1

Discuss what you think went wrong in terms of management on

board, that lead to the sinking of the Al-Salam Boccaccio 98.

The master failed to exercise the Master’s overriding authority in issues regarding safety
as state in the ISM CODE by not making decision of turning the vessel back towards the
port he departed from since it is only 28 miles from the position of the incident rather
than continuing the voyage. The master was not conversant with the company’s SMS, the
company was certified with an ISM Document of Compliance, the company had safety
manuals addressing action to in case of fire, abandon ship and other emergency
procedures and preparedness and yet no alarm signal was sounded to notify the
passengers and the crew of the ongoing fire condition on-board even when fire alarms
kept coming up on the bridge, this would have helped the passengers to prepare for
abandoning the ship on time and/or getting more hands on deck for earlier detection of
where the fire was coming from as well as fighting the fire. The master is such a proud and
arrogant captain that instead of sending distress signals/messages to request assistance,
he ordered that the bridge light to be turned off so that other vessels in the vicinity will
not know what is going on. The master of the vessel is an Autocratic type of leader
because few minutes before the sinking of the vessel, he was advised by the third officer
to abandon the ship but his reply was “just wait” also when the passengers reported of
the fire incident, the master replied do not disturb “lets work” thus he continued taking
wrong decisions without consideration to anyone’s suggestions.. There was no
familiarisation and drills with the passengers prior to departure because from the reports
of the investigations, record of familiarisation was not complete and this resulted to
confusion as the passengers did not know what to do and where to go as most of the crew
and passengers were acting on their own initiative, more so, so many life rafts (important
lifesaving equipment) were found floating unopened. Early decision making would have
been appropriate but the master was very slow in making such decision even when he had
sufficient time to do so (period of time from when the fire was noticed to when the vessel
sank was more than four hours). The master was incompetent because he ordered
continues spraying of water to extinguished the fire without considering the effect of
deploying all the water on-board and at point, he became so confused that he asked the
chief officer what will be the solution for this situation. The captain lacks general
awareness and arrangement of the vessel, the drains were blocked and nobody took
notice of it. Lack of co-ordination/Bridge Team Management on-board, the general
confusion during the firefighting operation led to lack of attention paid to the navigation
this resulted to the vessel being under the control of the wind this also facilitated the
sinking of the vessel.
 2.

a) From the view of Chief Officer, describe the correct procedure for
planning and conducting a performance appraisal interview.

First, I will ensure the following has been determined, the form of appraisal to be used,
the total time to be allocated, main issues/topics to be discussed and the venue/place for
the appraisal interview. I will then give the person to be appraised early notice as this will
enhance his readiness and promote effective communication during the interview since
it is not meant to be a disciplinary process.
Since appraisal is primarily to bring about motivation, I will start with praise and
commendations for good works/jobs done in the past, this will help ease any tension and
also provide the perfect atmosphere for an appraisal interview. I will use Problem solving
method as my interview style which I feel is the most suitable. After review of
performance which should considered for be a long period of time, problems will be
discussed. This appraisal interview will be a two way communication were the appraised
will be given time and attention to explain what went wrong and the reason for short fall
in his performance. Just as the interview started with praise, it will also end with praise to
avoid any form of demotivation such that at the end of the Appraisal interview, both sides
will feel positive and the appraised motivated.
b) Evaluate how an appraisal combined with appropriate guidance and counselling from
senior officer can lead to higher level of motivation and increased productivity.
Starting the appraisal with commendation and not with condemnation will make the
appraised feel appreciated for the good jobs he has done, this will prove to him that he is
an important member of the team. Giving him early notice and allowing him the chance to
also talk during the process gives him sense of belonging which aids an effective
communication which is essential for problems to be identified. Once problems has been
identified, it will be solved through guidance and counselling and now problem for poor
performances has been solved, the appraised is happy, feels important, got his confidence
back and definitely will start putting in his best again and thus Productivity increased.
 3

Analyse the role of Master in implementing and maintaining

effective disciplinary procedures on-board.

By leading by example, the master not only shows his team how to do it but how he wants
it done, this is very important as this clears any existing confusion or ambiguity, this can
promote teamwork/team building. By writing Master’s standing orders and monitoring to
ensure that his orders are carried out, this orders serve as reminders/reference to
everyone at any point in time thereby, promoting discipline on-board. Ensuring all on-
signers get proper familiarization, this is a perfect time to make a crew understand the
following: what is expected of him at any time, the rules and regulations on-board. Inter-
cultural training will also promote discipline as this will help the crew to be aware and
respect everyone’s culture which will in-turn promote peace, ideal working environment
which are fundamentals of discipline. The master can implement discipline by having laid
down plan for on-board activities to keep the crew busy and occupied. Regular safety
meetings will also serve as an avenue to remind the crew about discipline on-board and
also a medium for correction of any disciplinary issues on-board. The master can also
maintain discipline by setting up a disciplinary committee and reporting any serious case
of unacceptable behaviour to the office.
 4.

Discuss and evaluate the steps that should be taken by the

company safety management system to prevent the re-occurrence
of such events. Your answer should include appropriate procedures
and actions from the master and chief Officer.

The company SMS can prevent re-occurrence by containing a clear statement emphasising
the master’s authority “The master has overriding authority and responsibility to make
decisions with respect to safety” and also affirming their commitment to support the
master when such decisions are taken and not to sack the master. The SMS should contain
programs for regular internal audits and management visits to ensure that the master is
conversant with company’s SMS and emergency preparedness procedures. The company’s
SMS must include a planned maintenance system to ensure that all critical equipment are
working and always ready for use. The company’s SMS should contain a periodic ship and
shore drill programs, to determine the time it takes the crew to respond to drill in
preparation for the actual scenario, their level of familiarisation with the firefighting and
lifesaving equipment and areas where more trainings are needed. The company’s SMS
should contain plan to ensure that new personnel and personnel transferred to new
positions are properly familiarised. The company’s SMS should review the role of human
element in emergency situation response and crisis management behaviour. The
company’s SMS should ensure procedural guidelines are in place to prevent the potential
dangerous situation arising in the first place. The SMS should encourage reporting of
deficiencies and non- conformity of important equipment and ensuring that they are fixed
as soon as possible. The master and chief officer should ensure that regular drill/safety
meetings are carried out on –board as this helps, the crew, to know, understand and
remember their emergency duties and in turn promote positive reaction from the crew in
the actual event of emergencies. The master and the chief officer should ensure they
attend briefing before joining the vessel as this provides opportunity to know the state of
the vessel while he was on time-off and debriefing during his sign-off as this is an
opportunity for him to complain to the about any deficiency on-board to the company.
The master and chief officer should ensure that the weekly and monthly SMS review are
carried out diligently and report any correction to the office for review.
 REFRENCES/BIBLOGRAPHY.

www.naviecapitani.it/.../Ro.../B/Boccaccio/Relazione%20sul%20naufragio.pdf

www.imo.org/.../AL%20SALAM%20BOCCACCIO%2098%20_January%202010.pdf
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4722158.stm
College Note.
 5A
Note: Currency is USD($)

Month Budgeted Crew Cost Officers Cost Other Budgeted

Monthly Expenses Monthly
Income Gross Profit
January 825,000 20,000 60,000 300,000 445,000
February 825,000 20,000 60,000 300,000 445,000
March 825,000 20,000 60,000 300,000 445,000
April 825,000 20,000 60,000 300,000 445,000
May 825,000 20,000 60,000 300,000 445,000
June 825,000 20,000 60,000 300,000 445,000
July 825,000 20,000 60,000 310,000 435,000
August 825,000 20,000 60,000 310,000 435,000
September 825,000 20,000 60,000 310,000 435,000
October 825,000 20,000 60,000 310,000 435,000
November 825,000 20,000 60,000 310,000 435,000
December 825,000 20,000 60,000 310,000 435,000
TOTAL 9,900,000 240,000 720,000 3,660,000 5,280,000

5B.

Month Actual Crew Cost Officers Cost Other Budgeted

Monthly Expenses Monthly
Income Gross Profit
January 825,000 20,000 60,000 305,000 440,000
February 825,000 20,000 60,000 305,000 440,000
March 825,000 25,000 60,000 305,000 435,000
April 825,000 20,000 60,000 305,000 440,000
May 825,000 20,000 60,000 305,000 440,000
June 825,000 20,000 60,000 305,000 440,000
July 300,000 20,000 60,000 305,000 -85,000
August 825,000 20,000 60,000 305,000 440,000
September 825,000 20,000 60,000 305,000 440,000
 October 825,000 20,000 60,000 330,000 415,000
November 825,000 20,000 60,000 330,000 415,000
December 825,000 20,000 60,000 330,000 415,000
TOTAL 9,375,000 245,000 720,000 3,735,000 5,280,000

6A

Summary for the year.

Summary for Budget Actual Difference/Variance Statement
the year
Income for the 9,900,000 9,375,000 525,000 ADVERSE
year
Cost of crew 240,000 245,000 5,000 ADVERSE
Cost of Officer 720,000 720,000 0 SAME
Other 3,660,000 3,735,000 75,000 ADVERSE
Expenses
Total Expenses 4,620,000 4,695,000 75,000 ADVERSE
Gross Profit 5,280,000 4,680,000 600,000 ADVERSE

Report to the CEO based on the analysis above.

There was Variance between the Budgeted and Actual income for the year because period
of off-hire was not included in the budget.
There was Variance between Budgeted cost of crew and actual cost of crew because the
actual cost of crew increased in the month of March by $5,000 because an extra crew as
employed this month due to nature of the operation of the vessel
The cost of Officer remained as budgeted.
There was Variance between the Budgeted and Actual total expenses for the year because
more maintenance were carried out than budgeted.
There was Variance between the Budgeted and Actual gross profit for the year because of
the changes in the cost of crew for the month of March, Vessel was off-hired in the month
of July and because of the changes in the total expenses.
The Net Profit for the year after tax of 2,500,000 was paid = 2,180,000