InterManager president stresses importance of human element

Addressing the association’s agm in London, held as part of London International Shipping Week, president Gerardo Borromeo outlined how InterManager was working closely with partner organisations and member companies on initiatives such as the Martha Project to address concerns on seafarer fatigue, as well as introducing psychometric testing to better gauge seafarer core skills and excellence.

Intermanager has also submitted to IMO or co-sponsored papers covering the Fair Treatment of Seafarers, Safe Manning Levels, Places of Refuge, e-Navigation, and PSC guidelines under the Ballast Water Convention, all “technical matters involving the human side of shipping,” he said.

The body has also completed a wide-ranging Crew Communication Survey, another subject of vital everyday importance in seafarers’ lives.

On the commercial front, Borromeo welcomed the fact that stewardship of the Key Performance Indicators (KPI) initiative started by Intermanager has now been handed over to Bimco. It is through “quality people” that desired results are achieved, he said, but these need to be benchmarked.

“In an environment challenged by cost constraints and uneven cycles of boom and bust, InterManager’s mantra should remain steadfast and espouse the need to drive and press for enhanced operational efficiencies through focused outsourced management services,” he added.

The InterManager president’s personal mantra is for ship mangers to adopt a “Triple C” approach of Consolidation, Collaboration and Co-operation. “If we are to ensure the sustainability of our businesses and of shipping as the industry that ‘moves the world’… the ability of ship managers and crew managers to deliver a significantly more complete platform of support services… is The Way Forward,” he opined.