Soon after it was announced on July 30 that Karolyn Kirchgesler, currently the president and CEO of Minnesota’s Visit St. Paul, would be the new CEO of
Team San Jose beginning in October, SuccessfulMeetings.com spoke with the Kirchgesler and Michael Mulcahy, Team San Jose board chairman about her appointment and what the organization plans to do to attract more meetings, conventions, incentives, and exhibitions.
SM: How did you come to choose Karolyn as the new CEO for Team San Jose?
Mulcahy: When Bill Sherry was hired as the CEO of Team San Jose, it was very clear from them what we were getting in terms of a timeline. We knew September 2013 would be the end of the timeline. About a year ago we really geared up, and we appointed Robert Thomas to run the search committee. Five board members, including Bill Sherry and the city manager for the city of San Jose were engaged in this and so was Lee Wilcox. Mike Gamble from Searchwide was also hired.
We basically set about really understanding what our community stakeholders really wanted. Our clients really understood what direction we were going in and we received great feedback from our stakeholders. Karolyn was a standout from the moment we met her and therefore was hired. We just couldn’t be happier b/c she meets every category of what we were looking for in a new CEO.
SM: Karolyn, what do you hope to accomplish when you begin working as Team San Jose’s new CEO?
Kirchgesler: For me, starting out right away would be a major focus on ensuring that the newly expanded and renovated convention center gets a great launch and can be leveraged for future business opportunities. During the application process for this position, I saw it through the eyes of a visitor. It’s a great leisure destination, and I also want to make sure we take all the opportunities to attract more leisure business. I also plan to meet with key business and community leaders. Our vision is to have our convention center booked with major events and draw people into the city so that the hotels will be operating at capacity with a mix of business and leisure, both national and international. I want people to think of San Jose as a great Northern California city with great weather, and as a place they’d want to live if they could, and a place they’d want to do business in.
SM: What else can you tell us about the city’s convention center expansion and other developments?
Mulcahy: The grand opening gala is October 11, and we are very proud of what we’re seeing both in the renovation of the old building but also astounded by the reality of what the new building is. We’re excited because it’s one of those “have to see it to believe it” buildings. The ballroom alone is unmatched in our industry from beauty, technology, and daylight standpoint. It gives us a competitive advantage.
Kirchgesler: One of my first things will be to look at what’s being done. With the expansion we can bring in major pieces of business that we couldn’t before because of size. That will be a big thing. We also want to look at what events are out there in other markets and may need room to expand. It’s such a great destination. We have so many great hotel packages and the city is so walkable … I’m thrilled to be joining Team San Jose. It’s a phenomenal destination and I can’t wait to get started.