Cleo Battle, president and CEO of Louisville Tourism and the 2026 recipient of MPI’s Industry Leader Award, once dreamed of accolades of a different sort. Back when he was running hurdles at the University of Colorado, he had visions of Olympic glory. A leg injury dashed those dreams but sent him on his current journey: a groundbreaking career in the hospitality industry where he broadened the scope of destination marketing to something far beyond boosting visitor numbers and hotel occupancies.

“I had to start focusing on what I would do next,” Battle says, referring to when he first realized that being a Olympic athlete was no longer in his future. “I talked to a college counselor who told me about a new major called hotel and restaurant management. So many of my friends and family thought it was crazy—this wasn’t medicine, accounting or engineering. No one had heard of that kind of degree, but it sounded good to me.”

Learning that he needed 1,300 hours of actual hotel experience to earn his degree, Battle joined a local Embassy Suites Hotel as a bellman, where his winning personality brought him such generous tips that he was reluctant to accept a promotion to the front desk. He did, of course, and then convinced a corporate executive visiting the hotel on a ski trip to admit him to the hotel company’s management training program. Before long he was working in executive positions for brands such as Embassy Suites, Holiday Inn and Sheraton, bouncing around the country from Los Angeles and Phoenix to upstate New York and Richmond, Va., over the course of 12 years.

While in Richmond he made a career shift, joining the Richmond CVB where he served as National sales manager, director of sales, and VP during the next 17 years. In 2013, Battle joined Louisville (Ky.) Tourism, serving as executive vice president and COO before taking the helm as president and CEO in 2021.

“After my years in the hotel industry, I was ready for a change,” Battle says. “The idea—and this still resonates—of not just representing a hotel, but a destination is very appealing to me. It’s about having an economic and community impact on the entire destination. It’s what I love about this job.”Keeping people engaged

While a positive experience, Battle also acknowledges that turbulent events adversely affecting tourism over the past 30 years have made destination marketing a sometimes-daunting challenge. However, he also believes that weathering adverse situations has made him a better leader and professional.

“When you go through experiences like COVID, a recession or 9/11, you learn to be resilient and flexible,” he says. “You learn to adapt and not overreact or be impatient. Our industry has a phenomenal backbone, and we always find a way to survive. When I ran hurdles in college my coach would tell me that the hurdles were like life challenges and that you have to learn to get over them. This always stuck with me.”

Another valuable lesson learned has been collaboration with those of varying viewpoints, a not-always-easy task in an era of deep political divisions. It means walking a fine line and keeping focused on the big picture of supporting tourism.

“Collaboration is so important in this job—until you have to deal with actual politicians you can’t imagine the amount of collaboration that has to go on,” Battle says. “All the while you need to keep the tourism sphere as unbiased and neutral as you can. I work with both sides of the aisle to communicate the economic impact of our industry, to urge them to think about the legislation they’re passing and what impact it has on tourism.”

With Louisville having experienced three consecutive years of tourism growth, Battle feels he has an effective platform on which to make his case for legislation that benefits the industry.

“All you can do is put it out there, as legislators are going to do what they feel they need to do to get elected,” he said. “We’ve lost some and won some.  I do my best to stay in my lane of tourism and focus on keeping our community engaged and achieving our destination goals for tourism.  

A better visitor experience

Battle also notes that the evolving role of the DMO goes beyond promoting tourism.

“Putting heads in beds is still important, but tourism agencies are now looked at as development partners in the community,” he says. “How are we advocating for better transportation, lighting, and aesthetics in the city? The expectation of the job has widened from what it once was.”

To stay competitive in today’s marketplace, DMOs also need to promote authentic experiences versus promoting something for everyone, setting destinations apart from others, according to Battle. In Louisville, that has meant promoting the local bourbon industry as a visitor attraction, a concept that at first raised eyebrows among local stakeholders but has since proven to be a major success.

“When I moved here in 2013 there were no bourbon visitor experiences downtown, now there are over 25 in the downtown area.” Battle says. “We compare ourselves to Napa and Sonoma, but for bourbon. You can walk to the different bourbon distilleries and tasting rooms.  It’s a phenomenal experience for visitors, including meeting and convention groups.”

Another innovation has been to improve visitor engagement, through a new welcome center at the airport and a new mobile visitor center used locally and regionally.  Battle says

“The idea is to introduce arriving passengers at the airport to our brand and use the mobile visitor center to engage our local community to tourism and regionally to build visitation opportunities. ” Battle says.

Building a skilled workforce

One of the relatively few Black executives to head a DMO, Battle has long been concerned with encouraging wider ethnic diversity in the tourism industry, whether it’s in staffing, visitation or the variety of vendors and businesses sharing in the economic benefits.  His work in these efforts continues to grow, including quarterly diversity, equity, and inclusion training for the local Louisville tourism community; subjects range from human trafficking to visitors with disabilities. 

The creation of the Black Tourism Advisory Council works to engage local Black-owned businesses into the tourism industry, and to assist in increasing Black visitation to the city.

“Cultural diversity is not so much a social goal as it is a business necessity,” he says. “When I think about our industry in Louisville, where we have significant growth in hotel and distillery development, I want to make sure we have a depth of employees to support this. And, of course, we want to attract a larger pool of visitors to the city.”

Especially close to Battle’s heart is encouraging young people of all backgrounds to choose careers in the tourism industry, something he feels is critical in ensuring there are sufficient numbers of qualified employees to staff local hotels, convention facilities and attractions. To this end Battle has been active in helping develop the first-ever hospitality degree program at the University of Louisville, which launched in late 2024.

“It took seven years of explaining to three different university presidents about the importance of tourism in Louisville and why the university should support this,” he says.  The university’s initial first-year goals for the program were 30 students, we achieved 70.   We also have two local high schools with a hospitality tourism track that feeds into the university level, and the industry supports the programs through employment and internships throughout the city, including at Churchill Downs and the convention center.

Raising your hand and giving back

Battle’s career has also been marked by industry involvement, including serving as chair of MPI’s International Board of Directors and being named among the association’s 50 most influential members in 2022.

“I love this industry and MPI has been my association home,” he says. “I believe we should all raise our hands and give back to an industry that has given so much to us. Leadership roles are your opportunity to leave a legacy for the industry and setting the table for the next generation of leaders.”

Among what Battle values from his experience with MPI is the chance to meet colleagues from around the world and gain a wider perspective.

“By serving on a board or committee I’m able to meet with colleagues in Mexico and other places where tourism may be executed differently,” he says. “You learn that one size does not fit all. It’s great for your personal and professional development.”

Although busy with his career, Battle values his leisure hours, especially time spent with family, including visiting his two grown sons in Utah and Virginia.  Still athletic, he enjoys Orange Theory with his partner and the ski slopes when he can. A self-described “bourbon and cigar guy,” Battle also likes relaxing with both while listening to classic jazz.

“Family is very important to me. I come from a military family—my father, brother, and sister all served,” he says. “While some family members have passed, those of us who remain are close.” 

All in all, Battle has no regrets about the unexpected direction his life took in this industry years ago. “I have been so fortunate to have met so many people across our country and internationally,” he says. “It’s been a great industry for me.  I wish I knew the college counselor who introduced this industry to me; I love what I do for a living. Great work comes from a love of what you do.”

Celebrating passionate leaders at WEC

Join us on June 2-4 in San Antonio for the President’s Dinner during MPI’s World Education Congress (WEC), where we’ll be honoring Louisville Tourism President and CEO Cleo Battle with the Industry Leader Award while also celebrating MPI’s RISE Award recipients and chapter leaders. Through a strategy of intentional event design, personalized learning and the festive hospitality of San Antonio, WEC will deliver what you need to skyrocket your event career.