TORONTO — The Travel Industry Council of Ontario (TICO) has officially opened the nomination period for its 2025 Board of Directors election, calling on qualified candidates both within and outside the travel industry to apply for two upcoming vacancies.

One candidate will be elected Industry Director, who is directly involved in the travel industry, and another candidate will be elected Public Director, who has no direct personal or business interest in the industry. Directors will be elected for three-year terms at TICO’s Annual Meeting on Sept. 25, 2025.

To apply, interested candidates must complete the online application form, available here. And then email their CV to boardapplications@tico.ca. TICO must receive both the application and CV prior to the application deadline on June 30, 2025, at 4:30 p.m. ET.

The TICO Board meets approximately six times per year, with board meetings typically lasting four hours. In addition, TICO has three committees, each of which typically meets four or five times per year for 4-5 hours. Each board member participates on a maximum of two committees. Periodically, board members may also be required to attend strategy or development sessions, resulting in an additional two or three days per year. There is reading/preparation required in advance of all meetings. All Directors must attend at least 75% of the meetings held in any 12-month period of their term.

Directors receive per diems for meetings attended and reimbursement for all reasonable out-of-pocket expenses related to board and committee work.

THE ROLE OF THE BOARD

TICO is governed by a nine-member board, made up of three members elected from the travel industry: three from the general public and three appointed by the Minister of Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement.

The board is responsible for ensuring that the organization’s mandate is carried out effectively and efficiently on behalf of Ontarians. In addition, the board shapes TICO’s strategic direction, provides financial oversight, supports outreach and advocacy, and serves as an ambassador for TICO and its mission.

The board will strive to reflect the diversity of Ontario, with an inclusion lens applied to consider gender, race, age, geographical representation, accessibility, language and other diversity criteria. Women and individuals located outside of the Greater Toronto Area are encouraged to apply.

TO QUALIFY

Interested candidates are encouraged to review the Board Code of Conduct, which outlines the board’s fiduciary roles, and the Terms of Reference for a Board Member, which sets out the responsibilities and key expectations of board members. In addition, all directors must possess a positive orientation for proactive consumer protection initiatives.

ALL ELECTED DIRECTORS

At a minimum, to be eligible for election as a TICO Elected Director, one must meet the following requirements:

• Meet the Competency and Selection Criteria for Members of the Board of Directors set out in Schedule “C” of the Administrative Agreement
• Possess a positive orientation for proactive consumer protection initiatives
• Be a resident of Canada
• Be at least 18 years of age
• Have the power under law to contract
• Must not have been found by a court in Canada or elsewhere to be incapable, including incapable of managing property
• Must not have the status of bankrupt
• Must not be an individual who has himself or herself been insolvent or bankrupt within the three (3) years immediately preceding the appointment, or associated with a Person (individual, proprietorship, partnership, incorporated company, joint venture or other legally recognized entity) who has become insolvent or bankrupt within the three years immediately preceding the appointment
• Be someone in respect of whom TICO has obtained satisfactory Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) and other background The results of such checks must satisfy TICO that the potential election of the candidate would not be contrary to the best interests of the Ontario travel industry in general or TICO in particular
• Must not be an individual who is charged or has been convicted, or associated with a Person that is charged or has been convicted, of an offence under the Criminal Code, the Travel Industry Act, 2002 or the Consumer Protection Act, 2002 or statutes similar to them in another jurisdiction or any offence under provincial legislation that causes the TICO Board of Directors to believe that the function of Director will not be fulfilled with honesty and integrity and in the best interests of the travel industry
• Must not be an individual who is or was associated with a Registrant that has had previous unpaid claims against the Compensation Fund within the previous three years
• Must not be an individual who is or was associated with a Registrant that is the subject of outstanding regulatory or administrative action by the Registrar under the Travel Industry Act, 2002.

INDUSTRY ELECTED DIRECTORS

At a minimum, to be eligible for election, an Industry Elected Director must be involved in the travel industry. This may include, but is not limited to, individuals from the following classes:

• Travel agents
• Travel wholesalers
• Individuals who are directors, officers, employees or agents of travel agents or travel wholesalers
• Individuals who are directors, officers, members or agents of an industry association representing the interests of travel agents or travel wholesalers
• Individuals who met the descriptions of any class above within one year before becoming a director of the board of the administrative authority

PUBLIC ELECTED DIRECTORS

At a minimum, to be eligible for election as a Public Director, the individual must not be involved in the travel industry.

TICO is seeking applications from individuals with a broad range of skills, perspectives and expertise as outlined in the Board Member Profile and is particularly interested in individuals who possess the following competencies:

• Legal Experience: The member has experience in law and compliance and/or experience providing legal/regulatory advice and guidance within a regulatory organization.
• Risk Management Knowledge and Experience: The member has knowledge and experience in enterprise risk management with a practical understanding of operational, environmental, and reputational risks. The member appreciates the Board’s role in the oversight of risk management principles and practices in the context of good corporate governance.
• Technology Knowledge and Experience:The member has information technology experience, with knowledge of current and emerging technologies, current risk, and regulatory requirements as they would specifically apply to TICO’s strategic, regulatory, and operating environment, including information security risk. The member has experience and knowledge in leading or significantly influencing technology infrastructure and/or applications with a solid understanding of emerging technologies, including social networking, artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud and data analytics.
• Human Resources and Organizational Behaviour Knowledge and Experience – The member has experience with human resource issues in a corporate environment with relevant knowledge of regulatory requirements, performance management, leadership, diversity, development/talent management, employee engagement, succession planning and compensation decision-making, including ensuring alignment between compensation plans and corporate strategy. The member understands internal culture and how culture may facilitate or hinder productivity in the achievement of organizational goals.

SELECTION PROCESS

The Governance and Nominations Committee, composed of board members, will review the applications; interviews may be conducted, if required. Then, the most qualified candidates will be recommended via a slate of candidates for election by Registrant Members at TICO’s Annual Meeting.

TICO will circulate the slate of candidates to all Registrant Members at least 30 days before the Annual Meeting, including biographies for each candidate. Registrant Members are entitled to one vote, in person or by proxy, for each registration held on every question submitted.

For any questions, contact Tracey McKiernan, General Counsel & Corporate Secretary, at tmckiernan@tico.ca.