Multi-Company OTR Sessions to Enhance Collaborations for a Better Maritime Industry - SeaVoices - Singapore Maritime Officers’ Union (SMOU) Publication

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06 Dec 2022

2 mins

Multi-Company OTR Sessions to Enhance Collaborations for a Better Maritime Industry

Following up with the NTUC CTC-OTR initiative launched pre-COVID-19, SMOU kicked off the first multi-company Operation and Technology Roadmap (OTR) on 16 August, with five shipping companies—Eastaway Ship Management Pte Ltd, Eaglestar Ship Management Pte Ltd, PACC Ship Managers Pte Ltd, Pacific International Lines Pte Ltd, and Wilhelmsen Ship Management Pte Ltd. The OTR sessions are facilitated by officers from the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) Training and Transformation (NTUC IT&T), in consultation with union leaders, management partners, and HR representatives to ensure win-win outcomes for companies and workers.

Supported by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), Singapore Maritime Academy (SMA), and the Wavelink Maritime Institute (WMI), the companies came together to discuss and collaborate across a series of four half-day sessions. Having been identified as a priority, the sessions saw participating companies identifying sectoral norms and customer requirements in the following three to five years.

During the sessions, companies identified issues and trends that the maritime industry has been facing. This included graduates of maritime diploma courses leaving maritime for other industries after graduation, which led the participants to brainstorm about the redesigning of maritime jobs to attract talent.

With the establishment of a common goal, which was to retain talent and grow the local maritime pool, the companies came together to identify the necessary skills to close the gaps in Maritime jobs. Specifically, the issue of a lack of Marine and Technical Superintendents in the maritime industry was pointed out, and there was a consensus amongst the companies to each review their job scopes for the aforementioned role. Alongside this, the concept of a Vessel Manager was also discussed.

At the end of the OTR sessions, a model job description for Marine and Technical Superintendents was crafted, and a detailed career pathway to becoming a Vessel Manager was designed. The sessions have also helped pivot the companies involved to be in a better position to stay ahead in the maritime sector while helping to improve the landscape for the maritime industry.