The Director - Global Reservations leads the Group, Leisure and Social reservations teams for our Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas. The role delivers Forbes Travel Guide level service at every guest touchpoint, from first contact through confirmation. Through policy compliance and strong oversight of our third-party contact center partner, it also drives revenue.
Service Excellence: Forbes Travel Guide Standards- Own the reservations guest experience across phone, email, chat and agentic AI Agents, from first contact through confirmation, to Forbes Travel Guide standards.
- Translate Forbes standards into call flows, scripts, knowledge base content and QA scorecards, built from a single policy source of truth for both in-house and third-party teams.
- Build recognition and personalization into every interaction, including VIP, loyalty and returning guests, to meet the expectations of the Las Vegas market.
- Set service recovery standards with clear authority limits for concessions and goodwill adjustments, and defined escalation paths for complaints.
- Lead QA monitoring, calibration sessions and standards audits, and act on the results to keep service consistent across agents, channels and vendors.
- Reduce repeat contacts and escalations by driving resolution at first contact.
- Handle internal and external guest complaints promptly, fairly and in line with policy.
Key ResponsibilitiesRevenue and Compliance- Drive hotel and casino revenue through disciplined selling, using proper selling techniques to improve conversion, group pickup and upsell.
- Meet and exceed departmental KPIs and contribute to strategies that achieve the property's financial objectives.
- Govern concessions and goodwill adjustments through defined authority limits, so that exceptions do not become revenue leakage.
- Enforce hotel and casino policies and procedures, and ensure that promotions, offers, rates and wagering-related restrictions are described accurately and consistently to guests.
- Ensure the Group Reservations Manager and group team understand planned marketing efforts, including drop dates and specific offers.
- Support the Group Reservations Techniques and ensure they are consistently applied across the office.
- Maintain audit-ready documentation of reservations, concessions and guest interactions.
Third-Party Vendor Oversight- Own the performance of, and relationship with, the Las Vegas-based third-party contact center, including SLA and KPI attainment.
- Monitor and calibrate vendor quality scores against Forbes-aligned standards, and require corrective action when results fall short.
- Ensure vendor scripts, training and knowledge base content match the same policy source of truth used by in-house teams.
- Enforce concession and escalation authority limits for vendor agents.
- Lead regular governance reviews with the vendor, including weekly QA trends and monthly performance reviews.
Team Leadership and Talent- Lead the Group, Leisure and Social reservations teams and, together with the Group Manager, recruit, train, develop and retain a high-performing, results-driven team.
- Recruit proactively, always looking for top talent within the organization and outside it.
- Drive continuous improvement of training and learning for all team members, and ensure training requirements and manuals are clear, detailed, complete and up to date.
- Prepare and deliver performance reviews, and provide employee guidance, coaching and counseling.
- Lead by positive example, creating an energized workplace with high morale and a professional demeanor.
- Use metrics, scores and measurements to track, recognize and celebrate team success.
Partnership and Communication- Deliver reservation support for Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas and other HRI/SGA locations as needed.
- Build strong working relationships with key departmental leaders across the hotel and casino to achieve revenue and service goals.
- Ensure new programs, policies and procedures are communicated to staff clearly and effectively.
- Communicate in writing and verbally with clarity and precision at all levels, simplify complex information and reports, and respond to requests for help and information in a timely way.
Administrative Responsibilities- Complete weekly department schedules, review actual department hours, and adjust staffing as needed.
- Review and update all departmental SOPs on a regular schedule.
- Approve and process applicable department invoices.
- Record and submit payroll.
- Perform other duties and projects as assigned by leadership.
Success Measures- Forbes-aligned service and QA scores, including QA pass rate
- Reservation conversion and group pickup
- First-contact resolution and repeat contact rate
- Concession and goodwill adjustment rate
- Third-party vendor SLA and KPI attainment
- Team engagement, retention and training completion
- CSAT and NPS
Leadership Competencies- A self-starter with fresh eyes and a strong appetite for information
- Innovative yet analytical, and a thoughtful communicator who stays purposeful and calm under pressure and in stressful situations
- A high degree of integrity and a genuine commitment to it
- Sound judgment in making required decisions
- A positive, solution-oriented attitude
- An ongoing drive to improve work and implement new ideas that advance the goals of the business
- Thrives in a competitive environment that celebrates individual and team success
QualificationsRequired- Bachelor's degree in hospitality, business or a related field, or equivalent experience
- 7+ years of experience in reservations, group sales or hospitality operations, including 3+ years in a leadership role, within a brand or independent resort or a similar industry
- Proven record of success in sales, KPI achievement and presentation skills
- A blend of operational and sales expertise
- Effective coaching, development and decision-making skills, and the ability to handle employee guidance, coaching and counseling
- Strong organizational and problem-solving skills
- Ability to prioritize multiple tasks, work with a sense of urgency and stay detail oriented
- Strong customer service skills, with the patience, tact and diplomacy to work with internal and external guests and collect factual information
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills
- Ability to work across departments and with others at all levels
- Ability to work in a high-volume, fast-paced environment
- Schedule flexibility, including weekends, holidays and extended coverage hours as business needs require
Preferred- Experience in luxury or Forbes-rated hospitality environments
- Experience in a gaming resort
- Experience managing a third-party or outsourced contact center vendor
Technical Proficiencies- Excellent knowledge of property management systems (Agilysys/Passkey)
- Proficiency with central reservation systems (CRS), including Delphi
- Working knowledge of automatic call distribution (ACD) and call accounting systems, online travel agency (OTA) third-party sites and system interfaces
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office
