president and CEO Scott Beck has announced his departure from the organization, effective October 28, to join San Francisco Travel as its new president and CEO. Beck will succeed Joe D’Alessandro, who will retire in December after nearly 18 years at the helm.
Since arriving at Destination Toronto almost four years ago, Beck has been a passionate and dedicated advocate for the city and growing its visitor economy. Before joining Destination Toronto, Beck served as president and CEO of Visit Salt Lake for 14 years. There, he was a champion of the economic impact of the meetings-and-convention industry in Salt Lake City and the impact of the leisure visitor on the local and regional economy.
Beck also has extensive experience in the hotel industry, including serving as general manager of the Marriott City Centre in Salt Lake City; taskforce general manager for Ocean Properties Ltd.’s Atlific Hotels; general manager of Sedona Resort Management’s Cedar Breaks Lodge in Brian Head, Utah; and director of Sales and Marketing for Sundance Resort in Provo, Utah.
“The pandemic hit shortly after his arrival and Scott devoted himself to supporting the tourism-and-hospitality community in navigating the many headwinds we faced, and, once the worst abated, working together towards recovery. We can see the fruits of Scott’s leadership through the immense progress the organization has made in cementing its strong relationship with the city and key partners, re-building our core business pipeline and galvanizing a new destination narrative and delivering that story narrative through authentic and compelling marketing,” says Rekha Khote, Chair of the Board of Directors, Destination Toronto in a release.
“San Francisco is one of the marquee cities of the world for U.S. and international travellers, and I’m thrilled to be joining the team at San Francisco Travel to continue to showcase everything it has to offer,” says Beck. “A strong tourism industry is vital to the city’s economy, local businesses and neighbourhoods, and I’m passionately committed to helping steward San Francisco’s ongoing tourism recovery.”
In the interim, the Board of Directors will work closely with Beck and the leadership team to ensure a smooth transition and to identify a new CEO for the organization.
