Careers: Groups Reservation Manager (Destination Weddings & Leisure Groups)

careers: Groups reservations manager (Destination weddings & Leisure groups)
posted 2/7/22

Alpaca Your Bags Travel is seeking a rock star Groups Reservation Manager for our destination weddings team.  This role is a part time position, stgarting with a guaranteed 20 hours per week.  Increased hours available seasonally.  Salary range is $15-22/hr commensurate with experience. This position is fully remote with the option for travel as the job requires and schedules allow.

More than 75% of our business is Destination Wedding groups, assisting couples with groups of 40-60 guests per wedding. The Groups Reservation Manager needs to be an organizational machine as they will touch nearly 4,000 guest reservations (air, hotel, transportation and insurance) each year. This is where you come in!

We are looking for a fun, hyper detail oriented, professional, organized and entrepreneurial “right hand” to help grow this company to the next level. The ideal candidate will be an extension of me, overseeing the day to day tasks of Destination Wedding and Leisure Group management. 

Daily tasks also include representing the company when I am traveling on resort tours, conferences and working on new opportunities. I am looking for an extremely responsive, detail-oriented, upbeat and tech-savvy person with a professional background and experience in a fast-paced environment. 

job duties included but not limited to:

• Assisting with the management of large travel groups (i.e. Destination Weddings, etc.)
• Working with our resort partners to process guest reservations into room blocks
• Communicating with wedding/group guests regarding resort questions, travel guidelines, travel protection, payment options, etc.
• Processing guest payments in a timely and accurate manner
• Emailing payment reminders, collecting past-due payments and answering guest questions. 
• This may also include interacting with wedding planners and coordinators at the resort level.
• Using superb customer service skills to manage day-to-day email and phone communication with current and prospective clients
• Reconciling financial documents including guest invoices and supplier invoices
• Preparing client travel documents & mailing packages
• ​Light website updating & editing (using WordPress and AppyCouple)
• Identifying opportunities to improve business practices, finding ways to work smarter and not harder! 
• Organizing incoming communication to triage the day’s most important tasks
• This includes managing multiple calendars and streams of communication (voicemail, email, social media messages, etc.)
• Using project management software (Trello) to create and maintain both internal and client timelines

Finally, you are the ideal candidate if you have experience with:

• Excel and/or Google Sheets including formulas, VLookups, etc.
  
• Mastery of GSuite/Google Workplace tools 
• Project management systems such as Trello, Asana or Click Up
• Travel booking management systems such as Softrip, VAX, etc. 
• Travel Insurance providers such as Allianz or Travel Insured
• VacationCRM, TESS or TravelJoy (VCRM Preferred)
  Note: Candidate may not be otherwise employed or contracted to other travel agency

how to apply

Salary is commensurate with experience.

NON NEGOTIABLES: Candidates must have excellent financial management and bookkeeping skills, the ability to handle sensitive and confidential information as well as a propensity for excellent customer service. This person must be detail oriented, as details can make or break a client experience.  A love for travel and helping others is required.  Regular business hours close to 9a-5p CT are preferred; some allowance will be given for those in other U.S. based time zones. If you’re still reading this description, email the word alpaca when submitting your resume.

A criminal background check and credit check will be required, no exceptions.

To apply, please email cover letter, resume and salary requirements to Ashley Morris, Owner at ashley@alpacayourbags.com.  ​Written inquiries only; phone calls will not be accepted.  Thank you!:

more helpful information!

In addition to performing the day-to-day tasks of the job, the ideal candidate
will understand and possess these important characteristics:

• A rock star groups manager will have a servant’s heart. At Alpaca Your Bags Travel, we are honored to help our clients make lifetime memories. We are a service provider, and the right office manager must have a strong desire to help others.  The right candidate wants to serve both our clients and me as the leader of this company. Whether the task is big or small, the office manager achieves the goals by helping the leader to achieve theirs.
  

• A rock star Groups Manager will understand that small details matter. A rockstar office manager needs to be my second brain…. this person needs to learn the ebb and flow of this business early and proactively keep learning, understanding likes and dislikes for both me and our clients.  This person will understand that accuracy matters and that mistakes erode our clients’ trust in us. This person must be extremely conscientious and care deeply about accuracy.
  

• A rock star groups manager will master the calendar. Travel is a fast-paced business and clients require immediate, daily attention.  In business we live and die by the calendar. Payment deadlines, meetings, presentations, calls – the calendar is the flight plan that keeps all of these moving parts from crashing into each other.  The right candidate is a calendar ninja AND gatekeeper for things that suck away productivity.
  

• A rock star groups manager will anticipate needs and work independently. The right candidate has the keen ability to see the future, anticipating needs and acting accordingly.  This person must be confident and proactive; this is not a role for someone who needs constant direction or attention.  A rock star office manager anticipates obstacles and is already moving in the direction that we need to go.
  

• A rock star groups manager will respect confidentiality.  This role will have access to client’s personal information as it relates to passports, contact information and financial arrangements.  It is critical that this person has integrity and a sense of discretion. This position will require a background and credit check for final candidates.
  

• A rock star groups manager will have outstanding communication skills.  This role will be critical in facilitating communication in the team- especially if/when bottlenecking occurs.  This person should also understand when to push back and when to say no, as wasted time means wasted professional growth.
  

• A rock star groups manager will create and master systems.  Effective performance depends on processes and procedures.  The right candidate will document and systematize these things so there is not a constant reinventing the wheel. The right candidate is a lover of technology and tools; this person is always looking to work smarter, not harder.