Country Manager – MENA DMCC
Harley-Davidson
Total years of experience :25 years, 1 Months
Designation Chronology:
• August 2013 - Present: Country Manager - MENA DMCC
• January 2011 - July 2013: Head Commercial Operations
• March 2010 - January 2011: Project Manager
• March 2008 - March 2010: Finance Controller - Middle East and Africa
Joined the organization as Finance Controller and crafted an exponential growth curve meriting multiple promotions up till the position of Country Manager through exceptional performance
Highlights:
• Drove business growth by recording a sales growth of 17% in the year 2014 and played a key role in accelerating brand growth through far-reaching PR coverage.
• Actively focused on achieving market leadership in the assigned region and implemented initiatives such as:
- Commenced technical training school in Dubai
- Explored opportunities to penetrate into Pakistan market
- Expand existing dealer network
Key Responsibilities:
• Spearheading teams to develop strategic plans, policies, procedures and work standards for sales, after sales, marketing, dealer development and finance with an aim of achieving country level sales objectives.
• Orchestrating seamless integration of planned policies and strategies with organization’s vision and mission. Routinely reporting to senior management on business activities/ performance/ issues/ opportunities with requisite course of action.
• Moderating development/ implementation of innovative marketing policies/ programs for wholesale and retail units to ensure adequate market share/ penetration.
• Customizing operational plans while accounting for changing market dynamics for multiplying dealer network. Ensuring dealer performance is consistent with organizations specifications in terms of customer service and revenues.
• Conducting researches and opportunity analysis to understand as well as anticipate macro economic growth factors for refining brand plans and maximizing brand potential in the assigned region.
• Representing the organization at various networking events and proactively promoting organizations interests among key-influencers and target markets at media interviews.
• Prioritizing and allocating resources/ duties and enhancing effectiveness of marketing strategy through regular communication with higher management.
• Demonstrating effective stakeholder management, serving as an escalation point for complex issues and devising solutions in line with organizational policies to achieve and maintain operational superiority.
Highlights:
• Successfully registered a sales growth of 19% despite challenging economic (Europe) and political (Middle East) environments in 2012 through innovative thinking, corporate strategic planning and optimal management of resources.
• Streamlined dealer activities by implementing Dealer Lead Management System across 50% of Harley dealers in SGM.
Key Responsibilities:
• Tailored and implemented action plans to expand existing business for retail/ wholesale segment within SGM markets (Central and Eastern Europe, Russia and the CIS, South East Europe, Middle East and Africa).
• Engineered an optimum mix of profitable units to refine margins. Led teams and established overall directions, process flow and standards across the assigned markets to achieve targeted results.
• Supported and maximized effectiveness of sales and marketing operations for parts, accessories and motor clothes while maximized leverage of brand equity through execution of tactical strategies and technologies across the entire SGM region.
• Constructed a well structured supply framework for bikes across the region and provided vital recommendations to bike logistics team to eliminate any bottle-necks.
• Explored opportunities to partner with dealers after assessing them for financial and commercial ability. Negotiated tactically with them on pricing, sale terms, and service level agreements to maintain organizations profit interests.
• Organized and aided resources, technologies and trained the dealers to optimize on systems, demo processes, etc., with an intention to increase revenues/profitability and expand market presence.
• Researched present/ future market opportunities/ trends with the objective of devising suitable tactics to exploit these opportunities for sound and profitable growth.
Highlights:
• Project Manager for establishing new subsidiaries of Harley-Davidson in Russia, the Middle East and Turkey.
• Assumed total accountability and responsibility for managing capital and operating costs with a budget of US $ 8 Mn for new regions.
Key Responsibilities:
• Devised well-defined work structures, processes and policies with respect to legal and compliance, recruitment, training, IT and infrastructure for newly established subsidiaries.
• Identified primary thrust areas of business by researching the market demographics and aptly developed strategies to expand the subsidiaries in Cape Town and Prague.
• Oversaw elements critical for buy-in and expediency on the project and worked in close coordination with all global functions of the Harley-Davidson group to ensure smooth accomplishment of project objectives.
• Established a legal entity in each new region to cultivate a controlled and compliance driven environment. Conducted internal controls and other service controls to ensure operational efficiency for the organization.
Highlights:
• Displayed strong financial management and planning acumen and proficiently handled Middle East and Africa region (Turnover - US$ 30 Mn) with an operating budget of US$2 Mn.
• Piloted all activities crucial for establishing a new Cape Town Office including formulation of policies and procedures with strict conformance to assigned budget.
• Instrumental in establishing SAP systems for South Africa to automate essential business tasks.
Key Responsibilities:
• Planned finance management strategies and provided fundamental support to Finance Director in ensuring that the organization’s finance function is organized, efficient while producing accurate financial statements and management reports.
• Effectively managed the financial domain for Middle East and Africa markets, reviewed and evaluated programs/ service delivery, aptly allocated resources and customized operational plans to minimize costs and maximize profitability.
• Conducted detailed analysis of prevalent market conditions, industry trends, competitors offering and other factors and provided sound commercial advice to expand organizations reach and profit avenues.
• Instituted an effective credit control environment for all activities from inception to completion by modifying credit policies, identifying gaps and violations in risk/ compliance to minimize risks and subsequent losses.
Highlights:
• Proficiently handled export debtors book of value ZAR 65 Million.
• Successfully established strategic initiatives that aided in reducing overdue receivables from 20% to 5%
Key Responsibilities:
• Devised/ implemented all aspects of policies/ strategies which deliver both short and long term business benefits with key emphasis on procurement, credit, contract management and pricing.
• Instrumental in formulation of budget, analyzed and presented accurate financial data/reports along with vital recommendations for strategic analysis and interpretation by senior management.
• Customized financial objectives and scope of work for International Division in alignment with organizations goals, revitalized finance policies and procedures by providing financial leadership and guidance to offshore offices in UK and US.
• Inspected financial growth/stability/ performance of organization in line with the set targets, budgets; identified potential financial risk/variances and created back-up plans to avoid any fall-outs.
Designation Chronology:
• April 2003 - September 2006: Finance Controller
• April 1999 - March 2003: Management Accountant
Inducted as Management Accountant and moved up the career hierarchy to merit promotion to the position of Finance Controller through exceptional performance.
Highlights:
• Played a crucial role in setting-up back office and related IT infrastructure from grass root level including migration of transaction processing from 20+ decentralized offices across the region to a centralised back office in Malaysia.
Key Responsibilities as Finance Controller:
• Spearheaded a team of 9 middle level managers to improve the current and future financial performance of the organization while ensured that the aviation division is well organized, structured and comply with all SOX requirements.
• Established several cost-effective initiatives to augment operational efficiency while led activities from conception to completion pertaining to economic strategy, financial forecasting and budgeting.
• Directed and controlled foreign exchange transactions across the region with an aim of generating cost savings. Maintained financial security by establishing internal controls.
Key Responsibilities as Management Accountant:
• Scrutinized financial information; compiled data of statistical nature and prepared reports that exhibit organization’s financial stability/ liquidity/ growth for strategic analysis and interpretation by senior management.
• Instrumental in formulating budgets/ forecasts by administering a variety of financial models/ techniques. Recommended strategies to fine tune all the systems/ procedures /practices, having an impact on financial soundness of the organization.
• Prepared financial statements, reports, reconciled bank/cash flow statements, issued trial balance on regular basis while assessed its accuracy, completeness and conformance to various reporting and procedural standards.
Other Professional Experiences:
• August 1997 - December 1998, Supervising Senior, KPMG, Moscow - Russia.
• January 1994 - June 1997, Audit Senior, Greenwoods Chartered Accountants, South Africa.