Senior Manager, Experience Design

The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection; Fort Lauderdale (FL); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection is seeking an experienced Experience Design leader to translate voyage vision into guest experiences across our luxury journeys. You will shape how guests interact with services, spaces, and programming to deliver unforgettable moments at sea.

You will partner with Voyage Experience teams, design concepts from strategy to implementation, and drive cohesive experiences across touchpoints while balancing creativity with operational practicality.

Qualifications

• 8–12+ years of experience in experience design, service design, hospitality innovation, product development, customer experience, experience strategy, or related disciplines.
• Proven success designing consumer-facing experiences, services, or hospitality products.
• Experience developing concepts from strategy through implementation.
• Experience collaborating with multidisciplinary teams and stakeholders.
• Experience influencing complex projects without direct authority.

Responsibilities

• Translate product vision into guest experiences across voyages.
• Lead experience design, concept development and prototyping.
• Build experience architecture and guest flows across touchpoints.
• Influence physical product development with design and operations teams.
• Drive innovation by translating insights into experiential solutions.
• Ensure experiences are cohesive, differentiated and aligned to outcomes.

Skills

Experience design

Service design

Hospitality innovation

Product development

Customer experience

Experience strategy

Stakeholder management

Facilitation & storytelling

Job description

Join the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection: Where Every Voyage is a Symphony of Luxury

Embark on an extraordinary journey with the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection, an exquisite extension of the renowned Ritz-Carlton brand, dedicated to redefining ultra-luxury hospitality at sea. As a "Lady or Gentleman" of our esteemed team, you'll be entrusted with the art of delivering the impeccable "Gold Standards" that have made the Ritz-Carlton an epitome of excellence across the globe.

The Gold Standards are the bedrock of the Ritz-Carlton experience, setting us apart in the industry and establishing a legacy of unparalleled service. These standards embody the values and culture that define our brand, and serve as the compass guiding our every endeavor.

At The Ritz-Carlton, our Ladies & Gentlemen are the most important resource in our service commitment to each other and our guests.

By applying the principles of trust, honesty, respect, integrity, and commitment, we empower and nurture talent to the benefit of each individual and the company.

The Ritz-Carlton fosters a culture where all are valued, quality of life is enhanced, individual aspirations are fulfilled, and The Ritz-Carlton Mystique is strengthened.

What You'll Do

Translate Product Vision into Experiences

• Partner with Voyage Experience teams to transform voyage vision, experience intent, and product strategy into tangible guest experiences.
• Define how guests should experience key moments across the journey.
• Create experiences that are intuitive, differentiated, and aligned to desired guest outcomes.
• Ensure individual experiences work together as part of a cohesive voyage.

Lead Experience Design & Concept Development

• Develop guest experience concepts.
• Create service models, interaction frameworks, experience requirements, and engagement strategies.
• Design signature moments and differentiated experiences that strengthen the overall product.
• Lead concept refinement, prototyping, and pilot development efforts.

Build Experience Architecture

• Develop guest experience flows.
• Identify opportunities to improve engagement and reduce friction.
• Define how experiences connect across touchpoints and moments.
• Establish experience frameworks and standards that support consistency and quality.

Influence Physical Product Development

• Partner with newbuild on physical design initiatives.
• Evaluate how physical environments influence guest behavior, engagement, and experience quality.
• Identify opportunities where venue design, guest flow, activation opportunities, and environmental design can strengthen experience outcomes.
• Ensure physical spaces, programming, and service models function as a cohesive experience ecosystem.

Drive Innovation & Continuous Improvement

• Collaborate with Journey & Insights teams to identify opportunity areas.
• Translate guest needs and behavioral insights into experience solutions.
• Support pilot programs and concept testing initiatives.
• Monitor emerging hospitality, travel, entertainment, and lifestyle trends to identify future opportunities.

Success Looks Like

• Product vision is consistently translated into meaningful guest experiences.
• Experiences feel intentionally designed rather than operationally assembled.
• Service models, programming, and physical environments work together seamlessly.
• New concepts strengthen differentiation and guest engagement.
• Friction points are systematically identified and addressed.
• Experience standards create consistency while preserving creativity and innovation.
• Physical design decisions increasingly support intended guest behaviors and outcomes.

Experience

What We're Looking For

• 8–12+ years of experience in experience design, service design, hospitality innovation, product development, customer experience, experience strategy, or related disciplines.
• Proven success designing consumer-facing experiences, services, or hospitality products.
• Experience developing concepts from strategy through implementation.
• Experience collaborating with multidisciplinary teams and stakeholders.
• Experience influencing complex projects without direct authority.

Skills & Capabilities

• Exceptional experience design and service design capability.
• Strong concept development and innovation skills.
• Ability to translate strategy and insight into tangible guest experiences.
• Strong systems-thinking mindset.
• Deep understanding of how service, programming, and physical environments influence guest behavior.
• Experience collaborating with architects, interior designers, or product development teams.
• Strong facilitation, storytelling, and communication skills.
• Ability to balance creativity with operational practicality.

Ideal Backgrounds

• Service design and experience design consultancies
• Luxury hospitality brands
• Theme parks and immersive entertainment organizations
• Travel and leisure experience development
• Lifestyle and membership brands
• Product innovation teams
• Customer experience strategy organizations
• Experiential retail and destination development organizations

The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection is an Equal opportunity, inclusive employer and will consider all applicants for employment with the Company on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, or any other category protected by federal, state, or local law.