Upskilling drive with 68 employees improves data tool adoption across organisation.
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has saved more than three-thousand hours following the successful rollout of a data upskilling programme in partnership with Multiverse. The training of the 60-strong cohort has enabled the MCA to develop a data-first culture, supporting the organisation’s goal to harness data to improve safety at sea and to make our oceans cleaner.
Using new insights from machine learning and statistical modelling, data apprentices have started to drive significant value for the MCA, such as helping to predict vessel risks and environmental hazards and reporting on new insights across their remit.
Through improving and increasing the flow of data into the MCA Data Platform, utilising a Databricks data environment, learners have also driven improved uptake of data visualisation tools like Power BI across the agency. This helps key stakeholders like coastguards, surveyors and customer teams to do their jobs more effectively by enabling greater access to digestible, up-to-date information.
The training delivered by Multiverse, a Databricks and Microsoft partner, has assisted the MCA to drive greater adoption of data tools, and lay a strong foundation for developing more complex AI capabilities in the future. Combined with the Databricks data platform, the agency now has access to consistent and reliable data that is updated in near real time.
Since training began in 2022, nearly three quarters of the agency have become active data users with Power BI usage increasing from 43% to 94%. The MCA’s digital apprentices are now a primary engine behind data innovation, with over half of all 2024 and 2025 reports, dashboards, and apps created in the Power BI platform by an apprentice. The number of data super users, those who create multiple reports frequently, has also increased seven-fold since
the training.
Charis Doidge, Head of Data Science and Analytics at MCA said: “Ensuring safety in the maritime sector is our priority, and technology plays a key role in our ability to effectively deliver life-saving initiatives like responding to coastguard incidents and maintaining our UK Fleet.
“Multiverse’s training has helped our teams unlock insights from data, but it has also improved the adoption of data tools across the whole agency. The MCA Data Platform, which uses Databricks, gives us a foundation of analytically ready data, which is available 24/7 and refreshed daily. Now that we have this strong foundation, we’re excited to explore what’s next, including how AI can support our mission in saving lives, safer ships, and cleaner seas.”
One example of training in practice includes Senior IT Business Partner, Anna Stampira-Zerva, who harnessed skills curated during her programme to analyse the MCA’s coastal incident data and uncover regional and seasonal trends.
Gary Eimerman, Chief Learning Officer at Multiverse said: “At Multiverse, we want to make sure organisations don’t just have advanced tools, but also the skills and enthusiasm to use them effectively. As we’ve seen with MCA, improving data expertise in a long-term, scalable way across an organisation frees us time for more impactful work, improves productivity and opens doors to future AI opportunities.”
