Shae Bird

As the CEO, Shae has been responsible for steering Indigenous Tourism Alberta (ITA) through one of the most difficult times in tourism history. Under his leadership, Alberta has been transformed into one of the world’s best Indigenous tourism destinations, as stated by National Geographic’s “Top 23 Global Destinations in 2023”. ITA, under Shae’s leadership, was also awarded 2023’s Best Indigenous Tourism Organization in Canada Award provided by the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada. During his time, Shae created and implemented multiple strategy documents, increased staffing and capacity, established and maintained private and public sector relationships at the highest level, while doubling the Indigenous tourism businesses in Alberta and turning a 500k annual budget to over $5m annually, all in under three years of leadership. Alberta is now seen as a best practice as an Indigenous PMO from across the country and beyond.

Prior to ITA, past experience includes education through a Masters program in Tourism Management and corporate experience that covers strategic planning, organizational renewal, domestic and international market and sales strategies, operations management, government relations and capital project oversight, while consistently creating strong revenue growth in every role. Shae has quickly become a recognized and respected leader in the tourism sector across Alberta and Canada with interview requests, speaking roles, and involvement in multiple economic recovery task forces across Alberta.