Hotel Operations Manager, Thomson Cruises

The Hotel Operations Manager role exists to ensure agreed standards for Hotel Operations, Entertainment and Passenger Services across the Thomson and Island Cruises fleet are achieved and maintained, while managing the day to day general operations. Working with ship Hotel Managers, senior officers, suppliers and key head office personnel the job includes ensuring the delivery of KPIs in customer satisfaction and revenue, line management of onboard Hotel Managers, and monitoring and development of hotel operational standards to ensure the integrity of the Thomson Cruises brand.
Ensuring that front line personnel are committed to customer service and resolving issues on the spot, the Hotel Operations Manager is the first point of contact when head office support is required by the Hotel Manager at the time of an issue or the After-Travel team post cruise.

What you will be doing

Responsible for the management and delivery of hotel operations, the Hotel Operations Manager will need to have effective working relationships with a diverse range of internal and external colleagues to make sure that the Fleet is operating effectively, efficiently and offering great holidays to our customers. The Hotel Operations Manager will concentrate on working with the onboard Hotel Managers and key external supplier partners to deliver exceptional cruise holidays for our customers.
The job holder will be the first point of contact and line manager for the team of onboard Hotel Managers and will have a keen focus on delivering high hotel operational standards, based on sound experience and excellent judgment. The Hotel Operations Manager will work with hotel suppliers and the Thomson appointed food safety consultant to fully implement food hygiene best practices and approve and monitor outbreak control procedures.

The role requires the development and continuation of commercial key strategic supplier relationships with hotel and entertainment partners to deliver to agreed standards and is responsible for ensuring that the Hotel Managers are meeting on-board revenue targets.
Through the line management of the onboard Hotel Managers, the job holder will ensure all documentation, records and budgets are compiled on a per cruise basis. The job holder will be accountable for overseeing the management of on-board compensation claims ensuring that payments are appropriate and in line with company policies and procedures. The Hotel Operations Manager is also responsible for assisting Legal prepare a robust defence for all claims.

Reporting to the General Manager (Hotel Operations), the Hotel Operations Manager will be a key player in the Cruise Operations team. They will be expected to be at the heart of some exciting plans for the growth and revitalisation of the Thomson Cruises Fleet. Our cruise ships operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 52 weeks of the year; it therefore means that the Hotel Operations Manager should expect to be on call for periods outside of normal office hours and be flexible enough to visit each ship at least twice a year.

What we are looking for

• Educated to degree level or equivalent
• Excellent knowledge of Hotel Operations, preferably Cruise
• Knowledge of TUI UK Overseas operations would be an advantage
• A skilled communicator, comfortable and confident in building effective working relationships with diverse teams
• A reliable and self-motivating colleague, who is able to identify problems and work through solutions without needing prompting or supervision
• Excellent judgment and prioritisation skills to work efficiently through competing demands on resources
• Ability to solve problems and make quick decisions, sometimes with limited information
• Pro-active engagement with colleagues and partner organisations as appropriate to deliver change and improvements to cruise operations
• Preferably qualified in Food Hygiene (USPH or equivalent)
• Competence in MS Office based IT systems

Working within TUI group

Help make our customers smile and in return you will be rewarded with a competitive salary, pension scheme and some fantastic additional benefits including holiday, flight and foreign exchange discounts, a childcare voucher scheme and lots of additional discounts and offers*

TUI UK and Ireland is the UK’s largest tour operator with key brands including Thomson and First Choice. We employ a team of 13,300 employees and serve over 5.2 million customers each year.

TUI Group is the world’s number one integrated tourism business operating in around 180 countries worldwide with over 1,800 travel agencies across Europe, six airlines operating more than 130 aircraft, more than 300 Group-owned hotels and resorts and twelve cruise ships. Our 77,000 colleagues, all with a passion for holidays, work hard to deliver our customer promise ”Discover your smile”

How to apply

Please click on the link below, the application process consists of answering a few questions and uploading your CV.

*Based in our Luton Head Office with regular travel to ships and partner organisations.