Escalations Specialist

About Heirloom

Heirloom exists to connect people to places and to each other. We design, build, and operate beautiful spaces that redefine what it feels like to travel as a group. With roots in New Orleans and a growing presence in more than a dozen destinations nationwide, Heirloom blends the warmth of hospitality with the power of technology to create unforgettable group travel experiences. Our focus on providing world-class accommodations in premier destinations, combined with a data-driven and tech-enabled operational strategy, has allowed Heirloom to carve out a distinctive position within the luxury short-term rental and property management space.

Role Summary

How we care for guests when things don’t go as planned is essential to delivering an exceptional experience. The Guest Recovery and Resolutions Specialist partners closely with guests during and after their stay to address service interruptions, resolve concerns in real time, and restore trust. The role also oversees thoughtful post-stay communication, including negotiating and issuing refunds when appropriate. This position leads the escalations team with empathy and efficiency, ensuring guest concerns are resolved promptly and with care.

Availability Requirement: The schedule consists of 4 days per week, working 12-hour shifts (including a 2-hour paid break, for a total of 10 working hours per shift), followed by 3 consecutive days off each week. This position requires weekend availability as part of the regular schedule.

What We Offer

• 100% remote work
• Biweekly pay in US dollars
• Paid time off
• Monthly bonus
• Direct contract with a U.S.-based luxury brand
• Opportunity to travel to the U.S
  
  

Essential Functions:

• Own escalated guest cases handed off from the Guest Services team by coordinating in real time with field operations, cleaning, and maintenance partners to fix issues in a timely manner while guests are still on property.
• Assess guest impact, such as impacted nights and affected amenities, and recommend fair service recovery using company protocol and OTA guidelines.
• Make sure every guest communication, refund, and resolution follows platform-specific trust, safety, and host conduct policies.
• Calculate, disburse, process, and document refunds in accordance with company protocols. Complete refund report entries and all associated custom fields accurately. Submit refund approval requests to the Escalations Manager or executives according to protocol.
• Write calm, clear, empathetic guest messages, including refund decisions and boundary-setting.
• Monitor and respond to OTA support channels, including the Airbnb support inbox and VRBO support emails.
• Identify and document potential review disputes and policy violations, including cases where a guest ties a review to compensation, and prepare disputes for the Escalations Manager.
• Make sure pre-stay and post-stay guests also receive timely resolutions.
• Keep a clear case timeline and internal records for every escalation, covering what happened, what was done, and what was offered.
• Flag recurring property or process issues to help prevent future escalations and refund patterns.
• Contribute to the weekly weekend recap and weekend planning meetings on ongoing escalations.
• Support general Guest Services work as needed, including the inbox, guest messaging, calls, and reservation support, during high volume or coverage gaps.

Requirements

• 2+ years in guest services, hospitality, or customer support, with direct experience handling escalations. Short-term rental or hotel experience is strongly preferred.
• High emotional intelligence, warm and inviting demeanor. Reads guest emotions accurately, de-escalates conflict, and responds with genuine empathy without losing objectivity.
• Strong situational awareness. Quickly understands the full picture of a case, anticipates how it could escalate, and adjusts in real time.
• Shrewd judgment. Recognizes manipulation or bad-faith claims, knows when to offer service recovery and when to hold firm, and protects the company while treating guests fairly.
• Ability to work on the weekend
• Native fluency in English (spoken, written, and reading).
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English, with a warm and polished telephone demeanor.
• Strong organization and documentation habits.
• Comfortable using multiple cloud-based platforms to complete and manage work.