Assistant Travel Operations Manager

Job Title - Assistant Manager Travel Operations

Department - Travel Operations

Location Gurgaon

Reporting To - AVP Travel Operations

Job Summary

We are seeking a proactive and detail-oriented Assistant Manager Travel Operations to manage end-to-end corporate travel operations, ensuring seamless delivery of travel services across the organisation. The role will be responsible for flight and hotel bookings, visa coordination, travel reporting (MIS), accrual management, vendor engagement, policy compliance, and traveller support while driving operational excellence and cost optimisation.

Key Responsibilities

Travel Operations Management

• Manage end-to-end domestic and international travel arrangements for employees.
• Coordinate flight, hotel, ground transportation, and other travel-related bookings through approved travel management companies (TMCs).
• Ensure adherence to corporate travel policies and approval workflows.
• Support travellers with itinerary changes, cancellations, emergency travel requirements, and travel-related queries.

Visa & Immigration Support

• Coordinate visa processing for business travellers across multiple geographies.
• Manage visa documentation, invitation letters, cover letters, appointment scheduling, and application tracking.
• Liaise with embassies, consulates, immigration partners, and visa service providers.
• Maintain visa records and provide updates to travellers and stakeholders.

Travel MIS & Reporting

• Prepare and publish periodic Travel MIS reports and dashboards.
• Analyse travel spend, booking trends, savings, policy compliance, transaction volumes, and vendor performance.
• Support data-driven decision-making through actionable travel insights.

Financial Management & Accruals

• Manage monthly travel accruals and reconciliation activities.
• Coordinate with Finance teams to ensure accurate expense reporting and budget tracking.
• Validate invoices, monitor outstanding payments, and resolve billing discrepancies.
• Support month-end and year-end financial closure activities related to travel expenditure.

Vendor & Stakeholder Management

• Act as the primary point of contact for travel agencies, airlines, hotels, visa vendors, and other travel partners.
• Monitor vendor SLAs and service performance.
• Drive continuous improvements in travel processes and traveller experience.
• Collaborate with HR, Finance, Procurement, and business stakeholders.

Governance & Compliance

• Ensure compliance with company travel policies and audit requirements.
• Maintain travel-related documentation, records, and approval trails.
• Support internal and external audits by providing required data and reports.
• Identify process improvement opportunities and implement best practices.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Hospitality, Tourism, or a related field.
• 5-8 years of experience in Corporate Travel Operations, Travel Management, or Business Travel Services.
• Experience managing international travel, visa processes, and travel vendors.

Preferred Skills

• Strong knowledge of corporate travel operations and travel policies.
• Strong understanding of travel MIS, reporting, and analytics.
• Knowledge of accruals, reconciliation, and financial reporting processes.
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills.
• Advanced proficiency in MS Excel.
• Strong organisational, problem-solving, and multitasking abilities.

Key Success Metrics

• Travel booking accuracy and turnaround time.
• Visa processing success rate and compliance.
• MIS reporting accuracy and timeliness.
• Accrual management and financial reconciliation accuracy.
• Vendor SLA adherence.
• Traveller satisfaction and service quality.

Policy compliance and audit readiness