Director, Global Cruise Business

Background & Purpose of the Job

The Director, Global Cruise Business leads and expands all cruise-related activities within SEB Professional Beverage, driving profitable growth, operational excellence, and outstanding customer satisfaction across global cruise operators and key stakeholders. The role combines strategic vision with an entrepreneurial mindset, bringing strong commercial leadership and hands‑on operational expertise to grow the business, strengthen partnerships, and deliver innovative beverage solutions tailored to the cruise industry.

The Director ensures SEB Professional Beverage is the partner of choice for equipment, solutions, and services worldwide, setting the benchmark for quality, reliability, and customer experience.

• Develop mid and long‑term plans for the cruise business, aligned with SEB Professional Beverage strategy.
• Monitor market trends, competition, and regulations to identify growth opportunities and risks.
• Provide cruise‑specific input to Product Management and R&D for portfolio development.
• Contribute to overall commercial strategy and route to market of SEB Professional Beverage.

• Lead, coordinate, and develop the global cruise team, including both direct reports and functional/dotted‑line roles in the US, Germany, and UK.
• Define clear objectives, roles, KPIs, and ways of working for all contributors to the cruise business, regardless of their local reporting line.
• Establish effective governance (regular calls, review meetings, escalation paths) to ensure alignment across locations and functions.
• Support hiring, onboarding, and training of team members, fostering a collaborative, accountable, and high‑performance culture.
• Engage internal stakeholders to ensure high‑quality execution of critical business activities for the Global Cruise business.

• Define and execute the global commercial strategy for the cruise segment.
• Acquire and develop strategic accounts (cruise lines, shipyards, key partners).
• Lead major negotiations and contracts, ensuring profitable and long‑term partnerships.
• Drive upselling and cross‑selling of equipment, solutions, services, and digital offerings to maximize share of wallet.
• Manage the sales pipeline, forecasting, and reporting to ensure transparency and predictability of the cruise business.

• Oversee end‑to‑end operations for cruise projects (order intake, planning, logistics, installation), coordinating work done from different locations.
• Manage, in coordination with local operations and warehouse teams, the inventory and logistics for cruise equipment and spare parts.
• Ensure efficient AP/AR and S&OP processes in collaboration with Finance and Supply Chain.
• Coordinate with central and local service organizations and partners to deliver reliable after‑sales support worldwide.
• Ensure efficient coordination of activities for “moving targets” (ships in different regions, short port stays, tight project windows).

• Ensure high customer satisfaction, acting as escalation point for key accounts.
• Conduct regular reviews and onboard visits to assess performance of equipment and services.
• Identify recurring issues and drive continuous improvement of products, processes, and service.
• Promote the use of digital tools (e.g., CRM) and best practices across the cruise activities.

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering, Hospitality Management, or a related field (Master’s degree is a plus).
• Proven experience in a leadership role combining commercial (sales) responsibility with operational oversight in an international B2B environment.
• Demonstrated success in key account management and complex contract negotiations.
• Experience with in the cruise industry and/or professional hospitality or beverage equipment sectors is highly desirable.
• Track record of effectively leading and collaborating with intercultural teams in both direct and matrix structures.

• Inspiring leadership and strong…