The Interview Process: Selecting the “Right” Stewardess

Apr 9, 2015 | The Chief Stewardess

How to Interview and Select the Right Stewardess

Whilst the candidates are out there walking the docks, pressing their finest polo shirts, and putting their best smiles forward — the responsibility for getting this right does not rest entirely with them. It rests with you too.

This person is going to live with you. Around the clock, seven days a week, in a confined space on the water. They will be at the breakfast table, in the crew mess at midnight, in the cabin next to yours during a force eight in the Bay of Biscay. Getting the hire right matters enormously — not just professionally, but personally. A brilliant CV attached to the wrong person can unravel an entire crew dynamic in a matter of weeks.

Here is how to approach it properly.

Before You Even Begin: Get Your Facts Straight

Before the word goes out that a position is available, make sure you have clarity on the role itself. A vague brief produces vague candidates. Know the following before you start:

• The position: exactly what role you are filling and where it sits in the hierarchy
• The package: salary, insurance, annual leave entitlement, and any additional benefits
• The vessel: size, age, motor or sailing, and any relevant details about how she operates
• The cruising programme: Mediterranean, Caribbean, world voyage, private, charter, or a combination
• An appropriate overview of the owners and crew: keep this general — privacy and confidentiality are paramount, and you should not share sensitive personal information about the principal family at interview stage
• Uniform and working hours: what they will wear, when they are expected to work, and what the rotation or watch system looks like
• Expectations: what being a team member on this vessel actually means in practice

Presenting this information clearly from the outset signals professionalism, sets expectations honestly, and saves everyone time.

Building the Shortlist

When reviewing applications, focus first on the critical criteria — the non-negotiable skills, qualifications, and experience the role genuinely requires. You do not need a candidate to tick every box; aim for a solid sixty to eighty percent match on the essentials. The rest can be taught.

For example, if you are recruiting a strong second stewardess, your critical criteria might look like this:

• A minimum of three years’ experience on vessels of 50 metres and above
• Strong communication skills, both with crew and guests
• Demonstrated leadership capability
• A sound understanding of superyacht operational procedures
• Excellent personal presentation

What is not on that list is equally important. Do not rule out exceptional candidates because they lack a skill you can teach in a fortnight. What you cannot teach — and what should always be on your critical list — is character.

Transferable Skills: Do Not Overlook Them

This is something I believe the superyacht industry consistently undervalues. Relevant experience does not only come from other yachts. The following backgrounds produce excellent interior crew and should always be looked upon favourably:

• Luxury hotel and hospitality
• Airlines and cruise ships
• Private member clubs and fine dining
• Healthcare — nursing, aged care, home help (these candidates often have exceptional composure under pressure and a natural instinct for anticipating needs)
• The beauty and wellness industry

A candidate who has spent three years as a senior waitress at a five-star hotel, or as a first-class cabin crew member, may bring more genuine service expertise to your interior than someone with yacht experience and mediocre standards. Keep an open mind.

What to Look for Beyond the CV

The shortlist is ready. Now the real work begins.

The interview is your opportunity to find out who this person actually is — not just what they have done. That is a harder thing to assess, particularly when candidates are nervous and, understandably, presenting their best version of themselves. A few principles that help:

Apply the 80/20 rule. You should be speaking for no more than twenty percent of the interview. The candidate should be doing eighty percent of the talking. Ask open questions, listen carefully, and resist the urge to fill silence. What people say when they are given space to speak freely is usually more revealing than their prepared answers.

Watch the body language. How someone carries themselves, makes eye contact, and responds to unexpected questions tells you a great deal. Confidence is not the same as arrogance. Nerves are not the same as unsuitability. Learn to read the difference.

Trust your instincts. Fifteen years of interviewing has taught me that your gut feeling about a person is almost never wrong. If something feels off — even if you cannot immediately articulate why — pay attention to that feeling. Equally, when someone walks in and the energy is right, that matters too.

Ask yourself honestly: Will this person fit with the existing crew? With the owners and guests? With the organisational structure of this vessel? Skills can be developed. A poor cultural fit is almost impossible to fix.

Facilitating the Interview

The environment you create for the interview is as important as the questions you ask. A few practical points:

• Prepare in advance. Do not wing it. Know your questions, know what you are looking for, and give the candidate the courtesy of a considered process.
• Present well. You are representing the yacht. Dress appropriately, be punctual, and conduct the interview in a quiet space away from distractions.
• Set the tone. Begin with something light and off-topic — How was your morning? Did you have any trouble finding us? A candidate who relaxes slightly will give you far more useful information than one who remains in interview-armour throughout.
• Do not patronise. Every candidate — regardless of experience level — deserves to be treated with respect. You may well learn something from them.
• Conclude gracefully. If it becomes clear early on that a candidate is not right for the position, bring the interview to a professional close, thank them sincerely for their time, and move on. The yachting world is small, and how you treat people is remembered.

On Communication: A Non-Negotiable

Communication is the one skill that underpins everything in the superyacht interior. You can train service technique, silver service, wine knowledge, and housekeeping standards. You cannot easily train someone to read a room, moderate their tone, or understand the non-verbal signals of a guest who would rather be left alone.

In the interview, pay close attention to how the candidate communicates, not just what they say. Are they measured? Do they listen as well as they speak? Do they answer the question asked, or do they deflect? Can they self-reflect? Do they communicate with warmth and professionalism, or does their language feel inappropriate for the environment they are applying to work in?

Communication is the hardest thing to teach and the most important thing to hire for.

Interview Questions Worth Asking

These are some of my favourites — built and refined over fifteen years of interviewing. They are designed to reveal character, self-awareness, and suitability rather than simply rehearsed answers.

“How has your morning been?” The icebreaker. Tells you immediately how someone presents in a relaxed, conversational moment.

“Tell me a little about yourself.” The classic opener. Give them space and see what they choose to lead with.

“What is your greatest achievement — professional or personal?” Reveals what the candidate values and what they consider a meaningful accomplishment.

“Tell me about a time you felt genuinely overwhelmed at work. What happened, and how did you manage it?” This is one of the most useful questions in any interview. It looks at self-awareness, problem-solving, and emotional regulation under pressure. The candidate who says they have never felt overwhelmed is either not being truthful or has not been challenged enough.

“What prompted you to apply for this particular position?” Looks at motivation. Are they driven by money, travel, career progression, the specific vessel, or something else entirely? None of these is wrong — but knowing which one tells you a great deal.

“What are three strengths you would bring to this role?” These do not need to be purely professional. How a candidate answers this question — with confidence or with hesitation, with specificity or with vague generalities — is as telling as the strengths themselves.

“What do you look for in a leader?” Can they be honest with you about what they need from a manager? This one requires a degree of trust to answer well, and the answer will tell you whether that trust is already present.

“When you work as part of a team, what role do you naturally fall into?” Are they a leader, a supporter, an executor, a problem-solver? Knowing where someone naturally sits in a team helps you understand how they will fit with the people already on board.

A Final Word

Everything above — the criteria, the shortlist, the questions, the structure — is in service of one thing: finding the right person. Not the most qualified person on paper. Not the most impressive interviewer. The right person.

This industry is unlike any other. The person you hire will not simply work alongside you — they will live alongside you, through long passages and difficult guests and 3am emergencies and the rare, extraordinary moments that make this career unlike anything else.

Hire for character first. The rest, in a willing and committed person, can always be taught.