Barbados Tourism announces appointment of two new directors

Aprille Thomas and Jameela Hollingsworth have been promoted to new roles at the Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. (BTMI).

Thomas is the new Director of Public Relations and Communications, and Hollingsworth is now Director of Human Resources and Corporate Services.

Chair of the Board of Directors of the BTMI, Shelly Williams, stated that the promotions represent the new direction for the organization. “Our Board is really pleased with the healthy mix we have at the BTMI. We have both seasoned professionals as well as young, creative minds like Aprille and Jameela who bring a new energy to the organization as we seek to remain ahead of the curve in this competitive market. I am confident that they will both do well in their new roles and I’m looking forward to the new ideas they will bring to the table.”

Strengthening storytelling

In her new role, Thomas is responsible for spearheading the organization’s global public relations and communications strategy across its five main source markets of the US, UK, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Europe. She will lead on communications programmes to heighten awareness of Barbados as a destination, while working with global media partners to communicate developments in the island’s tourism sector.

A creative and highly skilled career communicator, Thomas has won numerous awards and scholarships for her writing and communications talents. She holds a M.A. in Communications, Media and Advertising from the University of Leicester, U.K., as well as a B.A in Media, Journalism and Digital Arts with a minor in Marketing from St. Michael’s College in Vermont, USA.

Thomas served for five years at the BTMI as Public Relations and Corporate Communications Manager, where she most recently developed the ‘Tourism Forward’ national public relations campaign to mobilize internal audiences as the local industry rebounded from COVID-19. She is also now responsible for the planning of the Barbados Food and Rum Festival, which is scheduled to make a return in 2022 following a two-year hiatus.

Prior to the BTMI, Thomas was Public Relations Manager at Sandy Lane Hotel, and International Marketing and Communications Manager for Joe Fresh, Canada.

Focus on the staff

Hollingsworth is a highly trained human resource professional, who will now oversee the human resource development of the organization’s employees both locally and across its four satellite offices. She will develop programmes to recruit and maintain the best talent at the organization.

Since joining the organization in 2019 as the Human Resources Manager, Hollingsworth has digitized the human resources function to a completely paperless operation and has spearhead the launch of BTMI’s employee engagement and development initiative, BTMI Brilliance.

She is currently completing her LLB at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus. She also holds an MBA from Edinburgh Napier University in Scotland, and a BSc. in Human Resources Management from the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus.

Previously, Hollingsworth held posts as the Human Resources Business Partner and Human Resources Advisor throughout her career and also currently serves as the Vice President of the Board of Directors of the Barbados Public Worker’s Credit Union and is a Board member of Capita Insurance Brokers, Allied Co-operators Incorporated, the National Sports Council and the Barbados Youth Development Council.

The appointments were effective July 1, 2022, and both report directly to the Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Jens Thraenhart. (PR)