The Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA) said this week that after interviewing four finalists, it has voted to select Florida Secretary of Transportation Kevin Thibault as the preferred candidate to succeed its retiring CEO Phil Brown.
The next step will be for the GOAA to negotiate an agreement with Thibault before officially naming him CEO, the authority board said.
“Today we concluded a thorough and deliberate process of selecting a candidate to be our next chief executive officer, who will serve a growing, diverse and energetic community, while leading one of the region’s top economic engines,” said Carson Good, GOAA chairman. “We look forward to our next CEO building on success, innovating to create new opportunities, attracting new air service and providing economic growth in which all our citizens can participate.”
The GOAA had been working with aviation specialty recruitment firm Korn Ferry to vet qualified candidates, narrowing the list down to six and then four: Thibault; Lance Lyttle, CEO of Seattle Tacoma International Airport (SEA); Jacqueline Yaft, CEO of Austin Bergstrom International Airport (AUS); and Mark Thorpe, CEO of Ontario International Airport (ONT).
The GOAA board also approved chief of operations Tom Draper and chief financial officer Kathleen Sharman as options to serve as acting CEO in the event of an absence of the CEO and then named Draper to take that role on January 22, pending the arrival of the new CEO.
