Industry Leader Brett Oetting Returns to the Midwest As COO of Visit KC

In this blog, may I offer a heartfelt congratulations to Brett Oetting for heading the A List of
candidates for the position of chief operating officer (COO) at Visit KC, a leading destination
management organization. His new appointment starts November 11, and what is particularly
newsworthy here is that he not only hails from Kansas, but he is the very first chief operating
officer to ever be appointed to the tourism group.

The official announcement was released after an extensive nationwide search and, basically, the
deciding factor was based on his 24 years of versatile hospitality and tourism experience,
experience that will provide the type of executive leadership to elevate Kansas City’s global
reputation even further in the marketplace. Oetting’s most recent post was that of the CEO of Visit
Corpus Christi, Texas, where he helped achieve many awards and accolades for the coastal city.

“With Kansas City currently experiencing an unprecedented time of growth and opportunity,
now was the perfect time for the Visit KC leadership team to expand and begin building towards
the future of tourism in Kansas City,” said Kathy Nelson, president and CEO of Visit KC. “In
his position as COO, Brett’s expertise will be critical to developing programs to increase leisure
travel, as well as a coordinated approach to attracting meetings, conventions, and sports events to
the destination.”

Oetting is a recipient of Destinations International’s CDME (Certified Destination
Management Executive) credential, which is said to be the highest individual educational
achievement in the tourism industry. In addition, he currently serves as the Board Chair of
the CDME program and on the boards of Destinations International and the U.S. Travel Association.

“My love for all things Kansas City runs deep, and I truly believe KC is the best destination in
the country,” said Oetting. “As Kansas City continues to gain international recognition, I
couldn’t be more excited to return to the Midwest and help lead the Visit KC team as we
build on the momentum that has ignited global passion for KC. I look forward to leveraging
my experience and passion to help drive visitation and position Kansas City as a premier travel
destination and meetings hub.

Headquartered in downtown Kansas City, Visit KC is the region’s chief hospitality sales and marketing

organization. With a mission of creating a global passion for Kansas City, Visit KC
collaborates with nearly 1,000 community partners to drive the marketing, sales, and service of
the destination’s convention and tourism industry—a sector that supports more than 128,000
local jobs. For more information about Kansas City, log onto VisitKC.com.