Biography

Brian King is Professor and Head of the Department of Hospitality, Hotel Management and Tourism at Texas A&M University. Prior to moving to the USA, he was Professor and Associate Dean in the School of Hotel & Tourism at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (2012–2021). With MA (Hons) & MSc degrees from Scotland, he proceeded to complete a PhD at Monash University in Australia. He was Professor of Tourism at Victoria University (Melbourne) from 1998–2012 where he also occupied various university leadership positions, including as department head and Pro Vice-Chancellor.

His expertise is in hospitality leadership and cultural aspects of tourism and has undertaken extensive research on marketing to emerging Asian markets. He has published several books, including on tourism marketing and development, VFR travel, hospitality leadership, resorts and Asia-Pacific tourism. He is Founding Editor-in-Chief of Tourism, Culture & Communication and has held visiting professorships in Italy, Fiji and the UK. He has consulted for international tourism agencies on human resource development and marketing. His industry experience includes manager and/or director roles in airlines, resorts, tour operations, destination management and cruise operations. He is chair of assessment at the International Centre of Excellence for Tourism and Hospitality Education (THE-ICE) and a Fellow of the International Academy for the Study of Tourism (IAST) and of the International Association of China Tourism Studies (IACTS).