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Position Description

The Reservations Manager is responsible for overseeing the daily operations, systems, and sales in the

reservations department. This includes supervision of reservations clerks or agents to ensure price quotes

for room rates are accurate and that the staff is efficient, friendly, and helpful. The Reservations Manager is

called in when a guest has a complaint about his or her reservation or how it was filled.

Reservations clerks usually are the first human contact a potential guest has with a hotel or cruise line, and

the first impression should be an excellent one. The clerk should know the availability of rooms that are

handicapped-accessible, nonsmoking, child-proof, adjoining, and have a special view or other feature,

including those that may be nearer or farther from the elevators or any construction and renovation that is

taking place. The clerk also should be familiar with all amenities in the rooms, including robes, hair dryers,

toiletries, iron and ironing board, and whatever else the booking guest may request.

The Reservations Manager may be involved with direct correspondence or conversations with individuals,

groups, and travel agents, particularly when it comes to filling special requests (e.g., a family reunion

needing rooms on the same floor). The manager trains agents in handling reservations and cancellations for

individual and group bookings, although the sales staff rather than the reservations clerks may handle

groups.

Reservations may be made over the phone, directly through the hotel, through a chain-wide toll-free

number, by travel agents, over the Internet, or by clients walking in at the last minute. All reservations clerks

must be familiar with handling all these reservation methods and making sure they are entered into a

common database. This will ensure, to some degree of certainty, that there are enough rooms available for

incoming guests. (In the days before computer systems, it was not unusual for a hotel to have many more

reservations than rooms.) As some hotels deliberately accept more reservations than they have rooms to

compensate for cancellations or no-shows, the Reservations Manager, in conjunction with other hotel

personnel, will determine what percentage of overbooking should be accepted. Where desired, the clerks

may be trained to upsell or upgrade a reservation, suggesting a suite or concierge/club-level room instead of

a basic room.

The Reservations Manager provides a list of registered guests to the front desk personnel and assures that

a folio (listing of the hotel room charges) has been created for each guest room. Daily and monthly reports

are generated showing reservations and cancellations for the previous and current period. The Reservations
Manager may work with other hotel personnel to lower the reservation-to-cancellation ratio. Working in

conjunction with the sales and marketing departments, Reservations Managers try to accurately predict

future occupancy by coordinating advertising and promotional specials. With the increased popularity of

Internet booking, a Reservations Manager should be familiar with on-line capabilities, dealing with Internet

technology personnel, and on-line reservation software.

As many large hotels, resorts, and cruise ships may have 2000 or more rooms or cabins, many of them

catering to groups and conferences, the Reservations Manager may see up to 80 percent of the rooms and

all of a ship’s cabins booked for the same time, with room inventory rates changing during a short few hours.

For example, guests in 1,500 or more of the 2,000 rooms may check in on the opening day of a conference

and check out on the closing day. Although some travel may be required to industry conferences, the

Reservations Manager usually does not travel extensively. There are opportunities, however, to transfer to

other hotels within a chain or to larger properties with more job responsibilities in other geographic

areas.

DEPARTMENT: Reservations & Revenue

GRADE/LEVEL: Assistant Manager

REPORTS TO: Reservations Manager

SCOPE : The incumbent in this position is responsible for following up to materialize the budgeted revenues

of all segments. The position focuses on hotel's national and international accounts in terms of individual

bookings.

DUTIES / RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Assist the reservations manager to motivate the team skillful at up-selling and/or conversion as required by

the business demand.


Participates in staff recruitment, organizes on-the-job and monthly training for all staff, performance in order

to ensure clients’ satisfaction and adherence to Kempinski service standards.

• Maintains good working relations with other departments, particularly Front Office and keeps close contact

with regular guests, ensuring their needs are identified, and relayed to concerned departments for service

delivery.

• Assist the reservations manager to control rates for group business, low yield rooms allocations,

complimentary rooms and upgrading, group space blockage and timely wash, especially during the peak

season and/or high demand days when expected occupancy is above 85%.

• Assist the reservations manager to ensure all sellable contracted rates are loaded in the GDS and

Opera system for ease of reservations by companies worldwide.

• Checks regularly and disseminates information on market situation including; weekly check and report on

booking trend in the market through exchanges with competitors, test calls and reports on seasonal rates

book-able at competitor hotels, etc.

• Assist the reservations manager to supervise the Reservations Agents in their daily duties,

including pick-ups, travel agents commissions, staff responses

to clients, etc.

• Tracks and prepares the necessary reports required for monthly submission to Administration Office.

• To follow up on lost business and bring information about them to the knowledge of the department

superiors.

• To keep close follow up on developments of the competitor hotels (occupancy, structural alterations,

renovation, special campaigns, rate promotions, marketing efforts, theme events etc.).

• To update customers with the latest development of the hotel by means of Web-site and some other

available distribution channels.

• To keep reservations staff informed on all changes or developments within the hotel and the company.

• To spot-check reservations made the previous day and check all VIP arrivals.

• Training, developing, and motivating staff to increase productivity.

• To keep department informed of all changes in the customer profile.

• To monitor group bookings and work closely with group department in order to achieve budgeted figures.

• Maximize employee productivity and morale within the department and consistently maintain discipline

within hotel guidelines and local

regulations.

• Have a full working knowledge and ability to supervise, train, correct and demonstrate all duties and tasks,

in assigned place of work, accordingly to the standards as set.


• Train employees ensuring that they have the necessary skills to perform their duties with the maximum

levels of productivity and efficiency.

• To understand and strictly adhere to the Rules & Regulations established in regards to the hotel policy on

Fire, Hygiene, and Health & Safety.

• To have complete understanding of the Hotel’s Employee Handbook and adhere to the regulations

contained within.

• Performs any other duties as assigned to him/her by management.

Skills

EXPERIENCE: One (1) to Three (3) years supervisory or same position experience required. Reservation

experience required.

COMPETENCIES: TECHNICAL COMPETENCIES

INDIVIDUAL CHARACTERISTICS:

• Creativity, Stress Management, Self Development, Listening and oral Skills

• Ability to handle multiple tasks

• Ability to delegate and organize work flow

• Ability to meet deadlines consistently

• Leadership skills

• Supervising, training and instructing skills

OTHER SKILLS: (LANGUAGE, COMPUTERS, ..)

• Fluent English, Arabic + other foreign languages,

• Opera System

• Intermediate to Advanced Microsoft Office skills

Education

College degree preferred or equivalent experience

Company Profile
Our vision at Kempinski Hotels:

It's all about people!

One Strategy, One Team, One Culture…

Our culture is driven by integrity and cultural diversity, where open communication is encouraged and where

we treat each other with respect.

Our people are professional, team-oriented and passionate about striving for excellence and creativity in all

that we do!

Our management philosophy is to promote performance and an entrepreneurial spirit, and we are focused

on developing talent and empowering our people.

Our strength lies in respecting each other, each other's cultures and sharing experiences worldwide.

Our company is the sum of all our people in all regions. This is why we all share responsibility for and are

committed to creating a working environment that is challenging, satisfying and fun, so that we can retain

and motivate excellent people - during long term careers with Kempinski.

The Kempinski Hotel Ishtar Dead Sea offers three luxurious enclaves set amidst gardens dotted with

lagoons, waterfalls and private pools, where ancient olive trees mingle with bamboo palms, providing guests

with absolute privacy in a serene and exclusive setting.

Designed in affectionate tribute to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Kempinski Hotel Ishtar Dead Sea is

built with local stone boasting 345 rooms and suites within a stylish Arabesque monument building that

weaves clean and simple lines into an Arabian theme.

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