Director of Banquets - Vietnamese only

The Fairmont Hanoi will open in the Vietnamese capital before year end of 2025, making it the first Fairmont brand in the country. The 241-room luxury hotel will take design inspiration from the art of lacquer with the traditional colours of Vietnam, the Indochinese style from the French colonial period, and draws motifs from Vietnam’s dynasties. Positioned as an urban resort, our guests will be able to enjoy a very special and unique range of offerings such as eight dining and bar venues including a rooftop terrace, as well as two indoor and outdoor swimming pools, an extensive gym and an entire floor of wellness spa and bathhouse. For corporate and social groups, the Fairmont Hanoi will offer three ballrooms, the largest being a 1,100m2 grand ballroom as well as nine meeting rooms, making it an outstanding destination for meetings, conferencing and events. The Fairmont Hanoi is set to become the social epicentre of Hanoi!

This position is responsible for the supervision and management of Banqueting operations to maximize guest satisfaction and department profits.

Banquet Operation

• To work closely with Sales colleagues in respect of requests for inspection, or care of walk-in potential clients, coordinate for the banquet events.
• To be a sales champion for the hotel, generating and following up on business referrals and potential sales leads to maximize business for the hotel.
• To assist in the design and implementation of attractive banquet packages and ways to promote them
• Coordinates with the purchasing department of the hotel for specific purchasing requirements relating to the Banqueting.
• Work with the culinary team to create attractive food products, presentations and improve food quality that support the image of the hotel
• Develop and maintain the policies and standards of Banquet Operations
• To have full knowledgeable of the following:  Function room capacities and various set ups, available space and rental charges, Menus and pricing, Guarantee policy, Cancellation policy, Payment policy, Corkage fees, Miscellaneous pricing (floral, entertainment, etc), Shipping receiving policies
• Post Event – to contact clients after scheduled functions to ensure guest satisfaction and to solicit rebooking
• To monitor, handle and process all billing/ payment procedures according to Accounting standards.
• Implement safety and emergency procedures when necessary
• Supervise the maintenance of all public areas to be presentable with specific set-ups at all times
• Maintain the inventory stock of all equipment on and off the property
• Ensure proper care, security and maintenance of Banquet equipment through proper supervision of service personnel, including outside contractors

Team Management

• Interview, select and recruit Banquet employees
• Identify and develop team members with potential
• Conduct performance review with the team
• Constantly monitor team members’ appearance, attitude and degree of professionalism
• Develop, conduct maintain all staff training programs for team members, focusing on their development needs, providing them with new skills to meet the changing needs of the business
• Prepare weekly staff schedules keeping in mind anticipated business, operating budgets and standards of service
• Conduct monthly departmental meetings to provide information to team members, obtain their feedback, rectify operation issues and provide a regular forum for department communication
• Manage organization and cleanliness of departmental areas by conducting weekly walk through with Hygiene Manager, Housekeeping and Engineering Department
• Perform other duties assigned by the Head of Department

Knowledge and Experience

• Diploma in Hospitality Management/Food & Beverage preferred
• Additional certification(s) in Food & Beverage will be an advantage
• Experienced in all aspects of banquet service.
• Minimum 3 years of relevant experience in a similar capacity with proven records in delivering banquet operating results
• Excellent reading, writing and oral proficiency in English language
• Good working knowledge of MS Excel, Word, & PowerPoint

Competencies

• Strong leadership, interpersonal and training skills
• Good communication and customer contact skills
• Results and service oriented with an eye for details
• Ability to multi-task, work well in stressful & high-pressure situations
• A team player & builder
• A motivator & self-starter
• Well-presented and professionally groomed at all times