Virtuoso has appointed Fiona Dalton to the role of General Manager, Australia-New Zealand. The move comes after Dalton stepped in to offer resourcing support to the regional operations team over the last 12 months.
Dalton’s elevation to General Manager comes as the industry is looking to rebuild itself in the wake of the COVID-19 global pandemic. She will be tapping into her keen business acumen and expansive skillset covering general and financial management, sales generation, and marketing, as she now turns her attention toward strategic partnerships focused on expanding Virtuoso’s global network of travel agency members and preferred travel providers, while elevating the group’s brand awareness and preference amongst affluent consumers.
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Her recruitment follows a string of global hires for Virtuoso, which last year announced new General Managers in Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean as well as Europe, Middle East and Africa.
“As we prepare for travel to recover, Virtuoso is continuing to invest in our international markets,” said Michael Londregan, Virtuoso Senior Vice President of Global Operations. “The appointment of Fiona Dalton to the General Manager, Australia-New Zealand role is fundamental to ensuring that we have experts in each market to tailor our Virtuoso value proposition to our market for the benefit of our agency members and supply partners.
“Fiona brings a wealth of market experience to the role and has an extensive understanding of the Virtuoso community having been a preferred partner in previous roles,” Londregan added.
Dalton brings deep market knowledge and more than 30 years of industry experience across corporate and leisure travel sectors. Her previous executive positions included CEO of The Travel Corporation Australia, Managing Director at Uniworld Boutique River Cruises in Australia, General Manager, sales, for Qantas Holidays and its associated brands in helloworld, as well as Associate Director, Global Travel and Supplier Relations for Macquarie Group.
Dalton has led large-scale business transformations and strategic sourcing projects, positioned businesses for turnaround and sustained growth, and developed and re-engineered business processes to support change management in the tourism sector. Most recently, Dalton served as a strategic business consultant to tourism businesses, with a key focus on luxury.
As part of Virtuoso’s global team, Dalton will continue reporting to Londregan and remains based in Sydney.