Doug Parker, chairman and CEO of American Airlines Group, has been selected to receive the 2016 H. Neil Mallon Award, the World Affairs Council’s most prestigious honor. Named for the Dallas executive who founded the council in 1951, the award is presented to leaders who help foster the international impact of North Texas businesses.
“When we honor Doug Parker with the Mallon Award, we are honoring a kindred spirit, someone who sees the global attraction of the Dallas-Fort Worth region and the state of Texas,” said Keith Cargill, the council’s board chairman and president and CEO of Texas Capital Bancshares Inc. “His approach to global involvement is what gives the region and the state our impressive we-can-work-with-you reputation around the world.”
Sean Donohue, CEO of Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, also praised Parker’s selection: “Under Doug’s leadership, American Airlines has solidified its place as one of the world’s most influential and successful airlines, and is one of our region’s most significant employers.”
Author and journalist Tom Wolfe will be the featured speaker at the Mallon Awards gala, which will be held September 24 at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas. Honorary chairs of the event are Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings and Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price. Dinner chairs are Cargill and David T. Seaton, chairman and CEO of Fluor Corp., and co-chairs are Donohue and Robert Crandall, former chairman and CEO of American Airlines (1985-1998).
Last year’s Mallon Award recipient was Richard Fisher, former president and CEO of the Dallas Federal Reserve. Other past honorees include President George H.W. Bush, retail icon Stanley Marcus, developers Trammell Crow and Lucy Billingsley, Ross Perot and Ross Perot Jr., and oilman Ray L. Hunt.
