The SMASH Guest Department is looking for a new Guest Director who will oversee the procurement of VIP Guests and will work closely with the Guest team and Management team. As a director you will be responsible for designing and executing Guest department plans, leading a team to deliver the goals outlined, and ensuring our guest management standards are executed appropriately to develop and maintain long term business relationships. You will also review and refine the outcomes of the approved working policies and operational standards for our staff, crew, and guests, while complying with our code of conducts and guest-related regulations (e.g. confidentiality). The ideal candidate will have excellent customer service skills, work well in a high pressure environment, and have excellent problem solving skills.

Your duties include but not limited to:

Pre-Convention – Procurement

• Maintenance of up to date procurement records
• Consistently improve the guest management standards
• Research trends, SMASH!’s audience, and community when procuring VIP Guests
• Communicate and build long term business relationships with stakeholders, agencies, contacts, and companies to obtain bookings of VIP Guests
• Review booking options to present to Executive Management for approval
  

Pre-Convention – Team & Operational Management

• Manage and develop the Guest team members including work allocation, capability develop and performance management
• Frequently communicate with the team including in person team meetings, online meetings, Slack messaging and other messaging tools
• Observe and measure team performance, motivation and health to identify risks
• Meet tight deadline requirements set out by management and requests from other departments
• Attend Management meetings and participate in the development of operations of SMASH! 
• Regularly contacting other departments to deliver on department goals such as promotions, regulations about our VIP Guests, operations on the ground, and considerations for logistics
• Plan and design all VIP Guest-related events and operational related areas. I.e. Guest rooms, Signings Area, Merchandising booths, etc, and provide feedback on other areas VIP Guests will attend. Plans for all areas must be documented, reviewed and communicated across to other departments
• Mentor and train crew volunteers by providing assistance and guidelines
  

Pre-Convention – Administration

• Draft and complete contractual negotiations on behalf of SMASH! Inc.
• Procure relevant visas that are required under agreements with VIP Guests including temporary visas. Sometimes this may require checks from authorities (Police Checks).
• Manage all bookings for Guests, including accommodation, flights, etc.  
• Review and refine methods of guest signings including integration with the ticketing system and analyse statistics 

Pre-Convention – Guest Communications

• Provide professional communications and transparency with VIP Guests
• Represent SMASH! and balance charity interests  with VIP Guest needs
• Maintain a  record of commitments by SMASH! and escalate issues as necessary
  

Pre-Convention – Guest Content Direction

• Discuss and determine the role of the Guest team with the Executive Management team and Productions and Events team to generating guest stage content with a strong focus on interdepartmental collaboration
• Guest department will be involved every step of the event creation process and will communicate proposed ideas and plans to meet the needs of all parties 
• If agreed via discussions, the Guest department will also generate ideas and core content that will be presented on stage
  

Pre-Convention – Guest Hospitality and Logistics

• Address and attend to the VIP Guests requirements for a smooth, comfortable and hospitable experience with SMASH! 
• Movement of the VIP Guests to and from the venue, including any additional scheduled activities
• Maintain and implement professional standards across the team when fulfilling the VIP Guests’ expectations and requirements including dietary, personal needs, etc. 
• Plan and take care of hospitality events such as welcome dinner and farewell meals which allow VIP Guests interaction
• Prepare gift list and procure gifts in preparation for VIP Guest departure

During Convention – Set up and Pre-event

• Oversee the convention plans for the Guest-related operational areas
• Ensure schedules and event operational matters are communicated clearly to each VIP Guests and relaying any changes upon arrival of the VIP Guests
• Coordinate and communicate with other departments as necessary to obtain the correct equipment, materials items, set up, etc. 
• Affirm stage interpreters on their brief which includes their working times, conditions and the content being presented
• Prepare and acquire the Guest spending float and processes with the Treasury Procurement team 

During Convention – Event Weekend

• Manage the planned schedule and inform other departments of any unexpected changes and contingency plans
• Communicate and manage all staff and crew within the department
• Assist resourcing with the team including interpreters and requirements of coordinators in conjunction with the People & Culture team
• Monitor and ensure plans are being implemented smoothly i.e. signings, merchandising and other event plans
• Collect relevant data and feedback of the event plans with the Statistics team
  

After Convention – Formalities, Feedback & Procurement

• Ensure clear communications are maintained post-event to the team to begin following years’ procurement strategy
• Assess the performance of your team and plans, and provide a debrief to be delivered to the Executive Management team
• Update department plans in preparation for the following year

APPLICATION FORM