Senior Manager, Systems Engineering

Senior Manager, Systems Engineering (New Build & Dry Docks)

The Walt Disney Company is a world-class entertainment and technological leader. Walt's passion was to continuously envision new ways to move audiences around the world—a passion that remains our touchstone in an enterprise that stretches from theme parks, resorts and a cruise line to sports, news, movies, and a variety of other businesses. Uniting each endeavor is a commitment to creating and delivering unforgettable experiences—and we're constantly looking for new ways to enhance these exciting experiences. Bring your individual talents here and discover for yourself why a career with Disney is the opportunity you've been looking for.

This role will report to Director, Technology—DCL New Build & Dry Docks.

About the Role

The Senior Manager, Systems Engineering for Disney Experiences is a knowledgeable specialist and strategic leader responsible for shaping and delivering the systems engineering vision that powers magical guest and crew experiences across Disney Cruise Line new builds and related vacation offerings. You will lead multiple related engineering teams, set technical direction, and ensure our platforms and infrastructure are robust, secure, and ready to support innovative, large-scale experiences at sea and on shore.

Focused on the standup and commissioning of all infrastructure and systems for a ship's operations, this role spans both Disney Cruise Line New Build and Dry Dock Capital efforts—partnering with key stakeholders across all departments to deliver each ship from initial concept through final installation and go-live.

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor multiple systems engineering teams, including other managers and senior engineers, ensuring clarity of vision, priorities, and performance expectations across all work streams.
• Define and drive systems engineering strategies and roadmaps for Disney Cruise Line new builds, connecting team responsibilities to broader Disney Experiences objectives and long-term technology evolution.
• Develop departmental plans, set organizational priorities, and allocate budget and resources to balance near-term delivery with strategic investments in infrastructure, reliability, and security. Own the financial planning, budget management, and capital stewardship of multi-million-dollar complex projects—including cost forecasting, variance management, vendor and contract spend oversight, and executive-level capital reporting from concept through commissioning.
• Oversee the design, implementation, and operations of complex systems and infrastructure (compute, storage, networking, and cloud/on-prem platforms) that support shipboard and shoreside environments at scale.
• Collaborate closely with product, operations, cruise, and technology partners to understand requirements, define project scopes and timelines, and ensure solutions are customer-focused, reliable, and service-minded.
• Provide continuous coaching, feedback, and development opportunities for leaders and engineers, fostering a culture of innovation, accountability, and career growth.
• Champion Disney values by creating an inclusive, team-oriented environment where diverse perspectives are encouraged, and creative problem solving is recognized and rewarded.
• Partner with security, portfolio, and finance teams on capital planning, prioritization, and risk management for major systems engineering initiatives and platform transformations.
• Guide continuous improvement of engineering practices, operational procedures, and observability to enhance system reliability, performance, and supportability across global locations.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with internal and external partners, including vendors and cross-functional Disney teams, to align on priorities and deliver integrated solutions for cruise and resort experiences.
• Lead performance planning, evaluation, and development for the infrastructure build team's Cast Members—managing priorities, removing roadblocks, mentoring for career growth, and addressing performance improvement as required.
• Lead the design and deployment of innovative architectures supporting the unique maritime requirements of Disney Cruise Line ships, including safety and maintenance systems required for the operation of a cruise vessel and systems that provide information to U.S. and international governments for Guest and Crew information.
• Lead the design and deployment of network-based entertainment systems that utilize shipboard Technology services to enable world-class entertainment provided on Disney Cruise Line ships.
• Manage the development and governance of contracts, service level agreements, and policies for third-party suppliers as they relate to procurement activities for New Build and Dry Docks.
• Develop new-ship technical specifications to ensure Disney Cruise Line is positioned to offer future ship vision guest experiences.
• Partner with the shipyard to develop ship design as it relates to technology.
• Develop the labor plan to support the design and build phases of new ships and dry docks, ensuring a smooth and efficient transition of newly commissioned systems—and the supporting team—to operations.
• Partner with Marine Technical, Entertainment Technical, and DX Technology to ensure requirements are integrated into new-ship design.
• 30% Travel

Required Qualifications

• 10+ years of relevant systems engineering or related technology experience, including 3+ years in management leading multiple teams or managers, and 5+ years delivering maritime, cruise line, or large-scale infrastructure programs.
• Proven ability to lead and develop high-performing engineering teams, including mentoring first-line leaders and senior individual contributors.
• Demonstrated experience managing complex systems or infrastructure portfolios (e.g., servers, storage, virtualization, or cloud platforms) supporting mission-critical environments.
• Knowledge of modern infrastructure and site reliability engineering practices, including automation, infrastructure-as-code, and observability tooling.
• Strong collaboration and communication skills, with the ability to influence and partner effectively across technical and non-technical stakeholders, including executive audiences.
• Validated ability to plan, prioritize, and manage budgets and resources across multiple concurrent projects and initiatives.
• Track record of strategic thinking, problem solving, and decision making in fast-paced, dynamic environments.
• Experience managing projects in a multi-vendor environment, including offshore teams.
• Professional-level qualifications in Information Technology Infrastructure.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with cybersecurity standards relating to the maritime industry, including IMO 2021 and IACS E26 & E27.
• Proven experience managing satellite technologies in the maritime industry, from contract through commissioning.
• Experience leading engineering efforts for cruise, resort, or large-scale themed entertainment environments, including shipboard or multi-site operations.
• Experience in ship build projects and process.
• Background with virtualization, containerization, and automation platforms (e.g., VMware, Hyper-V, Docker, Kubernetes, Ansible, or similar).
• Familiarity with IT service management and collaboration tools such as ServiceNow, JIRA, Confluence, and related platforms.

Required Education

• Bachelor's Degree or higher in Computer Science, Information Systems, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering, or a related technical field.

Preferred Education

• Master's degree in a related engineering or technology discipline.

#DISNEYTECH

The hiring range for this position in Orlando, FL is $148,300 to $198,800 per year. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate's geographic region, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. A bonus and/or long-term incentive units may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the level and position offered.

About Disney Experiences:

Disney Experiences brings the magic of Disney stories and franchises to life through theme parks, resorts, cruise ships, unique vacation experiences, products and more around the world. Disney shines in the travel industry with six resort destinations in the United States, Europe and Asia; a top-rated cruise line; a popular vacation ownership program; and an award-winning guided family adventure business. Plus, Disney's global consumer products operations include the world's leading licensing business; the world's largest children's publishing brands; one of the world's largest licensors of games across all platforms; and Disney store locations around the world and on the web.

About The Walt Disney Company:

The Walt Disney Company, together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, is a leading diversified international family entertainment and media enterprise that includes three core business segments: Disney Entertainment, ESPN, and Disney Experiences. From humble beginnings as a cartoon studio in the 1920s to its preeminent name in the entertainment industry today, Disney proudly continues its legacy of creating world-class stories and experiences for every member of the family. Disney's stories, characters and experiences reach consumers and guests from every corner of the globe. With operations in more than