sunsail, the moorings & leopard catamarans

The Head of Charter Operations is responsible for the Leadership and Operational delivery of our flagship fleet of approx. 300 boats in Tortola. The role will lead the BVI team and deliver an exceptional customer experience to our guests; maintaining excellence in customer service, charter quality, safety and compliance, and ensuring our yachts are maintained above owners and customer expectations.

This role includes the management of all department heads supporting the yacht charter operations across our four product lines (Crewed Yachts, Power, Sunsail, The Moorings), including customer service, marina operations, technical, cleaning, and inventory control.

Working hours vary and you must be able to cover operational requirements. Visible leadership is required with day-to-day presence at the base; this is a hands-on role with regular customer interaction. Collaboration with partners from each support department is required, including but not limited to HR, Recruitment, Finance, Safety, Technical, Central Operations, Central Purchasing.

What you will be doing:

Customer Service

• Work alongside the Head of Customer Operations to ensure staff are role modelling our five-star customer service framework throughout all customer interactions.
• Ensure feedback scores, NPS, and service targets are being met.
• Support management team in addressing customer feedback reports, to improve the quality of our products and promote a culture of excellence throughout the region.

Maintenance

• Oversee the technical department, ensuring preventative maintenance procedures are followed in accordance with company policies and procedures, and that high standards of yacht maintenance are achieved.
• Ensure the base and technical teams are using our digital maintenance platform and logging all data to company standards within the region.
• Ensure the base is meeting key performance indicators across technical metrics.
• Responsible for working directly with the technical leads to ensure all major maintenance issues and owner concerns are addressed in a timely manner.
• Ensure all technical areas and equipment across the base are legally compliant and continually enhanced (e.g. safety equipment, signage, etc.)
• Support the Inventory Control Manager ensuring successful stores operation, and that stock levels are aligned to maintenance requirements.
• Partner with Global Technical Department to identify and resolve systemic technical issues.
• Responsibility for delivery of annual hurricane procedures.
• Support our Technical Academy delivery through ensuring an annual skills matrix is completed, and that team members are appropriately selected and made available to attend training sessions.

Safety and Compliance

• Through collaboration with the onsite Safety Manager, maintain strict compliance with all Standard Operating procedures and ensure that the team remains consistently up to date with company policies and procedures.
• Ensure relationships with relevant licensing and governing authorities are maintained to ensure compliance.
• Ensure strict adherence to health and safety standards across the base, reporting any issues to VP Operations and the safety team, and ensuring the base team consistently follow the incident reporting process.
• Complete all risk assessments on time and comprehensively.

Quality Assurance

• Track customer feedback scores using targeted metrics, conduct regular management meetings to discuss and take proactive steps to resolve identified issues.
• Ensure cleanliness of the base and yachts in maintained to a high, and consistent standard.

Financial Management, Insurance, and Warranty

• Drive profitability of the base towards stretching EBITDA targets through effective management of the charter P&L. 
• Strict adherence to finance policies and asset security.
• Collaborate with the finance partner to prepare and submit financial budgets and adjust forecasts to meet monthly and yearly targets.
• Control expenses within established guidelines.
• Ensure submission of insurance claims and warranty requirements across technical departments.
• Ensure stores completes timely inventory audits.
• Ensure optimal cost vs operational balance in terms of labour resource.
• Manage the relationship with local suppliers, including contract negotiations.
• Drive local revenue and work toward specific revenue targets.
• Generate ideas to increase revenue and reduce operational costs.

Leadership and Team Development

• Direct line management of operations and department managers/leads, ensuring SMART performance evaluations are completed in a timely manner, and succession plans for key roles are in place.
• Ensure full base team completes annual compliance and information security training within company deadlines.
• Collaborate with the HR partner to create people plans that drive performance by creating career pathways for local talent, nurturing high potentials, and creating performance culture.
• Support team managers/leads to manage performance concerns and involve the HR partner to ensure adherence to company procedures.
• Accountable for the engagement scores of the team driving increased scores through the creation and delivery of targeted action plans.
• Collaborate with the recruitment team to secure high-quality candidate selections, strictly adhering to authorisation processes, and actively contributing to interviews and the onboarding process.
• Recognise and identify the learning and development requirements of the team, collaborating with the People team to coordinate and provide suitable training programs that enhance team performance. Additionally, develop direct reports to enhance their skills in alignment with business needs.
• Communicate company policies and procedures to staff, ensuring adherence and understanding.
• Cultivate a friendly and helpful attitude amongst the team, extending the same courtesy to customers and business partners.
• Continuously pursue self-development and take ownership of personal growth.

Other Duties

• Hold regular meetings with the base teams to celebrate wins and address challenges.
• Partner with the Property and Safey manager to ensure the upkeep of the entire base property.
• Be on call daily for any emergency issues
• Other reasonable tasks as assigned by VP Operations

The ideal candidate will have the following:

• Previous experience managing yacht charter operations and technical teams within the marine leisure industry
• Previous experience of leading a large operational team
• Technical knowledge in mechanical and electrical
• Experience in preparing and managing budgets
• Previous experience of managing a P&L and a proven record of personally driving commercial success
• RYA Yacht Master license or equivalent (preferred)
• Personal or professional experience of the Caribbean (preferred)

Our Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion:

We believe people perform best when they can be their true selves, and diverse teams drive better results. We’re committed to fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment where everyone can succeed.

#LI-IB1