Director, A&D - Hospitality

Candidates considered for this position will need to be based in the United States. Candidates in the Chicago, New York, Atlanta, Miami, Dallas, Los Angeles, Washington D.C. metro, and Boston markets are highly preferred. 

 

Role Description:

 

The Director, Architecture & Design, Kimball Hospitality (KH) will develop and execute a detailed strategy to drive awareness and elevate the KH brand within the hospitality A+D community. This is a business development role to drive growth in our Custom business by forging new relationships and creating new opportunities that KH would otherwise be unaware of.

 

Leveraging relationships from past roles in the industry, relationships garnered through our independent rep force, and new relationships, this individual will uncover new custom opportunities for Kimball Hospitality.

 

The successful candidate will have enough gravitas to open doors for KH with A+D industry leaders. Once a winning approach to the A+D market is identified, the goal will be to leverage the learnings and expand the team over time. 

 

This position reports directly to the President of Kimball Hospitality.

 

Responsibilities:

• Elevate KH brand position broadly across the A+D community
• Develop and maintain a hit list of A+D firms in North America with which we would like to grow awareness and create profitable opportunities
• Research alternate market verticals and shape KH strategy to grow this go-to-market if we determine it to be a growth opportunity
• Contribute to the development and/or changes to marketing and collateral and sample development geared toward A+D
• Grow pipeline for custom opportunities with the targeted A+D firms
• Be KH’s Subject Matter Expert (SME) in understanding hospitality industry trends and pain points to position KH as a market leader
• Key contributor in the development and support of sales approaches and communication of key brand initiatives and alignment with our internal sales team and rep force
• Develop a working cadence/meeting (both strategic and tactical) with the Custom sales director and independent rep force
• Work closely with Marketing and Management on a consistent basis to ensure the A+D Program is in alignment with goals of KH, serving to inform the Kimball Hospitality and D’Style brands on marketplace trends, thought leadership and industry insight
• Extensive travel is necessary to be successful in this role. Responsible for attending after hours networking and social events on a frequent basis
• Provide continuous updates on A+D efforts, leading to specifications / forecasted opportunities / improved close rate metrics and most importantly increased project sales
• Work with KH personnel and KH reps on critical Model Rooms and provide support, where needed
• Work with the marketing team to manage the marketing budget earmarked for the A+D strategy
• Provide insight on tradeshow booth designs
• Attend industry tradeshows to support the KH brand

 

Skills to Perform This Role:

 

Interpersonal Skills

• Passionate, creative, dedicated, reliable, insightful, and genuine personality
• Ability to lead multiple personality types without formal authority
• Stay connected with team to ensure cohesiveness and a healthy team environment

Communication Skills

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Foster relationships with targeted firms
• Ability to demonstrate and communicate the scope of KH’s experience and expertise to help designers in the nuances of hospitality furniture construction techniques and what sets KH apart from the competition

Leadership Skills

• Ability to lead and influence the A+D community and our customers on the value of doing business with Kimball Hospitality
• Ability to function as the A+D leader in conjunction with the internal and external sales teams, as it relates to the design community
• Proven history or ability to demonstrate safe / responsible behavior, and a positive performance record

Business Skills

• Promote strategic and tactical opportunity planning through consistent communication with immediate team members and internal members
• Solid understanding of the importance of profitable sales growth; financially-minded steward of the organization 

Technical Skills

• Strong Design Background
• Understanding of the hospitality design and development process

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