Loren Christie is BestCities Global Alliance’s new managing director

BestCities Global Alliance has appointed Loren Christie as its new managing director. He takes over the role from Lesley Williams, who led the BestCities team for three years.

Christie has over 25 years of experience in travel, tourism and business events and has held leadership roles with Starwood Hotels & Resorts and Destination Toronto, and spent 20 years in broadcast television. He has built a consulting business that provides project management and solutions for the hospitality, travel and tourism industries, with a focus on legacy, impact, and promoting equity, diversion and inclusion in the last three years.

In his new role, Christie will oversee BestCities’ operations, prioritising the alliance’s focus on legacy and sustainability to advance the global impact of business events.

Said Christie: “My priority as MD of BestCities will be to ensure we don't lose momentum on all of the great work the team and our partners including Tokyo, Singapore, and Melbourne have been engaged in. This includes exciting and forward-thinking projects on important topics like sustainability, legacy, and impact and maximising the impact of business events to contribute towards a better world.

“Our partner cities are not immune to the challenges facing the entire world; things such as the speed at which the world has re-opened for business post-pandemic and the strain that has had on the labour force, the care that's needed to ensure that essential lessons around topics like sustainability are not forgotten.”

Christie’s team and partner cities around the globe will be committed to taking a leading role in the evolution of business events, “not only as a force for economic good but for the overall good of our global community,” he said. This will include highlighting the opportunities and telling the inspiring stories clients and destinations have to share as they seek to make business events a force for good.