Lead, Product Development

Journey with us! Combine your career goals and sense of adventure by joining our exciting team of employees. Royal Caribbean Group is pleased to offer a competitive compensation and benefits package, and excellent career development opportunities, each offering unique ways to explore the world. 

 We are proud to be the vacation-industry leader with global brands — including Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Silversea Cruises — the most innovative fleet and private destinations, and the best people. Together, we are dedicated to turning the vacation of a lifetime into a lifetime of vacations for our guests. 

The Royal Caribbean Group’s Business Development Team has an exciting career opportunity for a full time Lead, Product Development based in Weybridge, UK.  

Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the location where this position is based. The position is not eligible for immigration or work-visa sponsorship now or in the future. 

At Royal Caribbean Group (RCG), we care about your health, financial security, and overall well-being. That’s why we provide a comprehensive and competitive benefits package designed to support what matters most to you across every area of life: physical, intellectual, emotional, and social. Here’s an overview of the benefits available to you, including but not limited to: 

• Cruise and Travel Privileges  

• Health and Wellness Benefits 

• 401(k) + Employer Contribution (US Only) 

• Company-Paid Life and Disability Insurance 

• Employee Stock Purchase Plan 

• Comprehensive Time Off Package 

• Parental Leave 

• Employee Assistance Program (EAP) 

• Training & Professional Development 

• Tuition & Professional Certification Reimbursement (US Only) 

Specific benefits may vary by location and position. See more details about our benefits here. 

What does the Business Development Team do? 

The Alliances and Business Development Team at Royal Caribbean Group identifies, builds, and manages strategic partnerships that support growth, innovation, and expanded guest value. The team evaluates opportunities, develops partner relationships, supports negotiations, and coordinates cross-functional execution, helping create new business pathways, strengthen market presence, and deliver collaborative solutions that align with company strategy and long-term commercial objectives. 

How you can make an impact: 

• Royal Caribbean Group is a vacation industry leader with a global fleet of 71 ships across its five brands traveling to all seven continents. Our esteemed brands - including Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea, as well as 50% ownership of a joint venture in TUI Cruises which operates two German brands, Mein Schiff and Hapag-Lloyd - cater to all travelers, from young families to empty nesters. Through all our brands, we are dedicated to turning the vacation of a lifetime into a lifetime of vacations. 

The Lead, Onboard Product & Guest Experience, is responsible for supporting the optimisation of the Southampton-based guest experience and onboard product, helping to connect commercial priorities, guest feedback and operational delivery. Working closely with shipboard leaders, commercial teams, deployment, guest experience and operational stakeholders, the role identifies opportunities to enhance guest satisfaction, onboard revenue performance and product relevance for the UK market. 

The role acts as a key liaison between shoreside and shipboard teams, supporting the implementation of initiatives that improve guest experience while ensuring commercial objectives are effectively translated into onboard execution. Through analysis, collaboration and structured review processes, the position helps identify risks, opportunities and areas for continuous improvement across Southampton-deployed product. 

The successful candidate will combine strong stakeholder management, commercial awareness and operational understanding with a passion for delivering exceptional guest experiences. 

What your day-to-day will look like: 

• Support the ongoing review and optimisation of the Southampton-deployed onboard product, identifying opportunities to improve guest satisfaction, guest experience, and onboard revenue performance. 

• Maintain regular engagement with shipboard teams through frequent ship visits and travel to Southampton, expected to occur at least twice per month, to assess ship performance and guest experience and identify opportunities for improvement. 

• Coordinate pre-season, in-season and post-season reviews with shipboard and shoreside stakeholders to identify performance trends, opportunities and areas requiring intervention. 

• Analyse guest feedback, operational insights and commercial performance data to develop recommendations that improve the overall guest experience. 

• Support shipboard and shoreside teams in implementing approved regional commercial initiatives and guest-facing programmes for UK guests, ensuring objectives are translated effectively into onboard delivery, identifying execution gaps and coordinating stakeholders to resolve them. 

• Partner with guest experience, commercial strategy, sales, marketing and operational teams to ensure alignment between guest expectations and onboard delivery. 

• Work alongside deployment and commercial planning teams to provide guest-experience input into itinerary planning, sailing patterns, turn-day experience and product enhancements. 

• Monitor emerging guest issues and operational challenges, escalating risks and proposing solutions where appropriate. 

• Support the development of guest communications and guest-facing messaging in partnership with relevant teams to ensure communications are clear, timely and aligned with the intended guest experience. 

• Liaise with shipboard teams and operational stakeholders to gather insights, share best practices and support continuous improvement initiatives. 

• Prepare presentations including opportunities, recommendations, and performance updates for shipboard and shoreside leadership stakeholders. 

• Provide oversight and take ownership of the accuracy of guest-facing OBR product sales content, working with relevant shoreside and shipboard teams to identify and resolve inaccuracies across sales channels and onboard touchpoints. 

• Perform other duties as required. 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. 

How to achieve success: 

• Experience in operations in cruise or related tourism field. 

• Experience working across multiple stakeholder groups and delivering outcomes through influence. 

• Experience analysing customer feedback and operational performance. 

• Strong stakeholder management and relationship-building skills. 

• Effective written and verbal communication skills. 

• Strong presentation and storytelling capabilities. 

• Commercially minded with an understanding of guest experience drivers. 

• Analytical and data-driven approach to problem solving. 

• Ability to identify trends, risks and opportunities from multiple data sources. 

• Strong organisational and project management skills. 

• Comfortable operating in a fast-paced environment with competing priorities. 

• Collaborative approach with the ability to influence without direct authority. 

• Proactive, self-motivated and results focused. 

• Flexible and willing to travel regularly, including frequent visits to ships operating from Southampton port. 

• Strong critical thinking and decision-support capability. 

• Passion for delivering exceptional guest experiences.