Senior Travel Operations Coordinator

About:

SailGP is the world’s most exciting racing on-water. The annual, global championship – established in 2018 and now in its fourth season – features national teams battling in short, intense races at iconic stadium-style venues across the globe.

The high-tech, high-speed action features the sailing's best athletes racing in identical hydrofoiling F50 catamarans, flying at speeds approaching 100 km/h who compete for the sport's top prize money, with US$4.3 million at stake over the season.

SailGP also races for a better future, championing a world powered by nature. In 2020, SailGP set a new standard as the first climate positive sports and entertainment property and began delivering actions and innovations that advance the global adoption of clean energy. Underpinning the organization’s purpose-driven agenda is a diversification of the league, with the goal of immediately progressing gender and racial equity and inclusivity.

SailGP is a global organization with defined values that shape the culture of its diverse team: deliver quality, break boundaries, make an impact, stand together and strike a balance.

Summary:

Responsible for the end-to-end planning and delivery of assigned SailGP events, ensuring all travel requirements are coordinated in line with operational needs, timelines, budget parameters, and Travel Operations policy.

Key Responsibilities:

Event Ownership & Delivery

• Own and deliver assigned events from initial planning through to completion
• Coordinate all travel requirements including flights, accommodation, ground transport, and immigration
• Act as the primary point of contact for all travel-related activity for assigned events

Planning & Coordination

• Manage event timelines in line with submission deadlines and booking windows
• Review and validate all traveller data prior to booking
• Coordinate group travel movements and complex itineraries
• Define and adapt delivery approaches based on event requirements and operational complexity
• Ensure all services align with event schedules and operational requirements

Flights

• Plan and manage flight requirements for assigned events
• Identify group travel opportunities and efficient routing options based on traveller data
• Coordinate bookings directly or via appointed suppliers, ensuring alignment with cost, schedule, and operational requirements

Accommodation Planning & Management

• Manage accommodation delivery for assigned events in line with contracted terms and allocations, either directly or in coordination with appointed suppliers
• Build and maintain detailed rooming lists based on approved traveller data and event requirements
• Align accommodation plans with event schedules, transport plans, and operational needs
• Manage room allocations across departments, ensuring efficient use of inventory and adherence to policy
• Monitor contracted room blocks against attrition and release periods, ensuring rooms are adjusted in line with demand to avoid cancellation costs or penalties
• Identify and manage risks relating to over or under utilisation of contracted inventory, escalating where required
• Coordinate changes to allocations in line with traveller updates and operational requirements
• Liaise with accommodation providers to manage ongoing requirements, amendments, and issue resolution
• Ensure all accommodation data is accurate across systems and supplier records

Ground Transport

• Plan and coordinate all ground transport requirements, including airport transfers and event transport solutions
• Define appropriate transport approaches based on location, safety, and operational requirements
• Coordinate transport delivery directly or via suppliers, ensuring alignment with event schedules

Immigration

• Identify visa and immigration requirements across all traveller groups
• Develop and maintain clear immigration guidance and communications
• Ensure all required documentation is collected and processed in line with timelines

Supplier Coordination

• Manage delivery of travel services through appointed suppliers
• Maintain oversight of all supplier activity to ensure delivery meets agreed requirements, timelines, and cost expectations
• Intervene and take direct control of bookings or planning activity where required to ensure delivery standards are met
• Manage operational relationships with suppliers, resolving issues and driving performance

Communications

• Define and manage event communication schedules
• Review and approve all traveller communications prior to issue
• Ensure all communications are accurate and aligned with event plans

Change Management & Compliance

• Enforce travel policy and submission deadlines
• Manage change requests in line with the agreed process
• Identify and resolve issues proactively, taking ownership of resolution and escalating where required

Budget & Cost Control

• Monitor and control event travel spend in line with allocated budgets
• Make cost-based decisions in line with agreed parameters and event requirements
• Track and manage spend throughout the planning and delivery cycle
• Identify and escalate any risks or variances that may impact budget delivery
• Support post-event budget reconciliation and reporting

Event Reporting

• Produce post-event reporting including cost tracking, change analysis, and operational feedback
• Identify and communicate key issues and improvements for future events
  

Key Expectations:

• Takes full ownership of assigned events, delivering all travel requirements accurately and on time
• Maintains complete control and visibility of all travel data, trackers, and communications at all times
• Identifies gaps, risks, or delays early and takes immediate action to resolve or escalate
• Makes clear, confident decisions in fast-moving and often ambiguous situations
• Manages stakeholders, suppliers, and internal teams effectively, maintaining control of delivery at all times
• Delivers under pressure, maintaining accuracy and structure during high-volume booking and change periods
• Works independently without the need for close supervision, taking responsibility for outcomes
• Adapts quickly as plans evolve, maintaining delivery standards despite changing requirements
  

About You:

• Minimum 5+ years’ experience in travel, logistics, or event operations within a complex, high-volume environment
• Proven experience owning and delivering end-to-end travel or event logistics (not supporting or administering bookings)
• Experience managing large-scale, multi-location travel programmes (200+ travellers or equivalent complexity)
• Demonstrated ability to operate in high-pressure, time-critical environments
• Confident making operational and cost-based decisions within defined parameters
• Strong organisational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities simultaneously
• Clear and confident communicator, able to manage stakeholders at all levels
• High level of attention to detail with full accountability for accuracy of delivery

Location:

London, United Kingdom

SailGP is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace committed to building a team culture that celebrates diversity, equity and inclusion.