Fleet Catering Personnel Manager

V.Group; Metro Manila; On-site; PHP 600,000 - 1,000,000; Full time

Job summary

V.Group in Manila is seeking a seasoned professional to manage the catering crew pool and drive recruitment aligned with client needs. You will forecast demand, plan rotations, and ensure crew assignments meet performance and compatibility criteria to sustain high catering quality onboard.

The role requires strong experience in shipboard catering, crew lifecycle understanding, and ability to coordinate training programs, with emphasis on cost control and continuous improvement of standards.

Qualifications

• Strong experience in catering, hospitality, or food operations.
• Experience in crewing, marine HR, or workforce planning.
• Practical knowledge of food cost control, menu planning, and victualing management.
• Experience in assessing crew performance and identifying development needs.
• Strong planning, coordination, and decision-making skills.
• Understanding of end-to-end crew lifecycle (assessment, training, deployment).

Responsibilities

• Own catering crew pool management and recruitment alignment, screening candidates based on culinary competency, vessel experience and client requirements.
• Conduct workforce planning and crew-to-vessel matching by forecasting demand, reviewing rotation plans, and assigning crew.
• Drive structured crew development and progression by assessing appraisals, feedback, and debrief inputs, identifying training needs and promotion readiness, and defining clear career pathways (e.g., Messman - Cook - Chief Cook).
• Plan and integrate training programs, align schedules with Oceanic, record outcomes in ShipSure, and embed training in deployment decisions.
• Monitor pool strength and performance, track indicators, and drive continuous improvement in planning and catering standards.

Skills

Catering operations

Crew management

Food cost control

Menu planning

Victualing management

Crew performance assessment

Planning and coordination

End-to-end crew lifecycle

Communication & data interpretation

Shipboard leadership (desirable)

Tools

ShipSure system

Job description

Location Country

Philippines

Work Location

Manila

Who are V

As a global leader in ship management and marine services, we add value to a vessel's operations. Operating around the clock and around the world, V. gives every client the quality and efficiency they need in every sector. Covering crew management and recruitment, quality ship management and technical services, together with supporting management and commercial services, V. has an unrivalled industry knowledge with performance assured. Our values, We Care, We Collaborate, We Challenge, We are Consistent, We Commit and Deliver, are at the heart of everything we do and they support our strategy of Investing in Talent. We are always interested in making contact with talented individuals - people who will demonstrate our values and deliver great service, for internal and external stakeholders.

Overall Purpose of The Job

Create and own the pool of competent catering crew directly driving improved catering performance onboard, crew and customer satisfaction while enabling a strong budgetary and dietary compliance. Take accountability as relationship owner representing V.Group.

Key Responsibilities And Tasks

• Own catering crew pool management and recruitment alignment by maintaining full visibility of candidate pipeline and active catering crew pool, screening and shortlisting candidates based on culinary competency, vessel experience, and client requirements, and ensuring readiness for planning and deployment.
• Take responsibility for and conduct workforce planning and crew-to-vessel matching by forecasting demand and, reviewing rotation plans, and assigning crew based on performance history, and customer compatibility to ensure optimal fit and continuity.
• Drive structured crew development and progression by assessing appraisals, feedback, and debrief inputs, identifying training needs and promotion readiness, and defining clear career pathways (e.g., Messman - Cook - Chief Cook).
• Own training planning and integration of Oceanic - in the crewing processes by identifying candidates for training programs, aligning training schedules and capacity with Oceanic, ensuring all training needs and outcomes are recorded in ShipSure, and embedding training into actual deployment decisions.
• Monitor pool strength and performance outcomes by tracking key indicators (e.g., bench strength, retention, victualing budget performance, crew feedback), evaluating post-training impact, and driving continuous improvement in planning, development, and catering standards, thereby driving continued and consistent quality levels.

What can I expect in return

V. Group can offer you a market leading salary and benefits package, in addition to significant opportunities for career growth and personal development. This a great opportunity to join a true leader in the maritime sector - a company that has exciting plans for future growth.

Essential

• Strong experience in catering, hospitality, or food operations (preferably with ship catering background)
• Experience in crewing, marine HR, or workforce planning
• Practical knowledge of food cost control, menu planning, and victualing management
• Experience in assessing crew performance and identifying development needs
• Strong planning, coordination, and decision-making skills
• Understanding of end-to-end crew lifecycle (assessment, training, deployment)

Desirable

• Previous shipboard leadership experience (e.g., Chief Cook, Chief Steward)
• Experience working with training providers or competency frameworks
• Exposure to process improvement / operational excellence initiatives
• Familiarity with systems such as ShipSure or similar crew management platforms
• Good communication, reporting, and data interpretation skills