At Mr. Marine, our operational philosophy is built on technical excellence, but our company culture thrives on engagement, camaraderie, and team spirit. We actively stimulate cooperation and healthy competition across our global network, always looking forward to unique activities that significantly contribute to building stronger relationships within the team! Recognizing the vital importance of a happy, bonded workforce—the very individuals who ensure the safety and compliance of vessels worldwide—this month, we organized a truly unique and engaging challenge for our people that went far beyond the scope of marine services and ballast water treatment systems.
The Quest for the Title: ‘Bake Off Champion 2022’
The challenge that stirred up enthusiasm across our offices was the highly anticipated “Bake Off Champion 2022” competition. For this delightful event, Mr. Marine members voluntarily put their best baking skills into spirited practice, vying for the coveted culinary title. Every member had the exciting opportunity to participate by baking and presenting a dessert masterpiece for the competition.
The level of creativity, precision, and effort displayed was nothing short of astonishing. We were immensely impressed by the hidden talents of our team, who collectively proved to be excellent not only in ensuring the technical safety and compliance of vessels worldwide—a task requiring meticulous detail and engineering precision—but also in the artistry of creating truly delicious and complex desserts. All the dedicated participants invested tremendous effort, time, and passion into their cakes and baked goods, which were universally impressive in their complexity, visual appearance, and, most importantly, extraordinary taste. This event showcased the well-rounded abilities and dedication present within the Mr. Marine family.
Judging the Competition: A Difficult Choice
The competition was fierce and highly contested, with a total of eight masterful cakes entering the final judging round. The entries were evaluated by the other team members in a blind taste-test format, based on four critical criteria: taste, presentation, complexity of execution, and overall general impression.
The collective decision-making process proved incredibly difficult due to the sheer variety of the cakes—ranging from delicate European pastries to hearty American pies—and their consistently extraordinary flavors. Every entry deserved recognition for its quality. Still, the team voted diligently, with the votes tallied across the evaluation categories. The clear and deserving winner of the title “Bake Off Champion 2022” was the spectacular dessert known as “Cielo di Ewelina,” baked by our talented colleague, Ewelina Barbosa.
The judging panel also recognized three other exceptional top cakes, which obtained a high preference score from the discerning team members, highlighting the strong culinary talent across the board:
Banoffee by Sjoerd Beärda
Pecan Pie by Shikin Jaafar
Islak Cake by Yagmur Kantar
We extend our most enthusiastic congratulations not only to Ewelina but to all participants of this challenging and fun initiative! Your creativity brought tremendous joy to the entire team.
Team is Our Key Value: Fostering an Inclusive Culture
At Mr. Marine, the team is unequivocally one of our core key values. We are constantly working on building a genuinely friendly, comfortable, and highly inclusive working environment for all our members, no matter their role or global location. We profoundly cherish the individual contribution of each member, from our newest hires to our long-standing specialists, and we implement various cultural programs to make sure our team consistently feels appreciated and valued.
Our commitment to our team goes beyond fun challenges. It is embedded in our daily interactions: we actively show up for each other, ensuring professional and personal support is available; we act with empathy and understanding, recognizing the pressures inherent in the global maritime trade; and we maintain an open environment where we share information transparently and respectfully across all levels of the organization. We believe in mutual trust and professional accountability, and crucially, we take nothing for granted, constantly striving to improve our internal processes and employee experience.
These fun, engaging, and collaborative events, like the Bake Off Challenge, are essential tools in achieving our cultural goals. They provide informal yet powerful opportunities for cross-departmental interaction, fostering the kind of camaraderie that translates into stronger communication and better problem-solving when tackling complex marine elevator repairs or urgent BWTS compliance issues. We are already eagerly looking forward to the next editions of the “Bake-Off Challenge,” excited to discover the further extraordinary and delicious baking skills of our people!
If you want to become part of our team, check out our open positions.
