Author: MSAteam

Superyacht Stewardess Introduction Course Scholarships

In April, the Maritime Skills academy were delighted to celebrate the GUEST Accreditation achieved for our Superyacht Stewardess Introduction Course, in partnership with the Exclusive Butler School, (EBS).

The partnership works in finding the best local talents, giving a number of selected students a huge incentive for their careers and professional development.

The college students chosen for this years’ scholarship were Emily Cripps and Raphaella Papa-Adams who were both selected for the MSA EBS Yacht Course along with their STCW 4 Part Safety Training in hope to pursue a career with Viking Crew, working on Private Motor Yachts worldwide.

“Donna has been lucky enough to have had the best education from the finest establishments such as Buckingham Palace, where she was able to not only gain experience in a traditional household, but also be one of the first to attain a Diploma in Butlering, and to be recognised internationally by the University of West London.”

Both girls studied at Broadstairs College, completing their NVQ Level 2 and 3 in Food Service and Food Preparation over the last 2 years full time.

John Pettman, Managing Director of EBS says: ‘‘Emily and Raphaella have really stood out over the last two years of hospitality training, impressing me with their personalities, excellent service skills and confidence.  It was a great pleasure to offer the scholarship to them and we look forward to assisting them with their chosen career within the yachting sector in partnership with Viking Crew’’

This 1-week Superyacht Stewardess Introduction Course covers areas such as:

• Welcome to the Industry
• Basic Housekeeping Standards
• Wardrobe Management and Valeting
• Packing and Unpacking
• Basic Table Service Skills
• Wine Service and Knowledge
• Mixology Masters and Bartending
• Flower Arranging and Table Decoration
• Organising & Hosting an Event

To book this course and for further information on how to register, contact us today.

Viking Crew commences crew management of Scenic Eclipse

As part of the outstanding crew management services, Viking Crew, part of the Viking Maritime Group has been appointed as the Crew Manager of the discovery yacht Scenic Eclipse, commencing management from 19 August 2020.

Scenic Eclipse launched last year and is part of the wider Scenic Group.   The appointment of Viking Crew as the crew manager further adds to their portfolio of international clients within the cruise and super yacht sectors of the industry.

Scenic Eclipse will make full use of Viking Crew’s services across Placement, Management and Deployment, as Viking Crew becomes responsible for the international Officers and Crew across Deck, Engine and Hotel.  Scenic Eclipse will also utilise the facilities at the Maritime Skills Academy and will place cadets onboard through Chiltern Maritime, which are part of the Viking Maritime Group.

Operations Director of Viking Crew, Paul Rutterford commented ‘the appointment of the crew management contract with Scenic Eclipse is a further acknowledgement of the professionalism, knowledge and industry experience within Viking Crew.’

Director of Marine Operations of Scenic Eclipse Captain James Griffiths commented ‘Our partnership will give Scenic Group access to Viking Maritime Group services and their unique experience with start-ups, expedition vessels and the ultra-luxury market.’

Viking Crew will also be responsible for the crew management of the Emerald Azzurra and Scenic Eclipse II when they come into service in 2021 and 2022 respectively.

Group Managing Director of Viking Maritime Group Matthew Jaenicke added; ‘Partnering with Scenic Eclipse is further testament to Viking Crew sourcing and crew managing some of the best people in the industry for these groundbreaking vessels.’

Viking Maritime Group is looking forward to a long and rewarding partnership with the Scenic Group.

About Scenic Luxury Cruises & Tours

Scenic Luxury Cruises & Tours has grown over its 34-year history to include award-winning, all-inclusive river and ocean cruises and handcrafted land tours that take participants to many of the world’s most fascinating destinations. Since 2008, Scenic has offered river cruises in Europe, SE Asia, Russia and Egypt on its 15 Space-ships. In 2019, Scenic introduced the world’s first luxury Discovery Yacht, the 228-guest Scenic Eclipse. Sister brand Emerald Waterways has eight (soon to be nine with the 2021 launch of Emerald Luna) 6 Star-Ships offering sailings on European rivers and Southeast Asia’s Mekong River. In 2021, the Emerald Azzurra will be the first ship to launch under the new Emerald Yacht Cruises brand – a 100-guest super yacht that will ply the warm waters of the Mediterranean, Adriatic and Red seas.

Viking Maritime Group in Brief

Viking Maritime Group is leading the way as a maritime services company and operates in the United Kingdom, USA, New Zealand and the Philippines.

Founded in 1988, today the company encompasses a diverse group of businesses including; Viking Crew, the leading maritime crew services provider; and the Maritime Skills Academy’s Dover and Portsmouth training centres.

Across the company, there is alignment and synergy in our ethos, in putting people first and helping support and develop the talent and expertise within the global maritime industry.

Date of issue: 25 August 2020

How Viking Maritime has upskilled it’s staff during lockdown

Due to the nature of our usually busy lives and hectic work schedules sometimes important tasks can be overlooked or pushed to the bottom of our “to do lists” unintentionally.

Back in March, along with the rest of the world we found ourselves in unknown territory when it was announced that due to COVID 19 our Viking Maritime businesses would have to adapt to a new way of functioning without any indication of when life would return back to normal.

We decided that as a company we would use this time productively by investing in staff training.

Ken Hickling, our Viking Maritime Group Non-Executive Director has been running remote training sessions for 5 weeks now and they are available to all staff members.

The training sessions range from basic time management to GDPR to Excel masterclasses.

The sessions have been well received by our teams as a way of continuing staff engagement and personal development during these challenging times we find ourselves in.

Due to the positive feedback we have received, we have decided that moving forward, these training sessions will form a part of our induction for all new employees as well as becoming part of all employee’s career paths with the Viking Maritime Group in the future.