Director of Sales in Edinburgh

Responsible for proactively soliciting and converting B2B business across all relevant segments for their hotel or hotels. Actively up-sells each business opportunity to maximize revenue opportunity. Achieves personal and team related revenue goals. Ensures business is turned over properly and in a timely fashion for proper service delivery. Responsible for driving customer/guest loyalty by delivering service excellence throughout each customer/guest experience. Provides service to customers in order to grow the account on behalf of the hotel and seeks actively opportunities from accounts for other properties in the company.

CANDIDATE PROFILE

Education and Experience

• 3 years’ experience in the hospitality sales and marketing field.
• Higher education degree or diploma in Business Administration, Marketing, Hotel and Tourism or related field.

CORE WORK ACTIVITIES

Understanding Market Opportunities & Driving Revenue

• Sits within General Managers Executive team primarily leading on property commercial activity and creating a sales culture as part of the leadership team.
• Targets group/catering, Sport, Entertainment Business Travel and Travel Trade accounts, markets or segments with heavy emphasis on proactive solicitation and account saturation.
• Partners with SEM counterpart to effectively manage the business opportunity.
• Leads on Business Travel Sales working with Revenue teams to collaboratively define strategy.
• Completes all RFP’s within deadlines either via Marfp, Lanyon or directly.
• Develops effective Sales Intensity Plan and actions.
• Maximizes revenue by upselling packages and creative food and beverage.
• Understands the overall market - competitors’ strengths and weaknesses, economic trends, supply and demand etc. and knows how to sell against them.
• Closes the best opportunities based on market conditions and individual property needs.
• Ensures marketing brand standards and activations are pulled through on property.

Providing Exceptional Customer Service

• Handles complex business with significant revenue potential as well as significant customer expectations.
• Builds and strengthens relationships with existing and new customers to enable future bookings including activity KPI to include sales calls, entertainment, FAM trips, trade shows, etc.
• Develops relationships within community to strengthen and expand customer base for group/catering sales opportunities.
• Supports brand’s Service and Relationship Strategy, driving customer loyalty by delivering service excellence throughout each customer experience.
• Provides excellent customer service in order to grow share of the account.
• Executes brand’s Customer Service Standards and property’s Brand Standards.
• Participates in and practices daily service basics of the brand.
• Executes exemplary customer service to drive customer satisfaction and loyalty by assisting the customer and ensuring their satisfaction before and during their program/event.
• Serves the customer by understanding their needs and recommending the appropriate features and services that best meet their needs and exceed their expectations, while building a relationship and loyalty to the property and brand.

Building Successful Relationships

• Works collaboratively with off-property sales channels (e.g. Groups and Res Offices, National Sales, Global Sales) to ensure sales efforts are coordinated, complementary and not duplicative.
• Manages and develops relationships with key internal and external stakeholders.
• Uses sales resources and administrative/support staff.

Additional Responsibilities

• Utilises MGS for resources and information.
• Conducts site inspections.
• Creates contracts as required.
• Holds accountable those who execute and support the operational aspects of business booked (e.g., generating proposal, writing contract, customer correspondence and business delivery).

MANAGEMENT COMPETENCIES

Leadership

• Adaptability - Maintains performance level under pressure or when experiencing changes or challenges in the workplace.
• Communication - Conveys information and ideas to others in a convincing and engaging manner through a variety of methods.
• Problem Solving and Decision Making - Identifies and understands issues, problems, and opportunities; obtains and compares information from different sources to draw conclusions, develop and evaluate alternatives and solutions, solve problems, and choose a course of action.
• Professional Demeanor - Exhibits behavioral styles that convey confidence and command respect from others; makes a good first impression and represents the company in alignment with its values.

Managing Execution

• Building and Contributing to Teams - Actively participates as a member of leadership team to move the Hotel toward the completion of goals.
• Driving for Results - Sets high standards of performance for self and/or others; assumes responsibility for work objectives; initiates, focuses, and monitors the efforts of self and/or others toward the accomplishment goals; proactively takes action and goes beyond what is required.
• Planning and Organising - Gathers information and resources required to set a plan of action for self and/or others; prioritizes and arranges work requirements to accomplish goals and ensure work is completed.

Building Relationships

• Coworker Relationships - Interacts with others in a way that builds openness, trust, and confidence in the pursuit of organizational goals and lasting relationships.
• Customer Relationships - Develops and sustains relationships based on an understanding of customer needs and actions consistent with the company’s service standards.
• Global Mindset - Supports employees and business partners with diverse styles, abilities, motivations, and/or cultural perspectives; utilizes differences to drive innovation, engagement and enhance business results; and ensures employees are given the opportunity to contribute to their full potential.

Generating Talent and Organizational Capability

• Organizational Capability - Evaluates and adapts the structure of own assignments and suggests improvements to work processes to best fit the needs and/or support the goals of an organizational unit.
• Talent Management - Provides support and feedback to direct and in-direct reports to help individuals develop and strengthen skills and abilities needed to accomplish work objectives.

Learning and Applying Professional Expertise

• Applied Learning - Seeks and makes the most of learning opportunities to improve performance of self and/or others.
• Business Acumen - Understands and utilizes business information to manage everyday operations.
• Technical Acumen - Understands and utilizes professional skills and knowledge in a specific functional area to conduct.
• Sales Ability: Persuasiveness - Using appropriate interpersonal styles and communication methods to gain acceptance of a product, service, or idea from prospects and clients.
• Sales Disposition - Demonstrating the traits, inclinations, and outlooks that characterize successful salespersons; exhibiting behavior styles that facilitate adaptation to the demands of the sales role.
• Sales Implementations - Driving and supporting the implementation of sales strategies and systems; seeking and taking appropriate actions on feedback; taking responsibility for implementation success.

Basic Competencies

• Basic Computer Skills - Uses basic computer hardware and software (e.g., personal computers, word processing software, Internet browsers, etc.).
• Mathematical Reasoning - Demonstrates ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly, correctly, and in a way that allows one to solve work-related issues.
• Oral Comprehension - Demonstrates ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Reading Comprehension - Demonstrates understanding of written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
• Writing - Communicates effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.