Destination Stewardship & Governance
Destination stewardship refers to the work of putting the County on the map through
product development and management, ensuring a seamless, positive, and
memorable visitor experience. Oakland County is at a critical point to lead destination
stewardship efforts.
Key Functions of a Destination Stewardship Organization
A destination stewardship organization is an entity responsible for guiding, promoting, and protecting the overall health, appeal, and visitor experience of a place. Its core mission is to ensure the destination remains an attractive place to visit, live, work, and invest year-round.
As such, destination stewardship involves coordinating efforts across industries and stakeholders to advance a shared vision for the destination’s
long-term success.
Marketing & Promotion
Programs, initiatives, and campaigns that are primarily focused on attracting visitors by promoting unique attractions and experiences, rather than focusing on individual products or services. This work ensures the creation and maintenance of a positive image of the destination.
Management
Programs and efforts that emphasize connecting various components of a destination, or creating coalitions of organizations/interests, to create a cohesive and quality visitor experience. This work ensures industry-wide collaborations that drive competitiveness and sustainability of the destination.
Stewardship
Capital improvements, programs, and campaigns that ensure the continuous pursuit of a net positive tourism ecosystem where a positive tourism experience for visitors is balanced with that of the needs of local communities.
Goal #1:
To create a sustainable framework for destination stewardship in Oakland County
Strategies
01
02
Hire a destination stewardship coordinator.
A Destination Stewardship Coordinator is a full-time, mid-level County staff position (Principal Planner) dedicated to lead the implementation of the Plan and filling existing regional gaps in the roles of destination management and stewardship, primarily a) connecting various sectors/stakeholders within the County to create a cohesive and quality visitor experience, b) creating a county-wide coalition of organizations/interests working towards the competitiveness and sustainability of the destination, and c) ensuring a balanced tourism experience for visitors with that of the needs of local communities (across economic, environmental, and social/cultural perspectives).
| Level of Effort | Phasing |
|---|---|
 Medium |  Immediate |
Key Roles & Responsibilities
In the near term, key roles and responsibilities of the Coordinator may include:
- Convene and collaborate with Visit Detroit, County departments (Main Street, Parks, Airport, Economic Development, Business Development, Workforce Development, Community Development, Transit, etc.), local government and organizations to implement strategies outlined in the strategic plan
- Partner closely with Visit Detroit to ensure alignment of the County’s messaging and positioning as a sub brand
- Support Visit Detroit in the promotion of the County for group travel and events; support stakeholders through lead generation and collaborative sales strategies.
- Track implementation of the strategic plan and measure impacts of strategies implemented to inform policies
- Work closely with a branding contractor to develop final County place brand, guidelines, assets, and a marketing/PR contractor to implement brand
- Grow and manage the destination stewardship budgets and lead the pursuit of grants
Required Background/Expertise
Required background/expertise of the Coordinator:
- Bachelor’s degree (or Master’s degree) in Tourism, Hospitality, or Recreation Management/Public Administration or Public Policy/Business Administration or Nonprofit Management/Community Development
- Minimum 3 years experience in non-profit operations/tourism/hospitality/cultural institution/chamber of commerce
- Familiarity with county or municipal government processes, budgeting, and grant management, and destination branding, storytelling, and campaign integration.
- Demonstrated success in stakeholder engagement, managing cross-sector partnerships, strategic planning, and program impact monitoring/evaluation
- Must be comfortable leading community workshops, industry training, and public forums.
Establish a destination stewardship non-profit organization.
To grow and continuously evolve the work of the Destination Stewardship Coordinator, the County should also consider, in the longer term, the establishment of a 501(c)(3) and/or 501(c)(6) non-profit organization, with
its own Board of Directors consisting of local stakeholders (primarily consisting of lodging owners and managers, and other private/non-profit/public stakeholders such as attraction/cultural asset managers and regional marketing partners) to lead asset development/enhancement, infrastructure planning, and industry capacity-building.
The organization is intended to invest in Oakland County’s tourism infrastructure and network of assets, and to promote and partner with Visit Detroit meaningfully.
In order to sustain the work of the destination stewardship organization, the County should consider a sustainable funding mechanism similar to that of other counties in the region, a government-authorized lodging/accommodations tax that is collected by Oakland County and distributed to its destination stewardship organization.
In addition to marketing/promotion (primarily focused on the implementation of the County’s place brand and managing that implementation with local and regional/state partners), the destination stewardship organization should be responsible for executing larger and more impactful stakeholder management and destination stewardship work, as outlined in this strategic plan.
| Level of Effort | Phasing |
|---|---|
 High |  Future |
Additional functions
Additional functions of the organization may include:
- Lead training, workshops, and community education programs to build brand awareness and implementation
- Lead/support implementation of stewardship projects and product development as outlined in the Oakland County Tourism & Attraction 5-Year Strategic Plan
- Lead capacity-building initiatives (workshops, training, coalition-building) for industry partners.
- Drive research, storytelling, and communications around the County’s place brand
Key Staff Roles
- Executive Director, whose core responsibilities may include fundraising and grant applications, budget compliance and reporting, staff management, stakeholder engagement, and oversight of marketing and other programs
- Marketing & Communications Manager, whose core responsibilities may include coordination with Marketing teams at Visit Detroit, implementation of Oakland County place brand, advertising, social media, visitor guides, website
- Destination Development/Visitor Experience Manager, whose core responsibilities may include coordination with Sales teams at Visit Detroit, administration and management of key product development programs
- Engagement and Research Manager, whose core responsibilities may include stakeholder management and coalition-building, visitor data collection, economic impact reporting, resident sentiment
- Visitor Services Coordinator, whose core responsibilities may include managing welcome centers, kiosks, call/email/chat support, volunteer programs