Annette Rummel
Residing in Frankenmuth, Michigan, Annette is married to her husband, William (Will). Annette and William are members of St. Lorenz Lutheran Church in Frankenmuth.
Annette Rummel joined the Great Lakes Bay Regional Convention & Visitors Bureau as president and CEO in 2009. As chief executive officer, Annette leads the individual Destination Marketing and Management Organizations (DMMOs) of Bay, Midland, and Saginaw Counties and the Great Lakes Bay Regional CVB. This has allowed Annette and her team to invite the world to visit a place they proudly call home.
Annette has led through times of calm and crisis, always focused on positioning this Pure Michigan destination as a great place to live, work, worship, and play. During calm times, Annette serves her team, ensuring they have the tools to flourish. During times of crisis, Annette leads the team, relying on their support. Annette understands that the travel sector plays a key role in economic development as a community shared value and that data-driven, creative
cathedral thinking must be deployed throughout the organizations.
In addition to her primary role, Annette leads the Great Lakes Bay Quality of Life Council, where she pioneers and manages the new Go Great Foundation and its progressive vision for tourism, economics, and experience development.
Annette has served the Michigan travel and tourism industry for over 40 years. Before her roles with the Great Lakes Bay Region, Annette was the CEO of the Saginaw County Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Frankenmuth Chamber of Commerce and Convention & Visitors Bureau – Michigan’s #1 community destination. She was the originator, organizer, and operator of the World Expo of Beer, Frankenmuth Oktoberfest, and Frankenmuth Big Block Party, attracting more than 250,000 participants. She participated as a founder of Zehnder’s Snowfest and helped organize the Frankenmuth Bavarian Festival, attracting more than 200,000 participants.
Annette advocates for tourism at the local, state, and federal levels. She participates annually in Destination Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., and has served on the Destinations International (DI) Board of Directors and the DI Foundation Board. She was Chairman of the DI Foundation's Advocacy Committee for several years. She consistently produces and shares advocacy materials and concepts, inspiring other DMMOs to enact powerful, measurable change for the tourism industry.
Annette is a graduate of Delta College, Northwood University, Rochester Institute of Technology (Master of Science), and Michigan State University (Ph.D. in Park, Recreation, and Tourism Resource Studies). Annette’s dissertation, Travel by People With Disabilities: A Diffusion Study Focused on Opinion Leadership, provided her with great insight into the disabled traveler and the opportunities associated with services geared toward these individuals. Recently, Annette was an international adjunct professor for Rochester Institute of Technology and completed the 3rd DestinationsNext Assessment for the destination.