Audrey Hendley
Vice President, Marketing and Strategic Partnerships
American Express Consumer Travel Network, USA
Dublin-born Audrey Hendley became vice president, marketing and strategic partnerships for the Consumer Travel Network of American Express in 2001. As chief marketing officer in the world's largest travel company, Hendley has introduced and expanded innovative marketing programs, supported and driven by the travel industry's best partners.
During her tenure at American Express, Hendley has revitalized the leisure travel preferred partner program. Under her leadership, marketing programs aimed at increasing cardmember usage of consumer travel services have significantly expanded and grown.
With an eye on the technological advancements influencing the travel industry, Hendley successfully created a strong online presence for American Express consumer travel by launching the americanexpress.com/travel website, which continues to grow.
With over 18 years of marketing experience, mostly within American Express, Hendley has appeared on various national media outlets, including Fox News Channel, CNBC's High Net Worth, Good Day New York, the nationally syndicated Travel Talk Radio and the influential ModernAgent TV. She has also appeared on local television and radio programs in key regions, such as New York, Boston, northern California and Texas.
Hendley is an honors graduate of Trinity College in Dublin, where she received her bachelor's in management and her master's degree. She is also a graduate member of the Marketing Institute of Ireland. She currently lives in New York City with her husband, Noel Judge, and two children, Aoife, 5, and Aidan, 3.
While Hendley has many notable professional achievements to her name, she has accomplished personal goals that she considers the most significant.
As a full-time working mother and wife, Hendley is proud that she is "keeping all things moving along and keeping everybody happy." She is also a proud mentor to junior associates, especially women, in the organization, and helps them to find solutions to balance life and an important career.
It is important to Hendley that she maintains the confidence to be who she is regardless of the situation, and to have the courage to say no or say yes, the courage to disagree and stand for what she believes is right.
When asked what her Irish heritage means to her, Hendley, whose father hails from Co. Wicklow, and whose mother is from Co. Kildare, remarked, "Being Irish means to me that I can never take myself that seriously. Being Irish means having the ability to laugh at myself every now and again. Being Irish I know that I belong to something much bigger that myself, always knowing that I have deep history and culture and that I have so much to share.
"Being Irish I know that I have so much in common with so many around the world who have immigrated and have that sense of 'home' that can mean many places. Maybe my 5-year-old daughter Aoife puts it best: 'Ireland is your home, Mommy.' It may not be a home I go to every night, but it's a home where I always feel a sense of belonging, a place where I am myself, it's a home where values are grounded; family stands above all else; an honest day's work will lead to great success and personal fulfillment; and any obstacle can be overcome through perseverance.
"On a lighter note, of course being Irish means an appreciation for bacon and cabbage, weather discussions by the hour, red hair and freckles, appreciation of the Guinness gut and of course Gaelic games, music, dancing, language, roads, road signs, the Rose of Tralee, the N17, sheep and sheep shearing."
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