Corporate Executive Director of Operations

Overview

Join the Xanterra Travel Collection team:

Xanterra Travel Collection is a premier group of travel and leisure businesses with a focus on sustainability and exceptional service. Headquartered in Greenwood Village, Colorado, we operate iconic properties and services in stunning locations worldwide, including lodging, food and beverage, Windstar Cruises, short-line railroads, and adventure travel. We are dedicated to creating unforgettable experiences for our guests and providing transformative career opportunities for our team members.

We are seeking a seasoned, strategic hospitality operator to serve as Corporate Executive Director of Operations. This corporate leadership role will help create and provide operational guidance, project leadership, and strategic support across Xanterra’s hospitality locations. Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, the Executive Director provides leadership to the Director, Food & Beverage, and maintain a dotted-line reporting relationship with the Operations Project Coordinator. The role will work in close partnership with the COO to lead projects and strategic initiatives, provide field guidance and support, and help shape the structure, standards, and operating practices. This is a high-impact role for a leader who thrives in complex, multi-site hospitality environments and delivers results through collaboration, operational discipline, and strong field partnership.

Responsibilities

• Strategic Initiatives & COO Partnership: Work in partnership with the Chief Operating Officer to lead and support strategic initiatives that advance operational excellence, improve guest and employee experience, and strengthen field execution across Xanterra’s hospitality locations.
• Field Guidance & Support: Provide practical guidance, coaching, and operational support to field leaders, helping properties solve business challenges, strengthen consistency, and implement best practices in lodging and related operational areas.
• Reporting Relationships & Collaboration: Report directly to the Chief Operating Officer and provide leadership to the Director, Food & Beverage. Maintain a dotted-line reporting relationship with the Operations Project Coordinator to ensure priorities, project timelines, field support needs, and operational deliverables are aligned and well-coordinated.
• Lodging Function Development: Help create, define, and establish the Lodging department, including recommended operating standards, processes, reporting practices, and field support model. Partners with leadership to ensure lodging operations are aligned with enterprise goals, guest experience expectations, and property-level needs.
• Guest Experience and Culture: Own and drive consistent, high-quality guest service standards across all guest-facing and support functions. Champion a positive service culture and provide a work environment in which employees can thrive across all four divisions.
• Project Leadership: Lead and coordinate high-priority cross-functional projects assigned by or developed in partnership with the COO, including operational improvement initiatives, field support projects, property transitions, bid support, system implementations, and other strategic priorities. Define project scope, timelines, resource requirements, and success metrics, and provide progress reporting to senior leadership.
• Operational Continuity Support: Provide stabilizing operational support to properties during periods of transition, leadership gaps, or significant business change, helping maintain continuity of guest experience, team culture, and operating performance.
• Operational and Financial leadership: Works voraciously to increase revenue, drive out costs with a constant gauge on the price: value relationship of our products and services to our guests. Supports business planning, budget development, capital planning, financial reporting, forecasting, labor management, expense control, and operational analysis for lodging and related initiatives in partnership with field and corporate leaders.
• Process Standardization & Innovation: Identify and implement opportunities to standardize operating procedures, technology platforms, reporting practices, and service expectations within the developing Lodging department and across related property operations. Champion the evaluation and adoption of new tools and operating models that improve efficiency, guest experience, and profitability.
• Continuous Process Improvement: Drive a continuous improvement culture. Develop operational strategic objectives, oversee tactical implementation plans, and ensure success at every point along the guest journey. Identify back-office support improvements that can be made to improve front end support of our operations and takes action to reduce bureaucracy and/or inefficiency to ensure our Operations teams are best supported in their efforts to support the Guest and front line employee experience.
  
  

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required, with a focus in Hospitality Management, Hotel & Restaurant Management, Business Administration, or a related field. Master’s degree or MBA preferred.
• 15 years of progressive hospitality leadership experience, with significant lodging, rooms, resort, hotel, or multi-property operations experience. Previous experience with remote locations a plus.
• Demonstrated experience helping develop or improve operational standards, departmental processes, field support models, or multi-site hospitality programs.
• Prior experience leading cross-functional projects, strategic initiatives, or operational improvement efforts in partnership with senior leadership is strongly preferred.
• Experience with national park concessions, remote resort operations, or comparable multi-site hospitality environments a significant plus.
• Strong financial acumen and demonstrated experience with managing complex capital projects.
• Proficient with MS Office desktop software; familiarity with hospitality management systems and business intelligence tools preferred.
• Strong relationship & communication skills. Able to convey ideas effectively to a variety of audiences and establish effective relationships.
• Strong hospitality operations expertise, particularly in lodging or rooms operations, with the ability to help establish departmental structure, standards, and field support practices.
• Demonstrated ability to think strategically while maintaining the operational discipline to execute in the field.
• Proven ability to lead strategic initiatives and project work in partnership with senior leaders, including defining scope, aligning stakeholders, tracking progress, and driving results.
• Strong financial acumen and demonstrated experience with P&L management, budgeting, and forecasting.
• Proven track record of leading complex, multi-stakeholder projects from initiation through successful delivery.
• Ability to provide credible, practical field guidance and support during operational transitions, leadership gaps, or high-priority business needs.
• Strong relationship & communication skills. Able to convey ideas effectively to a variety of audiences, establish effective relationships, and inspire others.
• Analytical mindset with the ability to build performance measurement systems and act decisively on data and insights.
• Experience in managing a large, diverse workforce across multiple operational disciplines.
  
  

Compensation: The base salary range for this position is $160,000 – $190,000 based on experience, plus annual incentive based on performance.

Benefits:

For full-time employees, Xanterra offers a comprehensive benefits package including: Medical, Dental & Vision; HSA & FSA; Life & Disability; Accident, Hospital & Critical Illness; Pet Insurance; PTO and paid Holidays; 401(k) with Company Match; Employee Assistance Plan; Education Assistance; RTD-Denver transit pass for in-office employees, and Employee Discounts & Travel Deals.

Xanterra Travel Collection is committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace. We are an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, pregnancy, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other legally protected status.