The maritime industry faces a major challenge: securing skilled labor for transformation. With the Maritime Career Market on September 3–4, SMM 2026 offers a platform for recruiting, career orientation, and networking between companies, universities, and young talent.
The maritime industry is facing one of its greatest future tasks: it must not only transform ships, ports, and supply chains, but also win over enough people to shape this transition. While the sector invests billions in decarbonization, digitalization, and maritime security, the need for qualified specialists is growing at the same time.
According to the current Seafarer Workforce Report by the shipping organization Bimco and the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), more than 113,000 additional ship officers will be needed worldwide by 2030. At the same time, competition for specialist personnel is intensifying across almost all areas of the maritime industry. Sought-after professionals include engineers, IT and software specialists, automation experts, as well as experts for offshore energy and port logistics.
This is precisely where SMM 2026 aims to step in: with the Maritime Career Market on September 3 and 4, an international platform for recruiting, career guidance, and knowledge transfer in the maritime economy is set to be created.
“The maritime transformation will not be decided solely by new technologies, but above all by the people who develop them. With the Maritime Career Market, we offer companies, universities, and everyone who wants to help shape the future of the industry the opportunity to get in direct contact with one another,” says Claus Ulrich Selbach, Vice President Exhibitions Maritime & Energy at Hamburg Messe und Congress.
Industry Support for Skilled Workforce Initiatives
That the industry supports this approach is also emphasized by Reinhard Lüken, Managing Director of the German Shipbuilding and Ocean Industries Association (VSM): “The maritime industry in Germany has full order books and excellent technological prospects. Crucial to our competitiveness, however, will be attracting enough qualified specialists and young talent. To achieve this, we must make visible how modern, international, and future-oriented maritime careers are today. The Maritime Career Market at SMM brings companies and potential specialists into direct conversation – these are exactly the kinds of formats we need to inspire people for the maritime economy.”
The Maritime Career Market provides space for around 30 exhibitors from industry, science, and education to present themselves as attractive employers. Registered exhibitors already include Anschütz, Boluda, DNV, Heinrich Rönner Gruppe, KBN, Prostep, SKF, and Vulkan. In addition, the Emden/Leer University of Applied Sciences, the Flensburg Maritime College, and the University of Rostock will present themselves. The format goes far beyond traditional recruitment, showcasing the full spectrum of maritime career profiles – from vocational training and dual study programs to direct entries in shipbuilding, digitalization, offshore, port operations, and maritime services.
Interactive Program and Official Campaign Launch
The Maritime Career Market is complemented by a diverse side program. This includes the Career Forum with lectures and panel discussions on future trends, skill requirements, and career opportunities in the maritime work environment, as well as networking formats such as the Career Happy Hour, the Job Route with participating employers, guided trade fair tours, and a student rally organized in cooperation with the German Shipbuilding and Ocean Industries Association (VSM). Pupils, students, and accompanying teachers receive free admission to SMM on both event days.
That attracting young talent has now become a shared task for the entire maritime sector is also demonstrated by the new image and recruitment campaign by the German Maritime Centre (DMZ). It will celebrate its official launch at SMM during the “Ship your Talent” panel on September 3. “The maritime sector has a lot to offer young people. Together, we want to inspire young people for the diverse career opportunities in the industry. The Maritime Career Market at SMM is the ideal place for the campaign launch,” says Hanna Maurer, Project Manager at the German Maritime Centre (DMZ).
