Manager

Job description / Role

Manager - Gulf Market

Manage the delivery of VisitBritains strategy in the Gulf markets, primarily by championing and demonstrating leadership for Britain and tourism at the highest level in market, providing high quality competitive analysis and insights to inform the market strategy, inspiring more travellers from the Gulf markets to visit and explore Britain through B2B, PR and online activities, informing and delivering consumer marketing and running a cost effective and efficient Gulf markets operations with a highly skilled and motivated team.

Provide leadership and champion tourism to Britain
- Represent VisitBritains interests and be the face of VisitBritain in the Gulf market, ensuring that you have a trusted profile as Britains tourism advocate with the media, travel industry, relevant commercial partners, local government bodies and public diplomacy partners. Also ensure that you build strong relationships with UK industry, destination and commercial partners.
- Champion the Gulf market in the UK, and ensure that VisitBritain staff in London and the UK travel industry as a whole are aware of the strength and potential of the region for inbound tourism to the UK. Work with the team in London to ensure that stakeholders in the UK are fully aware of marketing opportunities available with VisitBritain in the Gulf market.
- Provide direction, leadership and motivation for the team in the Gulf market, working with the team to achieve VisitBritains targets and objectives for the Gulf market, and developing staff to their full potential.
- Create an enabling and positive environment where individuals take responsibility for managing projects in their respective areas, and working together as a team to deliver them.
- Manage all day-to-day aspects of VisitBritain operations in the Gulf market office, including all people & performance, financial and general office management issues.

Provide strategic expertise to inform tourism strategy and business planning
- Continue to develop VisitBritains strategy for the Gulf market ensuring that the approach in the markets implements VisitBritains wider global vision and strategic objectives.
- Work with the team in the Gulf market to continuously produce relevant and high quality stream of insights and market intelligence to inform the Britain Tourism Strategy for the Gulf market.
- Work with the strategy & communications team in London to develop and refine valuable analysis on Britains competitive position in the Gulf market.
- Work with the teams in the Gulf markets and London to produce a yearly business plan for the Gulf Market that dovetails the regional and global plans, including targets in line with overall funding agreement and corporate dashboard measures.
- Establish the most effective means for servicing markets in the Gulf Markets where VisitBritain has no physical presence.
- Ensure a risk register for the Gulf markets is updated quarterly and fed into London, and that business continuity plans are in place for the Gulf markets office.

Manage the B2B, Retail & PR Programme
- Coach the Gulf Markets team to develop functional plans which detail the global B2B, Retail and PR strategy and ensure plans are fit for purpose in the Gulf Markets.
- Key account manage industry partnerships in the Gulf Markets including key travel operators and agencies and Gulf Market interest group
- Ensure delivery of B2B and PR activities achieve corporate targets
- Actively seek opportunities to maximize partner funding in delivering B2B & PR projects including sponsorship for B2B and visiting media programmes
- Support Retail team by providing market insights and perspective, generating new leads for revenue and identifying opportunities to maximise profit

Deliver VisitBritains partnership and global marketing programme in the Gulf Markets
- Work with the partnerships and campaign delivery teams in London to deliver consumer marketing campaigns in the Gulf market.
- Ensure the marketing proposition, media buy selection and imagery is right for the Gulf market, managing local marketing partners and agencies as necessary.
- Work with the team in Gulf market to align all consumer marketing campaigns with B2B, PR and online activity in the market.
- Recognise synergies with Public Diplomacy Partners and maximise value across UK government bodies in the Gulf market.
- Ensure all consumer marketing activity has evaluation procedures agreed and integrated from the planning stage.

Manage the Gulf market budget
- Manage the Gulf budget and ensure that resources are effectively deployed.
- Constantly monitor the value for money achieved and the balance between infrastructure and promotional activity.
- Ensure the highest standards of corporate governance in all areas of the business, and that all financial procedures are followed thoroughly.

Requirements

- Educated to university-level standard or equivalent, preferably with a marketing and/or tourism qualification.
- Extensive management experience, preferably in tourism or a related industry, with a proven track record of successfully leading teams to achieve targets and objectives
- Fluent written and spoken English.
- Experience of working across different cultures.
- Strategic and creative thinker with ability to inform, influence and drive the strategic tourism plan for Britain in the Gulf markets.
- High level critical thinking and ability to ask the right questions, formulate and articulate responses clearly.
- Proven ability in strategic and tactical planning and delivery of action plans.
- Excellent communications skills with an ability to communicate effectively with a wide variety of stakeholders - locally and internationally, internally and externally.
- Knowledge of the Gulf markets travel trade industry with a wide-ranging and well-established network of contacts in the travel industry.
- Good understanding of VisitBritains role, general business and marketing approach in Middle East & the Gulf markets.
- Flexibility good project management skills and ability to manage a number of projects simultaneously.
- Excellent financial management and experience of making limited budgets go a long way, and good awareness of corporate governance requirements.
- Able to travel, both domestically and internationally, when necessary.
- Good computer literacy MS Office or similar.

About the Company

VisitBritain is the national tourism agency, responsible for marketing Britain worldwide & developing Britain’s visitor economy. A non-departmental public body, funded by the Department for Culture, Media & Sport, we work with partners in the UK & overseas to ensure that Britain is marketed in an inspirational & relevant way around the world. Our partners include government agencies such as UKTI, airlines & operators, global brands such as Samsung as well as the official tourism bodies for London, England, Scotland & Wales.