A Day as a Revenue Coordinator

A Normal Morning – Maybe

My workday starts early—not because I love sunrise yoga (I don’t even do yoga), but because reliable data should ideally be on the Revenue Managers’ desks before their day begins. Most days, I dive into Pick-Up Reports before I’ve even had my first coffee. These reports are the foundation for strategic decisions—and many operational actions—in the hotel’s day-to-day business.

Some of these reports are now automated, which makes things more efficient. But efficiency doesn’t replace attention to detail. My job isn’t just passing numbers along—it’s actively questioning their accuracy and relevance. In parallel, I manually download reports from various systems, update tools, check for consistency—and then comes the message to our Revenue Managers: “Your pick-up is ready.” That’s usually my cue to finally get that coffee.

It sounds like a boring routine—and it kind of is. But like any routine, there are hidden pitfalls: reports pulled from the wrong time period, missing data, tools showing no pick-up at all (which usually means a technical glitch—hopefully), or unexpected bookings that don’t fit the pattern. It happens regularly. And automation isn’t always as reliable as it sounds—tech is great, until it isn’t. In some companies, a broken printer might cause a stir. For us, it’s a glitch in the automation software. And suddenly, your 30-minute routine turns into a 90-minute scramble.

Sooner or later, everyone is up to speed with their reports, and I move on to the rest of the day’s tasks and projects. Some are planned, some get done quickly, and many just show up unannounced and should’ve been finished yesterday.

One daily task is updating the tools we manage. It might sound like boring data work—and it is… BUT it’s also a great way to learn something new every day:

1. Grab that second coffee before you dive in.
2. We get exposure to a wide range of systems—from classic PMS setups to different Revenue Management and BI tools, as well as Channel Managers. Every hotel works a bit differently, and that variety keeps things interesting. Over time, you gain a solid understanding of system architectures, interfaces, and common pitfalls. Don’t know what those systems are yet? No worries—you’ll learn quickly, probably within your first couple of days.
3. Asking questions helps you learn faster. Every update from a Revenue Manager is a chance to not just execute, but to understand: Why increase this rate? Why introduce a minimum stay here? Why close this channel? These are questions worth asking—especially if you want to go beyond just operating a tool.

Of course, this doesn’t mean questioning every change for every hotel every day. That would take all day, and you’d never get to the answers. But if you pick one or two hotels and “think along” regularly, you’ll learn a lot.

Planned, urgent, spontaneous—all at once

Beyond daily routines, plenty of other tasks come up—some planned, some spontaneous, some urgent, often all at once. When a concert, trade fair, or sports event is announced, we have to act fast. That means adjusting rates or minimum stays, checking channels, and making sure strategy meets event reality—not the other way around.

We prepare tools, consolidate data, clean up reports, and make sure the results are not only accurate but also presentable. And presentation usually starts internally—with our meetings.

For instance, we have weekly or monthly team meetings. One of the most interesting parts for me is joining revenue meetings of the hotels I support. I gain insight into the strategic level, hear what goals are being set, how markets are developing—and understand how my daily work fits into a much bigger picture. Turns out: Excel has more external impact than you’d think.

Structure meets freedom

While some tasks might seem dry at first glance (and I haven’t even listed all of them)—it’s the mix that makes it work for me. Between data updates, tools, and meetings, there’s a surprising amount of room for ownership. Of course, there are fixed deadlines like the daily Pick-Up Reports or scheduled meetings, but how I organize the rest of my day is mostly up to me.

One great way to fill those open calendar slots: training and development. Whether it’s about systems, tools, distribution, or soft skills—there’s always something to learn. The opportunities to grow don’t run out.

Yes, we have SOPs, guidelines, and sometimes meetings that really could’ve been emails. But I still get to organize my workload, take responsibility, challenge processes, and contribute ideas. Whether I prefer to do my thinking in the morning and save the repetitive stuff for the afternoon—or the other way around—I can shape my day around what works for me. (And yes, that often depends on how much coffee is available in the morning.)

And if things ever get messy—no big deal. We even offer regular training on time management.

If you enjoy working accurately, thinking independently, understanding connections, and still having fun—this role is a perfect fit. For me, it’s more than just support work—it’s my place on the team. And a pretty exciting one, at that.