Destination management organization (DMO) veteran Al Hutchinson, who left his role leading Visit Baltimore at the end of June, has launched AVH Enterprise, a consultancy serving the DMO segment.
“We really want to be impactful, so essentially leadership development; how to do effective, sustainable leadership for the future, and I think that's going to be important in the DMO space,” Hutchinson said of the foundation of AVH.
Hutchinson brings 33 years of experience to the new enterprise, which also features his wife, co-founder Unae Hutchinson, in a key strategic role as its human resources expert. Unae Hutchinson also has more than 30 years of experience in her space, providing a major asset since human resources figures large in the world of DMOs.
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Hutchinson said his departure from Visit Baltimore also represented a departure from leadership positions at DMOs.
“I was coming up on my renewal for my contract with Visit Baltimore as president and CEO, and probably over the last year I started receiving inquiries from other destinations about a president/CEO job. Actually, San Diego, St. Louis, Chicago and New York City were four cities that headhunters reached out to see if I was interested,” he said. “I was very honored of the ask, but I did not want to make that move. I didn't want to uproot my family, nor did I want to make that investment as part of my career.”
A New Chapter
Hutchinson said the board of Visit Baltimore was interested in discussing a three-year extension of his contract leading the bureau but that was not a great fit, either, as he and his wife were eager to start a new chapter.
“We started thinking, is there a way that we could come together and do some impactful work in the travel and tourism space, especially with the DMO community? So, we decided to come together to create AVH Enterprise. My middle name is Vincent, so that's the V. It's essentially a leadership-development company.
“We believe that this is a critical time period in the history of travel and tourism, with a lot of new leaders elevating to the C suite,” he added. “A lot of them may or may not be equipped by the job they come from, mostly from the sales space or marketing space. And the question is, do they have the real knowledge to navigate the headwinds that are facing every DMO in this country right now?”
[Related: DMO Vet Al Hutchinson Leaving Visit Baltimore]
AVH Enterprise’s Focus
Hutchinson said AVH will focus on small-to-mid-sized DMOs.
“Not that we're going to ignore the big budgets, but the small ones sometimes feel like they don't get the love the big boys get,” he said. “How to navigate city hall, how to navigate community engagement work, how to do effective storytelling or rebrand, if you will. Not so much strategic planning, but political navigation, community navigation and brand story.”
Hutchinson said a key component of AVH’s offering will be coaching for DMO C-suite leaders who may be new to the space, with a third area encompassing cultural design, such as how to build good teams with value and respect.
DMO social impact work will also be a major area of focus.
“As you know, many communities cannot talk about diversity, equity, inclusion,” said Hutchinson, who has been one of the foremost DEI leaders in the meetings industry. “We want to see how we can help those communities navigate this space from a social impact perspective and do it in a way—maybe change the language, but still be effective.”
[Related: Meetings Industry Leaders Discuss State of DEI During PCMA Panel Discussion]
The final piece of the puzzle, he said, will be human resources services, especially for smaller DMOs that often outsource their HR.
“My wife is really going to bring some great intellect to this space because she's been doing that throughout her career,” he said. “We can help them navigate in that space.”
Major Issues Impacting DMOs
Like most segments of the hospitality industry, DMOs are facing major challenges attracting and retaining talent.
“That's going to definitely be a focus area of ours,” Hutchinson said. “How do we retain that talent? And then how do we recruit this next generation? When you and I were first getting involved in this industry, it was really cool. It was hip. It was sexy. With the younger generation now? Not so much.
“I think there's a conversation that needs to be had from a leadership standpoint,” he continued. “How do you go about recruiting the next generation of talent in this industry? How do you do it in an inclusive way, bringing all people to the table, offering them opportunities, career pathways? We don't need all C-suite leaders to look the same way, to talk the same way, to believe in the same things. It's going to be important to help organizations with that strategy and methodology.”
As challenging as the DMO talent pipeline is, the current regulatory and financial environment may present even more-pressing problems.
“A lot of DMOS around the country are being attacked because they have access to resources. They may have a good retainer on funds, but now cities are under water financially, and states are looking to these tourism organizations to help fund other things that in the past weren't a part of our bailiwick, whether it's affordable housing, whether it's playgrounds, whether it's roads, whatever the issue is in your community,” Hutchinson explained. “So, I think protecting your resources and also increasing your resources—what are the new incremental ways you can drive revenue to your organization? I think it's big.”
Global Politics a Major Challenge
Geopolitical headwinds are also blowing strong.
“There's a lot happening in that space, whether it's coming from the federal government side—some things you can say, some things you can't. If you say certain things, your budget may be impacted and attacked,” Hutchinson said, referring to political attacks on DEI programs and messaging.
Aggressive immigration enforcement actions, including highly publicized port-of-entry screening procedures and detentions, have also resulted in a dramatic decrease of international tourist arrivals.
“Our Canadian friends don't feel real comfortable coming to this country right now, as well as a lot of our European friends, just because of the politics of the country,” Hutchinson said. “How do we navigate that space and continue to make our destinations warm and friendly and welcoming? Sometimes it's like, ‘I can't welcome my friends from the gay community, or I can't welcome my friends from the African American, Asian American, Latino American community.’ How do you do that in this landscape? How do you talk about it in a professional way without alienating some of your stakeholders in your community?”
Being a DMO veteran for more than three decades, Hutchinson has learned from experience some of the most challenging aspects of leading a tourism bureau and wants to pass those lessons along.
“Most CEOs in the DMO space, we did not go to school to navigate the political space,” he said. “We didn't go to school to navigate how to protect resources—we're learning it on the fly. I'm hopeful that my wife and her experience, my experience—it's not textbook. I can share what I did in six other destinations—real-world stuff, not textbook. And my wife can share the same thing from her experiences on the private sector side.”
Connection
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