Fully Remote — South Africa | Full-Time, UK business hours | A UK short-term rental operator

About the Role

Outsource Ability is recruiting on behalf of a UK short-term rental operator for a highly organised Executive Assistant / Operations Manager to support the running of a serviced accommodation portfolio and the day-to-day work of the business owner.

The purpose of the role is to oversee the smooth running of the business. You will hold the team accountable for agreed tasks, keep property operations running to standard, manage property bills and administration, and provide direct personal and business support so that operational work does not fall back on the owner. After an initial handover, you will be expected to work largely independently.

Key Responsibilities

Team & Task Management

• Attend the Monday and Friday team calls and record all action items arising from them.
• Track tasks across the maintenance list and other task lists through to completion.
• Chase the team directly and drive issues to resolution rather than reporting on status.
• Complete tasks personally where the team is not moving quickly enough.
• Report any bottleneck that cannot be resolved independently as soon as it arises.

Property Operations

• Oversee inventory and property standards so that properties are ready to operate from day one.
• Handle day-to-day operational issues and small recurring problems before they reach the owner.
• Coordinate with cleaners, maintenance contractors and suppliers as required.

Finance & Administration

• Manage property bills and recurring costs, ensuring accounts are correctly set up and paid on time.
• Handle payment of agreed operational and property costs within the authority given.
• Maintain accurate records of property expenses and supplier arrangements.

Executive & Personal Support

• Manage the owner's inbox and messages, responding directly where appropriate and issuing holding replies when he is unavailable.
• Manage the calendar and book travel, including flights and accommodation across multiple countries.
• Take care of personal tasks and arrangements with discretion, anticipating what is needed ahead of time.
• Triage incoming communications so that everything is handled promptly and nothing is missed.

Systems

• GoHighLevel
• AI tools used to streamline daily tasks and operations

Experience with every system is not essential, but you must be confident learning new technology.

What We're Looking For

Essential

• At least two years' experience in an executive assistant, operations or property administration role.
• Extremely AI literate, with proven use of AI tools to streamline day-to-day work.
• Strong initiative and problem-solving ability; drives solutions rather than forwarding problems.
• Comfortable working autonomously and able to operate largely independently within one to two weeks of handover.
• Confident holding others accountable and chasing third parties for completion.
• Technically comfortable, able to learn a CRM and work to SOP-driven processes.
• Trustworthy with confidential business and financial information, and discreet in handling personal matters.
• Highly organised, with strong attention to detail and reliable follow-through.
• Excellent written and spoken English.

Advantageous

• Short-term rental, serviced accommodation or Airbnb operations experience.
• Experience using GoHighLevel or a comparable CRM.
• Experience creating or maintaining SOPs.

Key Performance Indicators

• Tasks assigned on the Monday team call are completed within the same week.
• Bottlenecks that cannot be resolved independently are reported as soon as they arise.

Remote Work Requirements

Applicants must:

• Be based in South Africa.
• Have a modern laptop or PC (Intel i5 / AMD Ryzen 5 or equivalent, minimum 8GB RAM).
• Have a stable fibre connection with a minimum of 50 Mbps download and 50 Mbps upload.
• Have a functional UPS, inverter or power station able to run a router and laptop for a minimum of 2–4 hours during load shedding.
• Have a professional noise-cancelling headset with a clear microphone.
• Have a quiet workspace suitable for calls and video meetings.
• Be available for the agreed full-time hours during UK business times.