Esra is a tourism evangelist and believes in the importance of strategic data insights & intelligence. With a background in organizational development, her philosophy yields in humanizing data and unleashing the power of people through strategic data-led collaboration and culture.

Before starting her own consulting business, Esra was the Chief Data Advisor at Zartico, where she grew the company from two to over 110 clients. She still works with them as an executive consultant. Before Zartico, she served as the Director of Research at Virginia Tourism Corporation (VTC), Virginia’s official tourism and film marketing and partnership agency. In addition, she taught at Virginia Tech and Virginia Commonwealth University. She holds an M.S. degree in Organizational Development from Radford University and completed her Ph.D. coursework in Hospitality and Tourism Management at Virginia Tech. She has published refereed articles in hospitality and tourism management journals and worked with destinations around the world. Currently, she serves on the International Board of Travel and Tourism Research Association.

A native of Turkey, Esra loves to travel and aspires to make her wine one day. She resides in Atlanta, GA, with her husband and maltipoos, Gigi & Margaux.