Shared notes and job lists make communication of deck tasks simple and easy.
Having shared, online notes is one of the single best changes you can make on board. Yet for some reason, we keep sticking to writing worklists on whiteboards and sticky notes. We have to move on.
Gone are the days of “no phones on deck” — now, we seem to communicate with them more than our radios. Each department has their own WhatsApp chat in addition to a boat-wide chat for all things communications; guest movements, ETAs, daily/weekly schedule etc.
A trap many deck crew fall into is trying to use WhatsApp as a kind of shared notes folder for worklists and repair items. Avoid that as you’re only viewing the most recent messages and it’s difficult to find specific past messages. WhatsApp groups are really only good for real-time communication between crew.
Many larger yachts will sometimes use IDEA software, which can be useful. However, it’s really only good for HODs as it doesn’t quite allow for all crew to contribute to it.
Having a shared notes folder that can be accessed by all deck crew (and other departments) allows for everyone to add to it and view it from their phones. This means that all crew are on the same page, literally, with work lists, defects and maintenance items (which everyone should be adding to, not just HODs).
Another massive advantage is for communal storage and viewing of SOPs and guides for boat-specific operations — tie-up arrangements for frequent docks, launching and retrieval guides, guest setup preferences, paint mixing ratios and guides, the list goes on.
The best two options I have found are either simply iPhone notes or the free app Notion.
Apple notes
Pros: It’s generally the easiest and most adoptable option as every iPhone has it. It’s intuitive with very basic customization, with the ability to create different folders, add photos and links, basic tables, etc. To add everyone, all you click is the three dots in the top right corner after creating a new folder and selecting “share folder.”
Cons: It’s iPhone only. Great if the deck crew is all rocking iPhones but there’s often at least one with an Android.
Notion
Pros: It’s a simple app with slightly higher customization available, but it will do the basics of photos, links, tables, headings, etc., just fine. It’s good for tablets, desktops and phones (including iPhones) across most brands.
Cons: There’s a storage limit for the free version, so you might end up paying for it, depending on how much you use the app.
As for structuring it, it’s up to you, but I’ve found the following folders work well:
Job bank or job list: This can then include headings with a daily/weekly worklist, followed by open jobs and then miscellaneous low priority repair/job items.
How-to/guide list: This can include guides or custom tender/toy setups, pack-down or setup guides for beach and inflatable setups and operation guides for all toys on board.
Yard list: We all think of yard items in the middle of a boss trip.
Order/restock list: This is fairly self-explanatory.
Although yachts aren’t profit-driven and are money-sucking behemoths, it remains our job to care for a hugely expensive asset. And that includes making more efficient use of our work hours. I can’t think of the amount of time lost because specific procedures or jobs that needed to be completed weren’t written down and photographed — something that takes mere seconds today.
Boats are getting bigger, and more crew have rotation; there’s simply a limit to how much can be communicated by word-of-mouth. Get your deck crew on shared notes and watch how much better your operation becomes.