VP, Marine Operations

About the Role:

The Vice President, Marine Operations is the senior executive accountable for fleetwide marine and safety operations across Disney Cruise Line, ensuring vessels and private destinations are operated safely, efficiently, and in full regulatory compliance while delivering an exceptional Guest and Crew experience.

As a key leader within Disney Experiences, this VP shapes marine strategy for a top-rated cruise line, aligning shipboard command and shoreside partners to bring creative, customer-focused, and innovative vacation experiences to life around the world.

This executive is accountable for the financial and operational performance of Marine Operations, developing and executing fleetwide marine and safety strategies, and providing full leadership direction to multiple leaders and teams across shipboard and shoreside operations.

The role evaluates key business and organizational challenges, designs innovative solutions within broad company policies, and serves as an influential, persuasive partner across Disney Cruise Line and Disney Experiences to ensure safe, compliant, and guest-centric operations that support the Company's strategic goals.

• Lead the overall strategy, governance, and day-to-day execution of fleetwide marine operations and safety across ships and private destinations, ensuring safe, compliant, efficient, and consistent operations.

• Provide direct leadership, coaching, and operational oversight to shipboard Captains, setting clear expectations and aligning shipboard command with shoreside Marine and Safety organizations and cross-functional partners.

• Ensure vessels are operated in accordance with international, flag state, port state, classification society, and company requirements, maintaining rigorous Safety Management System governance and environmental stewardship.

• Lead shoreside Safety operations, overseeing development, implementation, and continuous improvement of safety policies, contingency plans, and marine/safety procedures that support the Safety Management System.

• Promote a proactive safety culture that moves beyond compliance, reinforcing accountability, transparency, learning, and continuous improvement across ships, private destinations, and relevant shoreside functions.

• Lead Captain, officer, and fleet talent strategies, including performance, succession, readiness, and professional training standards for senior deck officers and marine operations roles, in partnership with HR and fleet leadership.

• Drive operational excellence and continuous improvement by standardizing marine operating practices, incident response, ship-shore communication, and fleet performance, and by leading root‑cause reviews and corrective actions for marine and safety events.

• Develop and manage operating budgets for Marine Operations and Safety, balancing safe operations, long‑term fleet reliability, and responsible cost management while being fully accountable for financial performance of the function.

• Partner closely with Technical Operations, Hotel and Entertainment Operations, Port Strategy, Commercial Strategy, Legal, HR, Finance, Public Affairs, and other stakeholders to ensure marine decisions support business goals, Guest satisfaction, and Crew experience.

• Inspire individual and business success by clearly communicating the "why" behind decisions, defining strategies, expectations, and priorities, and providing continuous coaching and feedback to E1 and M-band leaders and their teams.

• Develop self and others, support career aspirations, demonstrate care and compassion, and create an environment where Disney values are experienced through creative problem solving, inclusive leadership, and strong team orientation.

• Apply strategic thinking and business insight to evaluate key business and organizational challenges, develop innovative solutions within broad company policies, and act as an influential, persuasive executive voice in internal and external forums.

• Minimum 12 years of relevant experience, including at least 7+ years of management responsibility in marine or cruise operations.

• Significant senior leadership experience in cruise, passenger vessel, or maritime operations, with direct accountability for complex, geographically dispersed operations and strong knowledge of Guest and Crew experience.

• Deep operational knowledge of large passenger vessel operations, shipboard command structures, marine safety, regulatory compliance, voyage planning, and fleet…