My career...

Allow me to take this from the time that I left school as I feel that there is a lot that has shaped me and influenced where I am today (give or take a few “detours”).  It may also give you an insight into a bit more about me and in so doing possibly reveal some similarities with yourself…

I completed Grade 12 with a university pass and the natural progression was to then attempt a degree; I say “attempt” as that is best describes my outcome of that!  Considering my interests and the subjects that I had excelled in during my final year at school, I decided on a B.Com majoring in Computer Science (this was 1982 and computers were starting to become all the rage).  University was so different from school and nothing could prepare me for the freedom that was thrust upon me; no-one checked whether you attended lectures, the only compulsory attendance was at tutorial sessions and there was a fantastic canteen with pool tables as well as never-ending social events.  Fast forward to the end of my first year and I failed majority of my subjects, my pool game was a lot better and I was a long way down the road to acquiring a degree in beer drinking!

Reality bites … the compulsory 2-year National Service was thrust upon me as my only alternative now and my Dad gave me the option of working for 6 months or finding a course I could do that was only 6 months long (my call-up was for July 1984).  Into the picture (at the last possible minute) comes a National Diploma in Electronic Engineering.  This diploma is broken into 6-month blocks of theory and in-service training and also aligned with my interest in electronics.  So off I went, so much wiser to the tertiary education system and also very aware of the repercussions of failing again.  The 6 months (T1) flew by and I excelled in all my subjects which assisted in sparking more than just a casual interest in this as a career.  The good results also resulted in me being head-hunted by Siemens for a full bursary as well as SEIFSA (Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of South Africa) for a study grant.  Life was looking up … tertiary education was guaranteed to be paid for in full; and I also had the extra cash to live a bit.

Two years National Service (July 1984 to June 1986) saw me completing Basic Training (3 months), attending Junior Leadership Course (6 months) where I graduated as a Lieutenant, being selected for Instructors Course (3 months), attending to the task of leading and training a bunch of misfits successfully through their Basic Training (3 months) and then some Operational Duty (8 months).  This 2 years really set the ground work for my future with my natural leadership being recognised and allowed to develop as well as my people skills being brought to the fore through instruction and platoon leadership.  Operational Duty exposed me to the reality of life, survival and death, but more importantly the comradeship and friendship that comes from moving towards a common goal with the whole team focussed on achieving a positive result at the same time as watching each other’s backs when danger is ever-present.  Team-work was paramount to success and strong leadership pivotal in bringing everyone safely back alive.

After this 2 years I went straight onto the Siemens Trainee Technician Induction Course, designed to expose us to most aspects of the business and to get an appreciation for what each individual involved in a final solution has to do and go through.  The 5 month course was broken up into sub-courses such as Welding, Metal Work, Electrical Systems and finally Electronic Design.  For 1987 I went back full-time to Technikon to complete my last 2 blocks of theory (T2 and T3).  This proved a bit more of a challenge having been out of studying for 2 and a half years. And in my final block I actually failed 1 subject!  It was at this point that I decided that Johannesburg was not that attractive and I resigned from Siemens starting with an electronics company closer to home as a Trainee Design Technician.  In 1988, after only 2 weeks with this new company I was approached by the Technical Director (let’s refer to him as Mr L as he was to have an influence on my career later on) to head up an important localisation program for a major automotive OEM.  When asked if I felt that this was something that I could do I replied that it definitely was within my capabilities and that the company would enjoy the benefits of me ensuring that it was successful.  In this position I am proud to say that we became the first electronics company in South Africa to be selected for localisation of various electronic modules and went on to become one of the few global suppliers (at that time) to supply these products back to the OEM in Europe.

Changes in management in the company in 1991 and some internal politics saw the appointment of a new Engineering Manager (a new position which was always held by the Technical Director) and very shortly thereafter the sudden resignation of the Technical Director.  My close working relationship with the Technical Director appeared to have put a target on my back and very soon thereafter I was retrenched.  I deemed this unfair based on what I achieved for the company and was awarded compensation but in the words of the new Engineering Manager “You have burnt your bridges here”, I accepted that I needed to move on and seek employment elsewhere.

South Africa was going through a bit of a tumultuous period and the economy had weakened causing ripples in the industry and the shortage of suitable positions in the Durban area.  After one interview at a parastatal, which was interesting in the position and projects they were working on but over-shadowed by the weak leadership displayed by my potential manager, I realised that I would have to look further afield.  This resulted in me going up to Johannesburg to approach a few employment agencies to see what was available there.  This opened my eyes and the second agency that I met with was a revelation.  Having seen on my CV that I had worked under Mr L he acknowledged that he knew him personally and that my reference ensured that I would be assured of work.  Within 2 weeks I was employed again and working as a Design Technician for a company in Johannesburg.

After only 1 year I was faced with a crossroads in my career … I was contacted by Mr L, who was now working as Engineering Manager in another electronics company in Durban (specialising in automotive electronics, mainly with vehicle security systems).  He hadn’t phoned me to offer me an engineering position but rather to advise that there was a position as Technical Sales Representative going at their Johannesburg office.  What?  Me leave my engineering career behind and now sell stuff?  It was quite a shock to me.  However, after some discussion Mr L convinced me that he had seen my potential in sales and management and felt that was my “calling”.  The package was attractive … good salary, company car, opportunities to travel and the ability to manage my own time.  It was in this position that I came to the realisation that a fundamental part of sales was relationships, that with your customer as well as those within your company.  The relationship with your customer is of paramount importance in ensuring a continued business even when things go wrong, and they will.

After four years in this position managing the western region and travelling quite extensively (including cross-border trips into Botswana and Zimbabwe) my success was acknowledges and I was offered a promotion and opportunity to move to the Head Office back in Durban.  The position of OEM Account Manager saw me looking after several automotive OEMs, managing the supply, new product development and after sales support.  Again it was all about the relationship management and through this, opportunities are often realised ahead of the competition giving you that edge.  Now eyeing the international market, and not to be one to be content with the ordinary, I approached the Divisional Manager for permission to explore the international OEM market.  This was a diversification for the company who supplied after-market products through international distributors who were managed by the Export Manager.  I was given permission to research the international market and see if I could identify any potential opportunities.  Enter my exposure and start of international new business development.

This was in the days (1997) when the internet was only just becoming a tool that could assist and Yahoo was the only search engine readily available.  Through some diligent research and with the assistance of the local OEM (importance of relationships) I was put in contact with their sister company in USA.  Some introductions and exchange of correspondence (fax, email and telephone calls) they directed me to another subsidiary based in Mexico.  Enter the next phase of my career … the nuts and bolts and harsh realities of dealing across time zones, with language barriers, cultural differences and overcoming the red tape of international trade.  I approached the Divisional Manager armed with my research findings with the idea to visit Mexico and present to the OEM our company and solutions that could be of assistance to them.  The Divisional Manager took my idea to the Managing Director who bought into the it and I was granted a limited budget to succeed.

Dialogue was set up with the OEM in Mexico and after a number of emails, phone calls and faxes I was granted an audience with some of the directors, engineering manager and staff responsible for vehicle security systems.  They had identified a flaw in one of their models, specifically aimed at their local market, and that the immobiliser (a local Mexican product) on that particular model was too easy to bypass and needed upgrading.  At the same time as the visit we would be given that particular model to fit a trial immobiliser to as well as another higher spec’ed model that would require a full alarm, immobiliser and remote central locking.  The first visit was arranged and a posse, including our Managing Director, Divisional Manager, an Engineer and myself, jetted off to Mexico.  Armed with a folder full of overhead projectors slides (no laptop and projector in those days) I was put in front of the most high profile audience that I had ever had to face to date, as well as the important task of selling to them our company and our ability to fulfil their immediate need.  I had never been as nervous in my life realising the enormity of what my task was.  As the lights were dimmed I started my presentation and an easy calm came over me and my confidence in our company and our products took over, sailing through the presentation and handling questions fired at me with confidence and commitment.  We would solve their problem, within their time-frame and at an acceptable price, that was my promise to them!

Now we had to prove that we had the solution.  Over the next 2 weeks we (the Engineer and myself) fitted the immobiliser to the base model as well as the full alarm and immobiliser to the other model, all this whilst the Managing Director and Divisional Manager enjoyed some sight-seeing.  At the end of the 2 weeks I presented the solutions to the same audience and demonstrated that we did have the solution.  So started a relationship that was to span more than 3 years and saw me learning Spanish to acceptable levels that I could find my way around quite easily.  A few more visits to Mexico and some design refinements culminated with us being awarded the contract for the supply of the immobiliser valued at around U$2million.  This however was just the start and there were hurdles that needed to be overcome.  Initially import duties seemed to be prohibitively high and we had to take an initial knock on the margin to maintain our price to the OEM.  Further investigation identified that a local partner, who added some value locally, would drastically reduce these duties and improve our margins back to acceptable levels.  A local company was identified and after negotiation was appointed.  We set up an assembly line and final test and they then purchased semi-knockdown kits from us, assembled and tested the product and then supplied it directly to the OEM.  They were also responsible for OEM support and again the value of relationships was highlighted; any faulty product detected on the OEM production line was sidelined there and our local partner uplifted it and replaced it immediately.  This resulted in our product having an excellent quality index and zero defects being reported by the OEM.  This supply continued until that particular model was discontinued, however the relationship did not continue.  Our automotive division was sold and the new owners did not continue with the personal contact that I had established and that business relationship eventually died in 2002.

Fast forward from 1997 to 2000 … I was promoted to Divisional Manager and in 2001 the division was sold.  I elected not to move with the sale but instead opened my own business (with 3 other partners).  I had identified a gap created in the sale of the division as the new owners were not responsible for older products, not included in the sale,  and also did not have the infrastructure to service and maintain existing products and the product know-how was going to take a while to transfer.  Starting up a new business taught me a lot about general business management  and I was the Managing Member as well as taking on the responsibility for new business, finances and human resources.  In our first year we turned over U$125k and this grew to U$900k within 4 years.  We started our own production facility designing and manufacturing wiring harnesses for the automotive industry.  At this point (2004) I felt frustrated with the size of our business as well as my partners and decided it was time for me to move on.  I sold my shares to the other share-holders and spent some very special time at home with my 6-month old daughter.

After 3 months I was approached by an employment agency to take up the position of New Business Development Manager at a company that was actually the core of the company that I had started my career with some 17 years earlier.  They were now independent and privately owned.  I accepted the position, starting work again at the beginning of 2005, looking after new business development in the international markets for their “bread and butter” products.  This led to me starting my international travels again and with all that I had learnt I soon built up some very strong relationships globally.  A new product was being developed and I was tasked with initiating the launch campaign including branding, marketing, product launch, pricing models, customer training and eventually to the actual launch and subsequent supply of the system.  The success of the product saw it being used by some prestigious customers including the Birds Nest Stadium in Beijing for the 2008 Olympics.  In 2009 I went back to studies which was quite daunting and tackled the UNISA Executive Development Program (it is like a mini-MBA) completing it with 3 distinctions.

With this company I have moved through the ranks and was appointed as General Manager in 2010 being responsible for more that 60% of the company’s turnover.  Recently I have been asked to assist a division in growing their business through developing the business internationally as well as improving the profitability.  In this I have identified the need to impart my years of experience and knowledge to others and hence me identifying that others, external to the company, may also benefit from this … and so my blog was born.

I would like this to be as interactive as possible so send me your comments, requests and suggestions and let’s grow this together.