This year, Wrist Ship Supply can pride themselves of having three generations of the graduate program, the Wrist Acceleration program, working side by side in the Montreal Branch:
- Shayne Assaf – a graduate from the WAP 2014 team, who is the Branch Manager.
- Kevin Ghostlaw – a graduate from the WAP 2018 team, who recently transferred from Long Beach to Montreal to take up the Sales Manager position.
- Frank Berce – their latest recruit to the WAP 2020 team, who is the Technical Buyer.
WAP program
The WAP program was introduced in 2012, with new intakes every second year. It has been a steep learning curve for both the WAP participants and the organisation to make the perfect blend between newly gained academic qualifications and long standing industry knowledge, but they believe they have achieved the best of both worlds.
Meeting interesting people
Read about their individual journeys at Wrist below:
I began my career at Wrist in 2014 fresh out of university where I studied international business"
Shayne Assaf said “I began my career at Wrist in 2014 fresh out of university where I studied international business. I had no experience or knowledge of the marine industry prior to applying. Quickly, I fell in love with the fast pace of the business and the people I worked with within Wrist.”
He adds, “Soon after, I applied and was selected for the Wrist Acceleration program which allowed me to travel around the world; meet new interesting people at high levels of management and increase my own abilities through coaching from Key Learning – the consulting firm hired by Wrist for this program. It is remarkable to look back and see the amount of wealth of knowledge and experience that has been gained from the WAP program. The program is a good demonstration of how Wrist HQ truly believes in investing in their employees!”
Wrist Acceleration program
Kevin Ghostlaw said, “Upon graduation from the Massachusetts Maritime Academy in 2018, Wrist had welcomed me with open arms into the Wrist Acceleration program. My time with Wrist started in Long Beach California, where I was able to rotate through each department learning the basic functions of ship supply.”
The two year timeline provided me ample time to learn each aspect as well as perform efficiently"
Kevin Ghostlaw adds, “The two year timeline provided me ample time to learn each aspect as well as perform efficiently in whatever role it might be. Eventually, I settled down in the sales department where I felt most comfortable. Now, two years later I have been given the opportunity to move internationally to Montreal to serve as the Sales Manager. It has been a great start working alongside one former graduate and now a new recruit into the program. I look forward to working for Wrist and am grateful for the opportunities that have stemmed from participating in the Wrist Acceleration Program.”
Developing industry knowledge
Frank Berce said “I started my journey at Wrist as a fresh graduate from The John Molson School of Business. Passionate about Supply Chain, more specifically procurement, the technical purchaser role seemed like a good starting point.”
Frank Berce adds, “Seeing Shayne’s demonstration of leadership as a General Manager showed me that the program could help me become a better leader and develop industry knowledge. My father and grandfather served in the Navy and so the industry has always been close to my heart. I hope to bring the same sentiment to this company and seafarers.”
