...the global shipping prez

Filipino elected president of global shipping group

By Marlon C. Magtira
Manila Standard
Dec. 16, 2012

Gerardo Borromeo

Philippine Transmarine Carriers Inc. vice chairman and chief executive Gerardo Borromeo was elected as the new president of InterManager, an international ship management trade association of 91 shipping companies running about 5,000 vessels and some 250,000 crew members.

Borromeo is the first Filipino to be elected unopposed for the top post and will serve a two-year term. He succeeded Alastair Evitt, the managing director of UK-based Meridian Marine Management.

With this development, InterManager has joined the ranks of shipping industry organizations that recognize Asia’s growing maritime influence and have looked east for leaders.

The decision follows other high-profile appointments of Asian executives with Japanese Koji Sekimizu leading the International Maritime Organization since January and Masamichi Morooka taking over as chairman of the International Chamber of Shipping since May.

Borromeo says in an interview with Manila Standard he brings the value of his Asian roots to InterManager. “I am honored to be the first Filipino to be appointed InterManager president, given that Asia now supplies more than half of the world’s seafarers and nearly half of the world fleet is under Asian control. I will be able to interact with Asia more closely but at the same time I will be expected to retain a global focus,” Borromeo says.

He says PTC, one of the largest crew management companies in the country, deploys more than 33,000 seafarers annually.

Borromeo believes his crewing experience was another key factor in his appointment. “The human element is a key driver. We are at an interesting crossroads between ship management and crew management. Ship management is not just about safe shipping, but also about pushing the management capability on board ships,” Borromeo says.

Borromeo says one of his main priorities will be the development of young maritime professionals.

“InterManager must lay the groundwork for the future. And a key part of that is being able to attract people to a career not just at sea but in shipping. You can build a ship in a year, but it takes 10 years to build a cadet into a master. We need to balance out the cyclicality between building ships and having capable people to manage them,” Borromeo says.

He says given the economic climate with about 90 percent of global trade being undertaken in the shipping industry, it will be challenging to push the development of global maritime professionals, as he prefers to call seafarers.

Borromeo says more than 6,000 new vessels in the shipping industry will be moving world trade in the next three years. This will bring new opportunities for Filipino global maritime professionals who are widely known for their service-oriented traits, loyalty, flexibility, fluency in English language and commitment to serve.

“Times are difficult. It’s all a question of how we maximize the return on investment in assets and people. We all need to think long term and ship managers must work with owners to allocate resources properly. InterManager will continue to engage with all the necessary stakeholders to ensure the safe operation of ships,” Borromeo says.

Borromeo’s appointment was formalized during the association’s annual general meeting where four new vice presidents were also elected to focus on specific areas of InterManager business. They are Albertini of Marfin Management (Monaco), treasurer; Peter Curtis of Seaspan Ship Management (Canada), secretariat; Wim Van Noortvijk of ISSA, membership; and Ian MacLean of Hill Dickinson, general counsel.

Borromeo has been responsible for the development and implementation of the PTC Group’s strategic initiatives and business development activities engaged in crew management, education and training; medical diagnostics; chartering and logistics; agency and freight forwarding; real estate development; and international professional placement.

Borromeo also serves as vice chairman of the International Chamber of Shipping, member of the board of trustees for the Filipino Shipowners Association and a private sector representative on the board of the Maritime Industry Authority.

Borromeo earned his bachelor and Master’s degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.