Director, Operations Finance & Margin Strategy

AmaWaterways River Cruises; Calabasas (CA); On-site; USD 160,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

AmaWaterways River Cruises in Calabasas, CA is seeking a Director of Business Finance - Operations to guide cost management and margin for river cruises and package tours. You will partner with FP&A and operations leaders to optimize budgets and drive disciplined decision-making.

The role requires 10+ years in finance, strong leadership, and expertise in cost analysis, forecasting and NetSuite solutions, with a passion for hospitality and guest experience excellence.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting or Economics (MBA or CPA preferred).
• 10+ years of progressive finance experience, including operations finance, cost management or business partnering.
• Proven leadership of finance professionals.
• Strong financial modeling, forecasting and analytical skills.
• Proficiency in NetSuite and BI tools.
• Interest in ship operations and guest service operations in hospitality.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to influence operations and senior leaders.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the finance partner to leaders across all elements of the guest experience for river cruises and package tours, including ship operations, hotel and culinary, shore experiences and itinerary operations.
• Own operating cost budgets and forecasts for river cruises and package tours in partnership with FP&A and operations leaders.
• Manage package tour costs, including hotels, guides and transportation, from contracting and budgeting through actual results.
• Manage margin for river cruises and package tours, analyzing performance by ship, sailing, itinerary, package tour and guest experience component; explain variances and recommend corrective action.
• Identify and drive cost reduction and efficiency opportunities, tracking benefits through delivery while protecting the guest experience.
• Develop operational KPIs and dashboards that connect operational drivers to financial results.
• Support vendor and supplier negotiations, including hotel, guide and transportation arrangements, purchasing strategy and business case evaluations.
• Partner on capital planning for ships and operational investments.
• Lead and develop the cost-focused FP&A team members reporting to this role.
• Work with Accounting to ensure cost actuals, accruals and reporting are accurate and aligned.
• Present financial performance and recommendations to the CFO and senior leadership.
• Champion AI enablement in operations finance, applying AI-enabled tools to cost analysis, forecasting and reporting.
• Identify and help implement the changes needed to deliver quality, decision-useful operating cost and margin data.

Skills

Finance experience

Leadership

Financial modeling

Forecasting

Analysis

Communication

Operations finance

Influence senior leaders

Education

Bachelor's degree in Finance/Accounting/Economics

MBA or CPA preferred

Tools

NetSuite

BI tools

Job description

AmaWaterways River Cruises in Calabasas, CA is seeking a Director of Business Finance - Operations to guide cost management and margin for river cruises and package tours. You will partner with FP&A and operations leaders to optimize budgets and drive disciplined decision-making.

The role requires 10+ years in finance, strong leadership, and expertise in cost analysis, forecasting and NetSuite solutions, with a passion for hospitality and guest experience excellence.