Carla Campos elected to chair Discover Puerto Rico board
The former tourism chief will lead the marketing organization through a leadership transition and contract review period.
Discover Puerto Rico, the island’s destination marketing organization, has announced new leadership, electing Carla Campos, former executive director of the Puerto Rico Tourism Co., as its new board chairwoman.
Campos, who played a key role during the organization’s early development, now returns to lead it into its next phase of strategic growth and public-private collaboration.
Her tenure at the Tourism Co. from 2018 to 2021 included the transfer of international marketing responsibilities to Discover Puerto Rico and the coordination of post-hurricane tourism recovery initiatives.
Now, Campos is tasked with continuing that legacy while guiding the DMO as it faces an upcoming contractual review period ending in 2028.
“Discover Puerto Rico has been under constant observation, as is natural for any entity with a public impact,” Campos said. “The organization has undeniably contributed to the historic performance of the Puerto Rican tourism sector in recent years. Our duty now is to look to the future and ensure we build on that solid foundation, providing continuity to what has worked well and being transparent about the areas that, when strengthened, will allow us to achieve long-term stability.”
The 13-member board of directors, comprising both public and private sector leaders, also named Raúl Bustamante as vice chairman, Federico Stubbe as treasurer and Juan Rodríguez, representing the Paradores Association, as secretary.
“As a board, we have the daunting task of identifying a new CEO and chief marketing officer, developing a budget for the new fiscal year, and ensuring the continuity of the DMO’s management beyond 2028, while facing challenging macroeconomic dynamics for the tourism sector,” Campos added.
Ex-officio board members Verónica Ferraiouli, secretary of State; Willianette Robles, executive director of the Tourism Co.; and Sebastián Negrón, secretary of Economic Development and Commerce, supported Campos’ appointment, noting her “extensive experience bridging public and private sectors.”
“For the government of Puerto Rico and the administration of Gov. Jenniffer González-Colón, there has never been any doubt that the DMO serves a key purpose: ensuring continuity of marketing even in the face of changes in government,” the ex-officio members said in a joint statement.
“The new chair, who has extensive public experience and private sector insight, is ideally positioned to foster collaboration between industry stakeholders, the administration and our people,” they added.
Campos concluded, “As a board, we are unified in vision, committed to the future, and ready to work with agility, effectiveness and transparency.”
