Sven Hessing works as a Recruitment Consultant at WFS PRO and is responsible for the Marine & Offshore industry. He deals with recruitment, sourcing, contact with clients and partly sales for Marine & Offshore.
Marine & Offshore
The Netherlands has traditionally been strong in developing and delivering technological solutions for the Marine & Offshore. In terms of production in this sector, our country is successful worldwide with the construction of luxury motor yachts and special (production) vessels, while the Dutch offshore industry has become big with oil and gas extraction in the North Sea.We know the leading parties active in this appealing sector.
The maritime industry consists of different parts tells Sven: "We [WFS PRO] have divided it into shipbuilding, yacht building and offshore. Shipbuilding involves building ships for transport or defense. Yacht building is focused on building a luxury product, mainly aimed at the wealthy, so a ship has to contain totally different functions and recreational features. Finally, you then have offshore; which focuses on oil platforms or reclaiming seabeds."
Working in Marine & Offshore
Work in Marine & Offshore is diverse, but most positions fall within the Engineering and Support disciplines. "In Offshore, you have a bit more opportunity to work on the ship itself, but that's not our focus," Sven says. "At one of our clients, Damen Naval, for example, you work as a System Modeling Engineer, Structural Analyst or Tactical Purchaser. These types of positions are more focused on the design and development of the ship."
Currently our clients are Feadship, Royal van Lent Shipyard, Royal IHC, Damen Naval and Roll Group. Sven reveals that he is working on potential new clients. As the person responsible for Marine & Offshore, his job is therefore to ensure that the industry continues to grow within WFS PRO.
Developments in the industry
Sven sees a demand in the industry for innovation from the younger generation. "What is striking is that Marine & Offshore is a fairly conservative sector," he says. He also notices this when working on customer acquisition: "It is difficult to get into companies. They often stick to the same structure, the same experience they have already gained; because if something is going well, why change it?" This way of thinking is especially seen among the somewhat older generation: "The older guard does not like to see change, while the younger guard wants to see change and is becoming more active in it." Sven has been to several trade shows and events where the demand for change could clearly be seen: "It was clear that the younger generation is looking for innovation and change, and it is also their job to push this through within the industry."
In addition, Sven sees developments around sustainability. More and more companies are concerned with sustainability, green energy and reducing CO2 emissions. Sustainability is also becoming an increasingly important topic in Marine & Offshore, but there is still a lot of work to be done, according to Sven: "The industry has to become greener, but also look for ways to become greener. The companies that have green alternatives can be counted on one hand. Many companies are still searching, but it is important for the industry to become greener."
Importance of industry
"The Netherlands is known worldwide for its maritime industry: we are good and we are reliable. Many people therefore want to come and work in the Netherlands because of the size of the companies in the industry," Sven says. The Marine & Offshore industry plays an important role in the Dutch economy: "If the maritime industry in the Netherlands were to collapse, the port of Rotterdam, our economic heart, would probably also collapse to a large extent. Marine & Offshore is a big free sector within the Dutch economy and if it were to collapse you would be far from home."
