Company:
Explorico Global Destinations Pvt. Ltd.
Location:
Choolai, Chennai
Role Type:
On-site (Monday–Saturday, and as required)
Experience:
Minimum 3 - 5 years in travel operations
About The Company
Explorico Global Destinations Pvt. Ltd. is a Chennai-based specialist travel company that designs and delivers curated FIT (Free Independent Traveler), group departures, and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions) experiences across India and international destinations. Our mission is to create seamless, memorable travel journeys by combining local expertise, responsible tourism practices, and strong supplier partnerships. We value customer-centric service, integrity, collaboration, and continuous improvement. The company culture is dynamic and collaborative, encouraging hands-on problem solving, professi
Position Overview
Explorico Global Destinations Pvt. Ltd. is seeking an experienced
Senior Travel Operations Executive
to oversee
daily team operations
, manage ongoing FIT, Group Departures, and MICE bookings, and work closely with management on
business growth strategies
. This role requires strong leadership, operational control, reporting expertise, and strategic thinking.
Key Responsibilities
Responsibilities are grouped for quick reading. Each group has a short summary followed by clear, action-focused bullets to highlight expectations and outcomes.
Team Leadership & Daily Operations
Lead the operations team to deliver consistent, timely travel services while building capabilities.
- Oversee daily operations for FIT, Group Departures, and corporate bookings to meet SLAs.
- Assign tasks, balance workloads, and monitor progress to ensure timely delivery.
- Run short daily stand-ups and weekly reviews to prioritise issues and actions.
- Coach and mentor junior staff; identify training needs and track improvements.
Booking Oversight & Status Management
Ensure booking accuracy and manage escalations to protect guest experience and margins.
- Maintain up-to-date status for all bookings and flag at-risk itineraries early.
- Verify quotations, confirmations, itineraries and supplier communications for accuracy.
- Act as escalation point for complex client or vendor issues; drive timely resolutions.
- Coordinate on-ground execution for group departures and high-impact events.
Management Coordination & Strategy
Work with leadership to refine operations, inform strategy and support growth initiatives.
- Provide operational insight on destination trends, pricing, margins and supplier performance.
- Support new product launches, group series planning and customized offerings with feasibility inputs.
- Recommend process improvements and help implement changes to improve throughput and quality.
Reporting & Analysis
Deliver concise, actionable reports that enable data-driven decisions.
- Prepare daily, weekly and monthly MIS and operational reports for leadership review.
- Track KPIs including bookings, revenue, margins, productivity, cancellations and payment status.
- Highlight risks and opportunities with recommended actions to improve performance.
Financial & Compliance Oversight
Ensure financial controls and SOP adherence to protect company interests.
- Oversee accurate invoicing, cost sheets, vendor payments and client collections.
- Monitor outstanding payments and work with accounts to close gaps promptly.
- Maintain documentation, SOP compliance and audit readiness; recommend controls where needed.
Client & Vendor Relationship Management
Build and maintain relationships that secure service quality and favourable commercial terms.
- Manage key accounts and high-value client relationships, ensuring consistent communication.
- Negotiate rates and service levels with hotels, airlines, DMCs and other suppliers.
- Develop long-term supplier partnerships to support scalability and reliability.
Skills & Qualifications
Updated to include specific technical, domain and keyword-focused skills to improve searchability and candidate matching.
- Experience: 3-5 years in travel agency operations with demonstrable exposure to FIT, Group Departures, and MICE end-to-end operations.
- Domain expertise: End-to-end itinerary planning, group logistics and on-ground execution, event coordination, supplier contracting, visa/documentation processes, travel insurance handling and basic ticketing workflows.
- Booking systems & tools: Hands-on experience with CRS/GDS and booking platforms (e.g., Amadeus, Sabre, Galileo) and agency CRMs/booking engines (examples: Tourwriter, Rezdy, TBO or equivalent). Familiarity with PNR management, BSP processes and NDC concepts is a plus.
- Data & reporting: Advanced Excel (pivot tables, VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, Power Query, macros/VBA basics), Google Sheets, experience building MIS and dashboards; exposure to BI tools (Power BI/Tableau) or basic SQL for reporting preferred.
- Commercial & financial: Itinerary costing and quotation creation, margin optimisation, cost-sheet management, invoicing, reconciliations and vendor payment coordination. Comfortable interpreting revenue, margin and KPI metrics.
- Operations & compliance: Strong knowledge of SOPs, SLA management, escalation protocols, cancellations/refunds processing and audit-ready documentation. Awareness of data privacy/handling best practices.
- Soft skills & leadership: Proven team leadership, stakeholder management, negotiation and client-servicing skills. Strong problem-solving, attention to detail, time management and ability to prioritise under pressure.
- Certifications (optional): IATA/UFTAA or other travel operations certifications are beneficial but not mandatory.
- Search & matching keywords: Travel Operations, FIT, Group Departures, MICE, Booking Management, CRS/GDS, Amadeus, Sabre, Itinerary Costing, Supplier Negotiation, Travel MIS, Excel (Advanced), Power BI, CRM, SLA Management, PNR, BSP, NDC, Ticketing, Vendor Management.
Language Requirements
- Fluent in English, Hindi, and Tamil (spoken).
Work Schedule
- Monday to Saturday
- Extended hours during group departures, events, or peak travel periods as required.
Preferred Candidate Traits
- Strategic thinker with hands-on operational expertise.
- Process-driven, detail-oriented, and results-focused.
- Strong decision-making and problem-solving abilities.
- Professional, dependable, and aligned with company growth goals.
Application Instructions & Next Steps
We Encourage Interested Candidates To Apply With Clear And Complete Application Materials. Please Follow The Steps Below To Ensure Your Application Is Considered
- How to apply: Email your resume (PDF) and a brief cover letter to info@explorico.in Use the subject line: "Travel Executive Application – [Your Full Name]".
- What to include: Current CV, expected notice period, current and expected CTC (optional), and any sample itineraries or portfolio pieces that demonstrate relevant experience (if available).
- Application deadline: Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. For priority consideration, please apply asap.
- Selection timeline: Shortlisted candidates will be contacted within 5–7 business days for an initial phone screen. Successful candidates will be invited for an in-person interview and practical assessment within two weeks of the phone screen. Final offers will typically be communicated within one week after the final interview.
- Queries: For application-related questions, contact our recruitment team at info@explorico.in (Mon–Fri, 10:00–17:00 IST).
- Equal opportunity: Explorico Global Destinations is an equal opportunity employer. We welcome applications from all qualified candidates.
Please ensure your contact details are up to date so we can reach you promptly. We appreciate your interest in joining our team and will acknowledge receipt of applications by email.
Skills: reporting,status,leadership,events,operations,management,fit,bookings,travel
