Senior Operations Specialist

About the role

Wilderness is hiring a Senior Operations Specialist in Nairobi to fill a full operations role in the booking process. Working closely with the Travel Designer, the post-holder is the first point of contact with suppliers and administers the entire backend of every booking made by the Travel Designer, securing bookings with all service providers accurately, efficiently and with zero errors.

Key responsibilities

• Liaise with travel designers on all bookings and keep booking information updated in the system so the CRM stays current.
• Add special requests from agents (honeymoon, birders, dietary needs, ages) to the booking tool.
• Contact suppliers in writing to confirm or cancel services, making sure cancelled space is actually cancelled.
• Check that service lines are loaded correctly, compare vouchers with supplier invoices and review deposits to reconfirm services.
• Follow up with agents on outstanding items, maintain electronic booking files and authorise payments once funds are received.
• Highlight VIP guests to the Res Operations Manager and flag complaints that need management attention or resolution while guests are in country.
• Stay up to date with product and technology updates, attend weekly training and follow company policies and procedures.

Required profile

• KCSE with maths (minimum standard grade or above).
• Tertiary certificate in Travel & Tourism or hospitality.
• 4-5 years of senior-level experience, including customer relationship handling and product promotion in inbound travel.
• Proven English literacy and computer literacy (Microsoft Office, email, internet).
• Excellent attention to detail, ability to work under pressure and to prioritise demands.
• A passion for wildlife and a commitment to sustainability and conservation.

Required skills

• Working knowledge of TourPlan and WISH or a similar booking system.
• General product knowledge of East Africa.
• Excellent written and spoken English; foreign languages are an advantage.