Operations Specialist (Tour Success)
CurrentAs an Operations Specialist, I manage educational tours for North American students traveling to Europe, primarily focusing on Italy, Greece, and Portugal. My role involves ensuring smooth operations, enhancing customer experiences, and fostering collaboration across departments to deliver memorable tours. Key Responsibilities:• Operations Management: Strategically plan and coordinate activities, meals, and guided tours, ensuring alignment with cost and quality standards.•… Show more As an Operations Specialist, I manage educational tours for North American students traveling to Europe, primarily focusing on Italy, Greece, and Portugal. My role involves ensuring smooth operations, enhancing customer experiences, and fostering collaboration across departments to deliver memorable tours. Key Responsibilities:• Operations Management: Strategically plan and coordinate activities, meals, and guided tours, ensuring alignment with cost and quality standards.• Tour Ownership: Manage the overall tour flow, prioritize exceptional customer experiences, and monitor key quality metrics (NPS, overall experience, and stay ratings). Conduct pre-departure calls with Tour Directors to provide essential details and ensure preparedness. Address last-minute itinerary changes by consulting stakeholders and determining the best course of action.• Risk and Safety Management: Manage on-tour emergencies, and collaborate with Tour Directors, Sales, and the Safety team to resolve issues, mitigate risks, and implement service recovery when needed. Respond to customer evaluations to enhance safety and experiences.• Communication and Customer Experience: Deliver customer requests and preferences by maintaining clear communication with suppliers and Tour Directors. Support our Sales counterparts in the US and Canada with expert product knowledge about their specific customers' tours and adequately prepare our customers before traveling.• Quality and Project management: Proposing improvements to existing activities and tours to enhance the overall experience, while identifying opportunities for process improvements.• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Working with procurement, tour optimization, market development, sales, flights team, tour directors, and regional offices to align on goals and strategies. Show less