Effective Dec. 22, 2010, Chicago Convention & Tourism Bureau (CCTB) President and CEO Tim Roby will resign his post, CCTB announced last week.
Roby, CCTB's president and CEO since 2006, is leaving to join Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide as senior vice president of sales for its North American operations.
"Tim has much to be proud of," CCTB Board Chair Bruce Rauner said in a statement. "On behalf of the CCTB board, I'd like to thank him for his commitment to Chicago and acknowledge his efforts in securing new and returning convention business, especially during the last six months following the passage of convention reform legislation."
Added Roby, "I feel incredibly fortune to have been given the opportunity to work with such a tremendous team at the bureau and an incredibly supportive Mayor Richard M. Daley. Chicago is the greatest city in the world and it's only going to get better now that we've changed the way business is conducted in this city. Joining Starwood affords me the ability to continue to market Chicago and its incredible attributes."
According to a new release, Rauner has suggested to the CCTB executive committee that Jack Johnson, CCTB's vice president of external relations, be named acting CEO effective Dec. 23, 2010, while the organization searches for Roby's permanent successor.
Said Jim Reilly, trustee of the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority (MPEA), which owns and operates Chicago's McCormick Place and Navy Pier, "Tim has assembled a very strong team and we expect the direction he has set to go unchanged, as we work in partnership with the bureau to continue to bring meetings and conventions business to our city."