Western Australia Indigenous Tourism Operators Council (WAITOC) Chairman, Doc Reynolds, is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Simon Haigh as new CEO of WAITOC, effective November 1, 2013. Mr. Haigh replaces outgoing CEO Mr. Johnny Edmonds, who will be returning to New Zealand after serving the past 3 years supporting the development of WAITOC and Aboriginal tourism in Western Australia.
Mr. Reynolds said: “WAITOC has moved forward considerably in the last 3 years, thanks to the sound platform provided by the WAITOC Board and Mr. Edmonds. With Haigh’s strategic and commercial capabilities and reputation for Indigenous economic development, WAITOC is now firmly positioned to take its government and industry relationships to the next level.”
Mr. Haigh joins WAITOC having most recently been CEO of NANA Australia Pty Ltd, a subsidiary of US Native-owned Alaskan company, NANA Development Corporation. Prior to that, Mr. Haigh’s experience included Principal of Indigenous Economic Development, BHP Billiton Iron Ore, and Senior Executive for Dell Inc. and Xilinx Inc. in Europe and the US.
Mr. Haigh is a qualified lawyer and corporate executive with over 20 years of international experience. He is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Management. He holds Project Management and Applied Project Management Program qualifications from the Australian Institute of Management, Six Sigma Business Process Improvement Green and Yellow Belts, and an MBA from Curtin University.
“With Mr. Haigh’s appointment, I am confident that WAITOC’s leadership role will be reinforced in the forward development of Aboriginal tourism not only in here in Western Australia, but Australia and internationally,” said Mr. Reynolds.
