By Sara K. Clarke and Jason Garcia
Courtesy of the Orlando Sentinel
Visit Florida announced last week that Will Seccombe will step in as acting president of the state's tourism-marketing agency, filling a void left by the departure of chief executive Chris Thompson.
Seccombe, currently the organization's chief marketing officer, will take the helm when Thompson becomes president and chief executive officer of Brand USA, the year-old national marketing organization responsible for promoting the U.S. abroad as a travel destination.
Visit Florida's board of directors met Friday to establish a process for filling the soon-to-be vacant CEO position. A formal search committee of six board members was appointed, and the board voted unanimously to have Seccombe fill the gap between Thompson's departure and the selection of a permanent replacement, Visit Florida said. Thompson is slated to start his job with Brand USA on Nov. 1.
"Chris has been a great leader, mentor, colleague and friend, and he leaves Visit Florida in a very strong position to pursue our vision of establishing Florida as the No. 1 travel destination in the world," said Glenn Hastings, chairman of the organization's board of directors.
