British Airways Holidays
Head of Long Haul & Head of Short Haul (2 roles)
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Who we are
We’re IAG Loyalty, one organisation with two ambitious, growing divisions across Loyalty and Holidays. Each has its own goals, strategy and team, but together we’re united by a shared vision: to create a more rewarding world of travel and experiences.
Our Holidays division, including British Airways Holidays, connects customers to thousands of destinations worldwide through seamless, end-to-end travel experiences.
Our Loyalty division is responsible for Avios, the global loyalty currency, enabling millions of members to collect and spend rewards across travel, retail and financial services.
We’re on an exciting journey of growth and transformation. We’re going places.
The opportunity ✨
Two leadership opportunities to shape the future of one of the UK’s most diverse holiday destination portfolios are available.
The Product & Sourcing team is at a pivotal point. Ambitious growth plans and continued investment in technology mean we are strengthening our existing leadership capability. We are recruiting for two equivalent leadership roles:
- Head of Long Haul
- Head of Short Haul
These roles have a clear mandate to:
- Accelerate change
- Deliver the next phase of our destination strategies
- Embed new ways of working
- Build on the team’s strong foundations
Working together, these roles will shape the future of the destination portfolio, with each leader managing their own major portfolio.
Role Overview
Reporting to the Head of Product & Sourcing, you will lead either Long Haul or Short Haul destination portfolio, including its strategic portfolio management and sourcing strategy. This role principally involves the British Airways Holidays brand but will expand to encompass other markets and brands over time.
This is a rare opportunity to enhance decision-making in product, sourcing, and commercial priorities. You will be responsible for shaping strategy, modernising workflows, embracing automation, and supporting the introduction of AI and new technology.
This role will enable you to drive measurable commercial success, with significant scope for unlocking further growth. You will work closely with operational leaders to develop destination strategies while maintaining critical partnerships and balancing short-term execution with long-term investment.
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Critical Functions
- Collaborate with destination heads and broader leadership to steer strategy, performance, and alignment with evolving models.
- Operate as a collaborative senior leader, enabling shared outcomes and consistent decision-making processes across the organisation.
Hybrid working: We are based in Crawley with a hybrid model (two days in office, three days remote). Travel is required as and when needed, reflecting flexible and adaptable working practices needed to support business needs.
What you’ll be doing 🌠
Drive Growth & Portfolio Performance
- Lead destination strategies for your area, identifying growth opportunities and creating clear priorities based on market, product, and commercial insights.
- Improve commercial and customer performance by optimising destination selection, development, and management strategies.
- Prioritise effective resource allocation across wide portfolios to maximise value and returns.
Lead Commercial Strategy & Partnerships
- Redesign contracting approaches, driving efficiency and optimising commercial terms for product sourcing.
- Engage in critical partner negotiations to build strong relationships and unlock new growth opportunities.
- Champion transformation initiatives while ensuring seamless continuation of core business operations during changes and new process implementation.
Lead Team Transformation
- Build and develop a high-performing team, fostering commercial focus, adaptability, and clear alignment with strategic goals.
- Consolidate existing capabilities, enhancing team performance and commercial impact over time.
- Foster a collaborative leadership culture, contributing to unified organisational strategy and decision-making processes.
What we want from you 💡
Leadership & Change
- Proven track record in people leadership, with the ability to align and inspire teams during periods of change and rapid evolution.
- Experience shaping organisational growth and transformation by defining direction and driving performance improvements despite evolving priorities.
- Comfortable working with ambiguity, making progress as structures and processes are under development.
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Commercial & Strategic Leadership
- Strong commercial acumen with a proven ability to deliver results in key areas such as sales growth, profit, margins, or portfolio performance.
- A balanced approach to strategy and execution, anticipating future opportunities while maintaining strong operational delivery today.
- Extensive experience making nuanced decisions across complex portfolios, identifying the right areas for investment, optimisation, or rethink.
Influence & Stakeholder Management
- Credible as a senior leader, swiftly building trust and being able to communicate with authority both internally and externally.
- Naturally collaborative and cross-functional, aligning priorities, solving issues, and delivering outcomes that benefit multiple teams.
- Persuasive and influential, comfortable engaging in constructive challenges to accelerate idea-to-action transitions.
Experience & Mindset
- Proven experience in senior destinations, product, sourcing, or commercial leadership roles within the travel sector.
- Strong product and destination expertise, with a proven ability to build, manage, and grow portfolios effectively.
- Pragmatic and results-driven mindset, balancing long-term strategy with rapid execution while embracing advancements like automation and AI for growth.
Application Process
Both Head of Short Haul and Head of Long Haul are open to application. For a single application process, please apply once—you will be automatically considered for either role.
Diversity & Inclusion
Our vision is to create a more rewarding world of travel and experiences, which requires diverse thinking and inclusive leadership.
We are committed to building a workplace where everyone feels they belong and is valued for their unique contributions. Inclusivity drives better decision-making, stronger performance, and innovative outcomes.
We actively encourage applications from diverse backgrounds and are committed to ensuring our recruitment process is fair, inclusive, and accessible.
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