Front Office Manager
Description
Key Responsibilities
Guest Experience & Hosting Leadership
- Lead the Front Office experience, creating a welcoming, confident and personalized environment from arrival to departure.
- Ensure the team recognizes returning guests, understands their preferences, and anticipates their needs without relying solely on scripted interactions.
- Champion the three-step hosting philosophy: Recognize the guest, Read their mood and preferences, and Route them towards the most relevant experience.
- Maintain a visible presence in the lobby and guest-facing areas, actively engaging with guests and supporting the team through real-time coaching.
- Create an environment where guests feel recognized rather than processed, ensuring interactions are natural, genuine and appropriately personalized.
- Oversee guest arrival, welcome amenities, luggage coordination, room orientation and departure arrangements.
Front Office & Daily Operational Management
- Oversee the daily operation of the welcome and hosting team, ensuring operational readiness across all shifts.
- Manage staffing levels, duty rosters, scheduling and deployment according to occupancy, arrival patterns, departure forecasts and anticipated business levels.
- Ensure smooth check-in and check-out processes while minimizing queues, waiting times and unnecessary administrative procedures.
- Monitor room readiness and coordinate closely with Housekeeping & other relevant departments to ensure timely room allocation and effective communication of room status.
- Ensure accurate guest registration, billing, cashiering, room allocation and adherence to hotel operating procedures.
- Maintain effective shift handovers, daily briefings, operational checklists and communication logs.
- Ensure the team is prepared to manage peak arrival periods, VIP movements, group arrivals and unexpected operational demands.
- Maintain effective coordination with Reservations / Stay Design to ensure pre-arrival preferences and the Guest Portrait are translated into actual guest experiences.
Team Leadership, Development & Service Culture
- Lead, develop and inspire a team of confident, engaging and service-oriented Hosts who embody the Pullman personality.
- Recruit and develop individuals with strong emotional intelligence, positive energy, communication skills, adaptability and a natural ability to connect with people.
- Conduct daily briefings, operational rehearsals, service coaching and performance reviews.
- Develop team members' confidence in reading guest behavior, anticipating needs and creating memorable interactions.
- Establish clear performance expectations, accountability and consistent service standards across all shifts.
- Foster a collaborative culture where the team works beyond traditional departmental boundaries to deliver one continuous guest experience.
Quality Assurance & Continuous Improvement
- Ensure consistent compliance with Pullman brand standards, operational procedures, guest safety requirements and service expectations.
- Conduct regular operational inspections and service observations across the lobby, reception, concierge and arrival areas.
- Review operational performance, guest feedback and service recovery trends to identify opportunities for improvement.
- Drive initiatives to improve arrival efficiency, reduce waiting times, strengthen communication and enhance the overall hosting experience.
- Maintain the physical presentation, atmosphere and operational readiness of all front-of-house areas in coordination with the House Curator.
- Support the implementation of new systems, digital guest solutions and operational enhancements that simplify the guest journey.
- Previous experience as a Front Office Manager or in a comparable Front Office leadership role
- A proven track record of leading teams and delivering consistently high standards of service in a luxury hotel environment.
- Hands-on experience with Opera Cloud is required
- Strong expertise in VIP handling, guest recognition, complaint resolution and service recovery.
- Sound understanding of Front Office performance indicators, staffing productivity, cost control and upselling.
- Excellent leadership, communication and organizational skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively across departments.
- A calm, solution-oriented approach and the ability to make sound decisions in a fast-paced operation.