Central Reservations Manager
4 days ago
London
Position Summary As a Rooms Reservations Manager within The Set Central Reservations Office, you will play a key role in representing The Set’s standards of excellence while overseeing the daily reservations operations at our prestigious member hotel, Hotel Café Royal. Based on-site at Hotel Café Royal, you will lead the Reservations team to ensure every enquiry and booking reflects our shared values of sophistication, warmth and personalised service. Working closely with the Director of Reservations and the Revenue Director, you will contribute to group-level commercial performance through strategic management and an unwavering commitment to guest satisfaction, while delivering operational excellence and achieving departmental goals. The Reservations Team also manages Food & Beverage reservations and you will ensure the highest level of service across all outlets. Key Responsibilities: Operational Excellence • Lead and inspire the Reservations team to deliver seamless, accurate, and engaging booking experiences., • Oversee daily operations of the reservations function, ensuring adherence to The Set’s standards and procedures., • Maintain strong cross-departmental collaboration with Front Office, Sales, Revenue, and Guest Relations to ensure smooth pre-arrival experiences., • Partner with the Director of Reservations and Revenue teams to optimise room occupancy, ADR and overall revenue performance., • Participate in weekly revenue strategy meetings and contribute insights from reservations data., • Ensure every reservation call and correspondence embodies The Set’s tone of voice, service ethos and aesthetic refinement., • Personally handle and oversee reservations for VIP guests, top-tier clients and long-stay visitors., • Proactively address and resolve pre-arrival guest requests or concerns, ensuring a seamless transition to the in-house team., • Recruit, mentor, and coach team members to deliver consistent, elevated service aligned with The Set’s brand philosophy., • Conduct regular performance evaluations, identify training needs and foster continuous professional growth., • Ensure all reservations are processed accurately using the designated Property Management System (e.g., Opera) and Central Reservation System (SynXis)., • Safeguard data integrity, guest privacy, and compliance with GDPR and brand policies., • Generate analytical and performance reports, including conversion rates and productivity for the Reservation Agents., • Organise the monthly team schedule, ensuring suitable levels of coverage across the week, and managing the departmental holiday calendar., • Train and support the team to achieve the departmental quality targets for Forbes & LQA and monthly mystery standard calls. Qualifications & Experience: • Bachelor’s degree in Hospitality Management, Business, or a related field., • Minimum 3–5 years of progressive experience in reservations or front office management within a five-star or luxury hospitality environment., • Proven success in managing high-performing teams in a customer-centric, brand-led culture., • Strong analytical understanding of yield and inventory management principles., • Proficiency in hotel systems (Opera Cloud PMS, SynXis CRS, and related reporting tools)., • Excellent written and verbal communication skills; fluency in English required, additional languages highly desirable., • Impeccable grooming, presentation, and interpersonal etiquette consistent with The Set’s standards. Core Competencies: • Luxury Service Mindset & Guest Personalisation, • Strategic & Analytical Thinking, • Leadership & Emotional Intelligence, • Commercial Acumen, • Attention to Detail, • Cultural Sensitivity & Discretion About The Set: The Set is a curated affiliation of the world’s most exceptional independent hotels, united by a shared promise of perfection: the exceptional, without exception. Our portfolio celebrates individuality while offering global scale and strength in sales, marketing, distribution, PR, and partnerships. With strict geographic exclusivity (one hotel per destination), we deliver unrivalled visibility and performance for our members across North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific.