THE HEESEN ACADEMY

Maintaining the standards that Heesen is famous for requires continuous investment in the shipyard’s outstanding team. We interview Maike Bonke, Heesen’s head of human resources, to find out how the new Heesen Academy nurtures talent, and assures continuous self-development for all employees

TEXT BY HAN THOMA

Anyone who has visited the shipyard in Oss, or the vast interiors production facility in Winterswijk, knows how many talented people it takes to build a Heesen yacht.

You won’t find any robots or automated production lines in yacht building. Every weld in the hull, each sliver of veneer in the lavish interior, and all the pipes, brackets and joints in the vast mechanical installation are hand crafted, the result of years of experience and training.

This makes the industry unique, but vulnerable at the same time. Traditional craftsmanship always used to be passed down from one generation to the next, but stepping in your mentor’s footsteps is not always as easy as it used to be. It is also less common to have a lifelong career at the same employer. So how does Heesen manage to attract and nurture talent and secure rare skills for the future?

Knowledge is key

With these clear objectives in mind the shipyard launched the Heesen Academy in 2021. Maike Bonke explains: “Knowledge is one of our key assets. We aim to have the right people, with the right competences and skills, in the right positions. The Heesen Academy is the platform that recognises the importance of investing in the development of our people. This is just as essential as, for instance, creating a safe and healthy working environment.”

The Academy offers a wide variety of programmes to help employees develop on every level and in all departments. “For our produc- tion departments, this means that we want to encourage the next generation to learn the skills on the job, as apprentices”, says Maike. “This is particularly important because our workforce is slowly ageing. It’s crucial to keep their invaluable knowledge within the company, and pass it down to the younger cohorts. Quality assurance also means applying standard procedures to everything we do,” she adds. “For example, how we bring new employees on board, or how we transfer work and brief colleagues according to these standards, minimising the risk of errors and making quality less dependent on one person’s specific knowledge or skills.”

Attracting the next generation

Recruiting production specialists with the unique skills to build superyachts can be a real challenge. To source talent, shipyards need to get creative. The product certainly helps to interest people in a career in yachting – there are few more spectacular advertisements than a superyacht. So Heesen regularly organises talent days in the production sheds to give candidates a taste of the exceptional product and quality level. The shipyard teams up with schools, joins talent and recruitment events, and is very active on social media.

But what if candidates are too scarce or simply do not exist? Heesen is one of the very few shipyards to use aluminium for both hull and superstructure, and welding aluminium requires very special skills. Experienced aluminium welders are hard to find. To overcome this problem, Heesen has developed a specialised internal training programme in welding, including aluminium. Candidates with basic welding skills can grow and specialise on the job and are rewarded with valuable certification, which is recognised both inside and outside the industry. The success of the welding programme has led to additional technical training programmes within the Heesen Academy.

Outdoor cinemas and beach clubs

The programmes of continuous learning and self-development promoted by the Heesen Academy have become more and more important. “Technology is evolving at an ever increasing pace,” Maike explains. “At the same time, our builds are becoming more and more complex, especially our custom projects. Yachts are getting bigger, with advanced features like outdoor cinemas and extensive beach clubs.

This requires special skills from our production department, but also next-level project management skills to make sure the yachts can be delivered on time and within budget. So continuous training is not restricted to production employees. Heesen Masters & Heesen Professionals are our leadership development programmes aimed at management, project leaders and supervisors.”

Still being able to learn and grow even after years of experience on the job is one of the things that colleagues most appreciate, says Maike. “They re-energise and start to see training as fun. And don’t forget the social aspect of learning and working together, which really motivates and encourages teamwork.”

Brand ambassadors

When asked about her personal motivation to do her job, Maike answers without hesitation: “I love nurturing talent and helping people to find and develop their skills. Each year we source trainees for our department, and I’m always amazed by how quickly they grow and develop into real professionals. We invest in people, and yes, sometimes, the competition benefits from our efforts. But that’s not how I see it: we create brand ambassadors that help promote the shipyard with future employees.”