Employee & Crew Apps

Image of a cruise ship at night with lights on every dck

DIGITAL EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCES

THE CHALLENGE

Royal Caribbean’s employee and crew experiences were fragmented across manual, paper-heavy processes and disconnected tools. Shipboard and shoreside employees lacked consistent digital experiences that supported communication, engagement, and operational visibility.

For shipboard crew in particular, the problem was compounded by the realities of long contracts spent away from family and friends. Existing systems did little to foster connection, community, or a sense of belonging—factors that directly impact morale, retention, and job satisfaction. At the same time, leadership had limited insight into onboard operations due to outdated, manual workflows.

The organization needed more than individual tools—it needed a cohesive digital experience ecosystem for employees and crew, designed to scale across roles, environments, and connectivity constraints.

SYSTEMS IN PRACTICE

EMPLOYEE &

CREW APPS

To understand the breadth of this initiative, I was tasked with looking across the entire employee experience for both crew communications focused apps and work focused apps.

DESIGN APPROACH

As Senior Product Design Manager, I led the experience strategy and design direction for a suite of employee and crew-facing platforms. Working closely with product, engineering, and business stakeholders both on ship and on shore, we focused on creating connected, human-centered experiences that addressed both engagement and operational needs.

The approach included:

Defining the information architecture and experience framework across multiple employee and crew apps
Designing end-to-end experiences for three mobile apps, two responsive web experiences, and several future concepts
Establishing visual and interaction standards to ensure consistency across platforms
Facilitating concept and whiteboard sessions to align product requirements with user needs
Introducing shared design patterns and improving design review and visual QA practices
Scaling team capacity through clear workflows, resource planning, and coaching

Rather than treating each app as a standalone product, the work focused on creating a connected platform experience that could evolve over time.

OUTCOMES

The initiative resulted in:

Successful launch of multiple employee and crew-facing applications across mobile and web
Improved connection and engagement for shipboard and shoreside employees
Reduced reliance on manual, paper-based processes
Greater visibility for leadership into operational and engagement signals
A shared experience foundation that supported future product expansion
Stronger design quality and consistency across employee-facing products

The work shifted employee and crew apps from isolated solutions to a cohesive digital experience layer supporting the workforce.

DECISIONS I INFLUENCED

Shaped the overall experience architecture across employee and crew platforms
Influenced prioritization of engagement, connection, and operational clarity within product roadmaps
Defined visual and interaction standards used across multiple employee-facing applications
Led changes to design review and visual QA practices to improve consistency and quality
Guided how product requirements were translated into scalable experience solutions
Mentored designers and influenced team workflows as scope and demand increased

SYSTEMS IN PRODUCTION

CREW APP

Enables crew members to better navigate life onboard, fostering community and providing tools to make manual processes more efficient.

STATEROOM

Stateroom attendants use this to make guest interactions as seamless & genuine, while reducing waste, improving communication and work-life quality.

INSPECTIONS

Reduce manual processes for Deck Supervisors and Executive Housekeepers, allowing them to conduct digital inspections, review ship, stateroom and attendant stats.

HOMEPORT

A responsive website for all employees, It provides HR Services, employee profile information, and company news.

WEB ADMIN

Department Managers onboard use this app to support features for mobile crew app; crew events, print requests, broadcast messaging and more.

MYRCL

Take features of MyRCL app, and integrate with Crew app & Homeport applications in contextually relevant areas.