Please tell us about yourself.
I was born in Durban and moved up to Gauteng in 2016. I did my undergrad in Electrical Engineering but also attained a PDBA and MBA from WITS University. I enjoy good company, no drama, and just good conversation with good people. I have a beautiful wife and beautiful daughter. I enjoy playing indoor cricket, which is probably my only source of fitness currently, but it’s a way to disconnect and take my mind off stressful situations.
How long have you been working at Ford and what did you do prior to this appointment?
I joined Ford on the graduate programme in 2016 in Product Development and became permanent in Plant Vehicle Team (PVT) in 2017, so it’s been over nine years now. Prior to that I worked for Eskom in different locations but primarily in Pinetown and Pietermaritzburg.
What are your key priorities in your new role as Advanced Service Engineering, Training and Recall Manager?
Technical training is the key focus for 2025. We are busy doing what can only be described as open-heart surgery on training. How we ensure that the skills we transfer to our dealer technicians are of the highest quality to improve vehicle off-road time and fix it right the first time, while also ensuring we are growing individuals by providing a world-class training experience. From a recall perspective, the key focus is to drive closure rates and reach as many customer vehicles as we can.
What excites you most about leading the training of Dealer Technicians?
We are in a unique position of being able to shape peoples’ futures. The training we provide here has a major impact on an individual’s educational journey and ultimately on how we influence a customer’s perception of our brand and service. The opportunity to influence those things positively excites me as the transfer of knowledge to others has always been important to me and now, I have the privilege of leading this great department in achieving this objective.
What do you see as the biggest challenge in managing Field Service Actions. Have you experienced any difficult situations?
Closure rates, especially on older vehicles. It makes my team think outside the box on how to drive these to closure, which is challenging and exciting at the same time.
If you could own any Ford vehicle, past or present, which one would you choose and why?
It might sound unusual, but I'd be thrilled to own one of the previous Rangers. The reason is personal: I invested a lot of my effort and dedication into improving the quality of that model during my time in engineering. Owning it would serve as a wonderful reminder of the accomplishments we achieved together as a team throughout the vehicle's development.
What’s one surprising skill or hobby you have that your colleagues might not know about?
I have recently taken up fly fishing, which is harder than it looks, but I am getting the hang of it.
If you had to describe yourself using only three words, what would they be?
Authentic, Empathetic and Ambitious
What’s your go-to comfort meal after a long day?
A homemade mutton bunny chow 😊
What advice would you give to your younger self?
Keep pushing forward, and trust that everything will fall into place. Trust yourself and stay true to who you are, don't fall into the trap of doing things just to impress others or to fit in and, finally, it’s okay to take risks and make mistakes as long as you learn from them