Job Description

Regional Head of Maritime Operations

Location: Accra, Ghana

A leading global shipping line is seeking a Regional Head of Maritime Operations to lead marine and port operations across West Africa.

This is a senior regional leadership role based in Accra, responsible for overseeing vessel operations, terminal performance, and operational coordination across multiple country agencies. As Regional Head of Maritime Operations, you will play a central role in ensuring safe, reliable, and cost-efficient vessel calls while strengthening relationships with ports, terminals, and marine service providers across the region.

You will join the regional leadership team and work closely with commercial, logistics, and global operations teams to maintain schedule integrity, optimise port productivity, and drive operational excellence across the West Africa network.

What You'll Be Doing

• Lead end-to-end vessel and port operations across West Africa, ensuring safe and reliable execution of coastal and mainline schedules in coordination with local agencies and central vessel planning teams
• Drive port productivity and vessel turnaround performance, ensuring operational KPIs are met across terminals and marine service providers
• Manage strategic relationships with terminal operators, port authorities, pilotage providers, and marine vendors to ensure safe, efficient, and cost-effective vessel calls
• Provide strong marine and terminal cost control, monitoring operational spend and minimising delays, restows, deviations, and other inefficiencies
• Partner with global vessel planning and network planning teams, ensuring berth availability, schedule integrity, and optimal vessel deployment across the region
• Lead regional contingency planning and operational decision-making, including port omissions, inducements, and operational exceptions
• Support terminal procurement and vendor selection, acting as the regional operational interface with procurement teams and terminal partners
• Provide leadership and coaching to regional operations teams and coordinate operational performance across multiple country agencies

Who You Are

• You bring at least eight years of experience in port, terminal, marine operations, or shipping operations, ideally within a major global shipping line
• You have strong expertise in vessel operations and waterside logistics, with the ability to apply best practices from large-scale shipping networks
• You are an effective stakeholder manager, able to work closely with port authorities, terminals, marine vendors, and internal commercial teams
• You have demonstrated leadership experience managing cross-functional and geographically distributed operations teams
• You are comfortable operating in fast-paced regional environments, balancing operational priorities and making clear, data-driven decisions
• You hold a degree or maritime qualification, such as a diploma/degree in management or a seafaring background
• English is required, and French is considered a strong advantage
• You are willing to travel internationally across the region (approximately 20–40%)

Why Join?

• A senior regional leadership position within a global shipping organisation
• The opportunity to shape marine and terminal operations across a complex and high-growth region
• Exposure to global operations and planning teams, including collaboration with international headquarters
• A competitive expatriate package, including salary, housing support, schooling allowance, and annual flights home
• The chance to influence operational performance, stakeholder partnerships, and long-term network reliability across West Africa

Take the Next Step in Your Career

If you're ready to take the next step in your career and take on the Regional Head of Maritime Operations role, or would like to find out more information, then we want to hear from you.

Please apply now to start a confidential conversation with our executive search team. We'll support you through every step of the process and ensure this move adds real value to your career.