Howard County Tourism & Promotion warmly welcomed Taffy Rice to its team as the new director of sales. With the new dedicated funding in FY 2012 from the increase in the hotel tax, Rice will be key in keeping Tourism’s promise to Howard County hoteliers to build a sales team to put “heads in beds.”
Prior to joining Howard County Tourism & Promotion, Rice had been the director of sales at the Montgomery County Convention & Visitors Bureau since 2004. She is a 25-year veteran of the hotel and lodging industry as a national sales manager and a director of sales and marketing for various hotel organizations on the east and west coasts.
Taffy Rice, center, selling Howard County at International Pow Wow alongside of representatives from Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C.
The addition of Rice to build the sales department was a decisive choice for Howard County Tourism & Promotion. “As an organization, we have admired Taffy’s work in Montgomery County. Over the years, we’ve shared tradeshow booth space, sales leads and industry best practices. Taffy is very well recognized and much respected in the Maryland tourism industry, especially at Destination DC and VisitBaltimore,” said Rachelina Bonacci, executive director of Howard County Tourism & Promotion.
“I’ve been saying for years, when it was time for our organization to add its sales department, I’ve got to find someone ‘just like Taffy.’ Her professionalism, poise and Rolodex of prospective business contacts are exactly what we are looking for, and I am thrilled that we were able to sway her away from Montgomery County,” Bonacci said.
“This brand new role is critical to the future growth and development of the Tourism office, and the board recognizes the entire structure will be built from the ground up,” said Leslie Portella, account executive at Marriott International and a member of the Tourism board of directors. “Ms. Rice’s multi-faceted plethora of experience is a coup to the organization, and we anticipate an excellent return on investment as a result. We’re delighted to have her and are certain she’ll add a new, positive dimension that will allow Rachelina to bring the team to the next level.”
“When Rachelina called to tell me that Taffy Rice is Howard County Tourism & Promotion’s new director of sales, the first thing out of my mouth was ‘Wow! What a coup! for the county,’” said Regina Ford, director of public relations at Turf Valley and a former Tourism board president. “Tourism couldn’t have selected a better industry professional to build the sales department. That’s exactly what Taffy did at our neighboring county (not to mention, our biggest competitor), and with so much success. As a hotelier we are looking forward to lots of new bookings. Now that’s exciting!”
