Vice President for Marine Operations

Job Summary Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) is the world's leading, independent non-profit organization dedicated to ocean research, exploration, and education. The Institution is at a transformational time in its history. In this age of growing global environmental crises, WHOI is poised to address the most challenging issues facing humanity with a renewed sense of urgency. The ocean is a defining feature of our planet and crucial to life on Earth, yet it remains one of the planet’s last unexplored frontiers.

WHOI scientists and engineers take on difficult questions in challenging environments in order to expand our knowledge of this critical part of the earth system. The WHOI community is dedicated to understanding all facets of the ocean and raising awareness of its complex connections with Earth’s climate, land, and life. WHOI knows the value of basic research and education as well as the critical importance of leveraging scientific knowledge to ensure society’s long-term welfare, to help guide human stewardship of natural resources, and to increase appreciation for the importance of the ocean to global climate, humanity, and the planet.

Founded in 1930 on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, WHOI today is made up of nearly 1,000 employees, including more than 500 scientists, engineers, and technicians. The organization’s facilities are located on two campuses in Woods Hole, covering 233 acres, 77 buildings, and two docks. As it approaches its 100th year, WHOI is committed to engaging a broader network of stakeholders in its mission and to cultivate new sources of funding.

Organized into five academic departments, several topical research centers, and the Marine Policy Center, WHOI investigators conduct research that addresses pressing science questions covering a wide range of topics related to ocean science, technology, and policy. These questions require interdisciplinary thinking, a combination of science and engineering, and teams focused on important topics such as the warming ocean, the carbon cycle and its relationship to Earth’s climate, the mapping of the ocean’s biodiversity, and understanding the impact of ocean changes on coastal communities.

Known for ocean exploration and discovery at sea, WHOI operates two seagoing research vessels--the R/V Atlantis and the R/V Neil Armstrong--the coastal research vessel Tioga, and the human-occupied submersible Alvin. WHOI also develops and deploys a broad range of autonomous and remotely operated underwater vehicles. WHOI scientists and engineers collaborate closely to explore the farthest reaches of our ocean planet, designing vehicles to probe deep into the ice-covered seas, collecting samples to understand life around hydrothermal vents, and developing models and sensors to help predict the next big seafloor earthquake.

Investigators from all departments are deeply engaged in collaborative research to better understand and predict Earth’s changing climate and its impact on the ocean and our lives. WHOI also has a longstanding and growing relationship with the U.S. Navy, engaging in research in support of national security and developing technology with dual use in scientific and other applications. WHOI leads a number of national initiatives including the Ocean Observatories Initiative, a multi-institution, NSF-funded program of sustain ocean observation with a budget in excess of $50 million per year, and is home to national facilities, including the National Deep Submergence Facility (NDSF) and the National Ocean Sciences Accelerator Mass Spectrometry Facility (NOSAMS).

WHOI offers doctoral degrees in partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), as well as M.S. degrees for students from the U.S. Navy. Typical enrollment is 130 students total. The MIT-WHOI Joint Program in Oceanography/Applied Ocean Science and Engineering has a history of training future leaders, with many of the over 1,200 alumni occupying leadership positions worldwide in ocea