Amanda Wrathall has been promoted to chief executive of the Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC), replacing Marshall Dallas.
With more than 30 years in the hospitality and tourism sector, including a decade as sales and marketing director at the EICC, Ms Wrathall has been instrumental in shaping the venue’s growth.
She will take up her new role on 1 August following a period of turmoil over an unfinished EICC-backed hotel project at Haymarket and disquiet over the council’s refusal to provide funding for the EICC-supported Edinburgh Convention Bureau, which was ultimately taken in-house by the local authority.
Mr Dallas resigned from his £159,000 a year post last November. His remuneration came under scrutiny when it was revealed he had been handed a £72,000 bonus in 2022-23 which, together with pension benefits, made him the highest paid public sector employee in Edinburgh with a total package of £231,000.
He was also awarded a further bonus of around £50,000 at a time when the council was facing cuts to its budget of more than £100m.
Welcoming Ms Wrathall’s appointment, Councillor Lezley Marion Cameron, chair of the EICC Board, said: “As EICC sales and marketing director, Amanda has consistently demonstrated her ability to lead, transform and inspire teams and succeed in partnership working.
“Amanda’s lead role in the EICC’s successful temporary guardianship of the Edinburgh Convention Bureau is a great example.
“Her high standing in local and national hospitality and tourism industry and government networks is another.”
Owned by the City of Edinburgh Council, the EICC has hosted more than 4,500 events since 1995, welcoming over 2.2 million delegates and bringing in an economic impact worth £930 million to the local economy.
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