The Greenville-Pitt County Convention & Visitors Bureau (Visit Greenville, NC) is pleased to announce that President & CEO Andrew Schmidt has recently completed his Destinations International’s Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Leadership Series Certification.
Destinations International is dedicated to serving destination marketing and management professionals first and foremost through the four cornerstones of community, advocacy, research, and education. Together with members and partners, Destinations International represents a powerful forward-thinking, collaborative association: exchanging bold ideas, connecting innovative people, and elevating tourism to its highest potential by informing, connecting, inspiring and educating members to drive destination economic impact, job creation, community sustainability and quality of life through travel.
Destinations International recently partnered with The Ladipo Group to expand its equity, diversity and inclusion programming to support these efforts with six (6) virtual sessions designed around the topics of Emotional Intelligence, Effective Communication, Microaggressions, Unconscious Bias and Allyship. These sessions are designed to assist in Destination Marketing Organization (DMO) leader’s personal development and investment in being a change-maker in their destinations and support the creation of a diverse workforce.
“I am thankful to have been part of Destination International’s EDI Leadership Series for the last six months,” stated Andrew Schmidt, President & CEO of Visit Greenville, NC. “The course content and relationships made with other DMO leaders has already helped me to become a more effective leader, and I look forward to putting new concepts to work as we continue creating an even more welcoming and inclusive destination.”
Visit Greenville, NC is committed to seeking out Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility professional development and educational opportunities for its staff to better inform their destination marketing and management work to help grow and promote Greenville-Pitt County as destination that is welcoming and accessible to all.
In addition, Schmidt has also been selected to serve on Destinations International’s Professional Development Committee, which continually works to improve the knowledge and skills of members through the recommendation, design, and evaluation of all professional development programming, and the continual analysis of these programs to ensure they are accessible, offer value, and are relevant to the needs of the travel and tourism industry.
“I am honored to serve on Destination International’s Professional Development Committee,” stated Andrew Schmidt, President & CEO of Visit Greenville, NC. “As a recent graduate of DI’s Certified Destination Management Executive Program, I am excited to share my knowledge to help shape and encourage future educational opportunities for members of the international destination marketing community.”