Deborah Johnson
Deborah is owner and director of the tourism and hospitality education consultancy, The Tourism Collaboration Network (TTCN). Deborah is a shareholder of the Private Hotel School, Stellenbosch and Vice Dean of Innovation and Strategic Planning. Deborah was also the Vice Dean of Innovation and Strategic Partnerships, Al Faisal University, Prince Sultan College for Tourism and Business (PSCJ), Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. As part of her portfolio with PSCJ she travelled to United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt, France, United Kingdom, Greece, Cyprus, Turkey and Switzerland to establish collaboration with educational institutions. Deborah holds a Masters Degree in Post School Education and Doctorate in Tourism and Hospitality Management with a specialisation in sport tourism event management. She worked for South African Tourism, 1987 – 1996, involved with marketing, business development, tourist guiding, tourism development and event organising.
She is also an accredited trainer in Responsible Tourism Development and Planning. Deborah has been involved with the tourism and event industry for the last 25 years. She has also worked for Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT), 1996 – 2008, and was the Head of Department for Tourism and Event Management. She developed and co-ordinated the tourism and event offerings of CPUT. Deborah assisted in developing event management standards for South Africa in association with the global event organisation, Event Management Body of Knowledge (EMBOK), based in the United States of America. She was chairperson of the convenor council for Higher Education Establishments for tourism in South Africa 1996 – 2006. She further served on numerous tourism industry associations and councils. Deborah has co-authored books on event management and tourism business development.
