Job description

Miki Travel are looking for individuals who are passionate about the travel industry and motivated to join a growing organisation that has an established record of over 50 years.

Our office in the City of London offers a multicultural environment and employs people with a diverse range of experience.

We bring incoming tourists from Japan to Europe, more recently expanding into incoming tours from South East Asia to Europe, and the provision of wholesale hotel accommodation and related online products.

HEAD OF CONNECTIVITY

This is a great opportunity to join one of the largest tour operators worldwide. The company is growing quickly on the ecommerce side with multiple new projects.

Job Purpose

This is an exciting role  for an experienced and ambitious Head of Connectivity  within our eBusiness Division, to set and lead the strategy, vision, priorities, relationships and tactics for the expanding Dynamic Inventory supplier & connectivity product portfolio at Miki Travel.

This position requires an accomplished business strategist and strong negotiator with proven track record, who can deliver high value results ensuring the global commercial performance and profit & loss success of all Dynamic Inventory and supporting products within the portfolio. 

Considerable experience in commercially managing products as well as a technical understanding of the product, particularly in a global online/ecommerce/eBusiness environment and  extensive knowledge of connectivity, such as hotel GDS systems.

Main Responsibilities

On a day to day basis you will be responsible for the following:-

• Develop and optimise the product offering of hotel content by working with internal departments to develop new product ideas, prioritise and build a hotel content roadmap
• Own the full product lifecycle for new and existing dynamic inventory products (incorporating concept, roadmap, requirements, delivery, optimisation, merchandising etc.)
• Conduct comparative analysis against competitors and provide strategic planning of product direction and features
• Compile reports on revenue and profitability
• Build the business case as well as post business case reviews.
• Innovate – Identify/develop and implement improvements to key parameters such as response time, search performance, conversion rates, new product ideas
• Predict/be responsive to market conditions to ensure targets are on track and ultimately successful
• Ensuring product quality is maintained throughout the customer journey.
• Coordinating troubleshooting activities between  multiple teams 
• Work with the business analysts to create relevant user stories and the prioritisation thereof
• Establish excellent relationships with the hotel connectivity suppliers, chains, 3^rd parties, hotels, channel managers and consolidators globally, delivering the product strategy through understanding and executing plans to develop product differentiation and competitive advantage through commercial agreements and contracts.
• Manage a growing team

Skills and Experience

Relevant Skills/Characteristics

• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to contribute and potentially lead trading meetings working alongside the Sales, Tech & Purchasing, creating marketing campaigns to deliver higher end to end contributions.
• Demonstrated success defining and launching products.
• Experience within the hotel distribution industry and in particular GDS, IDS,CRS, Channel Managers would be seen as a key asset in this role.
• Experience in international environments including management of global teams.
• Proven track record of analysing market requirements and defining product requirements.
• A desire for achieving excellence in customer satisfaction, process and product quality and reliability.
• Proven Leadership / Project Management skills, highly motivational/coaching approach.
• Experience working within an agile, fast-paced environment.
• Highly confident decision making leader, with exceptional Dynamic Hotel product knowledge, supplier negotiation and product development experience across worldwide destinations.
• Understanding of the workings of Channel Managers
• Strong leadership skills that inspire team confidence and respect whilst motivating team members in a creative and effective manner.
• Extremely detail oriented with respect to documentation and communication.
• Strong commercial acumen.

 Experience/Knowledge

• A high level technical understanding specifically with regards to how connectivity works (XML)
• Strong Network of industry connections would be an asset.
• Hotel Distribution experience
• Ecommerce/eBusiness background
• Availability for Business travel.

With 50 years' experience in the wholesale travel industry, Miki Travel offers an exciting international working environment and you will be based in our contemporary offices in central London near to Mansion House, Cannon Street and Bank Underground stations. You will receive an attractive package with complimentary on site fitness centre and swimming pool as well as flexi-time working hours (based on 7,5 hours from Monday to Friday).

Date Posted

15 February 2019

Click here to view the Data protection privacy notice (recruitment).