1

powerlinesSeptember 2015

• Message from the CEO• We welcome Andrew McJannet

• Staff Engagement

• 37 000 houses built• Great Client Service

• Safety Slogansin this issue

The road to success is always under constructionFor many in the construction industry the phrase would read: “The road to success in construction is full of twists and turns with more uphills than downhills.” I would like to add that if you throw a few potholes in the way, you would have the perfect picture of a construction company in South Africa.

Life in construction is not predictable and demands skill to navigate the road to success. We are privileged at Power Group that we have skills at all staff levels; and people who subscribe to our ethos and live the values that we strive for.

The last few years have seen some of the most challenging times in the construction industry in South Africa. Construction companies have all reported muted financial results and difficult trading conditions. Many jobs have been lost in the industry.

The outlook remains bleak and many industry leaders do not expect to see any recovery for the next 18 to 24 months. Confidence in the industry is at very low levels.

Power Group has not been immune to these difficult conditions and as a result we have not posted the financial results that we are used to. However, we still made reasonable profits and continued to deliver our services in a professional and efficient way to our loyal clients. We also managed to avoid any downscaling of the business, as good performances in some of our divisions helped to carry some of the under-performing divisions.

Some of the strategic decisions of the recent past have contributed largely to our ongoing successes, with our efforts in the renewable energy and housing markets worth mentioning. We secured significant work for our teams through the EPC and turnkey models.

At the same time we are encouraged by the performances of our South- and Building Divisions, who operate in our traditional market in the Western Cape.

We are very satisfied with our move into Namibia, despite the uncertainty about the future of the mass housing programme, due to recent political changes.

We have embarked on a staff engagement process, where we aim to further improve internal relationships and team work. We believe in a top down approach when it comes to tackling issues head-on. We also believe in leadership setting the example. For that reason, we have focussed our staff engagement efforts so far at our senior and middle management levels.

The programme will be rolled out to the rest of our staff in the next 12 months and is set to continue for a number of years. Ultimately our aim is to have an achievement culture at all levels.

I have now been in the CEO position for 42 months and am proud of the many achievements that we’ve had during this period.

We have received various accolades during this period, including the highest rankings for the PMR.africa and the Govan Mbeki Housing awards. This could not have been done without very loyal, committed, skilled and professional employees; and of course without the support of all our stakeholders.

We wish to thank all our clients, professionals, suppliers, sub-contractors and other service providers for their contribution to our success. We look forward to a continued business relationship that lasts well into the future.

By Poens Venter

2 3

A great place for great

people to do great work

The Power Group is expanding both in size and geographically. At the same time Graham Power, the founding chairman, who is already at retirement age, has expressed his desire to hand over his responsibilities to his successors.

Graham and the non-executive directors of Power Group Holdings have thus appointed Andrew McJannet as Group CEO of Power Group.

Andrew was until recently an executive director at the listed construction company, Group Five. His roles included managing the construction cluster, which comprises the Civil, Building, Housing, Projects and Coastal business units.

He started his career as a site engineer working for SM Goldstein & Co, which later became a part of Group Five. He has participated in various industry bodies and held the position of Vice President of SAFCEC from 2012 to 2014.

Andrew is a registered civil engineer with 28 years of experience in the construction industry. He holds a degree in civil engineering from UCT and an MA in philosophy, politics and economics from Oxford.

“The short term objective is that Andrew would meet all our staff; get to know our culture, clients, bankers, suppliers and projects; and to work closely with myself, Poens and Stefan so that I can formally hand over my executive duties by December 2016 and continue as non-executive Chairman,” said Graham.

“He has a high regard for ethics and values – very much in line with our core values. I have no doubt that Andrew has the knowledge and experience to work with our capable team to take the Power Group to the next level – to be a strong, respected brand in Africa.”

Andrew is 52; is married to Ali and they have three children between the ages of 19 and 24.

Staff engagement has become a key strategic priority for many South African businesses due to the impact it could have on business results. However, creating an environment of engaged staff is easier said than done. As a MANCO team, we realised that there is no quick fix; this is a long journey that needs the involvement of all key stakeholders.

We have decided to call this exciting journey ahead of us, the Thetha campaign. Thetha is an Nguni word and South Africans understand it to mean talking, sharing or engaging with each other. When we started this campaign, we soon realised the need to have an achievement culture.

During the past year we had many interactions to obtain the input and buy-in of stakeholders; such as a workshop with ECM/ Union representatives, workshops with managers at different levels and a survey to assess the level of engagement of staff.

Thank you to everyone that completed the survey. We are very close to a healthy score, but definitely need to improve.

More workshops and other interactions involving all our permanent staff members are planned for the next couple of years. We are all learning as we are moving along on this new path.

On what high-performing companies should be striving to create: “A great place for great people to do great work.” – Marilyn Carlson, former CEO of Carlson Companies We have also opened a new free SMS line to obtain your suggestions and feedback on how we can build an achievement culture. Just SMS IDEA to 30578 if you have any suggestions or inform us if you have seen evidence of the new culture being lived.

By Marlene Cronje

A seasoned executive joins the team

Staff Engagement

TheTha SM

S ID

ea to 30578

4 5

6 7

1. PatienceRemain patient when clients come to you stumped and frustrated, but also be sure to take the time to truly figure out what they want. The client would rather get competent service than be rushed out the door.

2. Attentiveness Pay attention to individual client interactions. Watch the language/ terms that they use to describe their problems, but also be mindful and attentive to the feedback that you receive at large. What are your clients telling you without saying it?

3. Clear Communication SkillsBe aware how some of your communication habits translate to clients. When it comes to important points that you need to relay to clients, keep it simple and leave nothing to doubt.

4. Knowledge of the ProductKnowing your product from front-to-back will enable you to know how to help clients when they run into problems.

5. Ability to Use Positive LanguageLanguage is a very important part of persuasion, and people (especially clients) create perceptions about you and your company based on the language that you use.

6. Acting SkillsEvery great client service champion will have those basic acting skills necessary to maintain their usual cheery persona in spite of dealing with people who may be just plain grumpy.

7. Time Management SkillsThe trick here is to know when you simply cannot help a customer. Don’t waste time trying to go above and beyond for a customer in an area where you will just end up wasting both of your time.

8. Ability to ‘Read’ Clients Look and listen for subtle clues about your client’s current mood, patience level, personality, etc., and you’ll go far in keeping your client interactions positive. More importantly though, you don’t want to mis-read a client and end up losing them due to confusion and miscommunication.

9. A Calming PresenceDo not let a heated client force you to lose your cool; in fact it is your job to try to be the ‘rock’ for a client who thinks the world is falling down due to their current problem.

10. Goal Oriented FocusUnrestricted power to ‘WOW’ clients doesn’t always generate the returns that many businesses expect to see. That’s because it leaves employees without goals; business goals plus client happiness can work hand-in-hand without resulting in poor service.

11. Ability to Handle SurprisesMaybe the problem you encounter isn’t specifically covered in the company’s guidelines, or maybe the client isn’t reacting how you thought they would. Whatever the case, it’s best to be able to think on your feet. 12. Persuasion SkillsTo truly take your client service skills to the next level, you need to have some mastery of persuasion so that you can convince interested clients that your solution or product is right for them (if it truly is).

13. TenacityRemembering that your customers are people too, and knowing that putting in the extra effort will come back to you ten-fold should be your driving motivation to never cheat your clients with lazy service.

14. Closing AbilityBeing able to close with a customer means being able to end the conversation with confirmed satisfaction (or as close to it as you can achieve) and with the customer feeling that everything has been taken care of (or will be).

15. Willingness to LearnThose who don’t seek to improve what they do, will get left behind by the people willing to invest in their skills.

Source: www.webscout.net

15 Quick Steps to Great Client ServiceBy Gary Power

The North Office Potjiekos competition in May

Gauteng MEC for Roads and Transport, Dr Ismail Vadi at the Sod Turning Ceremony at Cedar Road in June.

The Official Opening of the Vlaeberg and Lynedoch Service Roads; with Donald Grant, Western Cape MEC for Transport and Public Works, Conrad Sidego, Mayor of Stellenbosch and other official dignitaries

Proudly African... Head office ladies; Nomazizi, Nomonde and Lili pose for the camera on Africa Day. May(25)

Graham Power getting ready to cut the cake; in celebration of the company’s 32nd anniversary. With Stefan Bothma, Lauren Power and Poens Venter

Robert, Fezeka and Thuli at the North lunch time talk in May

Smiles of victory...Terence Abrahams, Wesley Thomas, Eleanor Furter and Althea Goliath participated for a race in support of Wheelchair Wednesday; with our very own Paralympic Medalist (2012), Arnu Foure

Gauteng Premier David Makhura and MEC Ismail Vadi officiating over the N14 Road Sod Turning Ceremony in July

Events

8

We would love to hear from you, so if you have any comments, stories,

ideas or interesting news to share, please contact Antoinette at

aherselman@powergrp.co.za or 021 907 1300

You may also like us on Facebook #PowerGroupOfCompanies

To improve the quality of life in Africa through infrastructure development.

Contact details

To be recognised and respected as the first choice supplier of civil, building and property development services as we lay the foundation for growing successful business partnerships in realizing our 100-year dream.

Vision Purpose

Safety Slogans Texting while driving can kill.

Leave sooner, drive slower, and live longer.

Your reward for working safely today

Safety glasses: All in favor say “Eye!”

Safety is a state of mind – Accidents are an absence of mind

The safest RISK is the one you didn’t take

The safe way is the only way

Safety is a way of life