Choose Chicago President and CEO Lynn Osmond announced key appointments and a promotion to bolster the organization’s leadership team. Eric Kincaid, who has been on the sales team at Choose Chicago for two years, was promoted to vice president of sales; Lisa Nucci has been hired as chief marketing officer; and Tara Welch will become Choose Chicago’s first chief of staff.
“Following an extensive recruitment and interviewing process, I am thrilled to fill these positions and strengthen our dynamic leadership team,” says Osmond in a prepared statement. “Lisa and Tara will make outstanding additions to our team, and Eric has proven to be an invaluable leader within the sales department. Each is an experienced leader who will enable the entire staff at Choose Chicago to work more effectively toward our mission of elevating Chicago as a must-experience global destination.”
Eric Kincaid, formerly associate vice president of sales, joined Choose Chicago in 2021 and has proven himself to be a critical member of the sales team. During his tenure, Kincaid has played a leading role in recruiting numerous new clients and securing the Democratic National Convention for August 2024. He has over a decade of experience in sales at destination marketing organizations and hotels, serving as a national account director at Destination DC before joining the Choose Chicago team. In his new role, Kincaid will fill a key leadership position on the sales teamand will work to execute Choose Chicago’s business plan and achieve organizational goals. Kincaid assumed the new role on July 6.
“I am proud to be a part of the incredibly talented team we have at Choose Chicago,” says Kincaid. “I’m inspired to work harder and smarter by my colleagues, and I look forward to continuing to make a difference in our community by selling and promoting this city that I love.”
Lisa Nucci brings over 15 years of experience to Choose Chicago as the organization’s chief marketing officer, with a background in sports, cultural, and nonprofit organizations as well as creative agencies. Most recently, Nucci served as chief creative strategy officer at the Chicago Architecture Center, where she built a new marketing team and established a digital strategy. Prior to that role, Nucci was executive director of marketing for the NBA’s Chicago Bulls, where she directed marketing initiatives, youth engagement programs, retail marketing, and special events. As chief marketing officer, Nucci will be tasked with leading Choose Chicago’s strategic marketing initiatives across the organization to attract leisure and business visitors as well as meetings and events to Chicago. Nucci joined Choose Chicago on July 12.
“Throughout my career, I have worked to bring awareness to Chicago and our incredible cultural assets,” says Nucci. “I look forward to bringing all the experiences I have accumulated in the sports, philanthropic, and cultural sectors to bear in my new role marketing and promoting the ‘best big city’ in the U.S.”
Tara Welch is a veteran operations leader for mission-driven organizations with over 20 years of experience in both New York City and her native Chicago, including an extensive background in operations, project management, and program leadership. Most recently, she served as director of program operations at Global Cities Inc., a Program of Bloomberg Philanthropies. Prior to her career in operations, Welch spent 15 years as an educator with Chicago Public Schools, where she launched multiple after-school programs, mentored early career teachers, and wrote and oversaw grants from local and national philanthropies. Welch’s diverse experiences as a strategic and collaborative leader have prepared her for the chief of staff role, where she will be responsible for managing and implementing special initiatives and serving as a strategic advisor to Osmond. Welch will assume the role on July 31.
“I’m excited to join the amazing Choose Chicago team and work to build organizational capacity as the chief of staff,” says Welch. “Together, we will continue working to enrich our community by driving the growth of tourism and business travel to Chicago.”
