Director, Expedition Development - Bluewater Fleet

WHO WE ARELindblad Expeditions is a true pioneer in Expedition Travel. From taking the first citizen explorers to Antarctica in 1966, opening the Galapagos and Easter Island to tourism in 1967, leading the first tourist expedition through the Northwest Passage in 1984, and launching our innovative partnership with National Geographic in 2004, we're now taking almost 30,000 guests a year to some of the world’s most remote and pristine locations on our fleet of 20 ships, and are committed to ensuring our guests experience the “Exhilaration of Discovery”.
Role Essentials  As part of the Expedition Development team, the Director of Expedition Development for our Bluewater Fleet has oversight of the creation and execution of best-in-class expeditions for four vessels operating on all seven continents, with primary seasons operating in the Arctic, Antarctica/South America, French Polynesia, Australia/New Zealand and the South Pacific, Southeast Asia, and Europe.
In this position, you will manage a team of Expedition Development Managers, Land Managers, and Program Managers to ensure successful voyages from conceptualization to completion, bringing new itineraries to market and strengthening existing itineraries. You will develop, execute, and communicate marketable program themes and narratives, and ensure land operations for the vessels assigned are of the highest quality.
This position is tasked with cultivating strong relationships within the industry and the communities we visit. Your oversight will ensure sales, marketing, and the onboard teams have the information necessary to sell and execute voyages as envisioned. Additionally, you'll work closely with our marine and port operations teams to ensure expeditions are viable and consistent with the itineraries and ports scheduled. You will advise on necessary permitting and permissions, industry trends and local issues and ensure the organization is ahead of the curve on these issues, and work closely with the Field Staff team to ensure staff are empowered to deliver world-class guest experiences.

[Expedition Development & Operations]

• Work with Sr. Management on annual deployment and oversee execution of deployment launch and modifications for four vessels: National Geographic Endurance, National Geographic Resolution, National Geographic Explorer, and National Geographic Orion.
• Guide appropriate Field Staff, Expedition Leaders (EL), Expedition Developers, Land Managers and Program Managers to create and execute an exemplary program. 
• Lead team to ensure itineraries have strong, marketable program themes and narratives woven throughout the expedition.   
• Continually identify, research, and develop expedition product enhancements, equipment, resources, and tools necessary for ongoing product innovation and differentiation. 
• Determine relevant extension options for voyages and maximize occupancy/profitability. 
• Maintain a deep and broad knowledge of permitting compliance laws and regulations, and directionally influence the design of the itinerary to ensure these comply with local law, both short and long term.  
• Monitor daily feedback reports from vessels, guest survey results, and shipboard debrief reports to identify trends, and direct improvement plans as necessary.  
• Work with cross-departmental team to support all operational aspects in any contingency or emergency situation, such as flight delay/cancellation, mechanical failure with ship, natural disaster, etc. 

[Budget & Finance]

• Oversee program P&Ls to ensure financial accuracy, profitability and cost-management. 
• Review RFPs and ensure favorable contracts with DMCs and vendors, assisting with contract negotiations, as necessary. 
• Maximize revenue and profitability through thoughtful deployment analysis, curated product offerings, and competitive monitoring 

[Marketing & Sales]

• Work with Sr. Management, sales, and marketing to determine trends and lead the team to develop new itineraries to meet those trends. 
• Ensure timely delivery of internal and external informational assets to assist reservations, sales and guest communications 
• Maintain competitive monitoring to ensure delivery of marketable products 
• Brief sales and trades, occasionally presenting to large groups 

[Vendor & Community Relations]

• Cultivate strong relationships with local vendors, hotel partners, air charter agents, internal and external partners.   
• Represent the organization in local associations, such as IAATO and AECO, as necessary. 
• Facilitate LEX/NG Fund conservation initiatives. 

[Administrative & Field Work]

• Ensure deadlines are met as