In his youth, Dan Williams spent summers visiting family in Huntsville, where his uncle, Ray Greene, spent two stints as head football coach at Alabama A&M.

Soon, Alabama will be Williams’ new home. Now 52, he will become the new president and CEO of the Greater Birmingham Convention & Visitors Bureau, the organization announced Thursday.

Williams is the former chief sales officer at Experience Columbus in Ohio. He succeeds John Oros, who’s retiring after leading the organization for 10 years.

“He’s a perfect fit,” said Bill Murray, chair of the Convention & Visitors Bureau. “John’s been a great fit. He’s a proven tourism leader with decades of experience and he came at the right time. We needed him because we’d been in a bit of a foxhole. John changed all that. So he was a perfect fit and we got lots of cool stuff done — some master plans and things that really were ahead of their time.

“In this move, we could continue to do the same thing — hire somebody we knew, or somebody that was an easy hire,” Murray added. “Or we could go get one of those cutting-edge people out there nationally who was ready to make that jump to the top seat. We caught lightning in a bottle. “

Williams was hired after a three-month process led by the executive search firm Searchwide Global. It gathered nine candidates and presented the board with three finalists. After in-person interviews, Williams was the board’s unanimous choice, Murray said.

“I am extremely excited for this new endeavor and honored to lead the tourism efforts for Birmingham and Jefferson County,” Williams said. “The momentum here is tangible, and I look forward to building on the outstanding foundation and impact that John and the GBCVB team have established.”

Williams, who grew up in Akron, led the convention sales and services teams at Experience Columbus. His efforts produced record growth in meetings and conventions. He previously served as vice president of sales at Destination Cleveland.

Married for 27 years, Williams has four sons and five grandchildren. (His uncle Ray, a member of A&M’s Hall of Fame, passed away in 2022.)

“I’m very excited about the appointment of our new CEO for the Birmingham Convention & Visitors Bureau,” said board member and city councilor Hunter Williams. “His extensive expertise will be a tremendous asset to our region. Under his direction, I expect the CVB to continue to play a vital role in transforming Birmingham’s economy through tourism and visitor engagement.”

In 2023, under Oros, the Birmingham region generated $2.52 billion in economic impact and supported 51,550 jobs, according to the convention and visitors bureau. That represents a 48% increase in economic impact and a 24% increase in jobs since 2015, the CVB says.

“We are thrilled to welcome Dan,” Murray said. “His energy, strategic vision, and deep understanding of destination marketing make him the right leader at the right time. We’re confident that, under his leadership, Birmingham will continue to grow as a premier destination for meetings, events and tourism.”

Murray recalled that at one juncture during Williams’ interview, he described a potential strategy as “hotter than fish grease.”

“That’s when I knew, this guy’s got a southern heart,” he said. “The future is bright.”