Job Title: Lead, Product Development, Shore Excursions and Port of Call Experiences
The Lead, Product Development for Shore Excursions and Port of Call Experiences is responsible for designing exceptional tour experiences, pre and post packages, independent adventures, and various port of call offerings that guests aboard Celebrity River Cruises can enhance their cruise vacations with. The Lead prepares comprehensive product recommendations and briefs, focusing on a strategic outlook of 12 to 18 months ahead of each season or ship itinerary.
This pivotal role evaluates existing tours and experiences available at ports of call and homeports, identifying strengths and opportunities for improvement. Additionally, the Lead makes innovative product differentiation recommendations to achieve the brand’s long-term goals for guest satisfaction and revenue growth. A thorough understanding of the cruise and land competitive landscape, as well as an ability to identify future trends, is essential.
The position also explores short and long-term opportunities encompassing pre/post-cruise travel and land vacation experiences, enhancing our tour options, hotel accommodations, and transfer services. These opportunities may further extend to unique shopping experiences while in port and destination-related onboard activities.
Responsibilities & Ownership
- Develop goals informed by assessments, research, and site visits aimed at introducing innovative and distinctive experiences for the brand.
- Define the scope for specific regions globally, selecting ports of call, potential partnerships, and target customer segments to recommend profitable product opportunities.
- Collaborate closely with product owners and management to ensure effective execution and delivery of shore excursions, cruise and land packages, and pre/post-cruise travel.
- Engage with various internal stakeholders to conduct research, identify new opportunities, and establish thorough competitive assessments for long-term strategic product offerings.
- Implement a structured roadmap to identify, prioritize, and manage product goals and objectives relevant to specific itineraries and regions.
- Develop and secure support for long-term product recommendations from departmental leadership.
- Provide presentations and detailed memos on market research and competitive intelligence essential for the team’s strategic product recommendations.
- Create and present product briefs, guest experience outlines, and criteria for success regarding tours, excursions, and packages.
- Collaborate with the brand's Destination Development, Revenue Management, and Deployment Strategy teams to support decisions that will enhance destination experiences.
- Partner with new tour operators in strategic regions and destinations.
- Conduct research audits, scouting trips, trend assessments, and SWOT analyses to define scope and opportunities.
- Draft comprehensive product briefs including go-to-market strategies, sales, and pricing for tours, excursions, and packages, enabling successful implementation by diverse stakeholders.
- Create recommendations on how destination experiences can be integrated into the onboard atmosphere during strategic itineraries or selected cruise ships.
- Develop and include risk assessments for products to ensure a comprehensive understanding of the proposed product strategy.
- Act as a brand representative in internal and external cross-functional discussions, events, and projects.
- Work independently in complex and often ambiguous environments to provide data-driven recommendations to executives and management.
- Coordinate with internal partners across various departments like Deployment, Destination Development, Sales, and Marketing.
- Support partnerships and negotiations with external entities such as tour operators, airlines, hotels, transfer providers, and travel agencies.
- Perform additional duties as required, with a clear understanding that this job description is not exhaustive and other related tasks may be assigned by supervisors.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in tourism or a related field; a Master’s degree is a plus.
- 3-5 years of experience in the river cruise industry or destination product development; greater experience is preferred.
- Fluency in English; proficiency in additional languages is an asset.
- A proven track record in a fast-paced environment with demanding timelines.
- Experience working within high-performing and multicultural teams.
- Experience in project management, consumer insights, or strategy-focused roles is highly preferred.
- Ability to travel up to 45-55% of the time is required.
Knowledge and Skills
- Collaborative and an exemplary communicator, both spoken and written.
- Highly analytical with the ability to transform raw data into practical strategies.
- Proactive problem-solver with a strong track record of success in group environments.
- Inspirational leader capable of motivating team and stakeholder performance.
- Exceptional organization skills with a methodical approach to research and implementation.
- Strong attention to detail and effective process management.
- Exceptional project management capabilities, with the ability to build consensus across cross-functional teams.
- Strategic thinker who can frame and address new and complex issues.
- Skilled storyteller who can navigate both technical and business contexts, effectively influencing all levels.
- Disciplined and comfortable with ambiguity, capable of interacting and influencing across multiple levels within a global matrixed organization.
Apply online using the form below. Please note that only applications matching the job profile will be considered.