Rossi Ralenkotter
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority’s compensation committee is recommending a 4 percent raise and a 12.5 percent bonus for the organization’s president and CEO, Rossi Ralenkotter.
That would be a $10,238 increase in Ralenkotter’s annual salary to $266,182 and a one-time bonus of $31,933 based on his current salary of $255,944.
The committee’s recommendation, forwarded in a 2-1 vote, will be reviewed by the full LVCVA board of directors at its November meeting.
Board member Kristin McMillan voted against the recommendation, preferring to give the bonus but not the merit raise, saying the local economy and resort industry haven’t emerged from the recession.
McMillan, who said she would continue to support her position when the board considers executive compensation, was following Ralenkotter’s recommendation of how to reward top LVCVA executives next year.
LVCVA board chairman Tom Collins, a Clark County commissioner, and member Chuck Bowling, an MGM Resorts International executive, voted to include the merit increase to keep Ralenkotter’s salary in line with the average pay of other top destination marketing organizations.
A survey of 13 similar bureaus indicates that Ralenkotter’s total compensation is 76.7 percent of the national average, down from 94.7 percent the last time the survey was conducted in 2007. Most destination marketing organizations don’t have the added responsibility of managing a convention center like the LVCVA.
Ralenkotter, who has lived in Las Vegas most of his life and has never expressed interest in leaving, and other top LVCVA executives haven’t received raises since the recession took hold in 2007.
The committee gave Ralenkotter high marks for meeting performance goals last year, most of which centered around promoting the region to visitors through the recession. He also was cited for developing organizational priorities during the downturn, helping to lead national tourism promotion strategies and assisting McCarran International Airport to recruit airlines to add seat capacity to the destination.
Ralenkotter recommended no merit pay increases for executive and management employees, but bonuses of up to 7.5 percent for management, up to 10 percent for executives and legal counsel Luke Puschnig and 12.5 percent for the CEO. Those percentages are half the maximum bonus compensations outlined in LVCVA performance guidelines.
The committee recommended a 4 percent raise and a 10 percent performance incentive for Puschnig, which would increase his annual pay from $132,454 to $137,752 with a one-time bonus of $13,245.
Rank-and-file LVCVA employees are getting 4.5 percent raises through a union contract approved earlier this year.
The committee voted to recommend the bonuses after hearing a report that visitor volume, average daily room rates and room tax receipts have been up nearly every month for more than a year.
Ralenkotter also led an effort to contain costs during the recession by freezing hiring and executive pay and implementing a voluntary separation program and employee furloughs. The LVCVA never had to lay off an employee.
The LVCVA also tried unsuccessfully to get contract concessions from its union labor.
Ralenkotter’s nine-point revitalization plan includes increasing funding for advertising, restoring pre-recession personnel policies and restoring marketing initiatives, department appropriations and special events funding.
Once those priorities have been met, Ralenkotter has recommended setting aside funds for capital expenses and rebuilding economic reserves, capital improvement programs and funds for construction.