Reservations and Leisure Sales Manager

Company Description

The Mercure London Earls Court hotel is a newly renovated property in Southwest London. The property is a large conferencing & group hotel comprising a total of 508 bedrooms, across two distinct brands within Accor, Ibis & Mercure. As the property is a combo there are 226 Ibis rooms & 282 Mercure rooms. The London Suite is the main ballroom for all types of events. The London Suite is extremely versatile and plays a pivotal role in the property’s overall performance. The London Suite is divisible into nine separate meeting rooms, which when combined can be one of the largest pillar free spaces in London for events up to 1200 guests. The F&B outlets in the property have been created by PARIS SOCIETY. The F & B space named Barnaby’s, is perfect for social events and either the Barnaby’s Kitchen or Barnaby’s Lounge Bar can be semi or completely privatised for groups, events or additional catering / meeting space for larger residential bookings/ functions.

Our promise is caring and impeccable service. We nurture real passion for service and achievement beyond limits.

Our mission is to make the impossible possible, to realise your dreams.

Job Description

POSITION OVERVIEW

The Reservations & Leisure Sales Manager is responsible for leading the Reservations Department while driving leisure sales performance to maximise hotel revenue and profitability. Reporting to the Commercial Office Manager, the role oversees the day-to-day operation of the reservations function, ensuring all enquiries, bookings and group reservations are managed efficiently and in line with hotel and Accor brand standards. The role is accountable for developing leisure business across Group Leisure, Series and Wholesale segments, building strong client relationships, identifying new business opportunities and working closely with the Commercial, Revenue and Operations teams to deliver the hotel's commercial objectives. The Reservations & Leisure Sales Manager will lead, develop and motivate the reservations team, promoting a culture of commercial awareness, service excellence and continuous improvement while ensuring effective communication across all hotel departments.

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES

Commercial Overview

Develop and implement the annual Leisure Sales Strategy alongside the Commercial Office Manager and Director of Sales & Marketing.

Conduct regular Leisure Strategy Meetings reviewing production, market trends, opportunities and competitor activity.

Drive Leisure revenue across FIT, Group Leisure, Series and Wholesale segments.

Negotiate contracted rates, allocations and commercial agreements for leisure series and tour operators.

Manage leisure account production, analysing performance and identifying opportunities for growth.

Conduct regular materialisation meetings and calls with leisure partners to review contracted business versus actual production and implement recovery plans where required.

Build and maintain strong relationships with tour operators, wholesalers, destination management companies (DMCs), coach operators and leisure travel agents.

Carry out regular client visits, account reviews and hotel presentations to existing and prospective leisure clients.

Participate in Leisure on Tour events, trade shows, networking functions, client entertainment and familiarisation trips to promote the hotel.

Host site inspections and educational visits for leisure partners and key accounts.

Develop new leisure business opportunities within domestic and international markets.

Identify opportunities to convert Ad-hoc leisure enquiries into long-term contracted business.

Monitor market trends, competitor activity and demand patterns to support group pricing and commercial decisions.

Work closely with Revenue Management to ensure leisure rates, allocations and availability are aligned with commercial strategy.

Ensure leisure business contributes positively to overall hotel profitability.

Proficient in creating slides to present upwards on key focus areas of department, wins/gains/losses and commercial reactive/proactive reservation focus, across multiple segmentation

Clear understanding of comprehensive current and future customer segmentation and base. Competency on how to negotiate/price/yield across the MICE/Group, Transient Negotiated, Corporate (Business Groups) & Transient Wholesale business mix

Understands the overall market, including competitors' strengths and weaknesses, economic trends, supply and demand etc. and knows how to sell/leverage/negotiate against them.

Team Management & Delegation

Lead the daily operations of the Reservations Department, ensuring all enquiries are handled professionally and within agreed response times.

Oversee all transient, corporate, leisure and group reservations.

Ensure reservations are processed accurately using appropriate market codes, rate codes and profiles.

Monitor reservations inboxes and workload distribution to maintain departmental service standards.

Ensure daily operational checklists are completed, including arrivals, reservation audits, traces, TBRs, correspondence and reporting.

Ensure prepaid reservations, guarantees, deposits and no-show procedures are administered correctly.

Monitor reservation accuracy within Opera and associated systems.

Ensure guest profiles remain accurate and compliant with GDPR requirements.

Maintain reservation procedures in accordance with hotel standards and Accor policies.

Ensure commission processing and Fastcom administration are completed correctly.

Recruit, coach, develop and retain a high-performing Reservations team.

Deliver structured training programmes covering:

Leisure quotations

FIT and Group pricing

Series quotations

Upselling techniques

Commercial awareness

Negotiation skills

Customer service excellence

Hotel systems

Conduct regular one-to-one meetings and performance reviews.

Ensure training plans remain current and measurable.

Foster a commercial culture where every team member actively identifies revenue opportunities.

Allow team to be cross-trained to understand Sales, Events and Revenue functions.

Set individual and departmental KPIs aligned with hotel commercial objectives.

Encourage ownership, accountability and continuous improvement across the department.

Commercial Reporting

Prepare weekly and monthly commercial reports highlighting:

Leisure production

Series performance

Materialisation

Conversion

Market trends

Revenue opportunities

Lost business analysis

Present commercial updates during revenue and commercial meetings.

Maintain accurate forecasting of leisure business.

Analyse account performance and recommend strategic actions.

Ensure compliance with all company policies and Accor brand standards.

Maintain accurate customer records and contractual documentation.

Manage departmental payroll, holidays, sickness and scheduling.

Support departmental budgeting and cost control.

Approve invoices and departmental expenditure where applicable.

Complete Duty Manager shifts as required.

Maintain Health & Safety compliance within the department.

Undertake any other reasonable duties required by the Commercial Office Manager or Director of Sales & Marketing.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

The Reservations & Leisure Sales Manager will be measured against:

Leisure revenue growth

Group Leisure & Series production

Materialisation performance

Leisure account retention and acquisition

Conversion ratio

Average Daily Rate (ADR) in the Tour Segment

Revenue per Available Room (RevPAR) contribution

Group dinner and ancillary revenue

Reservation response times

Team engagement and development

Commercial reporting accuracy

Departmental quality scores

Additional Information

PERKS FOR YOU

Employee benefit card offering discounted rates at Accor worldwide

Free and delicious meal breaks on duty

Complimentary stays in UK and North Ireland

Friends & Family discounts

50% food discounts in our restaurants

Pension Scheme

Health Insurance

Eye Test Vouchers

Staff Uniforms Provided

Learning programs through our Academies

Opportunity to develop your talent and grow within your property and across the world!

Ability to make a difference through our Corporate Social Responsibility activities, like Planet 2

Candidates must have the right to work in the UK

Note: The Company reserves the right to amend this job description from time to time to reflect the evolving needs of the business.