Pierre Smit

As Market Team Manager, I lead both the commercial performance and people development within the Accommodations division.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead and develop a team of Account Managers and Account Executives, fostering a high-performance, accountable, and engaged team culture.
• Analyse key market trends, performance indicators, and external data to identify commercial opportunities and challenges, and develop actionable strategies to drive sustainable market growth.
• Execute strategic plans to increase hotel availability and supply, supporting Booking.com’s commercial objectives across high-demand destinations.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with hotel partners, providing tailored support and strategic guidance to achieve mutual business success.
• Deliver regular forecasting, reporting, and market insights to senior leadership, ensuring alignment with regional performance goals and company targets.
• Facilitate collaboration across internal teams and peer groups, promoting knowledge sharing, coaching, and skill development to drive cross-regional success.
• Organise partner and industry engagement events to strengthen the Booking.com brand and foster partner loyalty.
• Support talent management processes, including performance reviews, career development, and organisational initiatives.

As Account Manager, I was responsible for managing a portfolio of hotel partners, driving their commercial performance on the Booking.com platform, and ensuring an outstanding customer experience.

Key Responsibilities:

• Informed and consulted hotel partners on their business performance, market opportunities, and industry trends to support growth and competitiveness.
• Empowered hotel partners to effectively use Booking.com systems, tools, and available products to optimise their results.
• Identified and articulated hotel partner needs, providing tailored solutions to improve partner success and customer satisfaction.
• Developed and positioned commercial strategies to maximise partner performance and Booking.com platform engagement.
• Focused on optimising hotel partner performance, enhancing availability, rates, and content to deliver an exceptional experience for Booking.com’s customers.
• Provided regular reporting and performance feedback to partners, ensuring ongoing improvement and alignment with mutual goals.

Reason for Change:
Promoted to Senior Account Manager (now Market Team Manager)

As Junior Account Manager, I focused on expanding Booking.com’s partner network across key African markets, supporting hotel partners and driving brand presence.

Key Responsibilities:

• Acquired new hotel partners in Kenya, Namibia, Tanzania, Mauritius, and Seychelles to grow Booking.com’s footprint in these regions.
• Empowered hotel partners to effectively use Booking.com systems, tools, and available products to optimise their performance.
• Built the Booking.com brand presence in new and developing markets through partner engagement and strategic relationship building.
• Represented Booking.com at key hospitality events, industry workshops, and partner meetings to promote the platform and strengthen market relationships.
• Focused on optimising hotel partner performance, enhancing availability, rates, and content to create an exceptional experience for Booking.com’s customers.
• Provided regular reporting and feedback to partners to support continuous growth and performance improvement.

Reason for Change:
Promoted to Account Manager