Sr. Director, Training and Development (Hybrid) (Finance)

Job Description Summary

The Senior Director of Training and Development is responsible for the leadership, effectiveness and productivity of the overall Sonesta International Hotel Corporation training organization. The role's primary responsibility is to set strategy and drive results for Sonesta for our corporate office, managed hotels and franchise hotels. This critical position, on the Sonesta HR leadership team, is charged with providing strategic vision, tactical design, facilitation and active management of a training organization tasked with driving the learning requirements, training solutions, delivery methods and measurement of training across Sonesta. This person is also responsible for the strategy, program management and administration of our programs and tools - including our Learning Management Systems, Predictive Index programs and a variety of training design tools.

The ideal candidate has a passion for building skills and expertise in the organization to drive Sonesta's success, in particular in how we manage our business and employees and how we serve our guests. The ideal candidate should excel at training consultation, project management, developing training solutions (Instructor led and eLearning) that drive business success through strategic thinking, flawless execution, partnership and collaboration and balancing competing priorities.

This role is 3 days onsite M/T/Th and 2 days remote.

Job Description

Principle duties and responsibilities:

Training

• Develops training and development strategy and curricula, partnering with senior leaders for both corporate and hotel management. Ensures training programs support the changing needs of the business and address new initiatives, with an emphasis on current trends and practices. Utilize innovative practices, research, insight, experience and understanding of the needs and culture of Sonesta to develop and deliver instructor led, e-learning, or blended learning training programs to develop leadership, communication, service, performance and productivity skills.
  • Operational training programs - ensuring the organization has a meaningful and effective skill-based training strategy for all key positions.
  • Leadership and Executive training and on-boarding solutions - including soft skill development.
  • Evolve/enhance new hire program offerings; new hire onboarding and orientation programs to drive culture, service, brand and employee engagement.
  • Integral member of the transition team for any acquisitions and conversions. Acts as the lead for all training needs and will likely be acting in the capacity of trainer.
• Designs and implements distance learning strategies, including virtual classroom learning and self-paced web-based training for both service and professional/management development training topics.
• Partnerships:
  • Legal: Ensures all educational content and programs are current and have gone through proper legal and regulatory review cycles and ensures all assets are secure, centralized and protected.
  • Subject Matter Experts: Identify and develop subject matter experts (SMEs) as well as trainers and partner with these individuals to deploy training and development programs throughout Sonesta.
  • Facilitators: Partner with Trainers, Hotel HRDs and SMEs to deploy all training and development programs.
• Assist with a variety of other special assignments to support L&D efforts across the organization. This includes all service, brand, and culture training as well as functional or department training initiatives.
• Ensure that all development programs meet stated objectives by analyzing metrics and business impact.
• Evaluate, select and manage tools and resources (LMS) to support the training initiatives. This will include the LMS, design tools, content, and employee tracking for all Sonesta.

Budget

• Contribute to the development of the annual budget each year for the management of company and hotel budgetary guidance.
• Track and manage financials to ensure we are on target for expenses and revenue.

Managing your Team

• Attract, retain, train, and motivate the best talent.
• Ensure team members receive proper training applicable to their position and career aspirations and in accordance with company policy and/or local laws.
• Responsible for monitoring, measuring, and recognizing the performance of team members. who directly report to the role and indirect reports.
• Support, comply with and promote company initiatives, policies, and guidelines.
• Handle employee issues in a professional and timely manner.

Leading with Passion

• Responsible for ensuring training solutions success through the eyes of employees, guests, and owners.
• Utilize and collaborate with resources across different departments and corporate offices.
• Capable of influencing employees to perform to their highest standard and establishing a trusting environment to enrich the culture.
• Focus on the mission and well-being of the department, hotel, and company as a whole.
• Lead by example and operate with integrity and respect.
• Inspire your team to embrace and demonstrate our values and GUEST People Standards.

Additional Job Information/Anticipated

Pay Range

Qualifications and Skills

A candidate for this position must possess the following applicable knowledge, skills and abilities and be able to demonstrate and provide applicable examples to support his/her competency.

• Track record of delivering exceptional employee training experiences.
• Must have a bias for action and be passionate about bringing initiatives "over the finish line".
• Minimum of 10 years of relevant experience including work in a multi-site, matrixed organization(s) preferred. 5-8 of those years must be in the areas of leadership development, needs assessment, instructional design/content development within a corporate learning & development setting.
• Capability of working autonomously or as part of a team with a 'sleeves rolled up' approach and in a collaborative manner. Comfortable at 30,000 feet and at 30 feet.
• Experience with assessments, i.e., Predictive Index or other assessments to help learners gain insights and awareness regarding themselves and their teams.
• Coaching and strong influencing skills are mandatory as well as being comfortable interacting with all levels of associates.
• Experience with E-learning systems and Learning Management Systems.
• Experience adapting and incorporating social media into learning solutions to ensure that Sonesta employees have an exceptional learning experience.
• Executive presence, customer relations skills, and proven track record of respect and connections with field organizations.
• Highly collaborative with strong interpersonal skills to successfully work across the organization.
• Strong business acumen, with experience preferably in Hospitality, Hotels and Franchising businesses.
• Excellent verbal/written communications skills.
• Attention to detail and excellent organizational skills are required.
• Highly developed analytical skills and data savvy.
• Flexible, highly adaptable to change with intellectual curiosity.
• Strong interpersonal skills and emotional intelligence.
• Ability to travel frequently (35 - 50%).
• Proficient in Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint, LMS, training development tools and Avatars and AI tools

Benefits

Sonesta recognizes that benefits play a vital role in helping ensure the health and financial security of employees and their families. We offer a variety of benefits to our employees including:

• Medical, Dental and Vision Insurance
• Health Savings Account with Company Match
• 401(k) Retirement Plan with Company Match
• Paid Vacation and Sick Days
• Sonesta Hotel Discounts
• Educational Assistance
• Paid Parental Leave
• Company Paid Life Insurance
• Company Paid Short Term and Long Term Disability Insurance
• Various Employee Perks and Discounts
• Hospital Indemnity
• Critical Illness Insurance
• Accident Insurance

Sonesta is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status.

Upon submitting your application, please ensure you complete a full application in addition to attaching a resume. Incomplete applications received will not be considered.