Bits in the horizon – competence and training of future seafaring

24. August 2018

Seafaring is undergoing a major shift. The increasing environmental regulations and accelerating technological advancements create new challenges, as global megatrends like digitalization and automation are changing the operating environment. How is the shipping industry preparing for these changes and how are they affecting the needs of competence and training in the future?

In August 2018 the Finnish Shipowners Association organized a stakeholder event called “Bits in the Horizon” – the future of competence and training in seafaring. In addition to the shipowners, the event gathered together educational institutions, employees’ organisations and Finnish Transport Safety Agency among others, to discuss and plan how to respond to the new challenges and skills needs that for example digitalisation and automation will bring. The aim of the event was to create a foundation for future discussion by building common ground and identifying questions that need further development.

It was clear that the consensus in the presentations and discussions was that the changes that digitalization causes are going to have a significant impact on work, culture as well as training.
The key issues raised included: The future needs for competence are different than today and digitalization plays a big role in future processes, management and leadership culture is in a state of change, lifelong learning has become ever more important, and the sector should find new ways to attract young people as competent maritime professionals will be needed also in the future.

“We were very pleased about the numerous and active participation of the stakeholders and audience, it was clear that the dialogue was needed. We plan to continue working together with the entire maritime cluster to develop the training of future seafaring ”, sais Finnish Shipowners’ Association’s Managing Director Tiina Tuurnala.