Operations Manager (Specialized Team)   With one shared mission of opening the world through education, EF is a multicultural and multilingual community of team members working across 55 countries all around the world. Bring your talents, your perspective, and your ambition. In return, we offer a vibrant, dynamic working environment, and a fulfilling international career.   EF Educational Tours makes it possible for thousands of North American students every year to see the world and discover new cultures through our professionally guided tours.  We are now looking for an entrepreneurial and driven leader with attention to detail to join our Specialized Team in our Production Headquarter in Zurich.   You and your team of Operations Specialists will be responsible for ensuring smooth operations of all Specialized European tours, both before and during tours as well as following up on customer experience after they return home.      WHAT YOU WILL DO  In your role as Manager of Operations, your number one job will be to make sure you have a strong and motivated team that consistently ensures a memorable experience for our customers.     You and your team will contribute through:  Production Management- build and execute booking strategies for each experience (activity, meal, guides) which meets cost and quality standards. Tour Ownership - responsible for overall tour flow, customer experience and consistently tracking our quality KPIs and scores.  Project Management - Responsible for coordinating booking processes & oversee the execution of production in your regions and being the department point person. Product development – innovate and improve logistics for each itinerary minimizing travel time and costs and maximizing educational value and customer satisfaction. Risk and Safety Management– proactively manage and monitor potential risk exposure and safety concerns, as well as manage all on tour emergencies within portfolio. Quality Management for regions of expertise - working with supplier evaluations, understanding customer needs, collaborating with the other teams on the needs of the region. Communication & Customer experience - Deliver on customer requests and preferences by maintaining clear communication with suppliers and Tour Directors. Support our sales staff in US and Canada with expert product knowledge to help them sell and adequately prepare our customers before traveling. Accountability and Team commitment –When our customers are on the road, they might face unexpected disruptions and emergencies. We are as committed to our team members as we are to our customers’ experience meaning we are there for each other, and we own up to our responsibilities when we face challenges. Considering this we expect all team members across all operations departments to join at least one weekend shift per year to support the emergency team with communication and problem solving.    OBJECTIVES FOR THIS ROLE   Support team members meet departmental and individual KPIs Create a team culture that puts the customer at the center of all that we do and sets our Tour directors/Tour guides and Sales counterparts up for success through top notch communication and operational support Develop a strong and thriving team of specialists through a successful onboarding experience, on-going professional development and consistent and timely feedback focusing on staff engagement and retention    YOU   A strong leader who cares about your team and to bring out the best in your people.  Have one to three years of management experience in operations/customer service/sales experience. Can influence others positively and get buy in A creative problem solver with ability to prioritize, determine solution and delegate the execution Have a Positive mindset with a can-do attitude Resilient and doesn’t bend under pressure Fluent in English and preferably one other European language Regional knowledge and EF Tours experience is a bonus