Senior Director, Commercial and Guest Experience - Vantage Airport Group

About Vantage Group

Vantage Group is a global leader in airport and transportation investment, development, management, and advisory services. Since 1994, Vantage’s corporate and network-wide team has managed an award-winning portfolio, building strong partnerships that integrate global expertise and local know-how to solve complex transportation challenges at every network location. Over three decades, Vantage has built a track record of creating customized solutions to transform airports and transportation centers that benefit the passengers, stakeholders, and communities they serve. Vantage is a wholly owned strategic platform of Investcorp Corsair Infrastructure Partners for capital deployment in the airport and transportation sectors. Visit vantagegroup.com to learn more.

The Role:

The Senior Director, Commercial and Guest Experience will support the strategic planning, coordinating and directing of the commercial activity and guest experience of LaGuardia’s Terminal B to transform the guest experience and challenge what people expect at an airport.  The role will ensure that the various groups, including guest experience and commercial, are working collaboratively to achieve performance objectives in keeping with the airport’s best-in-class practices and working pro-actively to identify and mitigate commercial risks while liaising with other LaGaurdia Gateway Partners (LGP) functions to optimize the entire terminal experience.

Key Responsibilities:

• Foster a connective and performance driven culture with respect to commercial operations; lead commercial initiatives and drive performance through suitable industry and market Key Performance Indicators
• Support the development and implementation of a dynamic and innovative commercial and guest services programs; including digital and physical interfaces to create a world-class guest journey
• Continue to evolve the use of technology to enhance the guest experience, including e-commerce and touchless
• Develop a guest experience program to insure the highest level of guest engagement to all the airport community
• Act as a collaborative liaison to the concessionaires, and community stakeholders, to bring the concession program to life – from concepts, to designs, training and on-time opening as appropriate
• Evolve and apply Vantage’s best-in-class concession management techniques and programs to monitor and improve performance of the concession program to maximize revenue opportunities and enhance the guest experience at the airport
• Foster a performance driven culture by leading and monitoring commercial initiatives and performance benchmarked against other airports, terminals & comparable off-airport facilities
• Support the development and implementation of world-class concession plans, and promotional programs to achieve maximum performance, drive annual sales growth and increase revenues
• Ensure commercial processes stay within agreed upon budgets and timelines
• Prepare, develop, and actively manage an annual budget
• Prepare financial reports related to leases
• Maintain detailed records of all leasing transactions and communications
• Coordinate with finance department to ensure proper billing and collection of lease-related payments
• Manage lease renewal processes and negotiating terms with existing tenants
• Use lease administration software to track lease terms, escalations, and other critical dates
• Analyze and interpret lease documents to determine financial and operational impacts
• Implement strategies to optimize leasing operations and support LGP’s financial goals
• Establish, manage and maintain strong relationships with applicable stakeholders, including The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, concessionaires, regulatory agencies, airlines, vendors, and the wider airport community to drive financial performance
• Work closely with applicable stakeholders to support the overall management of the sub-tenants and ensure their operations are compliant with applicable standards, laws and legislation
• Develop and lead performance measurements for key areas of commercial and guest experience operations; works with functional leads to use performance results to drive a culture of continuous improvement; identifies new technologies that will support excellence
• Recruit, retain, and develop direct reports to optimize leadership skill sets to achieve commercial and guest experience initiatives and performance. This includes key talent management responsibilities, including conducting performance reviews, and coaching
• Be a collaborative and contributing peer and partner in unifying and achieving LGP mission and strategic priorities
• Other duties and responsibilities commensurate with the position may be assigned

Primary Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in commerce, business administration or a related field from an accredited post-secondary institution
• At least 10 years experience in airport, commercial/concessions or related are with at least 5 years experience in a managerial or leadership role
• Experience working within a regulated business is an asset
• Project management and implementation, program management, change management, and business systems experience
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills and ability to develop trusting, and collaborative professional relationships with stakeholders
• Demonstrated team leadership skills with the ability to motivate and develop team members for exceptional performance and contribution
• Some experience creating/working with automated dashboards, standardized reports, and enterprise systems preferred

About You:

• Demonstrated excellent business acumen, including strong financial management understanding, coupled with strategic, analytical, and creative skills
• An ability to manage multiple projects, while staying on budget and delivering on time without compromising quality
• Exceptional relationship management skills and the ability to build and grow connections with people of all types and backgrounds
• Able to shift seamlessly between high level conceptual development and the need to focus your attention on complex details
• Highly organized and detail-oriented, with the ability to keep multiple projects and client engagements active at once
• A preference for working with an entrepreneurial, fast-paced team
• Comfort with ambiguity and ability to navigate uncertainty
• Highly developed sense of accountability and follow-through with an ability to effectively prioritize multiple tasks, projects, and goals
• High level of attention to detail
• Organization and planning skills crucial for multi-tasking while prioritizing and executing tasks
• Ability to work independently with little or no supervision but be a team player

Primary Work Location: LaGuardia Airport, NY

What We Offer:

In addition to a competitive compensation and benefits package, career progression, and access to a global team of talented professionals, we are growing and offer boundless opportunities to make your mark. If you share our sense of adventure, come, and join us for the journey. The expected salary range for this position is $175,000 - $225,000.

To Apply

Please visit our Careers page at https://www.vantagegroup.com/careers/ and follow prompts to apply with your cover letter and résumé.

All qualified candidates who are legally entitled to work in the US will be considered.

At Vantage Group, we seek and welcome unique backgrounds, perspectives, experiences and skills. As a global organization, we are always looking for differentiated points of view. We know that a diverse, inclusive and empowered workforce is essential to our shared success, and we invite you to join us for the journey.

For more information about Vantage Group, please visit: www.vantagegroup.com