Lead, Program Management

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Position Summary:

The Lead, Program Management supporting the Design planning owns the integrated planning backbone for the Newbuild Design portfolio — building and maintaining the schedules and frameworks that drive scalable, efficient design execution across an integrated design and naval architecture process. Reporting to the Senior Manager, Design Planning & Analytics, the role translates the design process into time-bound plans, orchestrating timelines, milestones, dependencies, and file submissions across all phases, workstreams, and quality gates.

The role works in close coordination with Newbuild executive leadership, Brand, architectural partners, shipyards, local offices, and Project Management. Partnering with design integration teams and cross-functional partners, the Lead keeps planning proactive, transparent, and balanced against time, cost, scope, and quality — while feeding structured planning data into automated dashboards and KPIs through the reporting and analytics function.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

Master Schedule Ownership & Integration

• Own, build, and maintain the integrated design master schedule, aligned to design maturity phases and quality gates, using enterprise scheduling tools.
• Ensure planning structures reflect the pre-conditions, margins, progressive maturity, and value- and cost-driven design principles required at each phase.
• Keep design schedules synchronized with shipyard build sequences and program-level milestones so deliverables land ahead of contractual and construction needs.

File Submission & Milestone Management

• Build and manage design file submission schedules and deliverable packages across Newbuild, Brand, local offices, and shipyards, enforcing timeline alignment across all stakeholder groups.
• Identify and track the pre-conditions and progressive maturity targets required to clear design quality gates and critical design milestones.
• Provide early warning on at-risk submissions and drive recovery planning with the relevant owners.

Critical-Path, Scenario & Workforce Planning

• Identify cross-program critical-path dependencies and run scenario analyses to optimize schedule, scope, and resource trade-offs with relevant stakeholders, translating outcomes into planning synergies and defined projects.
• Develop strategic workforce-planning and tactical design-planning models and tools that surface capacity gaps, opportunities, and the resources needed to hold the plan.

Cross-Functional Coordination & Portfolio Support

• Act as the planning liaison between design project teams, external partners, and internal departments — PMO, Naval Architecture, Maritime Technology, and Brand — to establish coherent timelines and milestones aligned to overall program objectives.
• Support portfolio scalability by applying lessons from lead-vessel planning to follow-on ship classes and by reinforcing consistent planning practices across US and EU design studios.

Planning Data, Reporting & Analytics

• Feed structured, current planning data into reporting and analytics so dashboards and KPIs reflect true schedule status at portfolio, project, and executive levels.
• Partner with the reporting and analytics team to automate planning inputs and reduce manual tracking, improving the speed and reliability of executive-facing status.

Planning Governance & Continuous Improvement

• Provide strategic governance over design planning by ensuring consistent adoption of enterprise-wide planning principles and templates, aligned to established newbuild project standards.
• Evolve the planning framework through lessons learned and leading practices, supporting consistent process and value- and cost-driven implementation at each phase.
• Study operational needs and current performance to identify areas for improvement and planning efficiency.
• Perform additional job-related duties as assigned. This job description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the employee occupying this position.

Qualifications & Education:

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree with a concentration in Project Management, Construction / Architecture (Shipbuilding experience preferred), Business Management, Industrial Engineering, or a related field.

Experience

• 5–7 years in project planning, scheduling, or project management within large-scale capital programs, preferably in design, architecture, or construction.
• Demonstrated experience building and managing integrated project schedules for complex, multi-disciplinary design programs.
• Experience in shipbuilding, cruise, hospitality, or similarly complex design environments is a strong advantage.

Technical Skills

• Proficiency in MS Office Suite, MS Project, Adobe Workfront, or equivalent enterprise scheduling and project management tools.
• Strong command of industry-standard scheduling practices, including critical-path methodology, dependency management, and milestone tracking.

Core Competencies

• Exceptional organizational skills and attention to detail, with the ability to manage multiple concurrent project schedules.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities, with a proactive approach to risk identification and mitigation.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder-management skills, with the ability to translate complex planning data into clear, actionable insights for diverse audiences.
• Collaborative mindset with the ability to work across disciplines, cultures, and geographies (US and EU design studios, shipyard partners).
• Results-driven, with a high sense of accountability and ownership.

This position may require travel to and from ships, shipyards, and/or vendor facilities located in Europe, Asia, and North America (≤ 25%).

We know there’s a lot to consider. As you go through the application process, our recruiters will be glad to provide guidance and more relevant details to answer any additional questions. Thank you again for your interest in Royal Caribbean Group. We hope to see you onboard soon!

Physical Demands 

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally required to walk, sit, reach with hands and arms, talk, and hear.  Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, color vision, and ability to adjust focus.

Work Environment

• The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those employees’ encounters while performing the essential functions of the job. The work environment is inside the office.

We know there's a lot to consider.  As you go through the application process, our recruiters will be glad to provide guidance, and more relevant details to answer any additional questions. Thank you again for your interest in Royal Caribbean Group. We'll hope to see you onboard soon!

It is the policy of the Company to ensure equal employment and promotion opportunity to qualified candidates without discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, sexuality, gender identity or expression, marital status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Royal Caribbean Group and each of its subsidiaries prohibit and will not tolerate discrimination or harassment.