The Travel Boom Hasn’t Been Inclusive. One Woman Is Finding Solutions.
Stephanie Jones is creating a diverse pipeline of talent and opportunity in the US travel industry, which remains 80% White at its highest levels.
Stephanie Jones is founder and chief executive officer of Cultural Heritage Economic Alliance and Blacks in Tourism and Travel.
Photographer: Jared Soares for Bloomberg Pursuits
In April 2023, Stephanie Jones delivered a keynote presentation at the Michigan Governor’s Conference on Tourism. “I got on stage and I said, ‘Look around us—you have no idea how tiring it is showing up and being the only Black person in a room,” she recalls. “There are 600 of you sitting in those seats; what Black folks have you run into other than the people that are serving and waiting on you?”
The sparse statistics available on diverse leadership in US tourism show that fewer than 2% of executives in hospitality are Black while C-suite personnel at North American tourism boards remain 80% White. It takes little effort to note the dearth of Black executives in rooms where decisions are made about US travel, from destination marketing organizations to major travel associations that impact policy.