Description
At Agoda, we bridge the world through travel. Our story began in 2005, when two lifelong friends and entrepreneurs, driven by their passion for travel, launched Agoda to make it easier for everyone to explore the world.
This is an exciting opportunity to help build and grow a brand-new team from the ground up. As Regional Manager, Operations, based in Yokohama, you'll report directly to the Associate Director, Operations, and lead a group of Team Managers who step in early with customers who've had a difficult or frustrating experience.
Key Responsibilities:
- Build and Lead a High-Performing Team: Manage, coach, and develop a team of 8-10 Team Managers, holding them accountable for performance, quality, and the growth of their own teams.
- Own the Day-to-Day: Drive the execution of our intervention operating model, keeping a close eye on KPIs, spotting gaps early, and course-correcting quickly.
- Guide Sound Decisions: Be a point of support for your Team Managers on cases that need extra care, stepping in personally when needed.
- Turn Insights into Action: Use data to identify trends and root causes across intervention cases, and partner with the Associate Director and cross-functional teams to drive lasting improvements.
- Help Shape How We Work: Contribute to refining processes, workflows, and ways of working as the team grows and scales across the region.
- Build Genuine Partnerships: Work closely with other CEG and cross-functional teams to keep operations running smoothly.
- Bring Your Team Along for the Journey: Keep your Team Managers and their teams engaged, informed, and motivated as the function continues to take shape.
- Tell a Compelling Story: Prepare and share clear, data-driven updates on team performance and improvement initiatives with senior stakeholders.
- Stay Agile: Thrive in a fast-moving, evolving environment, adapting plans and priorities as the team learns what works best.
- Champion Our Values: Uphold the highest standards of compliance and bring Agoda's mission and values to life every day.
Requirements:
- Business-level proficiency, spoken and written, in English and Japanese (JLPT N1 or equivalent preferred) and/or Korean
- 5 years of people leadership experience, including experience managing managers (Team Managers or equivalent)
- Experience in contact centers, operations, or customer service, handling difficult or frustrating customer situations with care and sound judgment
- A track record of building, developing, and retaining strong, engaged teams
- Strong analytical skills and comfort using data and AI-enabled tools to sharpen decisions, speed up work, and coach others to do the same
- Excellent listening, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills, with great attention to detail
- Confidence communicating with and presenting to senior stakeholders
- Comfort navigating ambiguity, shifting priorities, and the energy of a growing, evolving team
- Working knowledge of, or experience in, travel-related operations
- Based in or willing to relocate to Yokohama, Japan
Nice to Have:
- Experience in a similar intervention, escalation, or specialist team
- Experience working in or helping build a new team or function, especially in travel, e-commerce, or fintech
- Familiarity with Agile, Lean, or Six Sigma ways of working, or a certification such as PMP, for managing multiple initiatives at once
- Hands-on experience with CRM, contact center, workforce management, or data visualization tools
- Exposure to predictive analytics or AI-driven tools
- Additional language skills