Bilingual Customer Service Specialist at Cultural Care… · Panama…

Internally titled: Bilingual Traveler Support Specialist (TSS) [Spanish/English] Panama City, Panama Start Date: October 27, 2026 Application Deadline: September 25, 2026

**For consideration, applicants must live in Panama and hold a valid work permit in the country. This role follows a hybrid work model, with four days in-office and one remote day each week. The team collaborates to determine which day will be remote- typically Fridays or Saturdays, depending on the work week- to ensure coverage and consistency across the group.

The Opportunity

This is a customer-facing role that owns the pre-departure experience for our travelers: starting from the moment after a traveler books through the day they depart on tour. You will work to personalize each traveler’s journey, resolve complex situations with empathy and care, and build the kind of trust that brings people back year after year. We are committed to giving every Go Ahead traveler an EPIC pre-tour experience: Easy, Personal, Immersive, and rooted in Community and Connection. You are central to delivering that promise.

We use AI to make our service more personal, truly seamless and deeply human. As a Traveler Support Specialist, you will use AI tools to truly understand our travelers and support them every step of the way to deliver a beautiful customer experience.

What You’ll Do

• Build authentic relationships with travelers, making each person feel known, valued, and genuinely cared for as part of the EF Go Ahead community.
• Proactively reach out to travelers ahead of departure to set expectations, answer questions, and build excitement, tailoring interactions so that every traveler, whether a solo retiree or a first-time international traveler, feels seen and supported.
• Partner with internal teams to resolve traveler requests seamlessly, owning the outcome and ensuring travelers receive a single, cohesive experience.
• Make meaningful decisions within an AI-powered workflow, from approving and redirecting traveler communications to challenging output that misses the mark, with your feedback directly influencing how our tools improve.
• Take ownership of and de-escalate emotionally charged situations with patience and composure, guiding travelers from frustration to resolution and confidence.
• Adapt your communication style and approach to match each traveler’s needs and preferences across phone, email, and chat.
• Exercise independent judgment on policy exceptions, compensation, and resolution decisions.

Who You Are

• You are fluent in both written and spoken English and Spanish. The majority of this role will be conducted in English, with Spanish called upon as needed to support our Spanish-speaking travelers.
• Your work is driven by empathy and relationship building. You genuinely care about the people you speak with, and it shows in every interaction, leaving the traveler feeling more confident in their decision to travel with us.
• You thrive in complexity. When a situation has no clear script, you feel energized, not paralyzed, to find the right path.
• You have high emotional intelligence. You read the room, adapt your approach, and help people feel heard before offering solutions.
• You exercise sound judgment and confidence under pressure. You know when to escalate, when to hold firm, and when to go above and beyond.
• You are naturally curious. You ask good questions of travelers, peers, and processes, because you want to understand, not just execute.
• You are a natural collaborator. You work fluidly across teams to solve traveler problems that no single person owns alone.
• You bring purpose to your work. The mission of connecting people to the world through travel matters to you personally.
• You embrace a growth mindset, welcoming feedback, new tools, and evolving ways of working as opportunities to get better.
• You are comfortable adopting new technology and AI-powered tools in order to work smarter and provide high-quality service to our travelers.
• You have 4 years of relevant customer service or client-facing experience or a 4-year college degree.

Work Schedule & Flexibility

This role requires a flexible and adaptive approach to scheduling. While our operations often align with US-based Central Standard Time (CST), working hours may vary depending on business needs, team coverage, and seasonal demands.

Standard Weekly Hours:

Tuesday through Saturday, 9:00 – 5:30 PM or 9:30 – 6:00 PM Local Time

Example Schedule (final details to be confirmed):

• October 27th to November 28th (Onboarding):
  • Workdays: Monday through Friday
  • Local Time: 9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
• November 29th to March 14th:
  • Workdays: Tuesday through Saturday
  • Local Time: Weekdays, 9:30 AM – 6:00 PM; Saturdays 9:00 AM – 5:30 PM
• March 14th to November 7th:
  • Workdays: May include one weekend day (e.g., Tuesday–Saturday)
  • Local Time: 9:00 AM - 5:30 PM

Why you’ll love working here: Perks, Benefits, and more!

This is the most fun, high caliber place you’ll ever work. Ask any employee why they love EF (whether they’ve been here 10 minutes or 10 years) and they’ll probably tell you the same thing: it’s the people. When you work at EF, you join a purpose-driven, international and energetic community that thrives on continuous learning, fearless innovation and mutual support.

In addition, you can expect:

• Commitment to professional growth: robust monthly calendar of trainings and workshops
• 22 days paid vacation and 12 national holidays,
• Health and life insurance to all our staff (Eligible after the 3-month probation period)
• Wellness benefits including fully equipped fitness center available 24/7 for staff
• Frequent social and learning events, including access to our employee-run resource groups
• Tenure-based sabbatical eligibility
• EF Product Discounts (discounts on travel, international language schools, Au Pair program and more)
• Discounts at local venues and businesses
• Free parking
• In-Office Work Policy: This role follows a hybrid work model, with four days in-office and one remote day each week. The team collaborates to determine which day will be remote- typically Fridays or Saturdays, depending on the work week- to ensure coverage and consistency across the group.
• Compensation: First-year on-target earnings of $21,000 ($20,000 salary and $1000-$2000 bonus potential)

About the Team

At EF Go Ahead Tours we believe in the power of travel to widen your eyes, broaden your mind and see the world and yourself in entirely new ways. For over 35 years we’ve guided travelers - from young professionals to retirees, solo travelers to entire families, on carefully crafted journeys. To us, each experience is an opportunity to not just create unforgettable moments, but to inspire greater understanding between people and cultures. Every day our global team comes to work hoping to help as many people as possible share in those experiences.

Learn more about EF Go Ahead tours: www.goaheadtours.com

About the Company

Some companies are in the business of banking. Others are in the business of shoes. Or sports. Or soft drinks. At EF, we're in a different kind of business. One that's a little less tangible, and a lot more important. Because our business, what we make, makes everything else possible. We're in the business of understanding. Between people. Between cultures.

For over half a century we’ve been the leader in international educational programs and experiences designed to foster such understanding. Through language, cultural exchange, academic studies, and educational travel, we create the kinds of immersive experiences that challenge biases, open minds, and pave the way for a more understanding world.

You’ll find our offices and schools located in some of the world’s greatest cities, and filled with smart, driven people (over 50,000 of us) who push each other to be better every day. But it’s what we do together - building greater understanding, breaking down barriers, and creating a better world - that makes all the difference.

Founded in 1965 in Sweden, EF (Education First) is a global association of education companies that share a common mission of opening the world through education. EF has been recognized on Forbes 2025 and 2024 World’s Best Employers and 2024 Top Companies for Women lists, Fast Company’s 2025 Next Big Things In Tech, and was a 2024 App Store Award winner in Cultural Impact.