U.S. Travel Strengthens Team with Trio of Hires

The U.S. Travel Association has added three key personnel to its Washington, D.C.-based team.

Jeff Ajluni, formerly the chief commercial officer of the Trust for the National Mall, joins the association on February 4 as its senior vice president of strategic partnerships and business development, a newly created position. Treon Glenn, previously a legislative assistant in Sen. Bill Nelson’s (D-FL) D.C. office, starts today as senior director of government relations. Tim Alford, formerly the communications director for U.S. Rep. Steve Stivers (R-OH), arrived on January 15 as manager of media relations.

“Our organization is fortunate to attract top talent in a very tight Beltway labor market—a testament to the fine industry we serve,” said U.S. Travel President and CEO Roger Dow. “Our membership has been clear in its wishes for our strategic direction: one, continue to grow our capacity to perform top-notch public affairs advocacy; and two, to grow our partnerships in a way that aligns with our industry priorities. The hiring of Jeff, Treon and Tim signals that we are marching full steam towards capturing those goals.”

Ajluni will oversee new business growth for the association, with a focus on developing partnerships and alliances that strategically benefit the U.S. travel industry. He will report directly to Dow.

Ajluni spent much of his career as an executive in the professional sports, media operations and live entertainment industries. He holds the rather unique distinction of having worked for the National Hockey League, Major League Baseball, the National Football League, the English Premier League and the National Basketball Association. Ajluni is a native of Bloomfield Hills, MI and a graduate of Northwood University in Midland, MI.

Glenn was a legislative assistant for Sen. Nelson for three years. He has also done stints as a policy advisor for the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging and, prior to his legislative work, working for the Associated Press. He has a master’s of public administration from Norwich University in Vermont, and a bachelor’s in legal studies from the University of Wisconsin. In the senior director role, he will report to Senior Vice President for Government Relations Tori Barnes.

Alford served since 2017 as the communications director for Rep. Stivers, who was then the chairman of the National Republican Campaign Committee until stepping down following the last electoral cycle. Accordingly, Alford brings with him a significant rolodex of Beltway media contacts that will enable U.S. Travel to continue telling the powerful economic story of travel. Alford graduated from Ohio Wesleyan in May 2014 after interning for both Stivers and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI). Alford will report to Chris Kennedy, senior director of strategic communications.