Director Commercial Operations

Role Description

Booking.com’s Accommodations Business Unit (ABU) is responsible for the end-to-end performance of the accommodations vertical, driving growth by developing, building, and operating products and services for travelers and accommodation partners worldwide. ABU brings together Product, Tech & Data, Local Partner Services, and Commercial Growth & Operations (CoGO) to deliver a seamless experience across the full customer and partner journey, from search and booking to stay and post-trip.

Within ABU, CoGO (Commercial Growth & Operations) is the central “commercial engine & cockpit” for the business, operating under the vision of “Run the business; Deliver the growth.” CoGO defines and steers ABU’s commercial strategy across all partner and traveler segments, acting as the bridge between relevant stakeholder teams to ensure coherent, data-driven growth plans and consistent execution across drivers and regions. Organized into specialized teams, CoGO combines strategic steering with operational execution to drive sustainable, segment-specific growth at global scale.

About the role

Reporting into the VP Commercial Growth & Operations, the Director of Commercial Operations will lead a cross-functional organization of 70+ FTEs dedicated to the success and operational excellence of partner-facing teams and partners globally.

You will oversee the end-to-end operations lifecycle — from internal operating models and CRM transformation to global inbound support and centralized operations.

Your mission is to modernize the operations ecosystem, including leading a multi-year transition to Salesforce while ensuring 1,500+ global colleagues working with partners daily have the tools, knowledge, and processes to drive world-class partner relationships through AI acceleration.

Within this role, you are responsible for 3 key domains:

1. Development & Enablement of Local Partner Services (LPS) operating model

There are 1,500+ colleagues globally managing relationships with top partners. The Development team manages core processes, CRM, ways of working, and learning, while the Enablement team is responsible for change management, communications, and knowledge management. These teams currently manage a transformational program focused on the LPS way of operating for the next 3+ years, including a move from internal to outsourced tooling such as Salesforce.

2. Partner inbound experience

This team leads how partners are served across partner-facing departments, including service differentiation, continuous improvement on inbound performance, and management specifically for the LPS channel.

3. Global Operations

This team directly supports operational support for top partners across the globe, for example bulk tooling and activities, as well as centrally led operational activities such as partner contracting and tooling support.

This is a unique opportunity to steer a major organizational shift. You are not just managing a team; you are rebuilding the engine that powers global partner relationships for the next decade.

Key Responsibilities

1. Strategic Transformation & Account Management Development

• Set and lead the Operational Excellence strategy across Process & Systems, Reporting and Performance.
• Direct the 3+ year transformation program focused on the LPS operating model, specifically overseeing the transition from legacy internal tools to Salesforce.
• Develop a multi-year roadmap and annual objectives that maximize the performance and impact of the 1,500+ global colleagues using these systems.
• Partner with Product and Tech teams to embed LPS processes into CRM workflows (Salesforce).
• Own, develop and operationalize KPI frameworks and incentive schemes that align LPS teams with business priorities.
• Ensure Commercial Learning frameworks are in place that enable partner-facing teams in their day to day; this function also supports central ABU commercial teams.
• Ensure robust reporting is in place for all layers of leadership, providing a 360° view of productivity, partner satisfaction, and performance.

2. Global Enablement & Change Leadership

• Lead the Enablement team responsible for Change Management, Communications, and Knowledge Management to ensure high adoption of new ways of working for partner-facing teams, while enabling management and central ABU teams with methodologies to deliver against these changes.
• Proactively drive a strategic approach to change, ensuring the global and regional organization understands the why and how behind large-scale tooling and process shifts.

3. Partner Inbound Experience & Performance

• Lead the strategy for how partners are served across all partner-facing departments: CS, Finance and LPS. Define service differentiation models.
• Drive continuous improvement on inbound performance (SLAs, resolution quality) specifically for the LPS channel.
• Ensure inbound demand is routed to the right channel with high-quality service and fast resolution time.

4. Centralized Global Operations

• Manage the team providing direct operational support for top partners, including bulk tooling, partner contracting, and centralized technical support.
• Define annual FTE and capability needs to ensure global business objectives are met, working closely with Finance and People teams.
• Identify and automate repetitive operational tasks to allow regional teams to focus on relationship management and portfolio growth.

6. Cross-Functional & Regional Leadership

• Serve as the primary bridge between Regional Directors and Global functions, ensuring feedback loops from the field reach the central strategy.
• Partner with the Director Commercial Regulatory Compliance and the Senior Director of Revenue Management to ensure all processes, incentives, and bonus frameworks remain compliant with local regulations.
• Work with various Business Units, such as CS and Finance, to remove operational friction and drive sustainable improvements and experience excellence.
• As a member of the Commercial Growth & Operations Leadership Team, support the seamless delivery of the organization’s overall objectives and contribute to the longer-term commercial growth strategy definition and execution.

Key Skills

Requirements of special knowledge/skills

• Experience: 12+ years in Commercial Operations, Sales Ops, or Operational Excellence within large, complex organizations.
• Leadership: Proven track record of managing large, geographically diverse teams (70+ FTE).
• Transformation Expert: Demonstrated experience leading large-scale CRM migrations (Salesforce) and multi-year organizational change programs.
• Operational Excellence: Deep expertise in Business Process Management (BPM), Knowledge Management, and Performance/Reward frameworks.
• Strategic Influence: Ability to manage complex stakeholder landscapes and influence executive-level decision-making.
• Analytical Rigor: Ability to interpret complex data to make strategic recommendations and drive first-time-right resolution strategies.
• Industry: Exposure to online travel, technology, or e-commerce is highly preferred.

Leadership & Impact

• Team Leadership: Directly manage and mentor 4 (Senior) Managers, providing career development and strategic direction for a total organization of 70+ and indirectly the LPS teams.
• Stakeholder Management: Act as a key advisor to executive leadership on the health and efficiency of partner-facing operations, including the enablement of regional leadership and key stakeholders such as CS and Finance leadership.

Transformation Lead: Serve as the primary architect for the 3+ year LPS transformation roadmap.