Manager, Pre-opening ACRS Lead, Openings and Transitions, EMEA (12 Month FTC)

JOB SUMMARY

The Manager, Pre-opening ACRS Lead, Openings & Transitions, EMEA owns the end-to-end Amadeus Central Reservation System (ACRS) pre-opening configuration, validation and activation workstream for assigned hotels. The role converts approved hotel and commercial inputs into an accurate, controlled ACRS setup, coordinates the cross-functional dependencies required to make the hotel searchable and bookable, and maintains clear status, evidence and escalation across the opening critical path. The role is the primary regional subject-matter lead for the ACRS Configuration Workbook, configuration standards, quality assurance, rate-plan loading, distribution readiness and pre-sell activation.

The position works closely with hotel teams, O&T Commercial Leads, Revenue Management Operations, Distribution, CRST, Product Catalog, Digital Asset Center, One Yield Evolution, Application Services and other opening stakeholders. The role also owns the supporting job aids, checklists, templates, naming standards and training materials used by EMEA pre-opening teams.

JOB FAMILY CORE WORK ACTIVITIES 1. ACRS pre-opening governance and critical-path ownership

• Own the ACRS workstream from property-code readiness and Property Level Agreement completion through configuration, audit, pre-sell activation and handover.
• Maintain a clear property-level plan showing prerequisites, owners, due dates, approvals, blockers, evidence and escalation paths.
• Confirm the appropriate setup route for new builds, conversions, quick flips and reconfiguration cases before configuration begins.
• Coordinate Product Catalog shell readiness, PLU/CRS status, ACRS shell creation, functional switches, control-location access and opening-team permissions.
• Ensure hotel workbooks and supporting evidence are stored in the approved central repository with correct property-level access and version control.

2. Hotel enablement and workbook management

• Deliver or coordinate the hotel-facing ACRS Configuration Workbook webinars and follow-up resources, including Hotel Configuration, Attribute Selection, Inventory Type Setup, Flexible Retail Rates, Standard Discounts, Loyalty, Third Parties and Opaque Program requirements.
• Create and maintain the property folder in the ACRS Workbook Review SharePoint location, using the hotel property code as the naming convention.
• Issue Part 1 and Part 2 of the workbook process, track receipt, review completeness and return structured feedback to the hotel and Commercial Lead.
• Guide hotels and Commercial Leads on inventory design, shoppable and non-shoppable attributes, accessibility, occupancy, room relationships, non-room products, policies, taxes and service charges without guessing or substituting unclear values.
• Coordinate Revenue Management review and documented approval of inventory types and commercial setup before loading.

3. ACRS configuration and rate-plan loading

• Configure and activate approved inventory types, inventory items and attributes in ACRS using the latest approved workbook and supporting source documents.
• Load and validate hotel policies, occupancy rules, room relationships, non-room products and other required property-level configuration.
• Activate and load approved rate plans, including Flexible Retail, standard discounts, loyalty, redemption, Explore, third-party and opaque-program participation as applicable.
• Apply approved price-plan and rate-plan naming conventions consistently, ensuring correct derivation, inventory association, eligibility, market and rate-category mapping.
• Coordinate with Distribution so required channels are associated with the correct inventory types and rate plans.
• Maintain controlled change discipline and preserve evidence of approvals, configuration decisions and exceptions.

4. Quality assurance, audit and pre-sell activation

• Perform an end-to-end ACRS configuration audit before pre-sell, validating the approved workbook against the live setup.
• Check inventory counts, room and bed configuration, bedrooms, accessibility, shoppable and non-shoppable attributes, occupancy, policies, taxes and fees, rate-plan associations, third-party participation and non-room products.
• Use available ACRS screens and reports, including rate-detail and price-plan-by-inventory checks, to identify incomplete or incorrect loading and resolve defects before activation.
• Confirm Product Catalog searchability, automated property notification to DAC, image readiness and required digital dependencies.
• Change and verify the ACRS pre-sell status only after mandatory configuration, approvals and audit evidence are complete.
• Complete controlled test shops through approved reservation and digital channels to confirm guest-facing display, availability and sellability.

5. Cross-functional coordination and issue resolution

• Act as the central ACRS contact for O&T Commercial Leads, hotels, Revenue Management Operations, Distribution, CRST, Digital, Loyalty, Application Services and BTO.
• Open, monitor and escalate ServiceNow or support requests for taxes and fees, inventory changes, access, functional switches, channel setup and other configuration dependencies.
• Identify downstream impacts to One Yield Evolution, OPERA Cloud, group blocks, digital assets, Marriott.com and OTA activation, and coordinate the correct owner response.
• Provide concise status reporting on workbook approval, configuration progress, audit results, pre-sell readiness, blockers and recovery actions.
• Support handover to the hotel and post-opening support teams, clearly separating pre-opening ownership from ongoing hotel maintenance.

6. Standards, job aids, training and continuous improvement

• Own and maintain the EMEA ACRS job aid, hotel configuration checklist, internal operating procedure, templates, tracker, naming conventions and webinar content.
• Keep one current source of truth, archive superseded versions and ensure critical-path links point to maintained resources.
• Capture recurring questions, defects and lessons learned from hotel setups, webinars, office hours and audits, then convert them into improved guidance and preventive controls.
• Develop practical controls and scalable workflow improvements for workbook intake, approval, configuration, quality assurance and pre-sell activation.
• Partner with business and technology teams on safe automation, reporting and future Compass workflow enhancements while protecting configuration accuracy.

KEY DELIVERABLES AND SUCCESS MEASURES

• Approved, version-controlled ACRS Configuration Workbook and supporting evidence for each assigned hotel.
• Accurate ACRS inventory, attribute, policy, rate-plan and distribution configuration completed against the approved source.
• Documented audit with defects resolved or formally accepted before pre-sell activation.
• Hotel marked pre-sell ready only when required configuration, approval and channel-readiness controls are complete.
• Current EMEA job aids, checklists, training materials and repository links with obsolete versions archived.
• Timely and transparent escalation of blockers that could affect searchability, bookability, channel activation or opening readiness.

JOB-SPECIFIC SKILL REQUIREMENTS

• Hands-on experience configuring Amadeus CRS for hotel openings, including inventory types, inventory items, attributes, policies, occupancy, rate plans, third-party participation and property activation.
• Strong working knowledge of the ACRS Configuration Workbook and the relationship between Hotel Configuration, Attribute Selection, Inventory Type Setup and rate-plan configuration.
• Practical understanding of Product Catalog, Property Essential Packet, taxes and service charges, ACRS shell creation, functional switches, One Yield Evolution, distribution channels, DAC and Marriott digital sellability.
• Ability to interpret hotel and Revenue requirements and translate them into a controlled system configuration without introducing unsupported assumptions.
• Strong audit mindset, attention to detail, version control and evidence discipline.
• Confident stakeholder management across hotel, commercial, revenue, distribution and technology teams, with clear escalation and concise executive reporting.
• Ability to create simple, usable job aids, checklists, webinars and process documentation for technically complex workflows.
• Advanced Excel capability and disciplined use of SharePoint, trackers and project-management tools.

CANDIDATE PROFILE Education and experience

• Experience in hotel openings, transitions, commercial activation, revenue systems, distribution or reservations configuration in a multi-property environment.
• Demonstrated ownership of end-to-end hotel system configuration, quality assurance and pre-sell or go-live readiness.
• Experience working across EMEA brands, operating models and opening types is preferred.
• Experience facilitating technical training, workshops or hotel enablement sessions is preferred.

Systems and tools

• Required: Amadeus CRS, ACRS Configuration Workbook, Product Catalog, Microsoft Excel, SharePoint and ServiceNow / Marriott Service Portal.
• Working knowledge preferred: One Yield Evolution, OPERA Cloud, EMPOWER Reservations / ResApp, DAC, Marriott.com and third-party distribution processes.
• Familiarity with Compass or equivalent critical-path and project-tracking tools is preferred.

Skills and behaviours

• Structured and highly accurate, with the confidence to stop configuration when source information is incomplete, unclear or unapproved.
• Customer-focused and practical, able to simplify ACRS requirements for hotel teams while maintaining system and commercial controls.
• Calm under pressure, able to prioritise concurrent openings and protect critical dependencies.
• Collaborative and accountable, with strong follow-through across teams that own different parts of the activation chain.
• Continuous-improvement mindset with a strong focus on standardisation, reusability and prevention of repeat defects.

SCOPE NOTE

This specification reflects the current EMEA pre-opening ACRS operating model and the process map supplied for the role. Reporting line, grade, contract type and final organisational placement remain subject to leadership and HR confirmation.

 

At Marriott International, we are dedicated to being an equal opportunity employer, welcoming all and providing access to opportunity. We actively foster an environment where the unique backgrounds of our associates are valued and celebrated. Our greatest strength lies in the rich blend of culture, talent, and experiences of our associates.  We are committed to non-discrimination on any protected basis, including disability, veteran status, or other basis protected by applicable law.