Job Description

Housing & Hospitality Services currently operates within a $390M operating budget and employs approximately 2,800 FTE. Currently, H&HS provides room and board accommodations to approximately 16,000 single undergraduates, and 4,000 graduate student families, single graduates, upper division undergraduates, faculty and postdoctoral scholars. In addition, H&HS has a fully developed hospitality program with a Summer Conference Season in student housing, the BRUIN WOODS Family Resort and Conference program located in Lake Arrowhead, the UCLA Guest House, UCLA Vending Services, UCLA Catering and UCLA Meyer and Renee Luskin Conference Center.

Reporting to the Assistant Vice Chancellor of Housing & Hospitality Services, the Senior Director of Hospitality Sales & Marketing has the primary responsibility to direct and control activities of all Hospitality Sales, Marketing & Communications. They must optimize revenue and ensure long-term financial viability of these hospitality units through strategic sales leadership and marketing initiatives. The Director is responsible for generating hospitality revenue of approximately $75M and administering annual operating budgets of approximately $15 million

The Hospitality and Marketing of H&HS includes:
– Conference & Catering Sales which includes the summer residential conference program of approximately 15,000 bed spaces in addition to the sales of year-round meetings and catered events, generating a total of $34M annually in revenue.
– The Catering team provides full service meeting and event planning with world class dining experiences generating approximately $9M in revenue.
– The Luskin Conference Center (LCC) is designed as a 300,000 square foot, 7-story, International Association of Conference Centers (IACC) certified property on the UCLA campus. The LCC is comprised of 254 guest rooms, approximately 25,000 square feet of meeting space, a 160-seat restaurant, a fitness center, and a business center. LCC generates approximately $30M million annually in revenue.
– The Lake Arrowhead Conference Center, which operates from September to mid-June, providing conference services to more than 300 conferences, comprising over 31,000 occupancy nights. Center (LCC).
– The Marketing and Communications team devotes resources to support all strategic marketing objectives of Housing & Hospitality departments delivering to our guests a wide array of quality services, products, and programs. They balance competing requests and give guidance on project timelines, deadlines and set priorities. Effectively communicate with campus stakeholders and senior leadership on public relation/media initiatives, marketing objectives, communication plans, and brand management.

The Senior Director must provide leadership and guidance to increase efficiency and productivity amongst all of the above hospitality sales units. Ensuring that each unit meets maximum potential and benefits from cross collaboration of sister departments. All of these Hospitality units are academic meeting and conference destinations supporting UCLA’s education and research mission.
The Senior director must positively impact long-term financial goals, sales productivity, marketing strategies, customer satisfaction, and team member engagement. The Senior Director will ensure that each operation is apprised of current pace and forecasts to operate each business at optimum levels. The position must have a demonstrated knowledge of operational facets of the Group Conference Sales, Catering, Marketing, and Conference programs including off premise, full service catering, residential conferencing, event planning, and marketing techniques and methodologies.

The Senior Director must drive revenue and focus on building long term value based on strong hospitality sales strategies.

Job Qualifications

Demonstrated ability to manage diverse sales and marketing efforts at a large University level.
Required

Demonstrated ability to direct efforts of a full service, off-premise catering operations.
Preferred

Demonstrated ability to direct human resources including supervision of sales, marketing, and catering operation professionals, and line level service team members.
Required

Demonstrated experience in successfully integrating a diverse program with the goals of the University.
Required

Demonstrated skill in managing fiscal, human and capital resources.
Required

Skill in recognizing appropriate long-range objectives based on data accumulated and demonstrated ability to realize long-range objectives through tactical planning.
Required

Demonstrated record of successful planning, budgeting, financial analysis, and fiscal management, including skill in budget preparation, analysis, and controlling costs of multiple, multi-million dollar budgets.
Required

Demonstrated knowledge of financial long-term planning which allows for growth and change to physical inventory.
Required

Working knowledge of organizational development in a large, multi- faceted organization, to include assessment, training, and performance management.
Can be trained

Excellent written and oral communication skills to write, edit and present strategic planning documents, reports and presentations.
Required

Excellent analytical skills to organize data and material to draw appropriate conclusions and make recommendations for solution.
Required

Strong customer service and employee satisfaction orientation.
Required

Demonstrated excellent analytical, decision-making, and problem solving skills.
Required

Ability quickly to establish rapport, professional credibility and cooperative working relationships among all levels of the organization and campus.
Required

Ability to structure, sequence and prioritize work while dealing with multiple deadlines, changing priorities and frequent interruptions.
Required

Ability to work independently, be proactive, and deal with ambiguity.
Required

Ability to be politically astute and to achieve consensus and garner support among multiple factors with diverse and at times conflicting needs.
Required

Skill in negotiating and exchanging ideas with others to formulate policies and programs and to arrive jointly at decisions, conclusions or solutions.
Required

Ability to travel locally and nationally and occasionally internationally.
Required

Ability to lawfully operate a motor vehicle with a valid California Driver’s License and satisfactory driving record.
Required