Our Cruise Industry Experts
Experience, expertise and professionalism at your service
Thomas E. (Ted) Blamey – Principal
Over a career spanning more than 30 years, Ted Blamey has been a cruise industry pioneer. He served as President and Chief Executive of one of the world’s major cruise lines (Sitmar International, Los Angeles and Monaco), having been Managing Director of Sitmar Cruises Australasia (Sydney) and Engagement Manager and strategic consultant at McKinsey and Company (Sydney and London). He was subsequently CEO of Australia’s largest retail travel group (Ansett Retail/Traveland) and Chairman of the Sydney Ports Authority.
Through the 1980s, Sitmar redefined cruising in the South Pacific and South-East Asia to become the dominant cruise line in that part of the world within 6 years. The innovations by Ted Blamey and his team in product, distribution and marketing continue to this day.
Then, as President and CEO of Sitmar International, Ted Blamey initiated the first significant cruise industry consolidation, leading to the merging of Sitmar’s and P&O/Princess’ worldwide interests through outright sale of the Sitmar companies. This move set the tone for the industry’s next decade.
He founded CHART Management Consultants in 1997 and has since served CEOs and senior executives of cruise lines, government bodies and destinations across the globe on a wide variety of consulting assignments, usually with a strategic focus.
Ted is a frequent speaker at global cruise industry events. He leads courses for government, port and tourism executives on the global cruise industry.
In recent years Ted has built additional expertise in Asia. CHART’s seminal White Paper for the Asia Cruise Association “The Cruise Industry in Asia 2013 and Beyond: Information, Intelligence, Insights” was launched at the major regional convention in October 2013. This led to CHART’s annual Asia Cruise Trends reports for CLIA from 2014 to 2018 and their 2019 Cruise Deployment & Capacity report.
The Cruise Shipping Development Strategy CHART undertook for Papua New Guinea has led to that nation becoming a hot new destination for large cruise ship lines. He and his team have since: worked closely with the Philippines Department of Tourism to craft its National Cruise Tourism Strategy; conducted a operational/market appraisal for a new cruise port in southern China; prepared the Pacific Cruise Market Research and Intelligence Report and a strategy for SPTO; advised a major bank on financing newbuilds for Asia; assisted a Private Equity firm to assess investing in an Asian cruise business; advised on a new cruise line destined for Asia; and undertook a detailed market and operations feasibility and forward plan for a new cruise port development in Vietnam.
Ted holds an Honours degree in Applied Science from the University of Melbourne and a Master of Business Administration from Harvard.
He was made Fellow of the Australian Marketing Institute in 1986 and Visiting Fellow of the Seatrade Academy in 2011. Ted was the 2017 honoree for CLIA Australasia’s Hall of Fame.
Ted / CHART is a long-term Executive Partner of CLIA and member of the Australia Cruise Association.
At various times resident of Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Boston, South Florida, London, Monte Carlo, Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland, Ted is now based in Sydney, Australia, but is regularly to be found with clients in other parts of the world.
In addition to his consulting work, Ted has taught as Adjunct Professor at Boston University’s Sydney program, served on boards of various non-profit organisations in Australia, including as Councillor of The Harvard Club of Australia, chairing its non-profit Fellowship Program and founding its Leaders’ Workshop. He is a Past President of The American Club in Sydney. He is a Life Member of the Harvard Club of Australia and of The American Club.
Captain Luigi Nappa – Associate
Over 20 years on board cruise ships, Luigi Nappa progressed through the deck and navigating officer ranks to Second-in-Command (Staff Captain). Along the way, he gained comprehensive hands-on experience that has proven invaluable to decision making at senior management level, including supervising major refit and ship conversion projects as the cruise line’s senior shipyard representative.
Coming to a senior executive role ashore, he took responsibility for all the marine and hotel operations of a major cruise line throughout the South Pacific and South-East Asia including overseeing destinations, on-board product, navigation and port relationships.
As General Manager, Operations and Passenger Services for Sitmar Cruises (and later for P&O Cruises Australasia), Luigi was the primary executor of Sitmar’s product innovations, such as their “unspoiled islands” concept, now the mainstay of all cruise itineraries in the region. His creativity and attention to detail led to many successful cruise industry firsts in on-board product delivery and enhanced guest experiences. He led such diverse projects as shipboard waste management, development of seasonal menus, on-board retail concepts, identifying operating cost savings.
Luigi was deeply involved in the Cruise Shipping Development Strategy CHART undertook for Papua New Guinea, working also with local communities and ports of call, leading to that nation becoming a hot new destination for large cruise ship lines.
Captain Nappa holds both the Italian and the Liberian Master Mariner’s Certificate.
Rod Davies – Associate
Rod Davies has extensive experience in sales, marketing, planning, operations and general management, both domestically and internationally, covering roles in aviation, cruising, hospitality and leisure.
His cruise industry background includes market research and analysis, product design and planning, financial planning and yield management, port-of-call negotiation and evaluation and implementation of business systems and procedures.
He served as Director of Market Planning first for Sitmar Australasia and then at Sitmar International in Los Angeles.
Rod was General Manager of South Pacific Cruise Services (Dolphin) and at Norwegian Capricorn Line before joining a hotel and other leisure industry companies.
Rod was the analytical force behind CHART’s seminal White Paper for the Asia Cruise Association “The Cruise Industry in Asia 2013 and Beyond: Information, Intelligence, Insights”.
He has an Economics Degree from Macquarie University and a Post Graduate Diploma of Financial Management from the University of New England.
Graeme J Gillies – Associate
Graeme Gillies has been associated with the cruise industry for more than 30 years.
He began as an entertainment production manager with the Sitmar Cruises in 1981 and went on to spend more than 7 years at sea primarily as a Cruise Director. This period was spent in the South Pacific, South East Asia and the Orient.
Graeme also held the management position responsible for passenger programs and entertainment for Sitmar / P&O Cruises (Australia) for 7 years. In this period, he worked closely with the regional tour and port operators throughout the Asia Pacific region.
He has enjoyed working as an independent consultant to Awani Cruises (Indonesia); Norwegian Capricorn Line; and Orion Expedition Cruises.
Since 1997, Graeme has managed his own creative entertainment company – Grayboy Entertainment – based in Sydney. Amongst other key areas, the business is Australia’s leading supplier of entertainment services for the international cruise industry. This includes intensive start-ups of new cruise projects as well as the ongoing supply of entertainment productions.
Miles Griffiths – Consultant
With a varied career in accounting and finance, insolvency, IT, project management, sustainability and risk management, Miles Griffiths brings a wide skill set to every project.
To CHART he brings skills and experience in finance and legal matters and long experience working in Southeast Asia.
Based on a solid grounding in auditing during a decade with Coopers and Lybrand, later PwC, Miles gained diversified professional experience and cultural interaction working in Australia, Papua New Guinea and The Cayman Islands. Key engagements focused on clients from the hospitality and tourism, mining, banking and finance and agricultural industries.
Miles then spent eight years in Singapore as project director for an Exchange listed mining company, implementing policies to ensure compliance with all SGX and legal requirements. He was then tasked with directing implementation of the SAP Enterprise Resource Planning Software system for finance, materials management, plant maintenance and sales. These projects honed his ability to streamline and de-risk transactions while increasing required data capture, saving the company an estimated US$1.5m per annum.
Miles then assumed responsibility for risk management, business integration and sustainability. His comprehensive review of all major transactions of the company resulted in enhancements to operational and business processes with increased transparency in internal and external reporting.
Miles holds two bachelor degrees from Queensland University of Technology, in Law and Accounting – Finance. He is both a Chartered Accountant specialized in audit and assurance services and a certified Project Management Professional and has undertaken training in risk management, IT, compliance and sustainability.