• Mahmoud Abdelazim

    Business Development
    Key Account Management
    Sales & Marketing Consultant

    GCC Leisure & Corporate Market Expert

  • Autobiography

    Honestly when I first had the idea to design my online CV; I was not sure if I am to strictly follow the standard protocol of resumes that recruiters see every day; or should it be more personal and somehow different?
    Well, I decided to make it completely different.

     

    “Who is this person?”

     

    I am an Egyptian citizen born in Jeddah; Saudi Arabia. At the age of six; my parents decided to move back to Cairo to raise me and my three older sisters. They enrolled us in one of the best international schools in the town and made sure that we receive proper tutoring. Through my school years ending my diploma; I was a standard average student with a very vibrant mix of interests; yet when it comes to English Literature, History and Mathematics I always excelled. At the age of 18, I reached the life junction, where I had to choose one of the two paths. Either to finalize my diploma in literature or Mathematics and I chose Literature.

     

    After high school; I joined a four years’ bachelor course specialized in Egyptology and Egyptian Archeology. I worked as an archaeologist for over a year until I realized that I will not be the next "Indiana Jones"; facts have opened my eyes to a broader perspective, which ultimately drew my attention to hospitality, particularly revenue and client relationship management, which was elevated at a later stage to sales and marketing, business development and key account management.

     

    In 2003, I joined Starwood hotels and resorts as a management trainee for their revenue division in Egypt followed by a successful career track with several hospitality management marques such as Jumeirah, Per Aquum, Corinthia, and Wyndham. With seventeen years of experience, I gained valuable knowledge in various aspects of business development, key account management, luxurious hospitality Leisure sales, wholesale contracting, revenue management, GCC marketing activities, reservations, and CRM/database maintenance.

     

    During my tenure years, my priority was adapting products, rate plans to satisfy clients’ needs and maintain their satisfaction, manage their relation, and generate revenues. Such a challenging task; yet it had sharpened my skills to the extent that I can describe myself as a highly motivated individual with strong communication and interpersonal skills; a quick learner and a great team player, been described with a “rolled sleeve attitude and a go-getter"; efficient and highly focused on tasks and responsibilities. Of course, my passion for mathematics transcended into my career as I love to speak to numbers as their language delivers no miss interpret, and quantifying achievements is the best milestone.

     

    In conclusion, my key strength is based on developing products, finding the right customer for every product, selling this product at the right and rate. Destination marketing such as Dubai and the Middle East in addition to selling a range of unique European and Asian luxury products for outbound GCC & M.E Leisure segments was my last challenge; however, with the COVID19 affecting the travel industry in a very bad way, I have been made redundant from my last position within the Emirates Group while still in my prohibition period. Something that I have to deal with and look at the positive side, I take this as an opportunity to maybe a career shift or a chance to learn more about a new industry. Currently located in the UAE and Currently available for immediate hiring.

  • Employment History

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    TCA Group Of Companies

    A Leading GCC Hospitality and Tourism Representation

    Associate Director of Business Development 

    Sep 2016 – May 2019

    Responsible and working closely with MD and sales team to drive business needs through sales channels and achieve & exceed monthly, quarterly and yearly targets. Preparing sales targets, budget, sales strategy & business plan. Generating and maintaining major accounts and assigned segments through various sales activities i.e. face to face sales calls, telephone calls, entertainment, sight inspections.

    Evaluating the performance of the sales associates and initiating internal development and promotions.Contribute to the development of company sales initiatives by recommending, implementing and monitoring appropriate local activities. Reviewing direct competition and ensuring complete awareness of competitors’ activities at all times. Establishing and maintaining files of major accounts in the accounts management system.

    Ensuring all plans and activities are implemented to achieve a successful strategy. Building and developing a strong and productive relationship with business partners. Ensuring effective communication with all partners and teams. Source, evaluate, negotiate, and oversee new partnerships with major corporations and government entities across MENA.

    Provide feedback to the company leadership regarding market offerings and prospect needs to generate product development ideas. Plan and coordinate TCA's expansion into new and existing markets. Maintain regular touch points with key partners to ensure their satisfaction. Lead the renewal of existing partnerships. Develop off-the-shelf pitches tailored to the needs of clients and that can bring tangible value to their community.

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    TCA Group Of Companies

    A Leading GCC Hospitality and Tourism Representation

    Senior Account Manager

    Sep 2013 – Sep 2016

    Within this role, I had to develop marketing and sales solutions for all segments of the luxury travel and hospitality industries. That includes but not limited to wholesalers contracting; allocation negotiation; initiate booking lead for individuals; groups, corporate and events. In addition, collaborate with the region’s renown airlines to co-organize travel trade and corporate familiarization trips to our partnered hotels from within the GCC.

    Develop annual sales and marketing action plans, promotional plans, and recommend budget figures per segment including tentative and definite room night/revenue objectives within the market Maintain accurate records on all accounts and build a regional brand presence for our partnered properties. Ascertain and target avenues to accelerate penetration via joint ventures or otherwise. Recommend and evaluate promotional activities, collateral materials, and other sales opportunities addressed to support objectives.

     

    Assist GM’s, Hotel Sales Managers, Director, Global Sales and/or Executive Director, Market Sales in identifying opportunities for participation in local initiatives and activities, and in identifying potential sources of business, scheduling appointments and follow-up on active leads as required. Assist in promotional functions and entertainment for customers as required by the Director, Global Sales and/or Executive Director, Market Sales.Participate in industry trade shows, marketplaces, and promotional functions as determined by the partnered property. Actively participate in prescribed sales training offered by third parties and outside sources. Prepare weekly and monthly sales reports in accordance with reporting guidelines and standards. Actively Include sales activities scheduled for the coming months and relevant sales intelligence that is of a benefit to the partnered property.

  • Special Projects

    Within my role at TCA; I was bestowed to work and contribute on projects to increase the market share of high caliber clients such as:

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    D Maris Bay Hotel Datça Peninsula

    Hidden Gem in Marmaris where luxury meets nature

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    Argos Hotel Cappadocia

    A world Class Boutique Hotel in a marvelous destination

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    Villa Dubrovnik Croatia

    Croatia's most exclusive and most awarded boutique hotel

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    Hotel Villa Magna Madrid

    The City's Most Luxurious Hotel

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    Kulm Hotel St. Moritz

    Switzerland's most iconic Ski Destination

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    Constance Hotels & Resorts

    The Indian Ocean's Luxurious Glitz

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    The Lanesbourough London

    London's luxury reincarnated

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    The Savoy London

    Luxury on River Thames

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    The Leela Hotels

    India's Luxurious Palaces and Resorts

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    Baglioni Hotels

    Italy's most amazing hospitality

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    Conservatorium Hotel Amsterdam

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    Grand Hotel Les Trois Rois

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    Terme Di Saturnia SPA & Gold Resorts

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    Intercontinental London Westminster

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    The Mark Hotel New York

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    Cristallo Hotel, Golf & SPA

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    IncomFrance French Luxury DMC

    Director of Sales & Marketing

    May 2019 - February 2020

    IncomFrance a Luxury Destination Management Company for the French Republic, the team was dedicated to tailoring design exclusive tours in France for VIPs, FITs, Corporate, leisure and MICE Groups, and also book and arrange private jet charters. The Services include and not limited to Villas, private apartment bookings in Cannes, Saint Tropez, Paris, Courchevel, Megève, Deauville. Yachts renting on French Riviera and all over Europe.

    My role was to develop the middle east and GCC market for the agency; sign new contracts for the agency as a prominent supplier and implement strategies to promote the agency and its brand within the B2B travel trade partners. Within six months, we were able to achieve notable monetary milestones from the luxury travel markets especially to destinations such as south of France and Courchevel.

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    Ramada Plaza Jumeirah Beach

    Sales Manager GCC

    Feb 2012 – Aug 2013

    Pre-opening experience with the first managed Wyndham property in the UAE. Responsible for the GCC market including Pre-opening segment action plan, contracted rate structure, opening promotions, key partners contracting and allocations.

     

    Property launch including trade shows, workshops, sales blitz and brochure contribution with reputable GCC agents. Maintain and constant update of GCC database to guarantee that e-mail blasters are beneficial. Develop and shape long-term relationships with GCC tour operators to ensure market penetration; especially with the hotel soft launching during summer which is a GCC peak.


    Arranging and conducting four sales trips per year to ensure covering all potentials from Saudi, Kuwait, Qatar & Bahrain and also ensuring contentious market penetration and updated market intelligence. Select and manage external agencies, consultants and also maintains the product training partially through the use of joint sales calls and offering sales advice.


    Implementing Sales activities in order to drive business from main feeder segment/markets effectively; manage and develop assigned accounts and achieve their set revenue targets respectively. Monitoring market trends; collecting and sharing market intelligence with the team and the management. Ensuring all areas of the GCC segment – contracting, allocations, materialization reports, override agreements and other related formalities are covered as per the segment action plan.

     

    Handling few MICE and incentive houses in Dubai as a minor market to sustain continuity in occupancy levels especially during drop dates; assisting with emerging markets for JBR area, like Chinese and Indian markets; in addition to few CIS (Kazakhstan) DMCs and Wholesalers due to the high similarity in segment characteristics with GCC.

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    Desert Palm Hotel & Resort

    Business Development Manager

    Jun 2010 – Jan 2012

    As a member of a small multi-tasking business development team with a prime responsibility to introduce the brand Per AQUUM into the GCC region; with a specific tailor made a property that suits their needs.
     

    Develop and shape long-term relationships with GCC tour operators and influential journalists to ensure market share and penetration. Strives to achieve targets set forth in the budget for each sales segment in terms of room nights sold and average rate where each result should be examined and influencing factors documented for future reference. Carry out all sales strategies as planned in the annual Marketing Plan, or alters plan depending on shifting market conditions. Monitoring the Advertising and Promotions budget and also Develop effective marketing strategies in line with business objectives. Ensure that monthly activity and Rooms reports are received on time and that the PR, Events planning and marketing activities are delivered according to timeframes. Recommend ways and means of maximizing hotel revenue through rate structure, sales strategies or any other package within the hotel (including Food and Beverage sales). Constantly research all market segments to uncover any and all sources of business for the resort. Manages advertising and promotional efforts to ensure consistency in conjunction with the PR Manager and attends trade shows, blitzes, etc., as per the Marketing plan or as the need arises. Maintain a keen sense of marketplace intelligence of trends and completion in the travel industry in

    order to provide market leading perspectives, emerging trends, tools and techniques that can be effectively utilized to develop and promote the resort.

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    Burj Al Arab Hotel Dubai

    Suite Reservations "Acting Team Leader"

    Dec 2007 – Jun 2010

    The world’s most luxurious hotel with a seven-star service in a total oriented goal which creates the guest's ultimate experience and attend to every single detail of the guests’ logistics; keeping tracks and follow ups on with all concerned departments to ensure that all guest requests are being fulfilled.


    Handling as a part of the team; a massive traffic of e-mails and phone calls with ensuring that the standards for Jumeirah international for telephone etiquette's & protocols are being strictly followed with at least a ninety-five percent efficiency.


    Working on achieving one of the highest budgets for room revenue in the history of hospitality by monitoring the twelve months pick up on daily basis and highlighting any slight variance on business on the books to the executive committee.

    To ensure, through training and constant development that the reservations team provides an efficient accurate and friendly reservations service that would lead to customer satisfaction in order to maximize the revenue to achieve the budgeted and forecasted revenue targets; motivating the reservations team, creating an environment of commitment to financial goals and results and managing status control.

    Handling training and induction plans for new colleagues along with cross-training from other departments or sister hotels plus making sure that they are fully oriented, introduced and aware of the reservations standard of operations and procedures.

    Assisting the hotel revenue management with inputting and uploading rates on Synixs system; plus conducting audits on rate codes from time to time; carrying out market research on selling rates in surrounding properties and competitors, in order to help the management to reach a valid decision on the current selling rates.

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    Starwood Hotels and Resorts

    Management Trainee (Revenue School)

    May 2003 – Dec 2007

    Three years management training with one of the biggest and reputable companies in the hospitality industries that had really and through very experienced mentors crafted & sharpened my knowledge and technical experience especially on the aspect of handling and managing property management systems plus acquiring different product knowledge through dividing my all over three years experience onto 4 different properties as listed below:

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    Al Sondos Suites & Dar Al Sondos Hotel Apartments

    Assistant Reservation Manager

    March 2007 – Dec 2007

    Sub-department head of the reservation department of two different no web integrated properties that are under the same management. Monitoring the pick up, yielding the selling rates, handling the guests complaints concerning their reservations; plus to ensure through training and development that the reservations team provide an efficient accurate and friendly reservations service that would lead to customer satisfaction and to maximize revenue to achieve budgeted and forecasted revenue targets; motivating the reservations team, creating an environment of commitment to financial goals and results and managing status control.

    Inputting and uploading rates codes on PMS and Starnet system; plus conducting audits on rate codes from time to time to ensure accuracy and parity between both systems; carrying out market researches on selling rates for surrounding properties and competitors in order to help the management to reach a valid decision on the current selling rates.

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    Le Meridien Heliopolis Hotel (Cairo, Egypt)

    Reservation Sales Agent

    Apr 2006 – Mar 2007

    After Starwood hotels acquired the new brand Le Meridien a new role was created for me which was mainly helping the revenue manager to integrate & introduce the new policies and procedures of Starwood Hotels for the existing staff in le Meridien plus handling massive traffic of faxes, emails & telephone calls; uploading reservations on the PMS, preparing the daily arrival file, handling the pick up and cancellation reports, handling Internet reservations in a no web integrated property, keeping a good relation and retention with travel agents and corporate accounts, selling the hotel on the drop dates.
     

    Also had the chance to train at the revenue department as a revenue coordinator, getting acknowledged with the revenue field, attending all revenue related meetings, assisting the revenue manager with the daily, weekly, monthly & annual revenue reports.

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    Sheraton Sharm Hotel, Resort and Spa

    Reservation Sales Agent

    Apr 2006 – Mar 2007

    Receiving reservation calls from individuals & travel agents, uploading reservations on the system, preparing the daily arrival file, keeping a good relation and retention with travel agents, selling the hotel on the drop dates and assisting the director of revenue with the monthly and annual revenue reports.

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    El Gezira Sheraton Hotel, Tower, and Casino

    Group Coordinator

    Apr 2004 – Mar 2005

    Handling the groups' reservations and easing their Check In., keeping a good relation and retention with travel agents, selling the hotel on drop dates, handling the inspections in the hotel for the prospective new travel agents.

    • What people I worked with have to say ?

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    Sven Flory

    Regional Director of Business Development for the Giardino Group

    Mahmoud is a true sales professional with an amazing network in the industry! Besides being a joy to work with, Mahmoud is a take-charge person who is able to present and communicate the USP's of the Atlantis by Giardino in a fantastic way. He has successfully developed several sales strategies that have resulted in increased annual revenue. The new revenue was a direct result of the sales and marketing actions implemented by Mahmoud. He is a team player and would make a great asset to any organization.

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    Lorenzo Amaglio

    Managing Director - Chenot Palace Health Wellness Resort

    I met Mahmoud a few years ago and we started a collaboration-type consultancy for my hotel.
    Mahmoud is honest and forthright in all of his business dealings. He is reliable, dedicated to his work. He has my highest recommendation. I believe that Mahmoud will make a valuable addition to any organization that he may join.

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    Nadja Majid

    Vice President of Business Development at Oasis Collections Vacation Rentals

    Mahmoud was an asset during Oasis's relationship with TCA. He quickly got up to speed on our unique product and filtered through his clients to find the ones that were the best fit for Oasis. Even working together over long distances, I never felt there was a gap in his timeliness or responsiveness. Mahmoud and the rest of the TCA team delivered the highest level of client service and relationship management.

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    Head of Client Relations

    I have had the pleasure of working with Mahmoud in his role at TCA as representation, of the Grand Hotel Park, Gstaad on the Middle East Market. I have always found Mahmoud to be an excellent salesperson with extensive knowledge of key clients and established relationships. He has very good interpersonal skills, is hard working and dedicated, I would not hesitate to recommend him; he is a great asset to any team

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    Regional Director of Sales

    I have recruited Mahmoud for the pre-opening of the JBR property with the task of introducing and creating awareness in the GCC market. Mahmoud carried out his tasks completely and went the extra mile to deliver impressive results in the first year of operation and subsequently, creating loyalty from his clients to the hotel. Mahmoud has outstanding communication & Sales skills. He is able to manage multiple projects and tasks while delivering on time results. I would highly recommend Mahmoud for potential career placement as he will be an asset to any organization

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    Director of Sales and Marketing

    Mahmoud is a great asset to any Sales Team. I have seen many examples of his talent and have long been impressed by his diligence and work ethic. Mahmoud has outstanding organizational skills. He is able to successfully complete multiple tasks with favorable results despite deadline pressure. He developed a great rapport with his customers and colleagues. He ensured Property opening success by demonstrating leadership abilities that his Colleagues respected a lot

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    Nitya Acharya

    Senior Manager Contracting & Product at Royal Arabian Tours

    Experienced, results-oriented and forward-thinking salesperson & strategist, Mahmoud possesses an exceptionally comprehensive knowledge of the market. He is very well established with all key players in the region, very well connected with his hotelier-peers and truly appreciated by his colleagues. Mahmoud is one among the few professional sales persons I have come across in this industry, we have shared a good business relation ship for years and all along he has maintained his commitment to his work and to his clients. He has been a good support to me at all times and today I consider him a good friend in this industry. A very efficient, dedicated and good client relationship manager, I would recommend Mahmoud at any given time

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    Executive Chef

    With excellent work ethics and dedication, Mahmoud is the perfect example on how to serve the guests better and make them remember they've been well taken care of. Mahmoud has always shown true professionalism coordinating with the Kitchen department on last minute requirements, going in details and following up with precision, simply as if he was the guest taking matters in his own hands, whether at work or on his days off. Above all, and regardless of the urgency of any situations, Mahmoud always expresses himself positively and knows how to listen; those are two aspects one can tell by first meeting with Mahmoud, resulting in confidence and trust when approaching him.

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    Asia Regional Consultant Hospitality & Leisure

    Mahmoud and I worked together in Burj Al Arab. He was our "go to" whenever our team needs the Rooms Division support and not only that he is prompt, he has always been very detailed and proactive. He knows our hotel and clients inside out and has earned the respect of his colleagues through his dedication. I am happy to witness his great progress throughout this year and definitely, hope we will have the chance to work together again in the future. I am confident that his future employers will not be disappointed

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    Groups and Events Sales Executive at Dorchester Collection

    It was a great pleasure to work with Mahmoud, he was a dynamic member of the reservation team and was always willing to go the extra mile to make the sales-reservation requests go as smooth as possible. Very pleasant to work with a skilful, sense of humor and professional person. I wish him the best of luck in his career!

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    Director of Front Office Operations

    I have known Mahmoud for the last 8 years since we start working together in Sheraton Sharm Al Shaikh, since he started as reservation agent he showed quick learning skill and added to the team. Mahmoud is a highly motivated and qualified professional with experience in all aspects of sales, reservation, and revenue. he is dynamic, highly motivated and team player which can add to any team he join

  • How to Reach Me?

    +971502289390

    +971502289390

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    United Arab Emirates

  • Send Your Inquiry