Operations Director - Hotels

Splendid Hospitality Group; Watford; Remote; GBP 95,000 - 125,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)

Hotel Room Discounts

Food & Beverage Discounts

Life Assurance

Salary Sacrifice - Car Scheme

Stream - earned wages access

Pension

Learning & Development

Job summary

Splendid Hospitality Group seeks an Operations Director to shape the future of hotel operations across a portfolio. You’ll work with the Managing Director of Hotels to drive strategy, commercial success and a high-performance culture, while championing innovation and continuous improvement. This is a field-based role with regular travel to properties.

You will lead teams to deliver outstanding experiences, optimise assets, and ensure governance, compliance and brand standards across sites.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in senior hospitality leadership roles, setting direction at executive level.
• Strong understanding of hotel performance, profitability and growth drivers.
• Experience leading multi-property operations with measurable service standards.
• Proven ability to unite teams, build relationships and influence stakeholders at all levels.

Responsibilities

• Drive operational excellence - ensure high service standards, compliance and efficiency with data-driven decisions.
• Maximise commercial performance - own business plans, budgets, pricing strategies and profitability.
• Build strong partnerships - align across the business to achieve shared goals.
• Maximise assets - lead asset optimisation and capital planning in line with brand standards.
• Champion exceptional experiences - uphold brand standards and identify improvement opportunities.
• Develop high-performing teams - nurture talent, leadership capability and accountability.
• Support growth and new openings - lead operational readiness for new hotels and growth opportunities.
• Protect our people and business - oversee governance, risk management and audits.
• Challenge the status quo - drive innovation, embrace technology and share best practice.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Commercial acumen

Operational excellence

People development

Stakeholder management

Change management

Job description

Operations Director - Hotels

Department: Operations - Hotels

Employment Type: Full Time

Location: Remote / Field Based

Description

Imagine a role where you can shape the future of hospitality.....

At Splendid Hospitality Group, we believe in creating extraordinary experiences, positively impacting lives and getting better every day. As our Operations Director, you’ll have the opportunity to make a real impact across our hotel portfolio, bringing people together, inspiring high performance and creating exceptional experiences for our guests.

Working closely with our Managing Director of Hotels, you’ll play a pivotal role in shaping operational strategy, driving commercial success and building a culture where our teams and hotels can thrive. Combining strategic thinking with a hands-on approach, you’ll champion innovation, continuous improvement and operational excellence across our portfolio.

This is a field-based role with regular travel across our hotel portfolio. You'll enjoy being visible in the business, building relationships with teams and stakeholders, and supporting hotels to achieve exceptional operational and commercial performance.

What You Will Do In This Splendid Role

You’ll play a pivotal role in shaping the success of our hotel portfolio, bringing together commercial thinking, operational expertise and inspiring leadership to ensure our hotels perform at their best. Here’s what you’ll be doing:

• Drive operational excellence - ensure every property delivers consistently high standards of service, compliance and efficiency, using clear KPIs, data-led decisions and continuous improvement to drive performance.
• Maximise commercial performance - own hotel business plans and budgets, driving profitability and productivity while challenging revenue and pricing strategies to maximise results and protect brand reputation.
• Build strong partnerships - develop trusted relationships across the business, understanding stakeholder priorities and bringing teams together to achieve shared goals.
• Maximise our assets - lead asset optimisation and capital planning initiatives, from space reconfiguration and outsourcing to CAPEX investment, ensuring plans align with brand standards and deliver long‑term value.
• Champion exceptional experiences - uphold brand standards and service excellence across the portfolio, working with hotel teams to identify opportunities for improvement and deliver meaningful action plans.
• Develop high-performing teams - identify and nurture talent, strengthen leadership capability and succession planning, and foster a culture of accountability, inclusion and continuous development.
• Support growth and new openings - lead operational readiness for new hotel openings, ensuring each is set up for success, and partner with Business Development to assess opportunities for future growth.
• Protect our people and business - oversee governance, risk management and compliance, ensuring legal, regulatory and internal standards are met and our hotels are prepared for audits.
• Challenge the status quo - champion innovation, embrace technology and share best practice to streamline operations, improve the guest experience and enhance productivity across our portfolio.

What Makes You Splendid

You're a commercially minded hospitality leader who combines strategic vision with the ability to turn plans into action. You inspire teams, build trusted relationships and deliver exceptional results across a multi-property environment.

You'll bring:

• Strategic leadership - 10+ years' experience in senior hospitality leadership roles, with the ability to set direction, influence at executive level and translate business priorities into meaningful action.
• Commercial acumen - a strong understanding of hotel performance, profitability, revenue optimisation and the drivers of sustainable growth.
• Operational expertise - proven experience leading multi-property hotel operations, delivering exceptional standards, efficiency and guest experiences.
• Collaborative leadership - the ability to unite teams, build strong stakeholder relationships and influence effectively at all levels.
• A passion for people and culture - a leadership style that develops talent, fosters accountability and creates a culture where people can thrive.
• A continuous improvement mindset - the confidence to challenge the status quo, embrace innovation and identify better ways of working.

We live by our values, and we're looking for a leader who brings them to life every day:

• Nimble - You embrace change, make informed decisions quickly and adapt your approach to meet the needs of a dynamic hospitality business.
• Honest - You lead with integrity, build trust through transparency and do the right thing, even when it's not the easiest option.
• Brilliant - You set high standards, strive for operational excellence and inspire those around you to deliver their very best.
• Open - You value different perspectives, foster collaboration and create an environment where everyone feels welcome, heard and able to contribute.

These values sit at the heart of how we lead, how we work together and how we create exceptional experiences for our guests, teams and partners.

Our Splendid Benefits

When you join Splendid, you will enjoy a reward package to support your lifestyle, wellbeing and career. Here are just some of the benefits on offer:

• Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) - confidential wellbeing support whenever you need it with 24/7 access to remote GP appointments.
• Hotel Room Discounts - stay with us or our partner hotels at special team rates including discounted rates for friends and family.
• Food & Beverage Discounts - enjoy meals and drinks at reduced prices across our hotels.
• Life Assurance - peace of mind for you and your loved ones.
• Salary Sacrifice - Car Scheme: our team members can enjoy the ultimate benefit of driving a brand new, full insured and maintained car for a fixed monthly amount taken from their salary.
• Stream - access your earned wages up to 50% whenever you need them giving you financial flexibility and Highstreet discounts available.
• Pension - auto enrolment into the company pension scheme.
• Learning & Development - opportunities available to progress your skills and career.