Guest Experience Specialist (Contracted position)

Vancouver Aquarium, one of the many properties owned by Herschend Family Entertainment, prides itself on working towards bringing families closer together and to creating memories worth repeating. Our Core Values – greatly exceeding guest expectations, serving others, creating emotional connections, constantly improving – give us purpose and guidance.

SUMMARY:

Reporting to the Manager of Guest Experience & Community Outreach, this role is responsible for maintaining the highest standards of the Guest Experience philosophy, working with the Guest Experience Coordinator team, Assistant Guest Experience Managers, and Manager of Guest Experience & Community Outreach to deliver our brand promise to guests and colleagues. The Specialist, Guest Experience, supports the administrative operations of the Guest Experience department, develop Guest Experience training modules, coordinates and facilitates team members training, and acts as a liaison between Guest Experience department and operational departments.

ACCOUNTABILITIES:

Represent the Vancouver Aquarium through providing exceptional service:

• Meets and greets guests, members, self-directed groups, commercial groups, and community program participants.


• Responds to questions from guests about the Aquarium, Stanley Park, and other places of interest for tourists and residents.


• Provides information about the facility, exhibits, programs, and events.


• Develops and delivers Guest Experience training program, including communicating new procedures.

Assist with check-in of admission, group and/or membership sales into the Point-Of-Sale system:

• Verifies guests, members, and group tickets accurately by scanning e-tickets through point of sales system.


• Retrieves guest booking through the back-end system to assist guest and staff, receive payment for on-site sales.


• Processes self-directed and commercial groups and review behaviour policy with group leaders.


• Performs all voids, till corrections, refunds, and other controlled sales transactions.

Provide support to the Guest Experience Team:

• Serves as the primary training coordinator and facilitator for the Guest Experience department, designing and delivering onboarding programs for new team members and ongoing professional development for existing staff.


• Develops, updates, and delivers training modules when new procedures, services, or guest experiences are introduced, ensuring consistent implementation across all touchpoints.


• Utilizes strong verbal and written communication skills to translate operational procedures into clear, engaging training materials that support team success.


• In coordination with the Manager, Guest Experience & Community Outreach, develops and continuously refines standard operating procedures (SOPs) that serve as the foundation for training curricula and the Guest Experience Associate & Supervisors Handbooks.


• Creates and maintains training documentation, visual aids, and reference materials that enable team members to deliver exceptional guest experiences consistently.


• Facilitates onboarding and offboarding processes, including coordinating IT access, access cards, Point of Sale system setup, and other essential resources through Jira ticket requests.


• Ensures all team members have the required tools, training, and ongoing support to perform efficiently and confidently, including managing uniform supplies and office resources.


• Acts as Duty Manager when required, demonstrating leadership and decision-making capabilities.


• Responds professionally to guest inquiries and concerns through shared email inboxes and liaises with the Call Centre team, modeling excellent written communication standards.

Improves organizational processes:

• Maintains and supports organizational safety standards and ensure all Guest Experience Associates are well versed.


• Assists with emergency protocols as required.


• Performs additional duties of a similar nature or level as required.

JOB REQUIREMENTS:

• Minimum 2 years of previous experience in tourism, customer service, retail, or related experience.


• Has extensive experience leading, coaching, and training team members.


• Accuracy, precision, attention to detail, and strong organizational skills.


• Excellent customer service, interpersonal skills


• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.


• Proven experience developing training programs and standard operating procedures that drive consistency and operational excellence.


• Experience leading, coaching, mentoring, and training team members in fast-paced guest service environments.


• Acts as Duty Manager when required.


• Assists with the opening and closing procedures for all Guest Experience areas.


• Assists with onboarding and offboarding, submitting Jira ticket requests for IT, Access Card, Point Of Sales, etc.


• Responds to guest inquiries and concerns through shared email inboxes and liaise with Call Centre team.


• Ability to operate a cash register and computer-based Point of Sale system.


• Intermediate proficiency in Microsoft Office 365 programs: Teams Shifts, Outlook, Excel, Word


• Ability to multi-task, learn, and adapt in a fast-paced environment.


• Bi-lingual is an asset.


• Ability to stand and work outdoors and operate a POS database for extended periods.


• Ability to safely reach, stretch, and bend on a regular basis.

Salary Range: $22 - $32/hour