King, Brian - Department of Hospitality, Hotel Management and Tourism

Brian King: Professor and Department Head
Office:: AGLS 417/418
Email:: [email protected]
Phone:: (979) 314-8040

Education

Undergraduate Education: M.A. Hons, University of Aberdeen
Graduate Education: M.Sc., University of Strathclyde; Ph.D., Monash University
Awards: Elected Fellow, International Academy for the Study of Tourism; Elected Fellow, China Tourism Studies Association; Elected Fellow, Tourism and Hospitality Education International Centre of Excellence (THE-ICE); Elected Fellow, Council of Australasian University Tourism and Hospitality Education (CAUTHE); Inducted into the Hall of Fame, Tourism and Hospitality Education International Centre of Excellence (THE-ICE); Best Article Award 2020, Tourism Recreation Research (with Wondirad & Tolkach); Highly Commended Paper 2020, Emerald Literate (with Luo, Wong, Liu & Huang); Best Article Award 2018, Tourism Recreation Research (with Koh); Teaching Excellence Award 2020, School of Hotel and Tourism Management, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University; Knowledge Transfer Award 2021, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University; Gold Award for Outstanding Contribution by an Individual, 2018, Victorian Tourism Awards, Australia; Vice-Chancellor's Service Excellence Commendation 2010 (Team Award), Victoria University, Australia; University Top Consultancy Award 2016 (Team Award), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Areas of Expertise

Tourism, Culture and Communication
Migration and International Education
Hospitality and Tourism Education
Destination Management and Marketing
Asia-Pacific Tourism
Resort Development

Professional Summary

Brian King, Ph.D. is Professor and Department Head in the Department of Hospitality, Hotel Management and Tourism. Prior to coming to Texas A&M University to serve in this role, King was Associate Dean in the School of Hotel & Tourism at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. He was previously Professor at Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia where he held various Faculty and University-wide roles including Head of the School of Hospitality Tourism and Marketing, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Industry and Community) and then Pro Vice-Chancellor (Students). Originally from Scotland, Professor King has worked in the tourism field all his professional life linking academia and practice in Europe, Australasia, the Pacific and Hong Kong. His industry experience includes manager and/or director roles in airlines (Qantas), tour operations (Wigwam International), destination management (Destination Melbourne), cruise operations (Ocean Spirit Cruises) and hotels. King has provided consulting services to international agencies such as the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) on tourism human resource development and marketing. He has also undertaken consulting projects for UNESCAP and the European Union (Tourism Council of the South Pacific). After relocating from Australia to Hong Kong in 2012, King consulted for the Hong Kong Hotel Owners Association to develop a Hong Kong-wide Tourism Roadmap. He was a frequent media commentator and presenter at industry conference and events. He is the co-editor-in-chief of the international journal Tourism, Culture and Communication.

King has served as a lead consultant for the Australian Council of Tourism Ministers on an investigation into the zero based profit tours phenomenon from emerging Asian markets, including China. He also consulted to Tourism Transport Forum (TTF) in Australia on the financing of national parks and protected areas leading to highly cited publications in the top journals in the field. Indicative of his strong industry engagements, in November 2018 King was awarded the Qantas Outstanding Contribution by an Individual Gold Award in the Victorian Tourism Awards, Australia. As part of his industry engagements he has authored many best practice business and marketing cases of tourism ventures.