Account Manager, Emerging Sports & Group Travel

About PIVOT Agency:

PIVOT is a Bay Area sports and entertainment agency making a name for itself in a fast-paced and dynamic industry. Our mission is to create innovative business-to-business opportunities and to unite brands and properties in lasting partnerships that channel the emotional energy of sports into profitable and meaningful consumer engagement. 

Our Mission: To deliver best-in-class expertise, always prioritizing our clients’ needs to achieve optimal success.

Our Vision: To be the industry-leading sports & entertainment agency by offering a strategic array of diverse, best-in-class client services.

Summary of the Role:

The Account Manager, Emerging Sports & Group Travel, is responsible for being a driving force in the vision and strategy for PIVOT’s group division within PIVOT Travel. This person is an effective communicator with a clear focus on performing for our current clients and being a key member to help build out a vision for the future of the Pivot travel group clients, including WNBA, NASCAR, NCAA, Youth Sports, Entertainment, Corporate/Wedding/Events and any group business outside of NBA/MLB/NFL/NHL travel. Our ideal candidate has a strong understanding of travel agency sales and all-encompassing logistics as they apply to clients. This person will be responsible for all aspects of group travel, including sales, client onboarding, sourcing, contracting, overseeing the day-to-day operations, finance, and analytics.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Uncover new opportunities within the group travel space
• Provide ongoing support to the Emerging Sports & Group Travel team with day-to-day operations through client interaction, liaison between the hotel and the client, and other administrative support
• Outline event requirements with client (dates of stay, room/meeting space needs, concessions, etc.)
• Understand the client’s needs, budget, and requirements for each opportunity
• Strategically source hotels for each opportunity and generate hotel bid reports using CVENT
• Negotiate proposals with hotels to achieve the best rate and most conducive concessions based on client preferences
• Contract request/redlines within an efficient time frame
• Finalize and execute contract agreement with client and hotel
• Utilize Salesforce to build a pipeline, manage opportunities, and track data
• Provide support to clients for additional services needed (air, ground transportation, black-car service, long-term/short-term rental)
• Building and maintaining strong partner relationships with all properties, NSO’s and clients
• Manage last-minute requests, needs, or changes.
• Follow up with the client and the hotel on any feedback or challenges encountered during the stay
• Report weekly to the Vice President, Emerging Sports & Group Travel with updates, wins/losses, and client-related information
• Work with the Travel Division finance team on any specific pick-up reports, commission, or hotel support

Success Criteria:

• Ability to meet and exceed individual and department revenue goals on behalf of travel clients
• Ability to demonstrate commitment to PIVOT and PIVOT clients
• Ability to communicate with leadership on sales outreach activity and revenue pipeline projections
• Lead and update travel clients on the latest developments and relevant industry news
• Ability to act in the best interest of company objectives and collaborate with fellow team members and senior leadership
• Ability to use sound judgment and personal discretion in representing the company’s values and objectives inside and outside of the office

Requirements

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• An appropriate level of drive and toughness to effectively manage multiple demanding, critical projects in a fast-paced, technical environment, and a rapidly evolving industry
• A strong hotel brand awareness (i.e., Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott, IHG)
• Advanced negotiation skills
• Knowledge of all aspects of travel (hotels, charter/commercial air, ground transportation, rentals, catering, etc.)
• Strong interpersonal skills to be able to effectively manage different relationships with clients and hotels
• Excellent presentation, written, and oral communication skills
• Experience using CVENT, Salesforce, MS Office, Google Suite

Education and Experience:

• BA/BS in Business, Sports Management, Marketing, or other related disciplines
• 3-5+ years of experience in sales, marketing, and business development, 3rd Party/Hotel, or team operations related position
• Expert knowledge and understanding of group logistics/ Hotel logistics from both a competitive and business perspective
• Existing book of business and industry relationships
• Acute attention to detail, organization, and efficiency

Benefits

• Health Care Plan (Medical, Dental & Vision)
• Retirement Plan (401K, IRA)
• Life Insurance (Basic, Voluntary & AD&D)
• Paid Time Off (Vacation, Sick & Public Holidays)
• Family Leave (Maternity, Paternity)
• Short-Term & Long-Term Disability
• Work From Home

Employment Practices:

At PIVOT Agency, we value diversity and always treat all employees and job applicants based on merit, qualifications, competence, and talent. We do not discriminate on the basis of or traits historically associated with race; color, religion, religious creed, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, sexual orientation, veteran and/or military status), domestic violence victim status, political affiliation, and any other status protected by state or federal law.

Work Environment:

This role operates in a typical business environment, working remotely from an employee’s home office. This role routinely uses a computer and its voice or video call capabilities. This role requires working long hours sitting and staring at a computer, and talking via voice and video calls.

Physical Requirements:

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to use a laptop computer. Specific physical abilities required by this job include sitting, standing, talking, and hearing both in person and over the phone, and keyboarding.