Ensemble Travel Group named industry veteran Joe Jiffo to the newly created position of vice president of business development. Jiffo will oversee new member growth and retention for Ensemble while adding bench strength to Ensemble’s cruise portfolio and partner relationships, Ensemble said. Jiffo will begin at his new post February 28 and will be based in Ft. Lauderdale.
Ensemble said it has strategically strengthened in recent months its investment in growing the business through the development of a North American management team aligned to deliver value to its members and suppliers.
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The new VP post, with responsibilities for driving both U.S. and Canadian business, complements the organization’s executive announcement of co-presidents Lindsay Pearlman and Libbie Rice made in January.
"Not only is Joe known for his strong interpersonal skills, his cross-border experience is truly in sync with our strategy. He brings an impressive track record of nurturing sales teams to aggressively and effectively make things happen in the marketplace," said Pearlman.
Added Rice, "What’s more, his 18 plus years in the cruise industry are an added bonus and will help us really ramp up this core product for Ensemble Travel Group members in the U.S. and Canada. We’re truly delighted to have Joe on our team."
Jiffo most recently served as East region director of sales and national accounts for The Mark Travel Corporation. In this capacity he led a team of business development and associate managers in the creation and execution of marketing programs, training workshops, and overall sales development for retail agents in the eastern U.S. and Canada in support of two of the company’s vacation brands.
His cruise line experience includes national account positions at Celebrity Cruises, Royal Caribbean International, Carnival Cruise Line, and Norwegian Cruise Line. While at NCL for nearly 10 years, he spent his last three as national director of key accounts/business development, where he directed the line’s high-volume agency business in the U.S. and Canada.
In this role, Jiffo successfully implemented a new business model for key accounts, which established the overall program direction regarding sales, marketing, new business development, and strategic and tactical negotiations. Jiffo has CTC and MCC designations.
"I’ve known a number of the Ensemble Travel Group members and staff as far back as the ‘90s, and I’ve always been impressed with the organization,” says Jiffo. “I’m really excited about this opportunity and the chance to use my knowledge and cross-border connections to help take Ensemble Travel Group to an even higher level of success."
Visit www.ensembletravel.com.