No man is bigger than a ship registry. That appears to be as close as executives of the Liberian International Ship & Corporate Registry (LISCR) are willing to go in explaining the shock departure of high-profile chief executive Scott Bergeron in February.
Bergeron will not be replaced and the brother pairing of Elan and Adam Cohen is ready to roll — with top lieutenant Alfonso Castillero as chief operating officer — along with the rest of their hand-selected management team, they tell TradeWinds.
Bergeron was hired by former chairman Yoram Cohen — the brothers' father — about 19 years ago and arguably had become the face of LISCR as he amassed greater responsibilities with the group.
'No void or gap'
Yet, the Cohens make clear that this is no longer their father’s company, and the managers they have personally hired will control the Liberian flag's future.
"When you ask about the leadership of the registry, we want to make sure it's clear that there's no void or gap," Adam says.
“We've been here nearly 10 years, and we intend to be here for a long time. The team we have is a team we believe in and the team that's going to lead our vision into the future."
Regarding Castillero Adam says: “We’ve worked with him for many years and he has our full trust as our chief lieutenant".
And turning to finance chief Christine Doherty, he says: "Our CFO has worked at several public companies, and we have several other people that we’ve either home-grown and developed, or recruited from outside. We feel good about this being the team."
TradeWinds first reported Bergeron’s apparent departure on 26 February after his name was dropped from the LISCR website. The registry confirmed the report several days later.
Surprise departure
Bergeron joined LISCR in 2000 and had been chief executive since 2011. Many had assumed he was a permanent fixture with the flag and his departure came as a big surprise.
The Cohens would make no direct comment on Bergeron's performance or the reasons for his exit.
Adam says only: "I wouldn't characterise it as a management change. It's certainly the change of a key leader in the company, but the underlying foundation of the leadership team is the same.”
Referring to Elan and himself, Adam says: "I wouldn't even place us as indispensable within the registry because it's an institution."
It's not about Alfonso or whoever the name is, it's the reputation and the team and the offices around the world and the product that we offer
Alfonso Castillero
Castillero came to LISCR in 2014 after 16 years at the head of the Panama flag.
"When it comes to flag states, people buy the name, not the person,” Castillero says.
"It's not about Alfonso or whoever the name is, it's the reputation and the team and the offices around the world and the product that we offer.”
Adam turns towards Castillero and tells him: “When you joined LISCR, you were for many years the face of the largest flag. We didn't hire you to take your client relationships and bring them to us. We brought you because of your talent and we got what we expected.
“I don't remember a specific movement of market share because you joined. That market share grew over the years because of the momentum you helped bring to us. So we agree with you completely. It’s not an individual-centric business.”
