Assistant Experience Manager

Our vision and our company etiquette
Our vision is to be the world’s most thoughtful villa company. To achieve our vision, we are thoughtful, we work with integrity, and we take a principled, considerate, proactive and passionate approach to what we do.
Every day.
Job Title: Assistant Experience Team Manager
Job Location: Athens
Job Purpose: Utilizing your product knowledge and management skills, you will lead a small team of Experience Specialists and ensure they are delivering our award-winning pre-departure service to clients who have booked a stay in a Thinking Traveller villa. The Experience Specialist team is responsible for organising and curating services and activities for our clients’ holidays and leave them with unforgettable memories. The Assistant Experience Team Manager is integral in monitoring these procedures and upholding the company’s values throughout the clients’ entire journey with us.
Reports to: Experience Team Manager
Working Partnerships: other Assistant Experience Managers, Villa Specialist Team, Think Experience Product Team, Client Relations team, Local Concierges, IT and Development.

JOB ACCOUNTABILITIES:

STANDARDS & PROCESSES
• Ensure your direct reports consistently adhere to, and uphold, the TTT values: delivering exemplary service and making sure that our clients’ needs and expectations are met and / or exceeded.

• Ensure that all communications by the Experience Specialists, both internal and external, adhere to our code of conduct and our “Always Thoughtful” brand ethos and are professional and appropriate. This includes (but is not limited to):
o Updating email templates where necessary;
o Spot-checking communications with clients and suppliers, coaching accordingly;
o Reviewing and critiquing phone calls and any other communication channels;
o Reviewing itineraries created for clients are meeting company standards;

• Highlight any client and/or performance issues as they arise with the Experiences Team Manager.

TRAINING & PRODUCT KNOWLEDGE
• Manage direct reports and act as primary support regarding sales, client and pastural matters. Carry out regular catch ups with direct reports to discuss performance and progress as well as any other line manager duties.

• Ensure your direct reports fully understand our systems and procedures: carry out regular training and refresher sessions, provide on-the-job feedback and coaching, liaise with Experience Team Manager and your AEM colleagues to update our Process Bible as our ways of working evolve.

• Liaise with the Local Team(s) in the destination(s) you cover in order to organise regular product and destination training for the ES team, in and out of season.

• Support the Experience Team Manager with the organisation of seasonal training trips: select experience suppliers and villas to visit, organise schedule of visits, etc.

• In collaboration with the relevant departments (especially, Villa Specialist team, Local Concierges and Think Experience product team), ensure that all the databases and information repositories for your destinations are up to date, (villa services, experience pricing, connections, etc.) so your team can gain and maintain an in-depth knowledge on the regions they look after and offer accurate information to our clients.

• Lead process improvement projects to anchor our team knowledge in our systems (e.g. CRM, database, Think Experience product database).


QUALITY CONTROL
• Oversee client outreach schedules for your team: review every villa booking and handover notes from Villa Specialists as soon as a villa booking is confirmed. Agree with direct reports on appropriate timeframes and planning for client approaches.

• Oversee every booking handled by your direct reports: guide Experience Specialists in charge on steps to follow, ensure all aspects of the clients’ requests have been understood and addressed, up until their departure.

• Motivate and inspire your team with ideas of innovative / alternative experiences and services they could propose to match their client’s profile.

• Sign-off bookings: validate itineraries before they are sent to clients and close every direct reports’ booking, taking accountability for a smooth handover to the Local Team.

• Be the point of escalation for your direct reports in case of difficult situations developing with clients.

SALES PERFORMANCE
• In liaison with Experience Team Manager, ensure appropriate delegation through allocating villas among the team.

• Consistently track your team’s sales performance and ensure we are on track to deliver our 2023 company objective of 2.5% of villa sales: review monthly sales by ES / client / villa / destination, confirm commission owed to direct reports.

• Identify sales opportunities: in close collaboration with Experience Team Manager and Think Experience product team, review data and identify opportunities for your team to sell certain services over others

• Collaborate with Think Experience product team to ensure we onboard the right type of experiences and services to deliver our sales ambition.

GENERAL MANAGEMENT
• Leading by example, you will mentor, coach, and support your team to enable them to flourish and explore their full potential: organise onboarding schedule for new team members, provide regular, honest and constructive feedback on performance against KJDs.

• Oversee and monitor your direct reports’ workload: you will support your team with work prioritisation, follow-ups, and communication with clients and suppliers.

• Ensure each team member harnesses and contributes to the overall harmony and collaborative spirit within the ES team as a whole.

• Cover for team members, if necessary, in case of staff holiday, illness or training trips

• During peak season, ensure the support of our Seasonal Helpers is properly allocated where it is needed the most within your team.

• During low season, support the Experience Team Manager in ensuring that projects allocated to your direct reports are clearly explained and communicated, and that commitment & focus remain high up to completion point.

• In partnership with your fellow AEM, collaborate closely with the IT & Development team regarding new updates and changes.

• Partner with People & Culture team with leading the recruitment processes for new team members when required.

PERSON SPECIFICATION:
• Highly organised with the ability to multi-task effectively under pressure, especially during the “high-intensity” summer season
• Excellent mentoring and leadership skills with the ability to motivate team members to offer an extra mile service to their clients
• Sales-driven with a strong desire to grow our services and experiences in our overall annual turnover
• Excellent attention to detail with impeccable level of English
• Resilient, flexible and diplomatic in your approach when liaising with clients, third-party suppliers, villa owners and colleagues
• Strong communication skills, both written and verbal, in English as well as Greek
• Friendly and able to demonstrate a genuine, collaborative working style
• Exemplary customer service skills
• A creative and proactive mind with the ability to identify improvements and suggest new ideas
• Passion and curiosity for all things Mediterranean