Having recently fired their executive director, members of the Osoyoos tourism board are about to get much busier as they take over running the organization rather than just setting policy. "We are changing from a policy board to a working board," Destination Osoyoos board chairman Don Brogan said in an interview Friday. They will continue to meet much more frequently than in the past, he said. Destination Osoyoos is an arm's-length organization contracted by the Town of Osoyoos to provide external marketing services. Its annual budget is about $350,000, which comes mainly from a hotel tax along with grants from the town, the Osoyoos Indian band and the regional district. As a policy board, Brogan said, members were provided with broad-strokes, high-level information from the executive director, but did not get details on plans or strategies. "We weren't satisfied with that," he said. So, the board decided to become more active and involved. Brogan said the nine-member board has a breadth and depth of marketing expertise that will allow it to expertly manage a sophisticated marketing strategy for the town. He explained that the mandate for Destination Osoyoos has narrowed during the past few years. The economic development and visitor services aspects have been stripped away, and the focus now is only on external marketing of the town and surrounding area. This concentration on marketing is the cited reason for the recent dismissal of executive director Jo Knight. "She's a fine individual, and if we needed another visitor centre manager, she'd be the one. . . . But as far as marketing acumen, we just felt it wasn't strong enough, and that's the direction we need to go. That's why we made that decision," said Brogan. In an interview, Knight agreed with the board's decision to fire her. "I've been wrapping my head around it. But at the end of the day, they do need a marketing expert, and that's not what my skill set is. "If that's what their focus is moving forward, then I'm not the right person for that role." Knight said the board treated her fairly and she received a satisfactory severance package. Osoyoos Coun. Mike Ryan, who represents the town at Destination Osoyoos, said: "They provided a generous severance and (the situation) was handled well. . . . She'll be given a positive reference." Brogan said the board would hire someone with marketing expertise to work under the direction of the board.
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