Global Head of Technical Support
A former German Navy officer with a passion for combining maritime expertise with technology, Norman Geier now leads global technical support for the navigation systems mariners depend on.
Norman is Global Head of Technical Support at Teledyne Raymarine Commercial, based in Germany, where he leads global technical support operations for maritime navigation solutions, ensuring customers, partners, and service teams get expert assistance wherever and whenever they need it.
Norman began his maritime career in 1998 when he joined the German Navy. During his training, he completed several cadetships aboard naval vessels, gaining extensive seagoing experience in international waters and taking part in deployments around the world. A highlight of his early career was serving aboard the renowned sail training ship Gorch Fock, where he developed practical skills in navigation, seamanship, and ship operations.
Alongside a specialization in mine warfare, Norman held a series of operational roles within the Navy, culminating in achieving the Commanding Officer certification for Minehunters and Minesweepers.
Driven by a passion for combining maritime expertise with technology and customer engagement, Norman moved ashore into a role focused on navigational and simulator training. There, he delivered ECDIS and IMO Model Course 1.28 training programs to shipping companies, navigators, and command teams worldwide, marking the start of his move into maritime technology solutions.
From there, his career expanded into sales, sales leadership, and corporate training management, where he built a strong focus on professional development, coaching, and customer success. Today, he draws on his experience as a navigator, naval officer, trainer, and maritime technology professional to support customers, partners, and service teams around the world, with a goal of helping deliver reliable, innovative navigation and maritime technology solutions that improve safety, efficiency, and operational excellence at sea.
Since joining Teledyne Raymarine Commercial, Norman has led initiatives to improve quality, availability, and operational time-to-fix, restructuring the technical support department and signing several trusted partners across the globe. These efforts strengthened technical expertise across both internal teams and the partner network, reflecting his belief, shaped by his time at sea and in training, that continuous learning is a key driver of service excellence.
In parallel, Norman reviewed and optimized the tools, systems, and processes landscape to improve collaboration, reduce response times, and enable more efficient workflows. Together, ongoing professional development and process optimization have driven higher service quality, better customer experiences, and a stronger global support organization, an approach that continues to guide his work today: empowering people through knowledge while using technology to deliver reliable and efficient technical support.
Norman holds a Nautical Watchkeeping Officer certification and related licenses. He is also a certified Train the Trainer instructor, and spent five years delivering ECDIS training under IMO Model Course 1.28 to navigators and officers. To stay current with regulations and industry standards, he draws on newsletters, workshops, trade fairs, topic-related meetings, technical standards documentation, industry panels such as CIRM, and performance standards for related systems.
One of the biggest challenges in Norman's role is balancing operational maritime realities with rapidly evolving technology. Customers rely on navigation and maritime systems that are critical to the safe operation of their vessels, often in remote locations and under significant time pressure, so supporting vessels worldwide means coordinating technical expertise, service partners, and customer expectations across time zones while keeping downtime to a minimum.
Another constant is keeping pace with technological innovation, regulatory requirements, and the growing complexity of integrated bridge systems. Norman works closely with customers, partners, and service teams to turn these challenges into practical solutions that improve safety, reliability, and operational efficiency at sea.
What has kept Norman in the commercial maritime industry is his passion for supporting the people who keep global trade moving. Having spent years at sea himself, he understands the challenges mariners face and values reliable navigation systems, quality training, and responsive support. Combining his operational experience with technology, coaching, and customer engagement lets him make a meaningful contribution to an industry that has shaped his entire professional life, and helping others succeed while continuing to learn and grow himself remains his greatest motivation.
