BANGKOK, Thailand
The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) recently revealed the appointment of Mario Hardy as its next Chief Executive Officer.
Hardy was previously the Chief Operations Officer of PATA, a position he had held since January 15th of this year, and has succeeded the resigning Martin Craigs as the CEO; Hardy was selected by the PATA Executive Board at the last Executive Board Meeting held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, this fall. Hardy’s appointment will be officially endorsed by the full PATA Board at their next Annual Meeting.
Commenting on his new appointment, Hardy said, “I am humbled and honored that the PATA Executive Board has entrusted me to take the Association to its next stage of transformation. I have been an active member of PATA since 2009 and I believe that by bringing further engagement with youth the Association will have a long lasting future.”
Hardy is an entrepreneur and serial “angel investor” with close to 30 years of combined leadership, corporate development and change management experience.
He is also the past Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the PATA Foundation, a nonprofit organization with a mission to contribute to the sustainable and responsible development of travel and tourism in Asia Pacific through the protection of the environment, the conservation of heritage and support for education. Prior to PATA, Hardy worked 14 years for UBM/OAG, a business with a focus on data analytics and events for the aviation sector, and occupied several leadership roles in London, Beijing and Singapore.
Hardy began his career with People’s Express Airlines in 1985, before joining Canadian Airlines in 1987 where he spent 12 years in a number of sales, marketing and operational roles, leading to his appointment in a senior management role heading the Group Sales & Charter division.
Hardy has a BSc from the University of Montreal, a Public Relations Certificate from L’École des Hautes Études Commerciales de Montréal and an International Trade Certificate from the O’Sullivan College of Montreal. He has lived on three continents, in seven countries and has over 10 years’ experience working in Asia.
In other PATA news, the association has just launched PATA Conversations in conjunction with Myriad Marketing, a monthly B2B digital publication featuring trends and innovations regarding travel to and from the Asia Pacific region.
