TAMS Appoints Joel Hanson as Executive Director

On October 19, 2026, the Travel and Meetings Association (TAMS) announced the appointment of Joel Hanson as its new Executive Director, succeeding Phyllis Tess, whose departure was announced in January of this year. Hanson worked at CWT for more than 18 years, most recently as Senior Director of Innovation Business Development; after leaving CWT in 2023, he provided consulting to travel technology startups at Plug and Play Tech Center in Silicon Valley. He will be responsible for TAMS's strategic initiatives, operations, partnerships and member engagement.