Operations Coordinator

World Challenge trips have been refined over 30 years, with an emphasis on enriching the lives of young people through experiential travel. The World Challenge philosophy is based on a belief that character and perspective are developed through real world experiences. Working in partnership with schools, World Challenge facilitates powerful student led expeditions across the world as a means of providing opportunities for young people to develop crucial life skills, such as leadership, resilience, and self-belief.

With a focus on personal growth, learning service (often through sustainability and nature regeneration initiatives), health and wellbeing, our vision is for young people to return from their World Challenge with a concern for something larger than themselves, an enriched view of self and a newfound confidence to tackle the world!

The Role

Our Operations Coordinators are part of our global team, providing a seamless level of customer support from the point a trip participant signs up, through their Development Journey, and to their return home at the end of the trip. This is a multifaceted role which includes ensuring customer questions are answered, and they are suitably prepared, as well as providing fast-paced problem solving whilst the teams are on their trip.

Key responsibilities

Participant administration & support:

• Communicating by phone and email with parents and students, answering any queries or issues they have prior to departure, and sending out meeting invites as required
• Where customers have missed payments and not responded to automatic email chasers, following up by phone to ensure payments are made within a set time-frame
• Ensuring all participant personal information (including medical information & passport details) is up to date, accurate and approved before departure
• Acting as a point of contact for customer feedback, responding and resolving any issues to deliver the best possible service
• Flight administration tasks, including providing airlines with required traveller information and ensuring all participants are issued with flight tickets

On-trip support:

• Providing customer support for teams when theyre on trips by triaging, handling and recording incidents, ensuring customers receive the highest level of care and support and enabling them to enjoy and participate in their trip. As part of a team and bigger network you could be dealing with a wide range of situations, such as lost passports, ill participants, logistical issues, analysing and acting on live feedback, impact of adverse weather, plus more

Other areas:

• Providing customers with support & training in navigating our online learning system, where required and managing user administration for this system
• Making amends to existing modules and supporting the development of future modules
• Providing adhoc support to the wider Operations team at times where capacity allows and relevant skills and knowledge would add value

Key skills required

Members of the team will be supported with training on our operating procedures, as well as physical and mental first aid, and safeguarding.

Previous experience of a customer support role is preferable, and to be a successful member of the team an individual should:

• Have super organisation skills with the ability to coordinate tasks effectively
• Have excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, with a friendly and professional manner
• The confidence and initiative to identify and implement next steps and actions to ensure your customers are constantly receiving the best service, and to have direct conversations with customers where we require action within a certain timeframe
• Have excellent attention to detail
• Be able to optimally balance workload and react quickly and efficiently to changing priorities
• Have the drive and motivation to constantly ask if there is a better way and to initiate and manage change
• Have a passion for travel and student development

Further information on the on-trip support rota shift system & requirements:

• At times of year where the teams are not travelling, the role is typically Monday Friday, 8.30am 5pm/9.00am 5.30pm. During these periods we operate a hybrid working policy with 3 days in the office and 2 days at home
• When the teams are travelling during our Peak seasons (typically from the end of June until the end of August and November-December) Operations Coordinators will, where required support the UK School Relationship team in staffing a rota shift system. This could include from time to time weekend work. Night shifts are not normally required but some of the hours are outside of the typical 9-5. During these periods all shifts will need to be worked from the office
• During these peak periods, shifts are dependent on time zones but examples will include 7.30am 4.00pm/9.00am 5.30pm/12.30pm 9.00pm
• Weekend shifts are 12-hours, but with 3 rest days given in return, usually on the Thursday and Friday before the weekend, and the Monday after. The usual requirement is that 1 or 2 weekends each month that teams are travelling are required to be worked. As above, no weekends are required when teams are not travelling

We believe people are happier and perform best when they are able to be their true self, and that diverse teams deliver better results.

Together we will cultivate a diverse, equitable and inclusive environment, where everyone can flourish.

We are committed to inspiring change through increasing awareness of, and counteracting, unconscious bias; building an inclusive culture, and embracing diversity in all its dimensions.

Does this sound like an environment that you would like to work in? Then apply today!