Leadership Team

MICHAEL DIXON

President, Managing Partner

Michael is responsible for the financial affairs and strategic planning for Travelink Incorporated as well as the general administration of business travel sales, vacation travel, marketing, and operations management.  His qualifications include extensive years of diverse and comprehensive business management experience. He has worked in various roles with corporations such as Wachovia (now Wells Fargo Bank), Eaton Corporation, and Ernst and Young.

For the past 29 years, Michael has served as the President and Managing Partner of Travelink; co-founded in 1994 with William Haire and Donald Dixon.  He champions the relationships with American Express Global Business Travel (GBT Network) and Virtuoso®, the leading global network specializing in luxury and experiential travel, fully leveraging two of the most powerful travel brands in the world for Travelink clients.  

Under his leadership, Travelink has garnered many industry accolades, including the American Express Representatives Excellence Award every year for the past 20 years, and twice-named Travel Agency of the Year by American Express as well as recognition on the elite list of travel companies’ annual Travel Weekly Power List. 

Michael currently serves on the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) Board and its Executive Committee as well as the ASTA Corporate Advisory Council Executive Board.  In addition, Michael represents the company in the Commonwealth Business Travel Group.

Michael received his B.S./B.A. from Mars Hill College in North Carolina and his Masters of Business Administration (Executive Program) from Vanderbilt University in Tennessee.

 

WILLIAM HAIRE

Vice President, Managing Partner

Bill is responsible for the operations, IT, automation and telephony areas of the company. In addition to being one of Travelink's Owners and Managing Partners for the past 25 years, Bill oversees Travelink's Meetings, Association Management, and Group Division and has a twenty-eight year history in this specialty area of travel. Furthermore, he has personally accompanied large groups to six of the seven continents. The Meetings Division manages domestic and international gatherings for a variety of corporate and non-profit groups and enjoys long-term relationships with our clients. The Group Division is a leader in producing customized travel arrangements, domestically and internationally, with a variety of academic, corporate, and non-profit organizations. We have coordinated events at the Sydney Opera House, The Music Conservatory in Beijing, and in Brighton England Convention Center, just to name a few.

Bill received his A.A. from Brevard College, B.A. from Pfeiffer University, a Masters at Duke University all in North Carolina.

MIKE VIARS

Chief Commercial Officer

As CCO, Mike has ultimate responsibility for business travel services, incentive travel sales, and client management. He also serves as the primary relationship manager for American Express Global Business Travel. His division accounts for 80% of the gross sales for the entire Travelink organization. Prior to leading our BTS team, Mike spent 15 years in the Aircraft Manufacturing and Hi Temp Metals Processing Industry. He held director level positions in sales, marketing and OEM client contract management in the United States and Europe.

 

SANDY SCHADLER

Chief Marketing Officer & Executive Vice President, Vacation Travel Services

Sandy is responsible for executing all marketing and advertising for all of Travelink and its sub-brands, Employee Vacation Programs and Privileged Journeys (luxury/VIP personal travel).  In addition, she oversees all aspects of our vacation travel services division, including sales and operations. Sandy maintains a close relationship with our Virtuoso® preferred travel partners globally to ensure clients receive the very best customer experiences for their vacations while also aligning marketing and advertising channels to ensure they are delivering high caliber results. Sandy also holds an advisory board position for Travel + Leisure magazine, Marriott Luxury Brands Inner Circle, and the German National Tourism Office in the USA. 

Prior to joining Travelink, Sandy spent 16 years leading and serving the digital and social marketing needs of major automotive brands such as Audi of America, Chevrolet, The Chrysler Group, and Infiniti & Nissan of North America.

Shawn Davidson

Vice President, Client Experience & Business Travel

Shawn has been with Travelink for 22 years and in the travel industry overall for 27 with experience in business, vacation and group travel. During his tenure with Travelink, he’s taken on several roles with a key focus on our customer experience. In his role as Vice President, Client Experience & Business Travel Operations, he leads our service delivery team responsible for executive level service, group air, and online fulfillment. In addition, he leads our client management team with a key focus on new client implementations, program adoption, and client retention.

 

Leslie Ansley

Chief Financial Officer

Leslie has been with Travelink for 10 years.  During her tenure she has led our accounting team and managed all day-to-day accounting activity, including financial analysis, budgeting, and reporting.  She played a vital role in the development, launch, and co-management of the Association Management component of Travelink’s Meetings, Association Management, and Group Division.  She also served 6 years on Sabre Corporation’s Executive Advisory Board, established for the enhancement of their ERP system. Prior to joining Travelink, American Express Travel, Leslie spent 23 years in accounting and finance across several industries, including 'big five' public accounting, banking and insurance, web design and marketing services, construction, non-profit, and audit, tax, and financial consultation.


 

KATRINA NEYLON

Executive Administrator

Katrina provides the Executive Leadership team with many levels of service and works directly with the Managing Partners, Michael Dixon and William Haire. Prior to joining the Travelink team, Katrina worked in a multitude of industries: insurance, construction, medical, pet products, and legal. She has owned three businesses and has a great love of travel and a passion for the travel industry. She has lived in various parts of the world including Malta, Utah, Southern and Northern California, Manhattan, Long Island, and Nashville, Tennessee.

Katrina studied at Katharine Gibbs School and Pace University, both in Manhattan.

 

 

LINDA RAYMER

Emeritus President, Vacation Travel Division

As Emeritus President of the Vacation Division of Travelink, Linda continues to support her personal clients in her "retirement" under the luxury leisure division she developed, Privileged Journeys .  Linda formerly owned her own agency, WorldClass Travel, which was acquired by Travelink, American Express Travel in 2000.  During her time as an agency owner and in her role while at Travelink for 21 years, Linda  served on the American Express CTN Advisory board as well as the American Express Vacations Advisory Board and the Departures Luxury Council.

Linda is passionate about travel and the future of the travel industry. She's traveled to all 50 states and to more than 50 countries on all seven continents. Her work and travels have given her firsthand insights into the expectations of the luxury traveler. Her dedication to being a professional is exhibited in earning a destination and lifestyle certification as well as the Certified Travel Counselor and Certified Travel Industry Executive designations.