Job Description
Qualifications:
SHIPBOARD Employment; Minimum 7–10 years of experience in luxury hospitality, with at least 2–5 years in a leadership role directly overseeing guest relations operations across multiple ships or properties.; Strong working knowledge of guest relations case management, complaint handling protocols, and service recovery practices in a luxury environment.; Exceptional leadership, communication, and coaching skills — this role leads primarily through influence and standards rather than direct authority.; Exceptional guest-centric mindset with a passion for delivering memorable luxury and ultra luxury experiences.; Strong data fluency; comfortable owning guest relations KPIs (resolution time, escalation rate, repeat-complaint rate) and translating them into operational fixes.; Fluent in English; additional languages preferred (Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, German, French, Chinese, Japanese); Skills & Competencies:
Proven ability to simultaneously manage strategic projects while supporting day to day operational priorities across a complex, fast-paced fleet environment.; Demonstrated ability to set strategic direction for vessels, translating corporate priorities into measurable onboard actions and results.; Proven leadership skills with a strong focus on talent development, coaching, succession planning, and building high-performing Guest Relations teams.; Ability to monitor performance through key guest satisfaction, operational, and people metrics, identifying opportunities for improvement and driving sustainable results.; Experience establishing clear expectations and creating a culture of accountability across shipboard and shoreside teams.; Strong stakeholder management skills with the ability to influence leaders at all levels of the organization.; Expertise in service recovery, guest issue resolution, and handling complex guest situations with professionalism and discretion.; Excellent analytical skills with the ability to interpret guest feedback, sentiment data, operational metrics, and market trends.; Strong project management, prioritization, and organizational capabilities.; Experience with guest satisfaction systems or onboard application, CRM systems, reporting tools, and performance dashboards preferred.; Duties & Responsibilities:
Partner with Hotel Directors to ensure guest relations culture is reinforced in daily briefings, onboarding, and performance conversations at the ship level, not owned solely by the Guest Relations Manager.; Partner with the Fleet Butler & Guest Experience Director to ensure Guest Relations and Butler teams operate as one coordinated guest experience. Partners with Housekeeping, F&B, Spa, and Shore Excursion leadership to ensure guest experience and problem resolution are coordinated end-to-end.; Build an early-warning system from guest feedback data (mid-cruise surveys, post-cruise NPS, complaint logs, social/review monitoring) to catch and address concerns before they surface as complaints.; Lead the fleet-wide rollout of new guest experience standards, tools, or protocols, building structured change plans (communication, training, feedback loops) rather than issuing standards and assuming adoption.; Participate directly in final-round interviews for shipboard Guest Relations/Guest Experience Manager positions.; Build and maintain onboarding and ramp-up programs for new shipboard hires into these roles, reducing time-to-full-productivity.; Leverage luxury hospitality best practices and industry benchmarks to drive innovation, consistency, and operational excellence across the fleet.;
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