AVP, Product Development & Operational Excellence

The Associate Vice President of Product Development and Operational Excellence will play a critical role in delivering on the brand’s strategic direction and execution of our shipboard and destination product initiatives. This position involves leading a cross-functional team to drive innovation, enhance product offerings, and align development efforts with market needs and business goals.

This leader possesses a strong background in product management, extensive experience in product lifecycle management, and a deep understanding of industry trends.  Experience or knowledge of operational requirements and success metrics are. This leadership role requires a blend of strategic vision and hands-on execution, ensuring that our products not only meet market expectations but also deliver outstanding customer satisfaction.

Associate Vice President of Product Development and Operational Excellence plays a pivotal leadership role within the organization, responsible for driving strategic initiatives and operational excellence across various functions. This position reports directly to the Vice President or higher executive and works collaboratively with senior management to align departmental goals with the organization’s overall vision. The AVP will oversee multiple teams, manage resources effectively, and ensure the successful execution of projects and programs.

Product Development is the process of bringing a new product or service from concept to market. It involves a series of stages, including idea generation, design, testing, and launch. The Associate Vice President of Product Experience will play a pivotal role in shaping and enhancing the overall user experience across our product portfolio. This position is responsible for leading a cross-functional team to ensure our products not only meet market demands but also provide exceptional user experiences that drive customer satisfaction and loyalty.

The Associate Vice President is responsible for cultivating an environment that fosters collaboration, innovation, and excellence across the organization. This role involves leading initiatives to enhance team performance, employee engagement, and organizational effectiveness. This role will be responsible for crafting & executing unforgettable customer experiences that enhance our brand's reputation and drive guest loyalty.

Key Responsibilities:

• Strategic Vision: Develop and implement a holistic product experience strategy that aligns with the company’s mission and enhances guest satisfaction throughout their journey. Scope involves first in class cruise ships, cruise modernization, private destinations and non-private destinations.
• Innovation: Staying abreast of industry trends, emerging technologies, and best practices in product experience to drive innovation within the organization.
• Senior Leadership Alignment: Collaborate with executive leadership to define product strategy and roadmap, ensuring alignment with overall business objectives. Owning the process of which alignment is gained.
• Product Lifecyle: Oversee the product development lifecycle, from final concept brief through launch and post-launch evaluation.
• Guest-Centric Design: Advocate for a guest-centered design approach, leveraging customer insights, market research, and feedback to shape product offerings and experiences.
• User Advocacy: Champion a user-centered design approach throughout the product lifecycle, utilizing research and insights to inform product decisions.
• Market Analysis: Conduct competitive analysis and stay informed about industry trends to identify opportunities for innovation and differentiation in our cruise offerings.
• Implementation of the product: Liaison with Hotel Operations and Operational Stakeholders to gain buy in and co-develop the guest experience brief and standard operation procedures.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with various departments to identify best practices and share resources that promote high performance across the organization. Collaborate closely with marketing, operations, guest services, and onboard teams to ensure seamless integration of product offerings and consistent messaging.
• Change Management: Lead initiatives to drive organizational change, ensuring teams are supported and equipped to adapt to new processes and expectations.
• Build & Design: Work closely with engineering, design, and marketing teams to ensure seamless execution of product initiatives.
• Feasibility Analysis: Assessing the technical, financial, and market viability of the product concept to ensure it is feasible to produce and sell.
• Design and Development: Creating prototypes or models, followed by iterations based on feedback. This phase often involves collaboration between designers, engineers, and stakeholders.
• Testing: Conducting market testing or user testing to gather feedback and validate the product's functionality, usability, and appeal.
• Launch: Introducing the product to the market and customer through development of detailed guest experience briefs and standard operating procedures.
• Post-Launch Evaluation: Analyzing performance, customer feedback, and sales data to identify areas for improvement or future enhancements.
• Product Roadmap: Work with the product and brand management team to prioritize features and enhancements that will elevate the guest experience and meet business objectives.
• Roadmap Prioritization: Work with all internal and external stakeholders to prioritize features and enhancements that optimize user experience and drive business results.
• Brand Representation: Ensure that all product experiences reflect the brand’s values and promise, enhancing our reputation as a leader in the cruise industry.
• Stakeholder Communication: Regularly present product experience strategies, updates, and performance metrics to senior leadership and key stakeholders.
• Performance Metrics: Establish key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure team effectiveness and implement data-driven strategies for improvement. Define and track key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the effectiveness of product experiences, making data-driven decisions to optimize outcomes.
• Culture Building: Foster a positive and inclusive organizational culture that encourages collaboration, accountability, and recognition of achievements.
• Team Development: Design and implement programs that promote team building, professional development, and skill enhancement, ensuring alignment with organizational goals.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EDUCATION

• The ideal candidate will possess a strong background in product management, extensive experience in product lifecycle management, and a deep understanding of industry trends. 
• Experience or knowledge of operational requirements and operational success metrics would be a plus and preferred.
• Cruise industry experience preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree in business, Hospitality Management, Marketing, or a related field. Master’s degree preferred.
• 8+ years of experience in product management or customer experience roles, with a minimum of 4 years in a leadership capacity, preferably within the travel or hospitality industry.
• Proven track record of developing and launching successful products and experiences that delight customers.
• Strong understanding of customer experiences principles, particularly within the cruise or hospitality sectors.
• Strong understanding of user-centered design principles and methodologies.
• Excellent analytical skills, with the ability to translate data into actionable insights.
• Exceptional communication and presentation abilities, capable of influencing stakeholders at all levels.
• Strong understanding of performance management frameworks and employee engagement strategies.
• Exceptional interpersonal, communication, and facilitation skills, with the ability to influence and inspire at all levels.
• Experience with change management practices and strategies.
• Data-driven mindset with the ability to analyze metrics and make informed decisions.
• Strong problem-solving and decision-making capabilities.
• Proven track record of successfully launching products and driving revenue growth.
• Experience in agile methodologies and project management.
• Ability to remain flexible and calm in high-pressure situations and adjust as multiple moving parts consistently change.
• Experience in leading a high-performing operational team. 
• Experience in overseeing complex project execution and project management teams.
• Ability to travel up to 40% of the time.

FINANCIAL/QUANTITIVE RESPONSIBILITIES

• Responsible for delivering products and experiences to support growing revenue business for the brand.
• Responsible to staying within budget and tracking spend for investment and capital projects ranging from $1M to double digit million projects.
• Leading the execution of new concepts for the brand with clear revenue and guest satisfaction goals.
• Responsible for driving high penetration of guest participation in the product, and the pre-purchase of the product prior to a cruise. 
• Oversees a couple million dollars in costs and expenses for the brand.
• Responsible over the profit margins for this business and to stay aligned with the profitability goals of the brand.
• This position may support and be involved with other areas of onboard revenue which are $600M and growing for the brand.

COMPARABLE POSITIONS/PEERS

Danielle Hoffman, AVP Product

Joanna Gonzalez-Guerra, AVP Architecture Design and Innovation

Yael Steinhart, AVP Brand Strategy & Product

HOW HAS THE JOB CHANGED/GROWN

This position has taken on Operational Excellence process for the Celebrity Brand which tracks over 100 guest facing initiatives and how they go from idea to execution, working cross collaboration for the brand.   This position originally only had the scope of one new ship, Celebrity Xcel, but within the last year the scope of 1) Operational Excellence 2) Programming 3) Modernization and 4) Private Destinations.   Additionally with some minor reporting structure, this position will also work alongside the product development of non-private destinations.   This position also grew from 2 direct reports and a team size of 6 to 4 direct reports and a team of 14.   This position has an enormous amount of influence with Senior Leadership and across Executive Brand leadership.  Taking a leadership and influential role with relationships with external Production Companies, Architects and Shipyards.

INTERNAL/ EXTERNAL RELATIONSHIPS

Internal:

• Hotel Operations
• Newbuild
• Supply Chain
• Human Resources
• Brand Strategy
• Product Strategy
• Deployment
• Destination Development
• Shared Services – Supply Chain
• Government Relations
• Public Relations
• Corporate Communications
• Risk Management
• Legal
• Audit
• Compliance

External

• Shipyard
• Building Contractors
• Production Companies
• Consultant Companies

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. Must be able to travel to various destinations globally. Must be able to prepare and present oral presentations. Must be available beyond the framework of the normal workday for meetings, presentations, programs, etc.

WORKING CONDITIONS

This job description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the employee occupying this position. Employees will be required to perform any other job-related duties assigned by their supervisor or management. This position typically operates in a standard office environment with occasional travel for team-building activities, training sessions, or conferences. Flexibility in hours may be required to accommodate team needs and initiatives.