In this edition of Expedia Group Arrivals, we’re excited to introduce you to Ritcha Ranjan, Senior Vice President of Core Platform & Experiences! Based in New York, Ritcha joins us with a career spanning some of the world’s most influential technology companies, including Microsoft, Yahoo!, and Google, where she helped build and scale products across speech technology, mobile search, payments, workspace collaboration, advertising, and AI-powered experiences. She also founded a not-for-profit focused on early educational mobile apps for kids, growing it from zero to 2 million users in just 18 months. In her current role, Ritcha leads teams that build and run the core platform capabilities powering Expedia Group’s brands. She helps set the vision, grow product leaders, and equip brand and business teams with the tools and services they need to deliver and scale great traveler experiences, like new AI features: AI Compare, AI Property Expert and Natural Language Search. 

What has been the catalyst for your career growth?

A big part of my journey has been having really strong managers who gave me stretch opportunities before I felt fully ready for them. I’ve also always tried to stay curious, ask a lot of questions, and treat every new challenge as a chance to learn and sharpen my craft. It is also being in the right place at the right time, but you have to be ready for those moments by continuing to build new skills, whether that’s negotiation, data-driven decision making, or leaning into areas like AI and emerging technologies. More than anything, I’ve been motivated by the satisfaction I get by solving interesting, meaningful problems and finding innovative ways to tackle them. 

What kind of culture are you aiming to cultivate on your team?

I want to build a culture where people grow together, are open and transparent with one another, and feel empowered to think big and be bold. Our teams power critical services across Expedia Group, so it’s important we collaborate closely, tackle meaningful challenges, experiment, and stay focused on building the right experiences for travelers, especially in the moments when they need us most. 

What are three goals you and your team are looking forward to accomplishing in the near future?

We’re focused on contributing even more meaningfully to Expedia Group’s purpose of helping travelers explore the world, one journey at a time. This means becoming truly AI-forward, not just AI-literate, building smarter tools that help our brands and shop owners operate more efficiently, and creating platform capabilities that unlock the power of our data to deliver more personalized experiences for travelers. We’re also excited about continuing to grow our B2C business and using our platform, search, and AI capabilities to help our brands move faster and serve travelers better. 

What skills are most valuable for someone looking to join your org to have? 

The most valuable skills are a mix of technical depth, platform thinking, and an ownership mindset. We look for people who can think beyond a single feature and build capabilities that enable and accelerate others across the organization. Strong AI, agentic, and machine learning skills are increasingly important, along with the ability to think big and challenge assumptions. Just as important is being comfortable with ambiguity, driving clarity when the path isn’t obvious, and bringing a hands-on, player-coach mindset that helps both teams and ideas grow. 

Why would you recommend working at Expedia Group? 

What makes Expedia Group so special is that the work is deeply connected to something a lot of people genuinely love: travel. There’s an inherent joy in helping travelers explore the world, and at the same time, a real focus on solving end-user problems in the most effective way possible. It’s also a place where people truly live our behaviors. The culture is open, transparent, and collaborative, and my leadership team is supportive and gives me constructive feedback that helps me grow. Also, there’s real energy around using AI in meaningful, cutting-edge ways. For people who want to do impactful work with smart, fun teammates while helping shape what’s next, it’s a very exciting place to be. 

Join us to build the world of travel.

Ready to build what’s next in travel tech? Explore open opportunities at Expedia Group and join us in shaping the future of travel.