Profile: Joyce Wellman Fisk

NEW POSITION: Vice president, membership, Tampa Bay Convention & Visitors Bureau, Tampa.

PREVIOUS POSITION: Senior vice president, Bank of America, Tampa.

In her new role as vice president of membership for the member-based Tampa Bay Convention & Visitors Bureau, Joyce Wellman Fisk plans to shake a lot of hands. One of her projects, she said, is to meet and speak with the approximately 700 CVB members.

With some members located outside Hillsborough County, such as Jungle Gardens in Sarasota and Sunken Gardens in St. Petersburg, Fisk said she expects to be on the road about 25 to 50 percent of the time.

The Tampa Bay Convention & Visitors Bureau is funded by Hillsborough County and membership fees, she said, so membership isn't restricted geographically. And since the bureau focuses its marketing efforts on bringing tourists to the area, "We are promoting (what) benefits our members who are primarily attractions, hotels, motels, restaurants, etc.," she said.

"One of my goals is to create more of an awareness in the business community of the importance of tourism in the area," Fisk said. An estimated 15-million people visit Tampa each year, generating a $2.4-billion economic impact and creating approximately 39,000 jobs, she said.

Fisk also will be responsible for attracting new members.

But immediately after she started her job June 24, Fisk's efforts were focused on the city's bid for the 2004 Republican National Convention. Last month, the list of cities was narrowed to three: Tampa, New York City and New Orleans.

"I haven't been able to get as deeply into what I want to be doing," she said. "Now, I'll be going out and visiting with members, making sure they're happy.

"One of my biggest goals right now is to learn about the industry and its members," she said. "That's a lot of people."

Fisk, a native of Vidalia, Ga., grew up in Davenport and attended the University of South Florida, majoring in business administration. Her business career began in real estate, but she took several years off from work to raise her family.

Fisk returned to work in 1991 as corporate affairs manager for People's Gas in Tampa, then joined Barnett Bank (now Bank of America) in 1996 as senior vice president of Hillsborough County community relations.

Fisk, 50, is also on the board of directors for the Jesuit High School Foundation.

"I feel that Tampa Bay has so many positives to offer that while we may have a decrease, say, in out-of-state travelers, local people and people from the Southeast that would consider a driving vacation would still be very much interested in visiting us," she said. "We're in a great location."

Fisk, who lives in Tampa with her husband and three teenage sons, said she often invites visitors out on her family's boat "to show them around the Tampa Bay area." She takes them to Harbour Island and Davis Islands, "and if there are kids, Busch Gardens, Lowry Park Zoo and MOSI."

She and her family often go fishing as well. "I take a book, though, in case the fish aren't biting."

Encouraging people to visit Tampa Bay comes naturally to Fisk. "Tampa has been good to me, so I'm happy to promote it," she said.

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