Assistant Director of Catering

Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts; Kuwait City; On-site; KWD 15,000 - 21,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Dept head benefits

Competitive salary

Training & development

Free hotel stays

Social events

Flight tickets

Employee meals

Health insurance

Job summary

Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts in Kuwait City seeks an experienced Assistant Director of Catering to oversee a profit- and service-driven Catering & Events Department. You will supervise senior managers, manage communications, and drive bookings while aligning with financial targets.

The role requires 5+ years in event planning, fluency in Arabic and English, and strong negotiation and leadership skills to maximize revenue and customer satisfaction.

Qualifications

• Minimum 5 years of experience in event planning and management, including at least 1 year in an Assistant Director of Catering role.
• Fluency in Arabic and English is required; additional languages are an advantage.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office applications and hotel systems including Opera.
• Proven ability to build positive relationships and foster collaboration across departments.
• Strong negotiation, communication, and organizational skills; able to drive results.

Responsibilities

• Oversee all aspects of a profit- and service-driven Catering and Events Department.
• Supervise the Senior Managers of Catering and admin team, ensuring accurate communications and docs.
• Review booking conversions from inquiries, and allocate leads among the team.
• Forecast and budget to support monthly forecast and analyze month-end financials.
• Develop and execute projects to generate demand and increase catering activity and revenue.
• Ensure seamless operation between C&E team and vendor/supplier clients (AV, florists, etc.).
• Audit accounts and booking data in Golden Sales & Catering, including reports.
• Evaluate sales practices and recommend actions to maximize revenues.
• Guide quarterly admin and motivate the Catering and Events team toward incentives.

Skills

Event planning

Budgeting

Team leadership

Vendor management

Bilingual Arabic English

Tools

Opera

Job description

About Four Seasons:

Four Seasons is powered by our people. We are a collective of individuals who crave to become better, to push ourselves to new heights and to treat each other as we wish to be treated in return. Our team members around the world create amazing experiences for our guests, residents, and partners through a commitment to luxury with genuine heart. We know that the best way to enable our people to deliver these exceptional guest experiences is through a world-class employee experience and company culture.

At Four Seasons, we believe in recognizing a familiar face, welcoming a new one and treating everyone we meet the way we would want to be treated ourselves. Whether you work with us, stay with us, live with us or discover with us, we believe our purpose is to create impressions that will stay with you for a lifetime. It comes from our belief that life is richer when we truly connect to the people and the world around us.

About the location:

A resort-like sanctuary in Kuwait’s heart. Discover a modern urban sanctuary in the heart of Kuwait City: a contemporary curation of Middle Eastern architecture, dazzling art and resort-like spaciousness, where striking sculptures seamlessly merge with traditional design. In this enclave of wonder – the first and only hotel in Kuwait to receive the prestigious Forbes Five-Star rating – you’ll find soaring rooftop restaurants, leisure facilities and the city’s largest guest rooms. Catch up with friends in the chic surrounds of Al Soor (known as La Chocolaterie of Kuwait), relax in air-conditioned cabanas by the infinity pool, ascend to a buzzing rooftop and wander the lush adjacent parkland. And with the city’s malls and souks within a few minutes’ drive, you can experience all the spoils of the city without spoiling your precious relaxation time.

What you will do

• To oversee all aspects of a profit and service driven Catering and Events Department.


• Supervision of the Senior Manager/Managers of Catering along with administrative team in their day-to-day roles. Including maintaining and monitoring the accuracy and effectiveness of all written communications. These include but are not limited to: Banquet Event Orders, Resumes, Daily Events Report, Golden Sales & Catering, and pre-convention meetings.


• Review the accuracy of the Catering Sales Managers/Senior Managers all booking conversions from the inquiries received; including but not limited to Sales, Reservations, Referrals, directly from the guests, and assigning those leads among the team where necessary.


• Forecasting/budgeting expertise and financial literacy to analyze pick up, trend, and pace to support the DOC in preparing the monthly forecast, the ability to analyze the month end financials summaries in line with the P&L.


• The ability to assist in developing and executing projects for assigned segments to generate demand and hence increase catering activity, volume and revenue.


• Ensure seamless operation between the C&E team and all vendor/supplier related clients’ needs, i.e. Audio Visual, Florists, Entertainment, Transportation, DMC, and outside catering/locations etc.


• Complete periodic audits of the Account and Booking Data in Golden Sales & Catering, to include but not exclusive to Conflict Report, Account Traces, Post Conference Reports, and Qualtrics-related reviews


• Evaluate current sales practices and make recommendations to maximize revenues of the Catering and Events forecast/budget while utilizing full potential of the existing resources.


• Oversee the quarterly administration and seek new ways to motivate the Catering and Events team to ensure the team achieves the incentive plans.

What You Will Bring

• Minimum 5 years of experience in event planning and management, including at least 1 year in an Assistant Director of Catering role.


• Fluency in Arabic and English is required; additional languages are an advantage.


• Proficient in Microsoft Office applications and hotel operating systems, with the ability to effectively use software such as Opera and other business-related applications.


• Demonstrated ability to build positive, professional relationships and foster a collaborative work environment across departments.


• Strong negotiation, communication, and organizational skills, with the ability to prioritize, delegate, and drive results.


• Calm, resilient, and solution-oriented, with the ability to perform effectively in fast-paced and challenging situations.

What you will get

• Department Head benefits as per Four Seasons Kuwait policy


• Competitive Salary, wages, and a comprehensive benefits package


• Excellent Training and Development opportunities.


• Complimentary Dream Holidays at other Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts


• Regular social and sports events


• Paid home leave with flight tickets


• Complimentary employee meals


• Health medical and insurance benefits

Work Authorization

Hotel will apply for the work authorization for the successful candidate