How to be a good Chief Mate like My Chief Mate

me and c/m seares

C/M Appoulette

me and all the squad of T.Sakura

me and my captain

Based on my experience when i was onboard,i learn a lot from my outstanding chief officer.His name is C/M Sheildon G. Seareas.According to him,the chief officer has to be a good judge to utilize human resources available for jobs at his disposal by means of communication, team spirit and maintain high levels of safety while executing them. At the same time being too authoritative or domineering while doing so places him on the negative side thereby creating a tense work atmosphere onboard.

The chief officer acts as a vital link between the operational and management staff onboard. Being an active member of the management team onboard and controlling various operations on deck, he experiences frequent role shifts. Following one liners would definitely add to value while a mate plans and executes various shipboard tasks as per my chief mate told to me :

• ·         Plan, discuss, re-plan and then act on any major jobs with management and operational staff
• ·         Clear all your doubts before they start turning up into a mistake
• ·         Check your stores well in advance before planning overhauling, exhaustive maintenance
• ·         The best technical team onboard is available in the Engine Room
• ·         Appreciate, listen to and encourage team members and subordinates
• ·         Understand and access potential and calibre of each member of your team
• ·         Always plan work rest schedule considering some extra couple of hours for any emergency
• ·         It’s always wise to have a good inventory of stores prior ordering next
• ·         Prior arrival ports it is wise to plan service, repairs or rescheduling considering facilities available, duration of port stay and port rotation and above all these Safety and Emergency preparedness is a priority
• ·         Do not hesitate from giving feedbacks or returning substandard stores
• ·         A healthy interaction with shore authorities, cargo surveyors and loading masters can save a great deal of time and efforts on both sides
• ·         Never hesitate to prevent any unsafe acts or take more time to inspect and assess risk factors associated with any job directly under your supervision

·         Different nationalities have different styles of working and culture , adapting or understanding them improves the overall efficiency of the team

Thus, before a Chief officer gets promoted to his next rank as a Master where his role becomes more of administrative and managerial, his present rank as a First Mate gives him a lot of insights and understanding into operational aspects and cultural differences, difficulties involved, decision making and its impact on shipboard staff and commercial interests .These certainly are handy when his role as a Master is much wider – more of a directional nature and a guide. The rank of chief officer can be highly decisive in laying foundation of a future Master with good leadership skills and decision making abilities.

 Tq Sir for sharing this knowledge with me.I will never forget all the knowledge that u gave to me.

SALAMAT MIRAMI PO SIR....