Senior IATA Ticketing & Corporate Travel Specialist

Job Title: Senior IATA Ticketing & Corporate Travel Specialist Location: Abu Dhabi, UAE About the Company We are a dynamic and fast-growing AI & IT company specialising in cutting-edge technology solutions for businesses of all sizes. As we continue to expand, we are seeking a highly skilled, detail-oriented, and motivated Senior IATA Ticketing & Corporate Travel Specialist to join our team. Role Objective We are seeking a highly experienced travel professional to help establish and operate our in-house travel agency and corporate travel function. This is not a basic reservation-agent position. The successful candidate must have strong hands-on expertise in IATA ticketing, BSP operations, GDS systems, international airfare optimization, complex ticket servicing, airline relationships, hotel contracting and global hotel loyalty programs. Our objective is to build a professional travel operation capable of securing the best combination of: Airfare Flexibility Refundability Change conditions Routing Baggage Corporate benefits Hotel rates Loyalty benefits VIP traveler experience Across worldwide travel. Mandatory Qualifications Candidates must demonstrate: IATA / Airline Ticketing Recognized professional airline reservation and ticketing training/certification Strong knowledge of IATA ticketing procedures Practical experience working within an IATA-accredited travel agency Strong knowledge of BSP and BSPlink Experience with airline ticketing authorities Understanding of BSP reporting and settlement Experience managing ADMs and ACMs Minimum 3–5 years of hands-on international ticketing experience Advanced GDS Expertise Advanced hands-on knowledge of at least one major GDS is mandatory: Amadeus – strongly preferred Sabre Travelport / Galileo Candidate must be capable of independently handling PNR creation and management Fare pricing Fare construction Ticket issuance Ticket reissuance/exchange Refunds Voids EMDs Ancillary services Seat assignments Special service requests Queue management Schedule changes Airline waivers Involuntary changes Complex international itineraries Candidates who only have experience using consumer booking websites will not be considered equivalent to experienced GDS ticketing professionals. Advanced Airfare Optimization The candidate must understand how to find the best overall airfare rather than simply accepting the first fare returned by a booking system. Strong experience required in Published fares Private fares Negotiated fares Corporate fares Airline promotional fares Fare families Fare basis codes Routing rules Stopover rules Minimum/maximum stay requirements Combinability Married segments Interline itineraries Multi-city itineraries Open-jaw itineraries Mixed-carrier itineraries Refund and cancellation rules Change penalties No-show conditions Baggage allowances NDC versus traditional GDS content The candidate should be able to compare several routing and fare alternatives and recommend the best combination of price + flexibility + convenience + traveler benefits. Airline Commercial Experience Strong preference will be given to candidates with established working relationships with airline sales/account management teams. Experience dealing with major international and regional airlines is highly desirable, including carriers operating through the UAE, GCC, Europe, Asia and the Americas. The candidate should understand Airline agency agreements Ticketing authority Airline sales support Corporate agreements Agency incentive arrangements Private fare agreements Group bookings Waivers Commercial negotiations Agency performance requirements Hotel Contracting & Loyalty Expertise Candidate must have strong working knowledge of major international hotel groups, particularly: Marriott Bonvoy / Marriott International IHG One Rewards / IHG Hotels & Resorts ALL – Accor Live Limitless / Accor Additional Hilton Honors and World of Hyatt experience is advantageous. The candidate should understand Corporate negotiated hotel rates Global and regional corporate agreements Agency and travel-industry programs Eligible travel-agent rates Loyalty membership structures Elite tiers Qualifying nights/stays Points earning Upgrades Breakfast/lounge benefits Late checkout Cancellation conditions Corporate rate loading GDS hotel rate codes Hotel direct versus GDS pricing Group and long-stay negotiations The candidate will be expected to help establish legitimate relationships and agreements that provide our organization and eligible staff/travelers with competitive worldwide hotel rates and benefits. Corporate & VIP Travel Experience supporting executives, VIPs and frequent international travelers is strongly preferred. Candidate should be comfortable handling: Last-minute bookings Same-day changes Missed connections Flight cancellations International multi-sector trips VIP requests Business/First Class travel Airport transfers Hotel upgrades Visa/travel-document coordination After-hours emergency travel support Commercial Mindset We are particularly interested in candidates who think commercially. For every major booking, the candidate should be capable of answering: 1. Is this the best available fare? 2. Is there a better private/corporate fare? 3. Is better content available through NDC, GDS or another authorized channel? 4. What happens if the traveler changes the date? 5. What happens if the traveler cancels? 6. Can different airlines or fare components be combined more effectively? 7. What additional baggage/seat/lounge benefits are included? 8. Which hotel booking channel provides the best total value? 9. Are loyalty benefits and qualifying stays preserved? 10. Can a corporate agreement improve the economics? Preferred Candidate Profile Ideal candidates will have: 5+ years in an IATA-accredited travel agency, TMC or airline Advanced Amadeus experience Strong BSP/BSPlink experience Formal airline ticketing training/certification UAE/GCC travel-market experience Corporate travel-management experience Airline contracting experience Hotel corporate contracting experience Marriott, IHG and Accor program expertise Experience servicing high-frequency international travelers Excellent English communication Arabic and/or additional languages are an advantage Interview Practical Test Shortlisted candidates should expect a practical assessment covering: Air Ticketing: Build and price a complex international multi-city itinerary and explain alternative fare/routing options. Reissue: Calculate and process a voluntary ticket change, including fare difference and penalties. Refund: Explain the refund calculation and applicable fare rules. BSP: Explain how BSP settlement, ADM/ACM and BSPlink workflows operate. Optimization: Demonstrate how they would identify a better price or more flexible fare than the first GDS result. Disruption: Resolve a hypothetical cancellation or schedule-change scenario for a VIP traveler. Hotels: Explain how they would establish legitimate corporate/agency relationships with Marriott, IHG and Accor to achieve competitive worldwide rates and traveler benefits. Loyalty: Compare direct hotel booking, GDS booking and negotiated corporate rates in terms of price, flexibility, points, elite-night qualification and traveler benefits. Candidates should be prepared to demonstrate actual GDS knowledge rather than only describe previous responsibilities. Key Performance Indicators Performance will be measured through: Average airfare savings versus benchmark Reduction in ticket-change and cancellation losses ADM/error rate Ticketing accuracy Response time Successful disruption recovery Hotel savings against public flexible rates Corporate hotel agreements established Traveler satisfaction Airline and hotel commercial relationships developed Compliance with IATA/BSP and supplier rules Application Process Interested applicants are invited to apply via LinkedIn and send their