AHC Director of Sales - JW Marriott

From comfortably casual to lavishly appointed, AHC Hospitality represents a diverse array of hotels, restaurants, and resorts. Our team members provide exceptional experiences that delight our guests at every touchpoint. Whether hosting a meeting for several hundred, serving a table for two, or creating a beautiful space for our guests to enjoy, AHC Hospitality is full of opportunities for our guests, as well as our associates. We invest in supporting your growth and are a company who sees your success as our success. Choose a property that fits your personality: the Amway Grand Plaza, JW Marriott Grand Rapids, AC Hotel by Marriott, Courtyard by Marriott Downtown -- and start your unstoppable career here.

The Director of Sales is a salaried position with benefits. Position will be required to work a varied schedule that may include evenings, nights, and weekends. Position is based on property at the JW Marriott Grand Rapids The Director of Sales (DOS) reports directly to the hotel General Manager (GM) and works in partnership with the AHC VP of Commercial Sales & Marketing (VP), who sets sales strategy and standards, reporting requirements, training, and brand loyalty programming for both hotels. The DOS sits on the hotel Leadership Team as a full department head and is responsible for growing total rooms and catering revenue through direct outside and inside sales efforts. This Director will develop and nurture relationships with key clients in order to maintain and grow production as well as research demand generators within the market to identify opportunities to gain market share. The DOS works closely with Revenue Management on pickup, pace, pricing, and displacement decisions, and manages their own market on behalf of AHC. The DOS should be familiar with using reports, dashboards, and data analysis to monitor market conditions and opportunities. A heavy focus on outside sales including client entertainment, site visits, in-house events, presentations, networking, and attendance at industry events is required. This individual must be able to negotiate group and guest room rates and execute contracts along with developing comprehensive, creative proposals that address client needs.

-Participate in the weekly Revenue Sales Meeting with the GM and Revenue Management, reviewing pickup and pace against budget and forecast, group pipeline, pending contracts, displacement decisions, and rate and pricing actions
-Meet monthly one-on-one with the GM to review the dashboard, top accounts, pipeline and 90-day outlook, progress on goals and the 3 AHC Pillars, operations coordination, client feedback, and development needs
-Participate in the Quarterly Review with both hotels' GMs and Directors of Sales and the VP, covering market share (STR), segment performance, lost and turned-away business, training, and next-quarter goals
-Maintain and report from the shared sales dashboard: total rooms and catering revenue against budget; group room nights on the books against pace; RevPAR index; leads, response time, site inspections, proposals, and conversion; and lost business by reason
-Partner with the GM and VP on annual goals, the marketing plan, and the sales budget
-Lead and coach a high-performing team of Sales Managers and Sales Coordinators; maintain up-to-date training and Marriott training for Sales Managers
-Develop and execute strategic account plans to increase incremental revenue and deepen client relationships
-Analyze performance metrics, pipeline health, and market trends to inform team priorities and customer engagement plans
-Partner closely with Hilton, Revenue Management, and Marriott Global Sales Team to align on customer strategy and cross-functional initiatives
-Serve on the hotel Leadership Team as a full department head; take part in operations reviews and coordinate with Operations and Food & Beverage to ensure seamless execution of client programs and events
-Involve the GM in key site visits and client meetings; debrief with the GM after every major group
-Manage own market and use strong selling skills to place group business within AHC properties, including city-wides and overflow; track lost and turned-away business
-Aggressively prospect new business through cold calls, blitzes, trade shows, and client events, while holding Sales Managers accountable to their individual market prospecting goals
-Support brand responsibilities and Marriott Bonvoy programming; complete brand-specific training as required and participate in monthly Base training introductions with Leadership Team
-Within the first 30 days, complete on-boarding (key accounts and department head introductions) and set 90-day goals with the GM and VP
-Process RFPs and leads in a timely and accurate manner; create and review contracts to ensure AHC and brand consistency and compliance
-Become familiar with hotel layout, products, services, amenities, and history; conduct site inspections and on-site, virtual, and field presentations
-Become actively involved in the local community and with the CVB to develop and retain business
-This position may require weekend work, as it is essential to the role. 

To build and maintain all components of the sales process including but not limited to prospecting to contracting for group, corporate, association, SMERF, and catering business. The ideal candidate will have a thorough knowledge of useful tools to uncover potential new business, will hold themselves accountable to hotel and ownership goals, and will work collaboratively with the GM, VP, Revenue Management, and the AHC sales team. Further job requirements include but are not limited to:

-Must be able to close the sale and meet group and catering revenue targets; develop strategic plans to positively impact the hotel's key market segments
-Ability to make sound displacement and pricing recommendations in partnership with the GM and Revenue Management
-Ability to respond to Requests for Proposals (RFPs) and leads quickly and accurately
-Persistent, flexible, outgoing, and self-motivated individual with an approachable personality and a team-first approach

-Bachelor's Degree in Hospitality Management, Business, or equivalent experience in a related field required
-Thorough knowledge of sales techniques (lead generation, prospecting, overcoming objections, closing, and relationship building)
-Proven sales experience with convention, association, and group business
-Ability to analyze sales and revenue data including pace reports, STR market share, and RevPAR index
-Ability to utilize Microsoft Word, Excel, Claude and Outlook to produce weekly, monthly, and quarterly reports
-Ability to exercise excellent written and oral communication
-7+ years of hotel sales experience, preferably at a full-service or convention hotel, including at least 5 years at a multi-property level
-Previous experience as a department head or leading a sales team is preferred but not required
-Previous Delphi and CI/TY experience is preferred but not required
-Previous Marriott/Hilton and independent brand sales experience is preferred but not required

-Ability to travel frequently, including overnight
-Ability to work at a computer and participate in meetings for extended periods
-Must be able to be on one's feet up to 8 hours per day
-Ability to communicate effectively in person, by phone, and virtually
-Is required to use hands and fingers to handle or feel objects
-Is required to frequently reach with hands and arms
-Is regularly required to talk or hear, taste, or smell
-Is occasionally required to sit and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl
-Must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds