Customer Service Manager - Awayteam Travel

Customer Service Manager - AwayTeam Travel

CUSTOMER SERVICE MANAGER

AwayTeam Travel, LLC

LOCATION: Clearwater, FL

DEPARTMENT: LODGING

REPORTS TO: DIRECTOR OF LODGING

STATUS: FULL-TIME (EXEMPT)

ABOUT THE COMPANY

AwayTeam Travel ("AwayTeam") is a technology company specializing in booking hotel rooms for families and teams traveling to youth and amateur sports events. Founded by The Sports Facilities Companies ("SFC"), a market leader in the management of youth and amateur sports venues, AwayTeam was designed as a fully customizable travel solution for SFC's network of sports destinations. Our technology simplifies group travel arrangements, helping families and teams focus on what matters most - game time.

SFC is the nation's leading resource for managing and developing sports, recreation, wellness, and events facilities. We provide a highly collaborative and supportive culture that raises our team members to new levels of career growth. Together, we will carve a path in a hyper-growing industry where you will enjoy the journey and learn from the industry's best while having some fun.

SFC has been awarded national recognition as a Top Workplace year over year and is considered a workplace of choice. Our mission-focused company is highly entrepreneurial and team-oriented with a culture centered on collaboration, accountability, excellence, and service. We are growing rapidly and looking for high performers at every level to grow with us.

POSITION SUMMARY

The Customer Service Manager will report to the Director of Lodging and will be responsible for leading and actively participating in the delivery of superior customer service experience to event owners, hoteliers, and individuals booking reservations through the AwayTeam lodging platform. This "player-coach" role will both manage remote customer service team members and personally handle customer interactions for teams and individuals needing assistance with booking rooms, managing reservations for events, and other escalations.

Success in this role will be achieved by maintaining a rapid response rate, keeping detailed records of customer communications, monitoring team performance, and being both proactive and reactive with communications to hoteliers, event owners, event attendees, and venue staff. This position will also focus on continuously improving and developing the AwayTeam product and services, while collaborating with venue teams, hoteliers, and event owners to meet financial, service, and customer satisfaction goals.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES WILL INCLUDE, BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO THE FOLLOWING:

• Support the Director of Lodging and Account Managers with the coordination of room blocks for events
• Manage strong hotel partner and vendor relations
• Lead and participate with the customer service team supporting the AwayTeam Travel lodging platform
• Investigate and resolve customer inquiries
• Make outbound phone calls to event attendees, hoteliers, venue staff, and event operators
• Maintain inventory of rooms, reservations, and hotel assignments
• Actively handle inbound and outbound customer service interactions (phone, email, and chat), particularly during peak periods or when coverage is required
• Serve as the primary escalation point for complex or high-impact customer issues, while empowering team members to resolve routine inquiries
• Develop, document, and maintain standard operating procedures, call scripts, and knowledge-base content to ensure consistency and quality across the team
• Oversee and participate in the creation, cancelation, and modification of room reservation requests
• Participate in strategic meetings with venue teams and event owners to explain AwayTeam services and to obtain a full understanding of events and their housing needs
• Participate in meetings with event owners, venue staff, and hoteliers regarding their pick-up, housing concerns, etc.
• Review and understand RFPs for contracted events with hoteliers
• Continuously monitor hotel pick-up and communicate with hotels, CVBs, and the partner clients as necessary
• Coordinate and collaborate with the Marketing Department on the promotion strategy of events to attendees
• Report booking sales pace and pre/post-event metrics
• Provide on-site representation of AwayTeam at select events, conferences, and sales meetings
• Work closely with venue staff and event owners to receive timely and actionable feedback on all key performance indicators for events
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement with a focus on providing solutions, delivering results, and elevating the guest and partner experience

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor's in hospitality, travel/tourism, business administration, or similar area of study preferred
• Experience in customer service, sales operations, and the Hotel/Travel industry preferred
• Experience in a player-coach role-balancing team leadership with direct customer interaction and hands-on support in a high-volume environment
• Must have excellent interpersonal and problem-solving skills
• Must have excellent verbal and written communication and presentation skills
• Must have experience with MS Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and Outlook, and have demonstrated the ability to learn new software platforms quickly
• Must possess a strong ability to document and communicate with all levels of the organization
• Ability to manage multiple software programs, deliver prompt and accurate responses to email and phone communications and provide simple, rapid, competent support experience
• Ability to develop lasting professional relationships with clients
• Marketing and promotional experience a plus
• Strong attention to detail, organizational skills, and ability to work well under deadlines

WORKING CONDITIONS AND PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

• May be required to sit or stand for extended periods of time whether indoors or outdoors, and squat, stoop or bend
• Will be required to operate a computer
• Office has intermittent noise