MAICON brings together top visionaries and experts in the field of AI during a three-day conference packed with actionable sessions and networking events—all to position you as the change agent your organization (and career) needs. In this ongoing speaker series, we’re featuring these extraordinary leaders, with forward-looking predictions, actionable tips you can use today, and a preview of their MAICON 2025 sessions.
Janette Roush is the SVP of Innovation and Chief AI Officer at Brand USA, the nation’s destination marketing organization. Today, she leads the organization’s AI strategy and all innovation to promote U.S. tourism.
But Janette’s interest in emerging technology long predates the AI boom. Prior to her work in tourism promotion, she spent two decades promoting Broadway where she connected media spend to real-time sales data, adapting Broadway’s marketing playbook as smartphones transformed how audiences discovered and bought tickets.
“I saw nothing but opportunity,” she recalled.
Janette took full advantage of the technological shift and saw big success in her role. When AI began gaining traction, she saw a similar inflection point, and once again, she leaned in.
“I was drawn into AI because it gives you the superpower of not only knowing what to do, but how to do it.”
She began experimenting with AI tools in 2023 and quickly realized that no roadmap existed. So, she created one, sharing her learnings in real time through live blogs on LinkedIn. Her posts resonated, building a dedicated following and earning her recognition as a LinkedIn Top Voice.
In her current role as Chief AI Officer, she treats AI as her thought partner, leveraging tools such as Gemini, ChatGPT, and Claude, among others, to support her research and ideation.
Session Preview: Create a Movement to Wonder
In this MAICON session, discover how to move even the most AI-resistant teams from skepticism to curiosity—and ultimately, adoption. As Janette puts it: “We need to pierce the veil of indifference,” especially when teams are still bogged down by manual tasks AI can easily handle.
Her strategy? Lead with curiosity.
“You can help someone have that a-ha moment about what makes AI different,” she says. “You need to create that movement to wonder if you want people to lean in.”
In this session, Janette shares:
- Real-world examples of how she’s introduced AI in unexpected, approachable ways
- Tactics for sparking interest in teams that feel overwhelmed or uninterested
- Tips to keep experimentation lighthearted and fun without sacrificing results
You’ll walk away with practical ideas to spark curiosity, build momentum, and help your teams experience their own AI a-ha moment.
Lesson Learned: Using AI Is Not Cheating
Janette says, “It’s not cheating to use AI at work.”
Many professionals, especially women, still hesitate to use these tools at work. Harvard Business Review even reported a 25% lag in AI adoption, specifically by women. She feels this is directly related to a “good girl” mindset: the belief that using shortcuts or tech support somehow diminishes the value of your work.
It’s time to reframe that narrative.
“There are no rewards for doing things the hard, slow way,” Janette added. “It’s your obligation to determine how to spend money wisely, and that includes responsible AI adoption. It’s time to adopt or be left behind, completely.”
Looking Ahead: Model Context Protocol Disruption
Today, we rely on personal AI tools that “know” us—our preferences, history, and communication style. That familiarity has made AI feel frictionless. But the next big leap is coming.
Janette points to Model Context Protocol (MCP) as a major disruptor on the horizon. This emerging standard will allow AI models to access external tools, databases, and knowledge without the need for custom API integrations or developer support.
“It will take some time, but it will be a major unlock for the power of AI.”
Links We Like
In this episode of the Hospitality Daily Podcast, Janette shares her insights on embracing AI at work, plus how it’s driving tourism innovation.
The AI Advantage: How Destination Marketing Must Evolve [Skift]
Skift hosts a panel of marketing experts to discuss how AI is reshaping destination marketing.
2025 Explore Minnesota Tourism Conference Melvin Tennant / Janette Roush Keynote
See what you missed at the 2025 Explore Minnesota Tourism Conference. Janette took the main stage to cover what AI will mean for tourism, including case studies, pitfalls and the path forward.
Janette’s Session at MAICON
Leading with Wonder: Turning Organizational Readiness into AI Readiness
Learn how Brand USA's Chief AI Officer, Janette Roush, harnesses curiosity as a change management superpower to help attract the world's travelers, who spent $213 billion visiting the United States in 2023. Through real-world examples, discover how to harness natural human curiosity to transform organizational resistance into enthusiastic experimentation.
Whether you're trying to get buy-in from risk-averse executives or inspire change-fatigued teams, this session will show you how to tap into curiosity as your secret weapon for driving AI transformation. The future belongs to organizations that can maintain childlike wonder while executing like adults.
Keep Up with Janette (and AI)
For more from Janette, connect with her on social media and explore more of her work.
- Follow Janette on LinkedIn.
- Explore her new webinar series, Agents of Change.
Join Us at MAICON 2025
Marketing Artificial Intelligence Conference (MAICON) was created for marketing leaders and practitioners seeking to drive the next frontier of digital marketing transformation within their organizations.
We’re excited to host our 5th annual MAICON—Marketing AI Conference—at this pivotal point for our industry. Join us from October 14 to 16, 2025, in Cleveland, Ohio, and use the special code SPEAKERSERIES100 at checkout to receive $100 off your registration!
