Visit Salt Lake’s Krista Parry, Chief Development Officer,

Receives 2024 Executive Excellence Award from Utah Business Magazine 

SALT LAKE CITY (July 2024) Visit Salt Lake’s Chief Development Officer Krista Parry was recently honored with the 2024 Executive Excellence Award from Utah Business magazine. Their editorial team writes, “as team leaders, C-suite executives make the hard decisions that impact their companies’ daily operations and long-term vision. Developing the strategies behind company success in an ever-changing world is no small task, but these dedicated executives are shaping Utah’s business future with reliability and ingenuity.”

At Visit Salt Lake Krista is driving pioneering new models for growth to support a more robust visitor economy in Salt Lake, while building greater impact within the community. She’s s innovating and diversifying VSL’s memberships and partnerships and fostering strategic alliances and authentic relationships to deepen and expand VSL’s impact within the community.

“I am deeply honored to receive this award from Utah Business, and it’s a testament to the incredible team at Visit Salt Lake, whose passion and dedication drive our success,” said Parry. “We live by the mantra of Better Together, because together we are not just promoting a destination but building a community that reflects the very best of Utah.”

With more than 20 years of experience in the tourism industry, Krista has been dedicated to transforming brands’ transactional connections with their customers to transformational experiences. As one the few female senior executives in the ski resort industry, Krista made significant contributions by pioneering social campaigns and digital media platforms that reshaped Park City Resort’s brand into an active lifestyle community. As Senior Vice President of Partnerships and Media at Powdr - one of the largest ski resort and active entertainment operators in North America - Krista launched and ran a new division securing and overseeing partnerships with globally recognized brands including Subaru, Coca-Cola, Under Armour, GoPro, Red Bull and more.

“We’re lucky to have Krista on board as we pursue some moonshot goals for Visit Salt Lake’s development,” said Kaitlin Eskelson, president & CEO of Visit Salt Lake. “Her extensive experience curating hyper-specific sponsorship and strategic alliance opportunities for major companies helps us lead our entire industry with cutting-edge innovation. Plus, she’s energetic, full of ideas and an amazing get-it-done colleague.”

“Becoming an executive at 23 presented a unique set of challenges, especially as one of the few female executives in a predominantly male industry. A pivotal moment came when John Cumming, the founder of POWDR, introduced me to “Power vs Force” by David R. Hawkins.,” Parry recalled. “The book’s insights into the dynamics of power versus force reshaped my understanding of leadership. It taught me that true power flows effortlessly and is characterized by compassion and humility — unlike force, which is driven by opposition and negativity. This philosophy has guided my leadership style ever since, helping me lead with kindness, openness and genuine empowerment.”