Ariana Cortez Email & Phone Number

Montecito, Ca

Manage all meals and housing accommodations for students and faculty on two separate campuses. Our unique programs allow students to attend classes for a few days a month or quarter, in which case, I am responsible for managing all individual student reservations and requests between our residence hall and a local hotel. This includes coordinating with our caterer to fulfill the needs and special dietary requirements of our students and faculty for each session, and also assisting academic departments with special events and functions. We have up to 15 cohorts on campus per month, which are each here for 3-4 days, and require meals and housing for all days. Each cohort session is a separate event with different needs and requests. I also assist in the planning of commencement ceremony each year, along with coordinating campus events with our Public Programs department. I work closely with our front desk reception team to ensure that all check-ins run smoothly and guest satisfaction is achieved.

Assisted students with Federal Loan applications (Stafford Loan and Graduate Plus Loan); processed and originated loans; collected and processed Scholarship Applications annually; and provided presentations to prospective students (Pacifica Experience-Introduction Days up to 100 people in attendance a few times throughout the year), and also Entrance Counseling presentations to 10 cohorts separately-up to 30 students each.

Santa Barbara, California Area

Responsible for all incoming reservations, which included managing extranet and wholesale contracts, as well as corporate account reservations. I also processed all extranet and wholesale billing, while consolidating discrepancies regularly. To prevent additional loss in monies and increase revenue for funds not collected, I developed a monthly and annual audit for all extranet and wholesale reservations. OPERA PMS system was used during this time. Assisted General Manager with revenue strategies for the day, week, month, and year, using the STAR report to determine the competitive set of other hotels in the area. Internal reports were also used to provide a forecast of expected reservations and revenue. I would then adjust the rates daily or weekly depending on the occupancy and ADR, and relay this information to the Front Office Manager as well as the Front Desk staff. I also provided assistance in the Sales Dept for a brief time during departmental transition; apart from directly assisted the Senior Sales Manager with reserving blocks of rooms, providing available rates we could sell at for the dates and number of rooms needed, completing contracts, and assisting groups with inquiries pertaining to rates and billing. I regularly used DELPHI Sales and Catering Software to assist with these projects and to create contracts or catering requests.

Santa Barbara, California Area

Assisted guests through the check-in/check-out process. I was also cross-trained as a reservations agent. I proved to excel in the reservations department by increasing revenue through reservations and block room sales, and soon after took over full management of the reservations department.