Guest Relations Manager

Job Description: Guest Relations Manager

Department: Rooms / Guest Experience

Reports To: Hotel Manager

Position Summary:

The Guest Relations Manager leads the hotel’s service culture and Guest Relations function, ensuring that every guest interaction reflects The Manner luxury guest services standards, brand expectations, and ownership objectives. This role owns the end-to-end guest journey, including pre-arrival, arrival, in-stay engagement, service recovery, and departure, while driving measurable improvements in Guest Satisfaction Survey (GSS) results, guest loyalty, and service consistency. The Guest Relations Manager serves as a guest advocate, embedding luxury service standards into daily operations, team behaviors, and performance outcomes.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

Service Culture & Leadership

• Lead, inspire, and develop Guest Relations, Front Office, and Concierge teams to deliver intuitive, anticipatory, and emotionally engaging luxury service.
• Model polished, gracious, and authentic service behaviors, maintaining professional presence, language, and appearance standards.
• Promote a culture of care, accountability, inclusivity, and empowerment that enables team members to create meaningful guest moments.
• Conduct regular coaching, service refreshers, and skills training aligned with The Manner luxury guest services standards.

Guest Journey Ownership

• Oversee the full guest lifecycle, ensuring seamless execution of pre-arrival planning, arrival choreography, in-stay engagement, and departure.
• Manage the VIP program, including room inspections, amenities, preference tracking, and interdepartmental coordination.
• Ensure guest preferences and personalization details are accurately captured and executed through property systems.
• Maintain a visible leadership presence in public areas during peak arrival and departure periods.

Guest Experience & GSS Performance

• Own and drive Guest Satisfaction Survey (GSS) results and overall guest satisfaction performance.
• Analyze guest feedback, Medallia results, and online reputation data to identify trends and root causes.
• Partner with department leaders to implement corrective actions and sustain service improvements.
• Ensure consistent guest recognition and personalization across all departments.

Service Recovery & Guest Advocacy

• Provide leadership oversight for service recovery efforts, ensuring responses are timely, empathetic, and brand-aligned.
• Personally engage with high-value guests, repeat guests, and guests experiencing service challenges.
• Monitor recurring issues and implement sustainable solutions to prevent repeat service failures.

Operational & Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with Housekeeping, Food & Beverage, Engineering, Sales, Revenue Management, and Security to ensure seamless service delivery.
• Collaborate with Sales and Events teams on VIP groups, special programs, and key stakeholder relationships.
• Oversee training and ensuring guest experience expectations are being met with associates supporting service delivery.
• Manage amenities, departmental expenses, and guest experience initiatives in alignment with service and financial goals.
• Serve as Manager on Duty as scheduled.

Qualifications:

Required

• Bachelor’s degree in Hospitality Management, Business Administration, or related field, or equivalent professional experience.
• Minimum of 5 years of progressive leadership experience in luxury hotel operations, Guest Relations, or Rooms Division leadership.
• Demonstrated success leading luxury service cultures and improving guest satisfaction metrics.
• Proven ability to achieve and sustain strong GSS results.
• Strong communication skills, emotional intelligence, and composure in high-pressure environments.
• Advanced working knowledge of Opera PMS and guest feedback platforms.
• Ability to work a flexible schedule, including evenings, weekends, and holidays.

Preferred

• Experience with proprietary or bespoke luxury service programs.
• Experience in a Forbes-rated, LQA-audited, or equivalent luxury environment.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to stand, move, and engage guests for extended periods in a guest-facing environment.
• Ability to lift or carry up to 25 pounds for VIP amenities or operational needs.

Key Performance Indicators

• Achievement and sustainability of Guest Satisfaction Survey (GSS) results.
• Consistent execution of The Manner luxury guest services standards.
• Effectiveness of service recovery and reduction in repeat guest issues.
• Team engagement and performance outcomes.
• Alignment with brand, ownership, and operational objectives.