Yacht Management in 2018 – How Sarnia Can Help

One of the themes discussed at the recent Superyacht Investor Conference was yacht management and its role for both the owner and the captain.

Sarnia’s Steven Marquis summarises why effective yacht management brings value for money and peace of mind to owners and their wealth management team who don’t always have the specialist knowledge required to meet industry expectations and regulations themselves.

Yacht managers need to support captains and officers on board so they can do their job well and focus on safety and the smooth running of the vessel. 

Sarnia supports yacht managers with:

• Safety management systems

• Yacht and crew technical support

• Yacht expense payments

• Yacht accounting

• Cash cards

• Financial reporting

• VAT administration and compliance

• Crew employment and payroll

• Yacht insurance

• Flag registration

Trust and first-class service are at the heart of good yacht management; the teams in the office and on board the yacht must work closely together. That’s another reason why using specialists like Sarnia is key - we understand the industry and are able to develop first-class working relationships with those on board, as well as owners and their wealth management team and other yacht managers.

The industry is becoming less reactive, so more proactivity is needed to manage the ever-changing industry regulations., notably MLC and ISM.

A good yacht manager should:

• Ensure the yacht is maintained to the highest standard for the safety and comfort of all persons on-board and safeguard the asset and passengers, who are often family and friends of the yacht owner

• Ensure the yacht is manned with suitably experienced and qualified crew

• Be able to select crew who will work well with the rest of the crew, the culture of the boat and meet the owner’s expectations and style

• Provide shore-based support for safety matters on a regular basis and in the event of a crisis

• Manage all costs to try and meet the yacht owner’s annual budget

• Provide shore-based support to the captain to allow him or her to focus on matters on board

It is essential to educate yacht owners about the importance of developing a safety culture on board and for the captain and officers to proactively engage with yacht owners to demonstrate the benefits of this.

Steven Marquis is the Senior Client Relationship Manager at Sarnia.  

The cornerstones of a good safety culture include:

• Developing, implementing and maintaining safety policies and procedures in accordance with maritime regulations including adherence to the MLC

• Maintaining a proactive relationship between the crew, shore-based team and yacht owner

• Listening to and responding to feedback from the crew

• Providing trusted shore-based support and advice for the yacht owner and crew

• Monitoring crew qualifications, training and the hours of work and rest they receive

• Encouraging the correct use of a crew handbook

Learn more about Sarnia's crew employment and payroll services. It is up to the industry to demonstrate to owners and their wealth management team the benefits of professional and specialist yacht management. It is also important that together the team can manage client expectations and guide them toward achievable outcomes. If you would like to talk to our team about yacht management support, please get in touch.