

Leadership in Yachting 2024 - Webinar now available
1 February 2024
Our recent Leadership in Yachting webinar has been released, revealing insights into industry practices and expert opinions from a host of guest speakers.
Our latest webinar focused on the strength of leadership as a force for good in the wider industry, with perspectives shared from our guests who have a range of experiences in crew management, welfare, working onboard vessels, and within the education sector.
“We want to thank our members and participating guest speakers for sharing their industry knowledge during our Leadership in Yachting 2024 webinar. We look forward to furthering these discussions in the near future on the important topic of leadership in our industry,” said Kim Llorente, Office Manager for the PYA.
The PYA regularly engages with the industry in order to highlight evolving standards, new technologies and the latest training for yacht crews. You can see who was involved in our latest webinar below.
The speakers
Marianne Danissen, Camper & Nicholsons Head of Management.
Captain Micheál Pierse, PYA member and MCA Master / HELM instructor for Bluewater.
Karen Passman, Founder of Impact Crew.
Captain Kelly Gordon, an advocate of strong leadership and a spokeswoman for mental health awareness.
Robin Weninger, Co-Founder and Managing Director of the executive education company Global Institute of Leadership and Technology (GILT).
The core safety leadership qualities
Confidence and authority
Instil respect and command authority
Lead the team by example
Draw on knowledge and experience
Remain calm in a crisis
Empathy and understanding
Practise “tough empathy”
Be sensitive to different cultures
Recognise the crew’s limitations
Motivation and commitment
Motivate and create a sense of community
Place the safety of crew and passengers above everything
Openness and clarity
Communicate and listen clearly
Leading for Safety: Additional resource
This a comprehensive guide published by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA). It aims to assist leaders and senior officers in the maritime industry in improving their leadership and people management skills to ensure safety on board.
This resource emphasises the critical role of leaders in developing and maintaining a safe maritime environment.
For more details, you can refer to the official guide https://www.gov.uk/guidance/leading-for-safety
To access the full webinar visit: https://youtu.be/6wrwByg6JNY

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