The Developing Global Employability Competencies of Indonesian Seafarers for Enhanced End-User Acceptance through Brand Experiences

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INTRODUCTION
The international shipping industry plays a vital role in world trade activities and is essential for sustainable development (Tsai & Liou, 2017;Yuen et al., 2018).The international shipping industry with sea transportation using a fleet of merchant ships plays a vital role in situations of peace, war, or pandemic because goods still have to be sent between locations or countries.With sea transportation, the import and export of goods between countries, which accounts for almost 90% of international trade, is possible.The demand for global seafaring labour increased drastically in the same period.One of the causes is the retirement of several seafarers, which has resulted in a shortage of qualified seafarer labour (Tang & Bhattacharya, 2021;Thai et al., 2013).Although the number of seafarers recruited from Far Eastern countries, the Indian sub-continent, and Eastern Europe is increasing, the share of Chinese seafarers in the international seafarer labour market remains stable at around 8% (Nguyen et al., 2014;Thai et al., 2013).This condition causes a scarcity of seafarers both in terms of quality and quantity, which ultimately increases seafarers' salary levels and encourages market players to recruit seafarers from "third world" countries (Lobrigo & Pawlik, 2015;Zhang et al., 2020).
Moreover, many international shipping companies choose to recruit and employ seafarers directly from emerging maritime nations to operate their ships.Although recruiting seafarers is relatively easy, finding trained, competent, skilled, and experienced seafarers is a real challenge.In contrast, the shortage of skilled seafaring labour, particularly for deck and engine officers, has become a growing concern within the international shipping industry (Baum-Talmor & Kitada, 2022;Jo et al., 2020).More than 90% of world trade volume is transported by sea, this problem is a global challenge that needs to be resolved.Methods for recruiting seafarers in the international shipping industry have different variations (Caesar et al., 2015;Nguyen et al., 2014).Companies can recruit seafarers directly or indirectly (Nguyen et al., 2014;Thai et al., 2013).The indirect approach is increasingly popular among international shipping companies due to its underlying cost efficiencies and the global reach offered by crew agency companies.However, the lack of adequate training venues on many modern ships means that international shipping companies need a robust cadet system for hands-on training by ship crew (Demirel, 2020;McLaughlin, 2015).Reliance on more cost-effective crew agency companies increases the risk of using ineffective cadets less committed to training (Bryson, 2016;Devereux & Wadsworth, 2021).
Indonesia, as the country with the fourth largest population in the world and the largest archipelagic country in the world with a solid maritime cultural background, is considered by many people to be the country that supplies the largest workforce of seafarers from the Southeast Asia region throughout the world.Indonesian seafaring workers are known as reliable, hard workers, obedient, do not consume alcohol, and have good adaptability to the marine environment, differentiating them from seafaring workers from countries that do not have access to the sea.
According to data from the Indonesian Ministry of Transportation, there were 1,187,412 registered Indonesian seafarers, consisting of 1,162,749 men and 24,663 women.Of the total number, 485,861 Indonesian seafarers have a Certificate of Competency (CoC) certified by IMO STCW 2010.They are eligible to work on all commercial vessels globally (both Indonesian and foreign-flagged).After deducting the number of 68,640 people registered as working on Indonesian (domestic) merchant ships, there are still 417,221 Indonesian seafarers who meet the requirements to work on global merchant ships, which can fulfil/fill as much as 25% of the total demand for seafarers for operates all merchant vessels globally.The estimated penetration of the Indonesian seafarer labour market among international merchant ship owners is around 1.2% or only 4.8% of the total Indonesian seafarer workforce qualified and capable of working for international shipping companies.Moreover, Indonesia needs to catch up compared to its neighbouring Southeast Asian countries, such as the Philippines, which is the leader in the number of seafarers employed by international shipping companies.Indonesia faces becoming the largest supplier of seafarer labour from the region, considering that all seafarers have fulfilled the maritime training requirements approved by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) by complying with the 2010 STCW convention and all recruitment processes by local Ship Crew Agency Companies are by with the 2006 MLC Convention.The findings previous research shows that there is a significant relationship between Employability Competence and end-user acceptance (Adefila et al., 2020;Gao et al., 2014).Previous research states a significant demand for seafarers with general and specific technical skills (Emad et al., 2022;Lušić et al., 2019).Seafarers on an international scale need skills such as problem-solving and analytics, decision-making, organization and time management, risk-taking, and communication skills to be employed in the world of work on a global scale.In contrast, several studies concluded that competency workability does not have a significant influence on end-user acceptance (Dai et al., 2013;Othman et al., 2019).Crew owners assume that employees with certification only have adequate technical skills but need more motivation, interpersonal skills, critical thinking skills, problem-solving skills, and entrepreneurial skills (Jardim, 2021;Sterling & Boxall, 2013).Thus, there needs to be more research on the relationship between global employability competence and end-user acceptance.
In order to address the above research gap in international shipping companies, the authors try to put a brand experience into three dimensions, sensory experience, behavioural experience, and intellectual experiences, as mediators by the perspective theory of Resource Based-View (RBV) and theory of selfdetermination.According to the theory of RBV, Indonesia's unique resources and capabilities as a country supplying seafaring labour are developed through the development of global employability competency standards for Indonesian ship crew or seafaring workers.The standard dimensions of global employability competence form a unique resource, making it a novelty in this research.These dimensions consist of skills in using Information Technology (IT) applications, problem-solving, decision-making ability; ability to adapt to work environment culture; and multitasking (Ghosh et al., 2014;Misra & Khurana, 2017;Roberts, 2018).Developing internal resources in the form of global employability competence can increase End-User Acceptance, namely international shipping companies, towards Indonesian seafaring workers.
Furthermore, international shipping companies tend to recruit seafarers based on previous work experience on their merchant ships.It leads to positive evaluations of the seafarer workforce and facilitates engagement between international shipping companies and seafarers (Bhattacharya, 2015;Pantouvakis et al., 2023).The Self Determination Theory (SDT) approach states that the success of merchant ship owners is influenced by the satisfaction of basic psychological needs.Fulfilling these basic needs, related to the attachment of international shipping companies to the country of origin of seafarers who work on commercial ships, is represented as a brand.Based on national association, the link and match between international shipping companies and the seafarer workforce create a brand experience that fulfilling work competency needs can influence.It is in line with the previous explanation that international shipping companies are more likely to look for a brand experience that matches the seafarers' country of origin when the competence of the seafarer's country of origin matches the work needs of the international shipping company.The experience of international shipping companies using seafarer workers with specific criteria like sensory and intellectual based on their country of origin directly influences their acceptance (Marcu, 2014(Marcu, , 2021)).Previous research has also illustrated that the brand experience of international shipping companies influences their future behaviour.For example, similar research show that creating consistent experiences can encourage customer loyalty (Ou et al., 2014;Wijanna & Ariadi, 2023).This results in a positive relationship between brand experience and acceptance by end-user international shipping companies (Danielsen et al., 2022;Parnell et al., 2021).Thus, a strong brand experience provides a positive perception related to the nationality of the seafarer workforce as a brand identity that increases End-User Acceptance.
Brand experience can benefit international shipping companies in meeting the autonomy and competency needs of the employed seafarers and company-related needs.The need for autonomy reflects an individual's need to act independently and is motivated by internal factors.This need is related to the desire of international shipping companies to feel they have autonomous behaviour and are not dependent on external influences (Dworkin, 2015;Matusov et al., 2016).For example, in the recruitment of seafarers who will work for international shipping companies, the need for autonomy is met when international shipping companies do not rely on ship crew agency companies but are more likely to use seafarers who have worked for the international shipping company for a long time and the nationality of the workforce is seafarer's work becomes an objective assessment.Thus, international shipping companies feel confident that the seafarers workforce from certain nationalities can provide satisfaction based on their high competence after working there.
In the context of the seafarer workforce and international shipping companies, this mediation relationship uses a self-determination theory approach, which shows that the seafarer workforce has the opportunity to develop their competence, autonomy, and sense of connectedness, which can produce better results for seafarers and international shipping companies.If international shipping companies are committed to providing seafarers with opportunities to develop their competencies and sense of connection, this can lead to a positive brand experience.A positive brand experience can, in turn, increase End-User Acceptance by building trust and improving the reputation of international shipping companies.These positive brand experiences also have the potential to increase the sense of autonomy and connectedness that seafarers experience, which can further enhance their competence and ultimately contribute to the company's overall success.Therefore, the work competency of employable global-scale seafarers indirectly impacts End-User Acceptance, which is mediated by the brand experience of international shipping companies.Positive brand experiences can improve the reputation of international shipping companies, build trust, and potentially increase the autonomy and connectedness of the seafarer workforce, which can ultimately lead to better outcomes for both seafarers and international shipping companies.
As a whole, this research delivers two essential concerns.First, what aspects impact the end-user acceptance of international shipping companies?The author contemplates this concern from the viewpoint of global employability competence.Second, how does global employability competence impact end-user acceptance, mediated by some brand experience dimensions?Based on the knowledge management approach, the author examines the mediating part of sensory, behavioural, and intellectual experiences, which bridges the relationship between global employability competence and end-user acceptance.

METHODS
This study employs a quantitative approach that uses PLS-SEM (Partial least Square-Structural Equation Modelling) to analyze a structural model and the mediation relationships among variables.The population in this study consists of global ship management services companies.These ship management service companies have work contract agreements with international shipping companies to manage commercial ships owned by international shipping companies in global crew recruitment and management.Overall, this ship management services company manages over 500 merchant ships and employs over 10,000 seafarers from various nationalities.The respondents used in this research were crewing managers or crewing superintendents from these international ship management service companies.These respondents have knowledge and experience in making operational decisions and strategic policies related to recruiting seafarers who will work for the ship management services company.In a randomly selected ship management services company overseas, the author used a record of 600 crewing managers and superintendents who recruit and manage around 5,280 seafarers who work onboard merchant ships.The respondent data has been acquired via e-mail.Two hundred forty accomplished questionaries, representing 40 percent, were taken parallel to other prior studies.
Data collection methods for this study involved an online questionnaire consisting of researcher questions.The five-Likert scale was used as the response scale to measure attitudes, opinions, and perceptions of a group of individuals toward social phenomena (Hair et al., 2012).This study uses Global Employability Competence, which comprises five dimensions: problem-solving, IT Use, decision management, operating in the organizational environment, and multi-tasking (Anser et al., 2021;Ghosh & Daszuta, 2019;Manuel, 2017).Sensory experience comprises three items: responsibility for accident prevention, quality of maintenance of equipment and work equipment, and quality of communication and interaction between crew and management (Ahn, 2020;Choi et al., 2017).Behavioral experience comprises three items: the frequency of positive interactions between seafarers and management, work safety, and corrective action (Ahn, 2020;Choi et al., 2017).Intellectual experience comprises three items: seafarer experience in various emergencies on board ship, continuous learning and innovation, and recognition of the value of the knowledge and expertise seafarers bring to the organization (Jo et al., 2020;Tsai & Liou, 2017).End-user acceptance comprises three items: Adequate Work assignment instructions, Seafarer Retention, and efficient working time (Jo et al., 2020;Tsai & Liou, 2017).
The measure of a measuring instrument's trustworthiness is known as reliability.Instruments that consistently produce the same results in their measurements are considered reliable.Reliability testing assesses the consistency and reliability of instruments for multiple measurements on a single subject.The Cronbach alpha number can be used to identify whether statistical test calculations are reliable or unreliable.The Cronbach's alpha reflects all the questions in the research model and measures the test's reliability.A minimum value of 0.6 is accepted for the test's reliability, while the ideal value is 0.8 or 0.9.Concerning the validity test, the AVE value indicates its validity, with a minimum value of 0.5.The reliability test in Table 1, measured by Outer Loading, showed a value above 0.6, Cronbach's Alpha was above 0.7, and the validity test, measured by Average Variance Extraction (AVE), showed a value above 0.5.Thus, it can be concluded that all variables are accepted for the reliability test.This newly recommended approach was additionally applied to test the discriminant validity in the HTMT method of correlations.Discriminant validity test using the correlation value between variables from the Heterotrait-Monotrait ratio (HTMT), where it was found that all correlations between variables did not exceed the cut-value of 0.9.A discriminant validity analysis is confirmed if the HTMT is lesser than the value of 0.90, as shown in Table 2.All variables in the measurement model also were determined to be sufficiently discriminatory.

Results
Test the internal model to establish any relationship between research hypotheses by considering the significance values between concepts and p-values.The outcomes of this research model are illustrated in Figure 2. Figure 2 is the result of the structural model, and Table 3 is the result of this study's standard path coefficient model.In addition, Figure 2 and Table 3 describe the path coefficient of Global Employability Competence to End-User Acceptance as positive and significant (ß = 0.250; p-value < 0.01) so that H1 is supported.Then, the indirect relationship of the Global Employability Competence to End-User Acceptance through Sensory Experience as a mediator is also positive and non-significant, respectively (ß IJSSB.P-ISSN: 2614-6533 E-ISSN: 2549-6409 = 0.020, p > 0.05), so H2 is not supported.Conversely, the indirect relationship of the Global Employability Competence to End-User Acceptance through behavioral Experience as a mediator is also positive and significant, respectively (ß = 0.087, p < 0.01), so H3 is supported.Finally, the indirect relationship of the Global Employability Competence to End-User Acceptance through Intellectual Experience as a mediator is also positive and significant, respectively (ß = 0.176, p < 0.01), so that H4 is supported.It can be concluded that behavioral and intellectual Experience influence the partial mediation used to link global employer competency and end-user acceptance.

Discussion
The research results are empirical data from the hypothesis, which states that applying Global Employability Competence increases end-user acceptability in seafarer crew management companies.The global scale employability competency of Indonesian seafarers can carry out basic functional tasks on foreign shipping vessels.These work competencies consist of several dimensions, namely problem solving, application IT Use, decision management, operating in an organizational environment, and multitasking.In this regard, the multitasking dimension is the central aspect that has the most influence on increasing the competence of Indonesian seafarers on foreign-owned shipping vessels compared to other dimensions.It is in line with the needs of foreign shipping vessels, which prioritize seafarers' competence in multitasking in the form of decision-making processes by seafarers, such as determining the most efficient routes and simultaneously carrying out technical automation, such as prediction and diagnosis of failures in the event of extreme weather such as typhoons.The work seafarers do, such as automation from low-level applications where the system only collects information.At the same time, simultaneously, the seafaring crew analyzes and determines the nature of the information collected and acts following their duties and responsibilities.Thus, managing foreign shipping vessels recognizes Indonesian seafarers' global competence because the implementation of work instructions becomes more effective, and the time for completing tasks becomes more efficient (Tsai & Liou, 2017;Yuen et al., 2018).The results of this research support the findings of similar research, which shows that Global Employability Competence increases enduser acceptability in seafarer crew management companies (Jo et al., 2020;Tsai & Liou, 2017).
The findings of this research confirm that the five dimensions of Global Employability Competence influence the positive emotional attachment of ship crew management to the brand of seafarers from Indonesia.Apart from that, in line with the positive psychology perspective, the influence of the multitasking dimension, which is part of seafarer competency, on the intellectual experience dimension means that Indonesian seafarers are recognized as able to carry out work instruction tasks simultaneously.When crew management is satisfied with the spiritual worker, a seafarer's work competency in the ship environment, they tend to experience a more positive interaction with Indonesian seafarers.Furthermore, this research confirms that ship crew management tends to expect their seafarers to behave well so that they do not carry out activities that are dangerous to other ship crew, with a theoretical perspective of selfdetermination which explains the behaviour of ship crew management in recruiting Indonesian seafarers based on experience working on previous ships based on assessments from behavioural experience that are the main factor in influencing positive perceptions for Indonesian seafarers related to the knowledge and skills of seafarers.Then, ship owners experience strong feelings and emotions towards brands associated with the seafarers' country of origin.Hence, these affective stimuli help create a high level of acceptance for Indonesian seafarers when the recruitment process is a priority.For example, Indonesian seafarers always communicate with colleagues and promote workplace safety.Concerning the support of colleagues, Indonesian seafarers work together, and other colleagues are under work stress, so they have to look after them because they cannot force them to do the work.A solid and highly emotional experience for ship crew management is a significant factor in increasing satisfaction for ship owners.It encourages crew management to recruit Indonesian seafarers by maintaining the position of seafarers in their field of duty compared to seafarers from other countries.Thus, when the crew management gains behavioural experience through recruitment, the experience of employing Indonesian seafarers can increase the acceptability and emotional feelings of the crew management.The results of this research support the findings of previous research, which show that Global Employability Competence increases end-user acceptability through Behavioral Experience in seafarer crew management companies (Ahn, 2020;Choi et al., 2017).
The findings of this research confirm that the five dimensions of global employer competency influence the sensory experience of crew management towards Indonesian seafarer brands.In recruiting seafarers who work on international shipping vessels, various experiences influence the autonomy of crew management related to the satisfaction of the experiences of seafarers who have worked on previous ships.For example, the need for autonomy is met when customers have choices and control over various travel activities.Therefore, the research results show that the dimensions of operating in an organizational environment, namely working following standard operational procedures and prioritizing urgent tasks, are the main factors influencing sensory experience satisfaction so that ship crew management views Indonesian seafarers as responsible for preventing accidents at sea.Thus, when ship crew management is satisfied with the competence of Indonesian seafarers, they tend to get positive results, such as brand attachment associated with the seafarers' country of origin.
Conversely, research findings show that sensory experience does not influence end-user acceptance in ship crew management.High responsibility in preventing ship accidents and high workload related to maintaining equipment and work equipment during extreme weather such as winter with ice patches.The ship owner was impressed with the high sensitivity of Indonesian seafarers.However, because the weather had minus temperatures, Indonesian seafarers could not withstand extreme weather, and they could not anticipate relatively dangerous events.For example, Indonesian seafarers who work on the deck of a ship when sailing in seas with lots of ice where debris falls on the ship's deck can endanger other seafarers.Indonesian seafarers must immediately clean up the ice chips so that the floor above the ship's deck does not become slippery or endanger other seafarers when walking.The results of this research support the findings of similar research, which show that Global Employability Competence does not increase end-user acceptability through Sensory Experience in seafarer crew management companies (Smith et al., 2020;Veitch et al., 2019).
Furthermore, the findings of this research confirm that Global Employability Competence influences the Intellectual experience of crew management towards Indonesian seafarer brands.Most Indonesian seafarers have high knowledge and expertise and continuous learning, increasing the intellectual experience of ship crew management.Shipowners gain experience with brands associated with the seafarer's country of origin, as the knowledge and expertise of these seafarers help create a high level of acceptance with crew management when recruitment is a priority.For example, Indonesian seafarers can respond to various emergency conditions on board ships.When a fire extinguisher is damaged or cannot be used, it can endanger work operations on the ship.However, Indonesian seafarers can repair the damaged spray nozzle and prevent further damage to the ship.The high intellectual experience of Indonesian seafarers increases acceptance from ship crew management because it accumulates valuable knowledge and experience for the organization on board.The valuable knowledge gained through this learning can then be transferred to other seafarers and the management of shipping activities so that continuous learning occurs.It can stimulate creativity and intellectual growth in ship crew management so that they can experience improvement by recruiting Indonesian seafarers because of their informal expertise.The creative strategies of Indonesian seafarers will be remembered strongly by ship crew management, which can prioritize Indonesian seafarers as a brand with informal expertise.Thus, when crew management gains intellectual experience through recruitment, experience in employing Indonesian seafarers can increase the acceptability and informal knowledge of crew management.The results of this research support the findings of previous research, which shows that Global Employability Competence increases end-user acceptability through Intellectual Experience in seafarer crew management companies (Ahn, 2020;Choi et al., 2017;Jo et al., 2020;Wang & Yeo, 2016).

CONCLUSION
Higher global employability competence can increase end-user acceptability for ship crew management companies.The development of Global Employability Competence consists of five dimensions where the dimension that has the most influence on the competence of Indonesian seafarers is multitasking.It gives the management of foreign ship crews a reason to recruit Indonesian seafarers to work on their ships.Thus, these core competencies must be possessed by Indonesian seafarers to maintain their jobs and increase their competitive advantage with other foreign seafarers so that crew management prioritizes Indonesian seafarers to join their ships.
A higher level of global employability competence can improve the brand experience for ship crew management companies.Crew management can build strong and positive emotional relationships by providing behavioural and intellectual experiences, except for sensory experience.Seafarers' intellectual experience shows the most substantial influence on the satisfaction of shipping companies' needs.The experience of seafarers responding in various emergencies on board ships can increase positive emotions for ship crew management towards brands related to seafarers' home countries.Thus, Indonesian seafarers must have these core competencies to maintain their jobs and increase their competitive advantage over other foreign seafarers so that crew management has a positive experience with Indonesian seafarers because they have an emotional attachment to carrying out their work duties.
Theoretically, behavioural and intellectual experience is positioned as mediators with a selfdetermination theory approach; this is a new conceptual model construct in answering the inconsistency of the research gap in the influence of global employability competence on end-user acceptability.The novelty of this research is that behavioural and intellectual experience partially mediate the indirect influence of global employability competence on end-user acceptability from the self-determination theory perspective.In addition, many previous research studies have found that global employability competence can increase end-user acceptability.However, no one has examined the indirect influence of both experiences on the Influence of skilled seafarer competence on a global scale on end-user acceptability with the second-order model.The intellectual experience factor is the main factor for Indonesian seafarers to increase acceptance for ship crew management because it accumulates valuable knowledge and experience for the organization on board.Thus, there is a synergy between the resource-based view theory and the self-determination theory in developing behavioural and intellectual experience variables as mediators in the model.
Practically, Indonesian seafarers' high knowledge and expertise increase the intellectual experience of ship crew management.Shipowners gain experience with brands associated with the seafarer's country of origin, as the knowledge and expertise of these seafarers help create a high level of acceptance with crew management when recruitment is a priority.For example, Indonesian seafarers can respond to various emergency conditions on board ships.When a fire extinguisher is damaged or cannot be used, it can endanger work operations on the ship.However, Indonesian seafarers can repair the damaged spray nozzle and prevent further damage to the ship.The high intellectual experience of Indonesian seafarers increases acceptance from ship crew management because it accumulates valuable knowledge and experience for the organization on board.Ship crew management should consider intellectual experience as the central aspect in accepting Indonesian seafarers to work on foreign-flagged ships.

Table 1 .
Reliability Test