Travel

Ed Adams

Chief Executive Officer

Industry veteran Ed Adams began his career in the travel industry in 1979. In 1983, Adams founded Professional Travel Corporation and he grew the company to the largest regional corporate travel management company in the Rocky Mountain Region, with offices nationwide.

In 1998, Adams identified a need to consolidate the corporate travel market so he used Professional Travel as a platform to create Navigant International, a public company traded on the NASDAQ. Navigant grew through approximately 60 acquisitions and had $4 billion dollars in sales when sold to Carlson Wagonlit in 2006.

Adams partnered with the private equity firm Silver Oak in 2011, to create the newly named Direct Travel entity. His partnership with the private equity firm will enable growth of the organization, developing a similar strategy as used in the past. As Chief Executive Officer, Adams has successfully made five agency acquisitions to date, again focusing on addressing the mid-market customer. Client needs come first, with a best practice approach to put together a cohesive unit with quality services and technologies.

Adams has a BA and Masters degree from the University of Colorado. He has been the recipient of many awards including being named a Top Executive by Business Travel News (2011 2014) and being listed in Travel Weekly s Top 25 Power List (2013).

His strength lies in the ability to ride through various changes in the travel industry including the removal of airline commissions, changes in technology, the expansion of online agencies, and more. Adams success lies in his belief of hiring good people and keeping your eye ahead of the curve when it comes to the needs of our clients. He works out of our Executive office in Denver.