Tourism Australia has named Phillipa Harrison as its new managing director, replacing John O’Sullivan who quit in May to head up adventure tourism company Experience Co.
The promotion sees Harrison become the NTO’s first-ever female head, and comes after a period of several months during which she has held the managing director role in an acting capacity.
“This is a period of change, challenge and opportunity for our industry. With competition for the global travel wallet and the demands of the international traveller ever increasing, and both global and Australian tourism facing a number of significant headwinds, the need for a strong, cohesive and united industry has never been greater,” said Harrison.
She added that her focus is to retain Tourism Australia’s competitiveness through “creative and high impact marketing” and “the important distribution and partnership platforms we provide to the industry”.
Harrison was previously Tourism Australia’s executive general manager international, overseeing a network of international offices spanning 12 countries, and managing airline relationships and distribution channels.
