Francesca Mendola, Vice President at Internova Travel Group, and James Parkhouse, Global CEO of Take2Eton Group, have joined the Board of Directors of the Business Travel Association.
Mendola has been at Internova Travel Group UK brands for over a decade, overseeing independent travel agency owners across corporate, luxury leisure and entertainment sectors.
She was named Rising Star at The Business Travel People Awards 2023 and was voted one of the Association of Women Travel Executive’s Top 70 Inspiring Women in 2025.
Parkhouse has over 25 years’ experience in corporate travel leadership roles and joined Take2Eton Group’s senior management team as Global CEO last year.
Before this, he spent 15 years as CEO of Agiito, now part of Clarity Business Travel, where he led multiple mergers and acquisitions, alongside making significant investment in market-leading technology, products and services.
Parkhouse was also a former BTA Board director for four years and on the Board of the Focus Travel Partnership for a short time.
Anna Watters, Vice President of Global Pricing and Revenue Management at American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT), will also be joining the Board to provide maternity cover for Rachel Tonge, Vice President SME Client Management EMEA, who will be stepping down from June this year.
With over eight years of experience in the travel industry, Watters brings extensive expertise in revenue management, commercial strategy, pricing and analytics. Prior to GBT she was with HSBC Commercial Banking holding a number of roles across Group Strategy and Business Analytics.
At Amex GBT, Watters oversees the development and implementation of customer pricing strategies across all of Amex GBT’s global customer segments, as well as the oversight and development of its Supplier Revenue strategy and data analytics.
Mervyn Williamson, Interim Chair of the BTA Board, said:
“We are delighted to welcome Francesca, James, and Anna to the Board. Their experience and expertise will undoubtedly strengthen the BTA as we continue to champion the business travel sector. I look forward to working closely with our new appointees on strategy for the BTA this year and upcoming events and opportunities.”
