A recent survey conducted by ISWAN highlighted the importance of social interaction onboard and how senior officers and the power of a great leader are more than just being higher in the hierarchy.
To remind, ISWAN’s research called “Phase One of the Social Interaction Matters (SIM) Project”, identified or confirmed that social interaction can improve the mental and physical health and well-being of seafarers and demonstrated clear benefits for:
- developing trust and better working relations with other crew members (family away from home).
- developing team cohesion and improved resilience that can increase motivation and productivity at sea.
- improved safety practice.
- combatting isolation and providing a release from the daily work environment.
It is reported that the most popular answer, chosen by over a third of survey participants, was strong leadership, i.e. an onboard culture established by senior officers which encouraged social interaction.
Keeping n mind that the Merchant Navy is traditionally based on hierarchy, the ships’ environment is strongly influenced by the behaviour and actions of the captain and other senior officers.
The survey cites an answer when one respondent said of his captain:
… it was all his leadership. As soon as he left we had a completely different [Master]…and the whole atmosphere died overnight. It went down the gangway.
ISWAN comments that according to the above, senior officers’ engagement in, or sanction of, activities on board is crucial. Leading by example can promote a more relaxed and trusting environment on board.
We are seeing examples of positive leadership in Phase Two of the SIM Project, currently underway, in which we are working with a number of vessels trialling social engagement initiatives on board.
In another example, the captain of one vessel helped to prepare a New Year’s Eve meal in the galley for her crew, and captains of other vessels have joined in onboard basketball tournaments and other activities. This strong leadership also creates positive role models for junior officers, helping them to pass good practice to the next generation of seafarers.
Another interviewee explained that leadership is more than just hierarchy:
…in my 5 months on board we had an amazing crew, and our management handled the situation brilliantly, they were encouraging, and they were setting out games, and they were informing their crew. Every night the Captain would go down for dinner and he would just say a few words about how the situation … So, there was a constant flow of information, and people, they felt included. … when you have a situation like this, it is the management’s job to keep their humour up and make some effort…
Concluding, keep in mind that communication and the ability to motivate the crew are among the good leader skills. It is stated that although training is key, dedicated leadership training, particularly on ‘soft skills’, is largely missing within the Merchant Navy, so this may be an important consideration for the future.
