Operations Assistant (023-1032)

• Join product planning meetings to confirm target hotels, dates, room quantities and other supplier needs for each event (15-25 per year)
• Contact existing and new suppliers to request, obtain and negotiate the rates and terms we use within our packages/tours (products)
• Record rates, taxes, commissions, room categories and occupancies, bedding configurations, meal inclusions, pre/post-event rates, rollaway charges and other key terms on a per-event spreadsheet
• Chase non-responsive suppliers and follow up until every required detail is supplied
• Report findings back to the GM and Product team and help decide which properties to contract, where to negotiate, and which to decline

• Obtain, check and triple-check contracts and rates against what was agreed
• Maintain a mastery of release-back dates, cancellation policies, and payment schedules, and ensure no release deadline is ever missed
• Flag excess or unsold rooms ahead of release-back deadlines so they are released on time and we avoid attrition penalties

• Prepare and send rooming lists to suppliers, and keep suppliers updated through the sales period and before sales close / clients travel
• Verify supplier invoices against rooming lists and confirmed bookings, then pass them to Accounts for payment
• Assist with package pricing, allotments and supplier payment reconciliation

• Based in the Philippines, working hours aligned to Australian Eastern Time (within a few hours either side)
• In contact with our Australian team daily by email, plus a weekly video call for major event discussions
• Occasional phone calls with suppliers — confident spoken English is essential

• Fluent in written and spoken English, confident in communicating with international suppliers by email and phone
• Highly organised, with exceptional attention to detail and accuracy
• Strong numerical and data-entry skills; proficient in Microsoft Office, particularly Excel and email
• Able to manage many suppliers, deadlines and competing priorities independently on a per-event basis, where crossover is frequent
• Performs reliably under tight deadlines
• Understands, or can quickly learn, travel-industry terms such as room occupancies, allotments, attrition, and release-back / cut-off dates

• Experience in travel, tourism, hospitality, a DMC, or major events
• Familiarity with hotel and supplier contracting and inventory management
• Experience negotiating supplier rates

This is a remote role that will be set up as an independent contractor engagement.

To ensure alignment and transparency, successful candidates will be expected to:

• Disclose any existing ongoing roles or client work
• Reflect this engagement on their LinkedIn profile (clearly marked as “Independent Contractor”)