Bourbon

Tell us about your career.

As a C1NM Captain 1st Class, I sailed for the Delmas group before becoming onshore handling manager in Africa, then ship planning coordinator. In 1999, I joined Setaf Saget as Port Captain, then served as Expert Captain. I have been in charge of operations since the beginning of 2006.

Tell us about your job.

Operations are the core of the business of Setaf Saget, from chartering upstream to accounting downstream. Setaf operates about 60 of its own or managed vessels via leasing, and transports approximately 15 million metric tons of bulk cargo every year. The twelve members of the operations department must manage both the usual and the unexpected throughout the world on a daily basis, 7 days a week and 24 hours a day, to provide instructions to the crews onboard the vessels and the onshore suppliers. The tasks are extremely varied: providing onshore support in case of difficulties, devising methods for managing large volumes efficiently, expanding skills, always with an eye toward optimizing all factors (time, cost, etc.) for the benefit of the loading or receiving clients.

Is it a job or a passion?

I have discovered an amazing world that leaves no room for the routine. Each shipment is the beginning of a new adventure…I work in very different areas— technical, legal and particularly human— with very different contacts: shipbuilders, charterers, captains, agents…We constantly have to look ahead while managing day-to-day tasks with responsiveness, providing old-fashioned made-to-order service using an industrial methodology. Yes, I love my job!