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David Scowsill

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

David P. Scowsill
NationalityBritish
Alma materUniversity of Southampton
Occupation(s)Businessman, Chairman & Non-Executive Director
Known forWTTC, Opodo, Hilton Worldwide, British Airways, American Airlines, PrivateFly

David P. Scowsill is a British businessman, and serial non-executive director and chairman, known for his contributions to the travel and tourism industries. He is the former president and CEO of the World Travel & Tourism Council.[1]

Early life and education

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Scowsill was born in Great Britain and was educated at Stowe School in Buckingham, and later graduated from the University of Southampton with an Honors Degree in Spanish and Latin American studies.[2][3]

Professional career

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Scowsill joined British Airways after university working in various operational and sales positions worldwide.[4] In 1991, he left British Airways to join American Airlines as managing director of sales and marketing for Europe, Middle East, and Africa. In 1993, Scowsill returned to British Airways as regional general manager for Asia and the Pacific and as director for Europe and the Middle East. He played a key role in forming the first global airline alliance with Qantas.[5][6] His joint service arrangement between the two airlines later became the model for many other aviation joint ventures.

In 1997, he joined Hilton International's board of directors.[7][8] In 1999, he became the CEO of Minit Group, after which in 2001 he joined Orange communications as a managing director of the consumer division.[9][10] In 2002, Scowsill was appointed CEO of Opodo, the online travel agency founded by a consortium of European airlines.[9] Scowsill grew the company from startup until Amadeus bought Opodo in 2004.[11]

Scowsill then worked in private equity and venture capital,[12] dealing with startup investment and completing deals in the technology and travel sectors. His focus on travel deals resulted in Scowsill becoming member of Worldhotels's supervisory board which was formed in 2005.[13] After that, Scowsill held a Chairman position at YuuGuu, and served as non-executive director at Venere.com and On The Beach Holidays. He has been interim Sales and marketing director at easyJet airlines, Group Marketing Director at Manchester Airports Group.[6][12] He then became Chairman of PrivateFly, a jet charter company, securing the first phase of funding for the business in 2010.[14]

Travel industry and government advocacy

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In November 2010, Scowsill was appointed president and CEO of the World Travel & Tourism Council,[15][16] the global authority and research group on travel and tourism economic and social contribution.[17][18]

As part of his role was the partnership with UNWTO and the Open Letter on Travel and Tourism that produced 84 meetings with Presidents and Prime Ministers including Bill Clinton, King Abdullah of Jordan, Yoshihiko Noda of Japan, President Zuma, Michelle Bachelet, José Manuel Durao Barroso, Anibal Cavaco Silva, and Jose Manuel Soria.[19][20][21] He was also a founder and chairman of The Global Travel Association Coalition.[20]

He was a regular spokesperson for global findings and growth statistics on travel and tourism at conferences and global summits[22][23][24] till his departing from WTTC in 2017.[25]

He has also been one of the main voices in the media regarding terrorism,[26] disasters and the tourism industry.[27][28][29]

References

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  1. ^ Gollan, Doug. "Can Tourism Bring Peace? Colombian Officials Say Yes!". Forbes. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  2. ^ "David Scowsill". World Economic Forum. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  3. ^ "SAHIC Announces WTTC CEO David Scowsill as Keynote Speaker at SAHIC Cuba". Hospitality Net. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  4. ^ Stuart, David A. (2008). Limited skies: a black man's journey through the corporate world (1st ed.). Bloomington, IN: AuthorHouse. ISBN 9781434383105. OCLC 469098037.
  5. ^ "Qantas agrees alliance with Emirates". Financial Times. 6 September 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  6. ^ a b "WTTC boss calls for recognition". ttnonline.com. 1 November 2010. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  7. ^ "Hay leaves school dinners for Eurest". The Caterer. 1 January 2000. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  8. ^ "BA exec nets Hilton alliance role". Marketing Week. Centaur Media. 15 November 1996. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  9. ^ a b "David Scowsill". Les Echos (in French). 2 October 2002. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  10. ^ "Opodo appoints full-time CEO". Travel Weekly (UK). 19 September 2002. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  11. ^ "Amadeus: 62 Millionen Euro für Opodo" [62 million euros for Opodo]. manager magazin. Manager Magazin. 16 June 2004. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  12. ^ a b "Entrepreneurs announced for EyeforTravel's inaugural Innovation Initiative – Travel's 'Dragon's Den'". www.eyefortravel.com. Reuters. 1 May 2008. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  13. ^ "Industry Big Hitters Join Worldhotels". Breaking Travel News. 17 June 2005. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  14. ^ "PrivateFly continues team expansion". www.travelmole.com. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  15. ^ Straziuso, Jason (4 October 2012). "Upscale hotels sprout as Africa blossoms". The Seattle Times. The Associated Press. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  16. ^ Mouawad, Jad (14 December 2015). "U.S. Airlines Face Uphill Struggle Against Mideast Rivals". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  17. ^ Forsyth, Jim (6 December 2012). "International tourism to reach record 1 billion travelers in 2012". Reuters. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  18. ^ Christiansen, Kenan (26 March 2014). "A Look at Global Travel Trends". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  19. ^ "Tourism key for jobs and exports says President of Portugal accepting the UNWTO/WTTC Open Letter on Travel and Tourism". UNWTO. 7 December 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  20. ^ a b "David Scowsill to leave WTTC in June 2017". WTTC. 26 April 2017. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  21. ^ "WTTC and UNWTO urge UK government to lift air ban to Sharm el Sheikh". TravelDailyNews International. 28 November 2016. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  22. ^ Gutcher, Lianne (9 April 2013). "Abu Dhabi opens its doors to 'Davos of the tourism industry'". The National. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  23. ^ Jiménez, Eneko Ruiz (15 April 2015). "El turismo se enfrenta con optimismo a los retos tecnológicos" [Tourism is optimistic about technological challenges]. El País (in Spanish). ISSN 1134-6582. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  24. ^ "UK 'failing to understand' importance of travel – WTTC president". Travel Weekly (UK). 19 March 2011. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  25. ^ Jainchill, Johanna (26 April 2017). "David Scowsill to depart WTTC". Travel Weekly (UK). Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  26. ^ Duncan, Gillian (10 April 2013). "Asia will be backbone of global travel explosion in next decade". The National. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  27. ^ Straziuso, Jason (1 October 2012). "Hotel developers plan 40,000 new rooms across Africa". The Washington Times. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  28. ^ "Tourism Council Tells Sochi to Shape Up". The Moscow Times. 20 February 2014. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  29. ^ Kodaki, Mariko (15 September 2016). "Tourism heavyweight sees untapped potential in Asia". Nikkei Asian Review. Retrieved 22 October 2019.