[Hiring] Assistant Business Development Manager @Railbookers Group

Role Description

We are seeking a seasoned professional Business Development Executive with a strong understanding of the area of specialization, wider department goals, and cross-functional department goals. The successful candidate will be responsible for promoting and selling the Railbookers and Amtrak Vacations brands primarily to travel agents and their members.

This position operates as part of a team and reports to the Vice President, Asia and a dotted line to VP of Global Sales. The role requires excellent attention to detail, multitasking abilities, and the capacity to work on problems of diverse scope where analysis of situations and data is required.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Sales and Relationship Building:
  • Make daily outbound calls to travel agents and any other partners assigned to sales territory.
  • Develop strong relationships with travel agents and any other assigned partners at the travel agent, agency and club levels to help increase Railbookers and Amtrak Vacations trade sales.
  • Build productive and stable working relationships with internal functional teams and relevant cross-functional teams with minimal support or supervision from senior team members.
• Training and Presentations:
  • Conduct online webinar and in-person training for travel agents.
  • Develop and execute joint consumer presentations and virtual travel talks to support travel agents and other assigned agency partners.
  • Participate in virtual and in-person travel agent conferences as needed. (Occasionally support partners outside assigned sales territory as required.)
• Customer Service and Problem Solving:
  • Intercept customer service issues from travel agents and work with Guest Relations department to resolve, with the support of Director of Key and Host Accounts when needed.
  • Resolve a wide range of problems in creative ways, demonstrating good judgment and critical thinking to obtain successful solutions.
• Performance Management:
  • Achieve monthly assigned passenger and revenue sales targets.
  • Achieve daily, weekly, and monthly phone and email communication goals in accordance with specified KPIs and performance guidelines.
  • Monitor the performance of travel agencies, clubs and other assigned agencies on a weekly, monthly & yearly basis.
  • Actively seek feedback and opportunities for improvement, conducting retrospectives to diagnose and recommend improvements.
• Product Knowledge and Communication:
  • Maintain thorough and complete knowledge of Railbookers Group products, services, and brand USPs.
  • Ensure that travel agent partners are kept up to date with the latest brand information including itineraries, brochures, and product enhancements.
• Brand Representation:
  • Represent the Railbookers Group brands in an appropriate and professional manner.
  • Model the RBG Values and Ways of Working and lead by example for more junior team members.
• Marketing, Events & Market Growth Support:
  • Support local marketing activations and in-market sales activities across Asia, including expos, consumer events, trade events, and media events.
  • Partner with HQ marketing to coordinate local campaigns, event materials, messaging, timelines, and post-event follow-up.
  • Represent Railbookers and Amtrak Vacations at local industry events, trade shows, media events, and market activations as needed.
  • Support lead generation and follow-up from expos, trade shows, events, and local sales activities.
  • Assist with special projects that expand brand awareness, increase sales opportunities, and support Asian business growth.
  • Travel as required for events, partner meetings, market activations, and regional business development initiatives.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of proven inside and/or outside sales experience required.
• Travel industry experience preferred but not required.
• Proven success and skill in negotiating and/or closing business with accounts.
• Post-secondary qualification in sales, business, or marketing an asset.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Outlook, Word, and Excel or similar.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to work flexible hours, including evenings and weekends on occasion.
• Ability to work virtually from home with suitable office space.
• Some overnight travel required to attend partner events and internal FAM trips.