Lutz P. Vogt, managing director of the GCB German Convention Bureau, informed the board of directors at the ordinary board meeting last Friday in Frankfurt/Main that he would be leaving the GCB on February 28 and end his secondment to the GCB. As of March 2010, he will take on new responsibilities for his former employer Lufthansa German Airlines, having accepted a partial retirement offer.
The executive board unanimously expressed its regrets and thanked Vogt for his long and productive service with the GCB. Operational continuity is ensured by his long-standing deputy Anke Pruust. The executive board established a recruitment committee to find a successor.
"The decision to end my secondment was very hard for me," Vogt said. "Even after all these years, the meetings and conventions industry has still lost none of its excitement for me. I enjoyed and appreciated the very friendly and professional cooperation with the members of the GCB very much. I would also like to thank my excellent team at the GCB, without whom I would not have been able to work so successfully."
Vogt has been managing director of the GCB since 2001 and has dedicated himself to marketing Germany nationally and internationally as a destination for meetings and conventions. During his tenure, the number of GCB members has grown to more than 250 companies in 2009. One of his most important achievements is the establishment of the IMEX trade show in Germany— the world's leading fair for meetings and incentives.
The GCB German Convention Burea markets Germany as a destination for conventions, meetings, events and incentives both on a national and international level, and is the place to contact for anyone planning an event in Germany.
Its 259 members include leading hotels, convention centres and destinations, car hire firms, event agencies and service providers of the German meetings and conventions industry. Maritim Hotels, Leipzig Tourismus und Marketing GmbH and darmstadtium science and convention centre are Preferred Partners of the GCB. As Strategic Partners, Deutsche Lufthansa, Deutsche Bahn and the German National Tourist Board (GNTB) support the work of the GC.
Visit www.germany-meetings.com.