The Role
The Director of Public Relations shapes global media relations strategies, manages campaigns, oversees agency partnerships, and serves as a spokesperson for Lindblad Expeditions.
Summary Generated by Built In
WHO WE ARE
Lindblad Expeditions is a true pioneer in Expedition Travel. From taking the first citizen explorers to Antarctica in 1966, opening the Galapagos and Easter Island to tourism in 1967, leading the first tourist expedition through the Northwest Passage in 1984, and launching our innovative partnership with National Geographic in 2004, we're now taking almost 30,000 guests a year to some of the world’s most remote and pristine locations on our fleet of 23 ships, and are committed to ensuring our guests experience the “Exhilaration of Discovery”.
ROLE OVERVIEW
The Director of Public Relations is the senior leader of all PR and external communications efforts for Lindblad Expeditions, responsible for shaping and executing a comprehensive global media relations strategy. Reporting directly to the SVP, Chief Marketing Officer and working closely with the CEO, this role drives the company’s storytelling across consumer, trade, and lifestyle media, elevating Lindblad’s reputation as the leader in expedition travel.
The Director oversees the planning and execution of strategic communications, high-profile media campaigns, press events, familiarization trips, and crisis communications. They will serve as a key spokesperson for the company, manage our PR agency, and work closely with our brand partners to ensure that Lindblad is consistently represented with excellence.
The ideal candidate will have deep experience as a PR leader for a travel company and know how to navigate the needs of a multi-brand public company.
RESPONSIBILITIES
- Lead Global PR Strategy: Develop and implement a comprehensive public relations strategy that grows brand awareness, enhances reputation, and supports business goals.
- Media Relations Leadership: Cultivate and maintain high-level relationships with consumer, trade, lifestyle, and travel media; serve as a primary spokesperson for the company.
- Executive Communications: Support and advise senior executives on internal and external communications, media interviews, and public speaking opportunities.
- Agency & Partner Management: Direct and manage external our PR agency, ensuring alignment on strategy, messaging, and measurable outcomes.
- PR Activations: Design and oversee press events, media trips, and partner activations that highlight Lindblad’s unique expeditions and sustainability leadership.
- Crisis & Issues Management: Serve as point of contact for crisis communications and develop proactive strategies to safeguard the company’s reputation.
- Financial Communications: Assist the CFO and GC with earnings releases, SEC filings, and other public company needs.
- National Geographic and Disney Partnership: Be the primary point of contact for PR for all our collaboration with our NG and Disney partners.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with Marketing, Sales, Digital, Operations, and Sustainability teams to ensure PR is fully integrated into company initiatives.
- Internal Partnership Development: Closely with the VP, Marketing & Partnership, to integrate the PR initiatives into a centralized marketing and communications integrated plan, ensuring consistent messaging, unified business priorities, and complementary layered goals across the organization.
- Measurement & Reporting: Establish clear metrics for PR performance; track, analyze, and report results to leadership.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
- 10+ years of progressive public relations or communications experience.
- Proven success in leading global PR strategies and securing impactful media coverage for a consumer-facing brand; travel and hospitality experience strongly preferred.
- Established relationships with top-tier media across travel, lifestyle, business, and sustainability beats.
- Demonstrated experience managing PR agencies and leading teams.
- Strong executive presence and ability to serve as a spokesperson.
- Excellent writing, editing, and storytelling skills.
- Strategic thinker with ability to balance long-term brand vision and short-term execution.
- Experience in crisis communications and issues management.
- Bachelor’s degree in Communications, Journalism, Marketing, or related field
HYBRID ROLE
- This position requires working in-office three days a week on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays in either our Seattle or New York offices.
OTHER REQUIRED SKILLS
COMMUNICATION SKILLS
Using the English language, this person must have the ability to read, write, and comprehend policies, legal guidelines, correspondence, and memos. Must also possess the ability to effectively communicate--both in writing and orally--with a professional demeanor.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to sit, talk and hear. The employee will also be required to write and type. The employee is occasionally required to stand, walk, and reach with hands and arms.
OUR BENEFITS
- Travel benefits for employees and their family
- Health insurance including Medical, Dental, Vision
- 401(k) plan with employer match
- Long-Term Disability, Life & AD&D Insurance
- Flexible Spending Account (FSA) to be used for out-of-pocket medical and dependent care
- Pre-Tax Commuter Benefit
- 7-8 Paid Holidays
- 2-3 Floating Holiday Options (pro-rated per start date)
- Up to 15 days of vacation (pro-rated per anniversary year)
- Parental Leave
- Sick/personal days per city & state ordinance
- Pet Insurance discount
COMPENSATION STATEMENT
Lindblad Expeditions determines the pay for positions using local, national, and industry-specific survey data. We evaluate external equity and the cost of labor/prevailing wage index in the relative marketplace for jobs directly comparable to jobs within our company. Our posted salary range is based on national data and may be refined for a candidate's region/town/cost of living.
For new hires, we strive to make competitive offers allowing the new employee room for future growth. Salaries will be based on the applicant’s location, level of experience, education, and specialized knowledge and skills. An employee/candidate with a stronger skill set will receive higher pay.
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER STATEMENT
At Lindblad Expeditions, we simply could not do our work without the diverse kaleidoscope of humanity that creates and delivers our remarkable offerings across the planet. As a Company that respects and celebrates the inherent diversity in the places we explore, we recognize the need to mirror that same diversity and all the interconnected perspectives within our organization. We are committed to building a community of different genders, races, ages, sexual orientations, chosen identities, and countries of origin where every person brings their whole self to work and whose skills, talents, and abilities are valued. We believe we can explore further and in a more meaningful way by actively creating a more diverse and inclusive organization where everyone feels they belong.
Lindblad Expeditions is an equal opportunity employer. Individuals seeking employment at Lindblad Expeditions are considered without regard to race, sex, color, religion, national origin, age, disability, genetics, marital status, pregnancy, unemployment status, sexual orientation, citizenship status, or veteran status.
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The Company
What We Do
In 1958 Lars-Eric Lindblad, considered the father of eco travel, founded Lindblad Travel and pioneered the first non-scientific expeditions to Antarctica (1966) and Galápagos (1967), subsequently opening the Amazon, Papua New Guinea, China, Bhutan, and more to curious, respectful travelers. In 1979, his son Sven-Olof Lindblad founded Special Expeditions, eventually re-named Lindblad Expeditions, specializing in ship-based expedition travel.
In 2004 Lindblad Expeditions forged an unprecedented alliance with National Geographic with a joint mission “to inspire people to explore and care about the planet through expedition travel.”
Today the company operates a fleet of 10 ships, including the 148-guest National Geographic Explorer, the world’s ultimate expedition ship, and the 106-guest National Geographic Orion, the newest ship in the Lindblad-National Geographic fleet. All ships sail equipped with sophisticated exploration tools, to provide unique, immersive experiences in the planet’s capitals of wildness and culture. Our expedition ships regularly explore Galápagos, Antarctica, Alaska, Arctic Norway, Baja California, Costa Rica and Panama, Europe, the Baltics, Vietnam and Cambodia, and more.
