Director of Sales Capability & Training

The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection•Fort Lauderdale, FL

2d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Director of Sales Capability and Training is responsible for building and sustaining a high-performance sales organization across the Reservations and Contact Center teams. This role owns the strategy, capability-building, coaching frameworks, and performance interventions required to strengthen sales effectiveness, accelerate revenue growth, and consistently deliver an exceptional luxury guest experience. Working in close partnership with Sales Leadership, the Director establishes and embeds a luxury sales methodology centered on value creation—equipping sales professionals to understand guest needs, articulate the distinctive value of The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection experience, confidently overcome objections, and convert interest into revenue. This is not solely a training delivery role. The Director is accountable for translating learning and development into measurable sales performance and for building the systems, leadership capability, coaching disciplines, and culture required to maintain a high-performing sales team. Success will be measured through both capability development and commercial outcomes, with a portion of variable compensation tied to agreed team performance measures. The Director leads a team of Training Managers, Specialists and Instructional Designers and partners closely with Sales leaders to ensure sales professionals have the knowledge, skills, confidence, and performance mindset to deliver results while embodying our values of Candor, Care, Curiosity, and Connection.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Organizational Development, Business Administration, Adult Education, or related field (or equivalent professional experience). Master's degree preferred.
10+ years of professional experience with at least 5+ years in a sales capability, sales training, sales enablement, or related leadership role managing a team
Proven track record designing and implementing sales capability strategies in a high-volume contact center or direct sales environment
Demonstrated experience building sales capability within a luxury, premium, hospitality, travel, or other high-value consultative sales environment (required)
Proven experience developing and embedding sales methodologies focused on value creation, consultative selling, relationship building, and conversion rather than transactional or price-led selling
Demonstrated track record of improving measurable sales performance through capability development, coaching, leadership routines, and targeted performance interventions
Experience working in a role where success was measured against commercial KPIs and team sales performance, not solely training activity or learning outcomes
Demonstrated expertise in curriculum development, instructional design principles, adult learning methodologies, and sales coaching
Proficiency in learning management systems (LMS), training technology platforms, and training analytics tools
Experience with data analysis and ability to connect capability interventions to quantitative and qualitative business outcomes
Commercially minded sales capability leader who understands that the ultimate measure of effective development is improved individual and team performance
Strategic thinker who aligns sales capability strategy with business objectives and thinks systemically about talent pipelines, leadership capability, and sustained performance
Strong understanding of luxury sales and value creation, with the ability to translate an exceptional brand and guest proposition into compelling sales conversations
Exceptional leadership and team development abilities; skilled at recruiting, mentoring, coaching, and developing high-performing teams
Able to diagnose sales performance challenges and distinguish between knowledge, skill, process, leadership, motivation, and accountability gaps before determining the appropriate intervention
Analytical mindset with the ability to interpret sales and learning data, measure effectiveness, and drive continuous improvement
Strong emotional intelligence; demonstrates self-awareness, reads and responds to others' emotions, and builds trust and credibility
Outstanding facilitation and presentation skills with the ability to engage, inspire, and motivate diverse audiences
Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to translate complex concepts into clear, engaging, actionable content
Detailed, hands-on operator with the ability to thrive in a fast-growth, entrepreneurial environment
Strong project management skills and ability to manage multiple initiatives with competing priorities and deadlines
Strong change management capabilities; helps teams adapt to new processes, systems, strategies, and performance expectations
Comfortable being held accountable for agreed team performance outcomes and operating as a strategic partner to Sales Leadership in building a high-performance sales culture
Highest level of integrity and dependability with a strong sense of urgency and results orientation
Balances Care and Connection with Candor and accountability, creating an environment in which sales professionals are supported to develop while being clear about performance expectations
Embodies our core values: Candor (communicates honestly and directly), Care (invests in people's development), Curiosity (seeks continuous learning), and Connection (builds authentic relationships)

Nice To Haves

Prior experience with Ritz-Carlton, Marriott, or similar luxury hospitality brands strongly preferred
Background in cruise line sales, luxury travel, or other high-touch luxury sales environments preferred
Experience designing and delivering leadership development and coaching programs preferred
Strong knowledge of consultative and value-based sales methodologies; familiarity with methodologies such as SPIN Selling, Consultative Selling, or Solution Selling preferred
Certification in training and development (CPTD, CTT, ATAP) preferred

Responsibilities

Develop and execute a comprehensive, multi-year sales capability and training strategy aligned with revenue objectives, business priorities, company values, and competitive positioning in the luxury travel market
Establish and embed a distinctive luxury sales methodology centered on value creation, consultative selling, emotional connection, and a deep understanding of guest needs, ensuring sales professionals can confidently communicate the value of The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection experience
Build and maintain the capability, coaching disciplines, performance standards, and leadership routines required to create a consistently high-performing sales organization
Share accountability with Sales Leadership for team performance, using sales results and performance data to identify capability gaps and implement targeted coaching, training, and performance interventions
Establish clear KPIs and measures of success that connect capability-building directly to commercial outcomes, including booking conversion, revenue generation, average booking value, sales productivity, time-to-productivity, quality measures, guest satisfaction, employee retention, and other agreed team performance indicators
Partner with Sales Leadership, Operations, Quality, Human Resources, Marketing, and other stakeholders to identify capability needs, performance gaps, and opportunities for competitive differentiation
Design and oversee comprehensive onboarding programs that reduce time-to-productivity and accelerate new hire contribution
Create and maintain advanced luxury sales curricula including value creation, consultative selling, needs discovery, objection handling, closing, upselling, guest psychology, and relationship-building appropriate to ultra-luxury travel
Develop product knowledge training ensuring sales teams understand our yacht collection, itineraries, guest amenities, and unique value proposition and can translate that knowledge into compelling guest conversations
Design competency-based, role-specific development for Reservations Agents, Sales Specialists, Team Leads, and Sales leaders
Develop the coaching capability of Sales leaders and Team Leads so that sales development is reinforced through consistent, effective day-to-day coaching rather than dependent solely upon formal training interventions
Incorporate behavioral coaching and emotional intelligence development aligned with our connection-driven culture
Evaluate and integrate emerging instructional design methodologies including blended learning, microlearning, experiential learning, and peer coaching approaches
Support the recruitment, development, and mentoring of a high-performing Sales Capability team
Establish a culture of continuous learning, accountability, and excellence within the Sales function, modeling our values of Candor, Care, Curiosity, and Connection
Lead and facilitate high-impact development sessions when appropriate, ensuring content is engaging, relevant, and aligned with adult learning principles
Serve as primary facilitator for key programs and conduct train-the-trainer sessions to scale program delivery and consistency
Analyze individual and team sales performance to identify trends, capability gaps, and opportunities for improvement; translate insights into targeted development plans and measurable performance interventions
Implement rigorous evaluation frameworks to assess learning impact, behavior change, and business outcomes
Collect, analyze, and present data on sales capability, employee engagement, and commercial outcomes to leadership
Conduct post-development assessments and skill validation; identify areas for reinforcement, coaching, or additional intervention
Conduct annual capability audits and program reviews; implement improvements based on performance data, feedback, and market best practices
Develop realistic budgets and demonstrate ROI of sales capability investments
Collaborate with Human Resources on leadership, culture, brand, and enterprise development programs
Work with Marketing and Communications to ensure brand consistency and alignment in all sales capability materials