Refit, Shipyard & Project Management Jobs

Refit, shipyard and project management covers the technical and commercial professionals who deliver major yacht works — annual refits, warranty campaigns, extended surveys, and multi-year new build projects. Hiring is concentrated around the established European hubs (the French and Italian Riviera, Spain's Barcelona/Palma yards, the Netherlands and Germany) alongside Fort Lauderdale and other refit centres, with euro and US-dollar packages both common depending on the yard and employer.

Demand is consistently strong and skewed toward experienced candidates. Most project management posts require a minimum of five years in a comparable role plus a working knowledge of superyacht construction, engineering systems, class rules and flag-state compliance. Many successful applicants come ashore from senior sea-going engineering or command positions, combining hands-on vessel experience with formal project management training.

Employers in this category range from refit and new build shipyards, to yacht management companies running refit departments, to family offices and ownership structures hiring directly for owner's representative roles. Compensation varies widely with project scale, vessel length, whether the role is permanent or contract, and the level of budget and delivery responsibility carried.

Specialist technical roles — naval architects, marine surveyors, and discipline managers for paint, interiors, mechanical and electrical scopes — support the delivery teams and are typically filled by degree-qualified or professionally accredited candidates.