Bill founded Longwoods in 1978 and has built the firm into a leading travel research consultancy that conducts strategic studies globally for clients at the national, state, city, and regional levels.

He began his career as an academic, teaching psychology, research methods and statistics at Western University, and was invited to the University of Western Australia as Distinguished Visiting Lecturer. He switched to market research when he was hired to design and manage a multimillion-dollar advertising ROI study for the CEOs of the phone companies across Canada. 

Bill is internationally recognized as a leading figure in marketing, advertising, and tourism research. His work has been cited in broadcast and print media, including USA Today, Newsweek, the New York Times, and the Times of London. He is a regular speaker at governors’ conferences and meetings, such as the Advertising Research Foundation, the American Marketing Association, the Brookings Institution, The Travel & Tourism Research Association, the Bureau of Broadcast Measurement, the Economic Development Administration, the European Society of Marketing Research, and the Public Relations Society of America. 

Bill has served on the boards for Georgia Tech, Waterloo University, Ryerson University, the University of Florida, the Travel & Tourism Research Association, and Destinations International. He was honored as a Ryerson Fellow, Executive in Residence at Temple University, and was commissioned an Honorary Citizen of New Jersey and Kentucky Colonel.

In 2021 he received the Travel & Tourism Research Association’s highest honor, its Lifetime Achievement Award.

Bill holds a B.A. (Honors) from the University of Toronto and a Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Michigan.

A 33-year veteran of the Travel & Tourism industry, Amir joined Longwoods in 2015 from his previous role as Vice President, Partner Engagement with Brand USA, the public-private partnership serving as the destination marketing organization dedicated to increasing international visitation to the US. He led the team responsible for helping to increase its partnership base and focused on exceeding service expectation for those partners. During his tenure, Brand USA grew its base to 475 partners, comprised of destination marketing organizations, state tourism offices, attractions, hotels, travel brands, airlines, and tour operators.

Prior to joining Brand USA, Amir served as Director of the Ohio Office of Tourism. Under his leadership, the state's marketing programs realized a tremendous return on investment and contributed to the growth of the state's $40 billion tourism economy. These successful marketing efforts were often cited as the basis for the program’s many awards and recognitions during his tenure.

He has also served as Executive Vice President of the Ohio Hotel & Lodging Association, Assistant Director of the Ohio Tourism Division, and Sales & Marketing Manager with the Steuben County Conference and Visitors Bureau.

Amir is a regular speaker on market research and tourism at conferences and events around the country. His thoughts on the tourism industry and travel trends are often quoted in the media, and he has appeared in dozens of interviews among many national media outlets such as CNBC, MSNBC, Forbes, the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Los Angeles Times.

Amir has been recognized with a number of Industry honors including Top 25 Extraordinary Minds in Sales & Marketing award (2014) by the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI); The Ohio Tourism Industry's Highest Honor, The Paul Sherlock Award; and The State of Ohio Distinguished Service Medal. He is an active member of many Travel Industry committees and task forces, and currently serves on boards for the Destinations International Foundation and the U.S. Travel Association.

Amir holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Dayton and resides in Columbus, OH with his wife and two children.

George brings more than two decades of experience in tourism marketing and research to the Longwoods team and its clients. He was the Vice President responsible for Travel Michigan at the Michigan Economic Development Corporation from 2001 - 2014. Under his leadership, Travel Michigan launched the award-winning Pure Michigan brand, which Forbes ranked among the top ten tourism promotion campaigns worldwide. During his tenure, the annual tourism promotion budget rose from $5.7 million to $30 million.

Prior to joining Travel Michigan, George served as Ohio’s Tourism Director, and he was named State Tourism Director of the Year in 1997. He is the only person to have received this honor twice.

George served on the U.S. Department of Commerce Travel and Tourism Advisory Board, the Board of Directors of the U.S. Travel Association and the Board and Executive Committee of the National Council of State Tourism Directors. He was elected as Chair of the Council four times. In 2014, he led the effort to create the National Council of State Tourism Directors Alumni Group and was elected the group’s first chair.

The Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI) named George one of the “Top 25 Extraordinary Minds in Hospitality Sales and Marketing.”

At Longwoods, George has consulted with and/or presented to the state tourism offices in Colorado, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming, as well as convention/visitor bureaus in Asheville, North Carolina; Chester County, the Poconos, State College and York, Pennsylvania; Lake Geneva and Green Bay, Wisconsin.  

George is the author of three travel-related books and a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin.

As CFO, John is responsible for the company's financial functions, including financial planning, record keeping, risk management, taxation, and government compliance in addition to being a key member in the corporate decision-making process.

Since joining Longwoods International in 1997, he has continued to expand his responsibilities to include overseeing all human resources and facilities activities. His leadership and management skills were the catalyst in his 2016 promotion to chief financial officer. His career spans more than 25 years with varied experience in the accounting and financial profession.

Prior to joining the Longwoods team, John completed a professional hockey career in Copenhagen, Denmark, which began after graduating from Michigan Technological University, where he was a selection to the WCHA All-Academic and All-WCHA Second Teams.

Victor has over 20 years of experience in marketing research. Before joining Longwoods as Research Manager in 2004, Victor was Consumer Insight Manager at Warner-Lambert, Inc., a global consumer and pharmaceutical products manufacturer. In that capacity, he was responsible for directing the research for several category-leading brands. 

At Longwoods, Victor oversees the requirements of our many projects, including sample and questionnaire design, fieldwork, data processing, analysis, and reporting.

He holds a Master’s degree in Economics from the University of Hawaii.

Anna Blount is Longwoods’ Vice President of Research, where she manages client relationships, business development, and provides project oversight. She helps our clients translate their research results into actionable insights, as well as working to drive forward Longwoods’ thought leadership through various public relations initiatives.

Before joining Longwoods, she was the Director of Market Research for MMGY Global, a leading integrated travel and hospitality marketing agency.  Anna led the agency's signature Portrait of American Travelers® syndicated research project for six years, authoring multiple reports based on the data on travel trends and potential visitor segments.  Additionally, she managed custom quantitative and qualitative research projects for a wide variety of destinations, hotel brands, and other travel service providers and supporting trade associations.

Prior to MMGY Global, Anna was a member of the market research team at Publix Super Markets, Inc., a Fortune 100 regional grocery chain. While there, she managed and contributed towards primary and secondary research projects, including customer segmentation, product trends, and competitive intelligence. 

Anna received a Master of Science in Architectural History and Criticism from the University College London, as well as a Master of Arts in Visual Culture from the University of Westminster. She received her Bachelor of Arts in History from the University of South Florida.

Cassandra Ball manages the Longwoods Production team and ensures all quantitative studies follow vigorous market research standards to ensure reliable results and responsible insights. As such, Cassandra is responsible for the management and project flow of Travel USA©. She has lead Production since 2020, and joined Longwoods in 2016, based in the Columbus, Ohio office.
Previously Cassandra worked for the Cooke City Community Council as a grant writer and project manager. She spent three years working for the Colter Pass-Cooke City-Silver Gate Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center as a travel counselor. Cassandra was also a digital marketing intern at the Valley Forge Tourism and Convention Board.
Cassandra received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Clarion University of Pennsylvania, majoring in Economics and Business Management with a minor in Political Science. She graduated from Temple University in Philadelphia with a Master’s degree in Tourism and Hospitality Management with a Marketing concentration.

Brian brings a decade of experience in supporting clients and managing customer service teams in both the tourism and research environments. After being promoted at Brand USA, Brian was recruited into research leadership positions with two market research firms. With industry experience in the arts, travel & tourism, technology and community development, Brian brings a well-rounded approach to tailoring solutions for clients.

Brian received a BA in Art History from Lourdes University, holds an Executive MBA from the University of Toledo, and is currently the president of the board for a local nonprofit in his hometown of Toledo, Ohio.

Tammy Koerte is Longwoods’ Senior Research Manager, where she leads the management of individual client research projects and Longwoods’ National Resident Sentiment study. She has extensive academic and professional experience conducting and managing both quantitative and qualitative research studies. Tammy has held this role since 2020 and joined Longwoods in 2019.

Prior to joining Longwoods, Tammy was an Extension Educator with the University of Minnesota Tourism Center where she led the Tourism Assessment Program. She was also an instructor at Pennsylvania State University, teaching courses on the marketing of recreation services.

Tammy holds a Bachelor of Science in Hospitality and Tourism Management from Purdue University and Master’s degrees in both Recreation, Park and Tourism Management and Community and Economic Development from Pennsylvania State University.

Nantha has a university degree in Mathematics and was a mathematics teacher at the high school level prior to joining Longwoods thirty years ago.

 She is a specialist in database management and is responsible for the data processing side of all of our client projects. She handles specifications writing, cross-tabulation of data, multivariate modeling, and segmentation.

Clare Robinson assists the Longwoods Production team by providing analytical support on quantitative studies and facilitating the creation of client deliverables. She joined Longwoods in April 2021 and is based in the Columbus, Ohio office. 

Before joining the Longwoods team, Clare worked as a Research Assistant for The U.S.- Asia Center for Tourism and Hospitality Research at Temple University, where she attended graduate school. Clare was also a marketing intern for the Travel and Tourism Research Association. 

Clare graduated from The University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Science in Textile Design and a minor in Business Administration. She received a Master’s in Tourism and Hospitality Management from Temple University in Philadelphia.

Alyssa Stroker assists the Longwoods Production team by providing analytical support on quantitative studies and facilitating the creation of client deliverables. She joined Longwoods in November 2021 and is based in the Columbus, Ohio office. 

Prior to joining Longwoods, Alyssa worked as a Research Assistant at North Carolina State University leading data collection, analysis, and dissemination efforts. She worked for Dr. Whitney Knollenberg and Dr. Duarte Morais on several research projects. Alyssa was also a Services intern for the Greater Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Alyssa graduated from North Carolina State University with a Bachelor of Science in Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management with a concentration in Sustainable Tourism.

Fun Fact: Alyssa is an avid rock climber and spent a gap year traveling the US bouncing from one rock climbing destination to the next. Her favorite achievement so far is climbing Devil’s Tower National Monument in Wyoming.