Anchored at Crowne Plaza Auckland, this role provides strategic leadership across the sales and marketing functions for multiple hotels within the IHG portfolio nationally. As the Regional Director of Sales & Marketing, New Zealand you will drive commercial performance through hands-on leadership, market insight, and collaborative innovation ensuring that each property, beginning with Crowne Plaza Auckland, is positioned for sustained revenue growth and brand elevation.
Role Purpose
As Regional Director of Sales & Marketing you are a vital business partner to the General Manager and an integral member of the hotel leadership team. This is a high-impact leadership position requiring deep operational awareness of property-level dynamics alongside the ability to drive regional strategy. You will champion localised execution while aligning to IHG’s global commercial vision, tailoring strategies to reflect market nuances across key cities including Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Queenstown.
A brief overview of your day-to-day
This role entails full accountability for the commercial strategy and is crucial in driving Crowne Plaza Auckland’s financial success through expertise in revenue optimization, business development, forecasting and marketing.
Key Responsibilities:
- Lead commercial strategy from the heart of Crowne Plaza Auckland, setting the pace for IHG’s broader New Zealand portfolio.
- Maximise revenue in both the short and long term, developing and implementing strategic plans, optimising revenue streams, building strong client relationships and ensuring exceptional guest experiences.
- Manage the departmental budget, ensuring alignment with the hotel's financial goals and adherence to the payroll budget.
- Setting pricing strategies, forecasting demand, and managing inventory to maximise occupancy and average daily rates across all revenue streams, including accommodation, Food & Beverage (F&B), Conferences & Events (C&E), local catering and ancillary services such as car parking, commissions, F&B activations, pop-ups, and collaborations.
- Utilise advanced revenue analytics to deliver strategic insights and regular reporting on revenue performance, market dynamics and operational efficiency to senior management and stakeholders.
- Leading and motivating a high performing team of commercial professionals, setting targets and building a results-driven culture.
- Responsible for ensuring brand alignment across all tenancies within the hotel premises.
What we need from you:
- Proven success in a senior sales and marketing role within the hotel industry, with demonstrable experience in leading commercial teams across multiple locations.
- Deep understanding of New Zealand’s hospitality landscape, market trends, and guest behaviours across regions.
- Strong track record in driving revenue uplift, capturing new segments, and maximising ROI across digital and traditional channels.
- Confident in leading both in-market property teams and remote support functions, aligning goals across a distributed network.
- Commercially astute and highly strategic, with the ability to zoom in on property-specific needs and zoom out for regional alignment.
- Adept at managing stakeholder relationships across property owners, asset managers, and IHG corporate teams.
- Willingness to travel regularly to properties across the region, with Auckland as your operational base.
- Superior knowledge and demonstrated hands on experience in managing, influencing and driving Revenue in the upscale hotel sector.
- Knowledge and demonstrated experience of marketing and in particular developing marketing strategies in an upscale hotel landscape.
- Demonstrated ability to interact with customers, employees and third parties that reflects highly on the hotel, the brand and the Company.
- Strong financial skills developing and managing a commercial budget and ability to apply analytics to strategy.
- Proficiency in analytical reasoning, strategic foresight, and adeptness in dissecting market trends and orchestrating media strategies are crucial.
Our mission is to welcome everyone and create inclusive teams where we celebrate difference and encourage colleagues to bring their whole selves to work. IHG Hotels & Resorts provides equal employment opportunities to applicants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, or disability. We promote a culture of trust, support, and acceptance. Always welcoming different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives.
IHG gives every member of the team the room they need to belong, grow and make a difference in a collaborative environment. We know that to work well, we need to feel well – both inside and outside of work – and through our myWellbeing framework, we are committed to supporting wellbeing in your health, lifestyle, and workplace.
So, join us and you’ll become part of our ever-growing global family.
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