Front Office Manager

Alila Ventana Big Sur; California; On-site; USD 80,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Free Room Nights

Medical, Prescription, Dental, and Vis

401K with company match

Paid vacation, sick days, and holidays

Tuition Reimbursement

Employee Stock Purchase Plan

Retail discounts

Job summary

Alila Ventana Big Sur is seeking an experienced Front Office Manager to lead daily Front Office operations within the Rooms Division. Reporting to the Director of Rooms, you will guide guest arrivals, departures, and stay experiences with a focus on personalized, anticipatory service that reflects the resort's luxury positioning.

The ideal candidate brings luxury hotel or resort experience, Forbes service standards familiarity, and a proven ability to coach colleagues.

Qualifications

• Front Office management or Rooms Division supervisory experience required.
• Luxury hotel or luxury resort experience strongly preferred.
• Experience working in a Forbes-rated property or Forbes service standards strongly preferred.
• Strong knowledge of Front Office operations, guest services, room inventory, arrivals and departures, billing, guest recovery.

Responsibilities

• Lead the daily Front Office operation in partnership with the Director of Rooms.
• Maintain leadership presence during guest arrivals, departures, and the stay experience.
• Ensure Front Office colleagues deliver warm, personalized, and anticipatory luxury service.
• Coach colleagues on Forbes service standards, guest recognition, personalization, and service recovery.
• Oversee check-in/check-out experiences with accuracy, warmth, and personalization.

Skills

Front Office management

Rooms Division leadership

Forbes service standards

Guest personalization

Strong communication

Job description

At Hyatt, we believe in the power of belonging- of making people feel at home no matter where they are in the world. We turn trips into journeys, encounters into experiences, and jobs into careers. Join a team that is making travel more human. Connected. Sustainable. Here, everyone's role matters. Opportunities are yours to shape. Your individuality is celebrated. At the heart of Hyatt is our shared belief that hospitality is more than just a job - it's a career for people who care.

Alila Ventana Big Sur is seeking an experienced, polished, and highly service-focused Front Office Manager to join the Rooms Division leadership team. Reporting directly to the Director of Rooms, this position is responsible for leading the daily Front Office operation and ensuring that every guest interaction reflects the resort’s exceptional standards of luxury, personalization, and thoughtful hospitality.

Set across 160 acres along California’s rugged Pacific coast, Alila Ventana Big Sur features 54 secluded suites overlooking forests and sea and offers an immersive resort experience centered on nature, wellness, dining, privacy, and connection. The resort provides an unusually comprehensive stay experience, with included dining, wellness programming, curated experiences, complimentary valet and parking, and other amenities designed around guest restoration and discovery.

The Front Office Manager will play a critical role in translating this luxury positioning into the day-to-day guest experience. The ideal candidate has a strong background in luxury hotels or resorts, preferably with experience in a Forbes-rated property or Forbes service standards, and understands how to lead colleagues to deliver highly personalized, anticipatory, and discreet service.

Awards & Recognition

Alila Ventana Big Sur has been recognized for excellence across luxury hospitality, culinary experiences, wellness, sustainability, and guest experience, including:

• 2026 MICHELIN Guide – Two Key Resort
• 2026 Food & Wine – Global Tastemakers Award, Best Culinary Hotels
• 2026 The Zoe Report – Best Green Hotel
• 2026 Sunset Magazine – Best Outdoor Escape
• 2022 World Spa Awards – California’s Best Wellness Retreat

These distinctions reflect the level of personalization, service excellence, attention to detail, and operational consistency expected throughout the resort.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the daily Front Office operation in partnership with the Director of Rooms.
• Maintain a strong leadership presence throughout guest arrival, departure, and the overall stay experience.
• Ensure Front Office colleagues consistently deliver warm, personalized, and anticipatory luxury service.
• Reinforce and coach colleagues on Forbes service standards, luxury service language, guest recognition, personalization, and thoughtful service recovery.
• Conduct daily pre-shift meetings to communicate arrivals, VIPs, repeat guests, special occasions, guest preferences, resort activities, operational priorities, and service opportunities.
• Oversee guest check-in and check-out experiences, ensuring accuracy, efficiency, warmth, and personalization.
• Monitor room assignments, room readiness, arrivals, departures, upgrades, special requests, VIPs, and repeat guests.
• Review guest profiles and preferences to ensure the team is prepared to recognize and personalize the guest experience.
• Partner closely with Housekeeping to coordinate room readiness, priority rooms, early arrivals, late departures, room moves, and special requests.
• Work closely with Concierge, Guest Services, Bell, Spa, Food & Beverage, Activities, Engineering, and other resort departments to ensure seamless guest experiences.
• Respond to guest concerns with empathy, discretion, urgency, and sound judgment.
• Lead effective service recovery and ensure appropriate follow-up with guests and operational teams.
• Maintain accurate guest notes, traces, preferences, billing information, and other Front Office records.
• Monitor guest feedback, quality scores, online reviews, and service trends to identify coaching and operational opportunities.
• Assist the Director of Rooms with scheduling, labor management, payroll review, staffing levels, productivity, and departmental expenses.
• Recruit, onboard, train, coach, and develop Front Office colleagues in partnership with the Director of Rooms and Human Resources.
• Conduct ongoing service observations and provide real-time coaching to reinforce luxury service expectations.
• Ensure colleagues maintain appropriate grooming, appearance, professional language, and guest interaction standards.
• Support Front Office training and participate in resort-wide Forbes training initiatives as assigned.
• Maintain knowledge of the resort, Big Sur area, dining, wellness programming, activities, transportation, and other guest experiences to confidently assist and guide guests.
• Support VIP arrivals, special celebrations, private experiences, and high-touch guest requests.
• Assist with Front Office procedures related to cash handling, credit, billing, keys, security, privacy, and guest information.
• Ensure compliance with resort policies, Hyatt standards, safety procedures, privacy requirements, and applicable regulations.
• Act as Manager on Duty when assigned.
• Provide operational leadership in the Director of Rooms’ absence.
• Perform other duties and special projects as assigned by the Director of Rooms or resort leadership.

This position has a salary compensation ranging from $80,000-$90,000.

• Free Room Nights, Discounted and Friends & Family Room Rates
• Medical, Prescription, Dental, and Vision Insurance
• 401K with company match
• Paid vacation, sick days, and holidays
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan
• Discounts at various retailers - Apple, AT&T, Verizon, Headspace, and many more

Qualifications - External

• Previous Front Office management or Rooms Division supervisory experience required.
• Previous experience as a Front Office Manager, Assistant Front Office Manager, Rooms Manager, Guest Services Manager, or comparable role strongly preferred.
• Luxury hotel or luxury resort experience strongly preferred.
• Experience working in a Forbes-rated property or with Forbes service standards strongly preferred.
• Previous destination resort, boutique luxury resort, or highly personalized hospitality experience preferred.
• Strong knowledge of Front Office operations, guest services, room inventory, arrivals and departures, billing, guest recovery, and hotel systems.
• Demonstrated ability to lead, coach, train, and develop guest-facing colleagues.
• Strong understanding of luxury guest expectations, personalization, discretion, and anticipatory service.
• Excellent communication, organization, decision-making, and problem-solving skills.
• Strong financial awareness, including labor management, scheduling, productivity, and departmental expenses.
• Experience with hotel property management systems, guest messaging platforms, CRM systems, and Microsoft Office preferred.
• Ability to work effectively with guests, colleagues, vendors, and resort leadership.
• Must be able to work a flexible schedule, including mornings, evenings, weekends, holidays, and business-demand periods.

All qualified candidates will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status.