In an aggressive move to build convention business, the Chicago Convention & Tourism Bureau has brought in major power brokers from business and civic sectors to comprise its newly restructured 25-member board.
The new board members include the chairmen of the Chicago Bulls, Chicago White Sox and Chicago Cubs sports teams; Penny Pritzker, a billionaire real estate magnate who led fundraising for the Obama campaign; and senior or top executives from American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, McDonald’s Corp., Chicago Federation of Labor and ComEd.
The restructuring of the board was mandated by state legislation passed earlier this year aimed at overhauling convention operations at McCormick Place, which has already enacted cost-savings reforms. The new membership is more diverse than in years past when the board was dominated primarily by hotel executives.
Tapped by Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley to chair the board is Bruce Rauner, a venture capitalist and philanthropist who previously served on the interim board of the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, which manages McCormick Place.
“Chicago’s economic vitality is driven by its convention and visitor industry and nothing is more important than to focus our efforts on driving new business to the city,” Rauner said in a statement, adding that city and state leadership has “helped set the stage for the return of many critical shows and the new board will help make it happen.”
