Express Catering Sales and Event Manager

Express Catering Sales and Event Manager Location Tampa, FL : We're looking for enthusiastic, fun, and energetic people who take the work seriously, but not themselves. Let's see if we're a fit. We hope so. Responsible for handling sales and detailing catering opportunities less than 30 days out. Responsible for achieving and exceeding the hotel catering sales revenue goals. Contracts and closes local catering and social catering business. Ensures that business is turned over properly to operations team in a timely fashion for quality service delivery. Achieves catering revenue goals by actively up selling each business opportunity to maximize revenue. Implements the brand's service strategy and applicable brand initiatives in all aspects of the sales process and drives customer loyalty by delivering service excellence throughout each customer experience. Here at the Epicurean Hotel, we have crafted a food lover's paradise. Our hotel is a wine lovers dream, a foodie's fantasy, and a place for connoisseurs to indulge in their appetite. We believe there is no greater homage to life than to indulge and experience all the flavors that it has to offer. If you share our passion and have the right ingredients to add to our recipe, we would love to get cooking with you! Responsible for handling sales and detailing catering opportunities less than 30 days out. Responsible for achieving and exceeding the hotel catering sales revenue goals. Contracts and closes local catering and social catering business. Ensures that business is turned over properly to operations team in a timely fashion for quality service delivery. Achieves catering revenue goals by actively up selling each business opportunity to maximize revenue. Implements the brand's service strategy and applicable brand initiatives in all aspects of the sales process and drives customer loyalty by delivering service excellence throughout each customer experience. CORE WORK ACTIVITIES Maximizing Revenue & Managing Profitability

• Identifies, qualifies and solicits new catering business to achieve personal and hotel revenue goals
• Sells and Details catering events less than 30 days out including events in the outlets.
• Understands group and catering forecasting, hotel revenue strategy, meeting room set-up types and capabilities, and sleeping room configurations and types. Knowledge in event technology (A/V) products, sales and services as well as F&B to assist client with menu planning and room set-up while working within the client budget
• Established billing for definite function and ensures deposits are collected
• Proactively solicits affiliate business associated with citywide events
• Understands the overall market - competitors' strengths and weaknesses, economic trends, supply and demand etc. and knows how to sell against them.
• Maximizes revenue by up-selling packages and creative food and beverage offerings.
• Identifies and implements process improvements and best practices.
• Gains understanding of the hotel's primary target customer and service expectations.
• Ensures successful performance by increasing revenues, controlling expenses and providing a return on investment for the owner and the business.
Managing Sales Activities
• Manages the sales efforts for the hotel related to catering business.
• Responds to incoming catering opportunities for the hotel.
• Closes the best opportunities for the hotel based on market conditions and hotel needs.
• Uses negotiating skills and creative selling abilities to close on business and negotiate contracts.
• Designs, develops, and sells creative catered events.
• Identifies and assists with selling, implementing and following-through on catering promotions.
• Promotes accountability to drive superior business results.
• Executes Sales strategies and business processes.
• Executes and supports Customer Service Standards and hotel's Brand Standards.
• Executes and supports the operational aspects of business booked (e.g., generating proposal, writing contract, customer correspondence).
• Participates in and practice daily service basics of the brand.
Managing Event Activities
• Serves as liaison between the hotel and client throughout the event process.
• Ensures each function set-up meets with client expectations through effective follow-up meetings and communications with appropriate staff members.
• Conducts on-site inspections.
• Responsible for preparing all event documentation and coordinates with Sales, property departments and clients to ensure consistent, high-level service throughout pre-event, event and post-event phases of property events.
• Generate resumes, addendums, menus, Event Orders (EOs), sleeping room blocks as necessary
• Create, review and revise rooming lists, VIP lists and process Marriott Rewarding Events Points.
Building Successful Relationships
• Works collaboratively with property Sales and Marketing colleagues as well as other hotel departments to ensure sales efforts are coordinated, complementary and not duplicative.
• Develops a close working relationship with operations to ensure execution of strategies at the hotel level.
• Works with the management team to create and implement a catering sales plan addressing revenue, customers and market.
• Works with the property's Food and Beverage team to develop menus that drive sales.
• Interacts effectively with vendors, competitors, local community, catering associations and other hotel departments (including Sales, Kitchen and Events) in order to ensure guest satisfaction.
• Ensures that the property implements a seamless turnover from sales to operations and back to sales while consistently delivering high level of service.
• Ability to assist the banquet and events team on special events when needed.
Providing Exceptional Customer Service
• Serves the customer by understanding their business, business issues and concerns, to offer better business solution both prior to, and during the program/event.
• Executes exemplary customer service to drive customer satisfaction and loyalty by assisting the customer and ensuring their satisfaction before and during their program/event.
• Serves the customer by understanding their needs and recommending the appropriate features and services that best meet their needs and exceed their expectations, while building a relationship.
• Monitors the effective resolution of guest issues that arise as a result of the sales process by creating mechanisms to channel issues to property leadership and/or other appropriate stakeholders.
• Works weekends as needed to ensure Catering Sales Site are available during peak need and to be onsite as needed for catering programs.
Additional Responsibilities
• Performs other duties, as assigned, to meet business needs.
• Flexible work week including weekends
Qualification Standards Education & Experience
• 4-year Bachelor's degree preferred
• Catering sales and or convention services experience preferred
• Familiarization of the local markets preferred
• Excellent customer service skills
• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written
• Ability to effectively present information to individuals or groups
• Proficient with Microsoft Office programs, Marriott systems, SFAweb and CI/TY
Physical Demands
• Ability to sit or stand for extended periods of time
• Ability to communicate clearly
• Corrected vision to normal range
• Ability to drive/transport self and others
• Ability to travel, domestically and internationally
• Long hours sometimes required
Mental Demands
• Make sound judgments quickly
• Work on multiple tasks, making appropriate progress towards deadlines
• Able to work independently, take direction and provide direction to others
• Manage differing personalities within the office, the hotel and the community
• Maintain the highest degree of confidentiality
• Ability to work effectively in stressful, high pressure situations
• Ability to effectively handle challenges in the workplace, including anticipating, preventing, identifying and solving problems as necessary
Benefits
• Full-time Associate Benefits
• Medical, Dental, & Vision | HSA & Flexible Spending Account Options | Basic Life & Disability Plan Options | 401K Retirement Plan | Paid Time Off | Holiday Pay | Career Training & Development Opportunities | Tuition Reimbursement | Bereavement Leave | Employee Assistant Program (EAP) | Jury Duty (May vary by state) | Employee Discounts | Employee Referral Bonus | Free meal for all full-service hotel employees
• Part-time Associate Benefits
• All above listed benefits except for Medical Insurance and Holiday Pay
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