Janet Bava has at all times been a bit of unconventional. For her fifteenth birthday, she opted to skip the standard quinceañera celebration that’s widespread for Latin American teen women. She as a substitute determined to take her family and friends on a weeklong cruise as a substitute. She didn’t realize it on the time, however that unorthodox alternative would lay the groundwork for the remainder of her life.
All through her profitable profession, Bava has labored for an array of prime journey manufacturers—a lot of them within the cruise business. At the moment, she is the chief industrial officer for Windstar Cruises, a small-ship luxurious line that sails world wide, whisking vacationers to numerous locations within the South Pacific, Europe, the Caribbean, New England, Japanese Canada, South America and past.
Bava’s begin within the cruise business
“I took my first cruise and realized, ‘I need to do one thing in journey,’” says 46-year-old Bava, who was born in Cuba however grew up in Miami. “Once I bought off that ship, I mentioned, ‘Oh my gosh, I’d completely work right here. I’d like to work for a cruise firm.’ You do your analysis. You go to all these profession festivals, and you place two and two collectively. Miami is the cruise capital of the world—there needs to be one thing on the market for me on this business.”
Considering exterior the field has continued to serve her nicely in an business rooted in innovation. At Windstar, she’s serving to chart the trail ahead throughout a interval of unprecedented development. The corporate lately introduced that it’s adding two new ships to its current six-vessel fleet—an enlargement of practically 33%. As the brand new ships come on-line in 2025 and 2026, Bava might be there each step of the best way, making key selections about the place they’ll sail, how they’ll be marketed and extra.
Together with her artistic spirit and her perception in journey as a power for good, she’s poised to assist the corporate sail into the long run.
“The group’s imaginative and prescient is to innovate and develop and do issues ‘180 levels from strange,’” she says, referring to the corporate’s tagline. “I really feel as if I’m past strange as a human being, and I need to work for an organization that values people who find themselves completely different.”
“You need to work actually laborious”
Travel has at all times performed an enormous position in Bava’s life. Not lengthy after she was born, her household fled communist Cuba. They left behind every thing and everybody they’d ever identified to begin over in America.
Bava was simply 2 years previous once they arrived in Miami. She grew up watching her dad and mom work laborious to offer for her and her older sister—her dad as a mechanic and her mother doing odd jobs like cleansing homes. These early experiences formed Bava’s tireless work ethic.
“My father instilled in us the concept we had the chance to do no matter we needed to do and be whoever we needed to be,” Bava says. “That’s why he sacrificed his nation and being together with his buddies and his household—as a result of he needed to verify me and my sister did what we needed to do in life. He at all times mentioned, ‘You need to be blissful, however it’s a must to work really hard. Don’t ever let anybody inform you you’ll be able to’t do one thing—you simply must work actually laborious and be a great particular person.’”
Bava’s profession beginnings
Bava put herself via faculty by working a wide range of jobs. Throughout this time, she additionally earned a advertising and marketing and worldwide enterprise diploma from Florida International University. Already fluent in English and Spanish, Bava picked up a 3rd language by learning Italian. She then met the person who would finally grow to be her husband on a visit to Italy whereas she was in faculty. At the moment, they’ve been married for practically 20 years and have two teenage sons.
“I at all times say I consider in love at first sight and long-distance relationships as a result of my unconventional self-made all of it work,” she says. “When [my husband and I] put our heads collectively, nobody can inform us we’re not going to do it. If we’re satisfied, we will get it achieved, we’ll make it work.”
Private development and mentorship
Ever since taking that first cruise as an adolescent, Bava had dreamed of working for a world cruise model. After she graduated from faculty, she utilized to as many cruise strains as she might. Bava landed a job in direct advertising and marketing and buyer expertise communications at Royal Caribbean and “by no means regarded again,” she says.
Since then, she’s risen via the ranks inside the journey business, taking over roles with an increasing number of duty. Earlier than touchdown at Windstar, she labored as director of buyer engagement for NBCUniversal’s Universal Parks and Resort in Orlando, vp of selling for the Americas for Silversea Cruises and chief advertising and marketing officer for AmaWaterways. Each profession transfer has helped her stretch and broaden her ability set ultimately.
“I’m at all times in search of personal growth,” she says. “For each place, I used to be at a stage in my profession that I had achieved one thing and was prepared for the subsequent step. And the subsequent alternative supplied one thing a lot larger.”
Bava’s profitable profession within the cruise business
Bava attributes a lot of her profession success to establishing robust relationships with skilled mentors—a lot of them girls. She’s made some extent of staying in contact with these individuals all through her profession. And due to that, at any time when a becoming alternative arose, they talked about her identify.
For instance, throughout her time at Royal Caribbean, Bava labored below then–senior vp of selling Betsy O’Rourke. Later, O’Rourke turned Windstar’s chief industrial officer—and when O’Rourke determined to go away that position to grow to be a marketing consultant, she beneficial that the corporate rent Bava as her alternative.
“Irrespective of the place you’re going, don’t burn your bridges,” Bava says. “However greater than that, construct a strong relationship and preserve that for a few years to return. Even after you permit, as a result of these relationships will assist you in the long term, and they’ll go a great distance.…Don’t simply use individuals. Really construct a powerful relationship. You be taught a lot from completely different individuals at completely different phases of your life.”
Past that, her mentors have all imparted essential classes she nonetheless carries together with her to at the present time. That’s one thing she retains prime of thoughts now as she begins to mentor the subsequent era of business leaders.
“They might go off to work for one more model; they might get a greater job or a greater position,” she says. “However no matter it’s they’re studying from me, they might go apply that. And that, to me, is extremely fulfilling.”
Illustration within the cruise business
Extra broadly, Bava additionally hopes to function a supply of inspiration for different girls—particularly these from traditionally underrepresented teams. Like many different fields, the cruise business has been taking steps to grow to be extra numerous and inclusive. And people efforts appear to be paying off. At the moment, “roughly 40% of senior leadership roles at cruise companies are held by women,” in line with the most recent figures from the Cruise Lines International Association, the world’s largest cruise business commerce group.
Extra work must be achieved, however Bava is proud to be a part of that change. “An increasing number of, the cruise business—and all industries—are embracing females, interval, and extra females who’re numerous of their backgrounds and upbringings and cultures and languages,” she says. “To me, it’s not about, ‘Nicely, there’s not sufficient girls within the C-suite.’ There’s much more than there was, and that’s an enormous step ahead. I hope I may help pave the best way for a lot of, many others to return.”
This text seems within the September/October issue of Success Journal. Photograph courtesy of Windstar Cruises.