- Usha Nagpal, General Manager, Sales DT Dobie Nairobi has been with the Nairobi – based motor vehicle dealer for 40 years, rising through the ranks to the top echelons of management.
- Benchmarked as one of the best motor companies in the region, DT Dobie is said to offer some of the best employment terms in Kenya. But is that all that convinced Usha to commit her entire career to the company? To what does she attribute to her “stickability” and why has the company been happy to keep her on its payroll?
By Eric Obwogi
Usha joined DT Dobie Nakuru, at just seventeen. She had been working two temporary jobs and attending evening classes after completing her O’levels.
Then a call came in from a friend that there was an opening at Dobie’s, as it was then known. She submitted to, and aced the ensuing interview landing her first post with the company as a copy typist, before becoming personal assistant to the branch manager.
Usha’s journey to the top had begun.
“When we came in, there was no internet but landline telephones and the ubiquitous fax machine,” says Usha, a proudly confessed country girl- born, raised and schooled in Nakuru, then a fast growing enclave in Kenya’s Rift Valley.
Opportunity favours those who persist, have the desire to grow and work hard at it, and those who are always ready to take up the challenge. For Usha, opportunity slipped in suddenly, in the form of a temporary fill – in post when the branch sales manager had to fly out on an emergency, and the management threw her in the deep end immediately, to handle sales for the Nakuru branch. She had two options, swim or drown!
Usha did not disappoint. In fact, sales performance for that month eclipsed the previous months’ by far.
It didn’t go unnoticed by the honchos in Nairobi who acted swiftly and created a post of sales administrator to maximize on her talents. Again she excelled. Her upward swing was almost becoming predictable and unstoppable as her star continued to shine bright with exceptional performances in whatever task she undertook.
When the General Manager for sales, left, the opportunity, nay, weight of responsibility, in Usha’s own words, fell on her young shoulders. And she took to selling Mercedes trucks, saloon cars and Nissan models, with impressive results.
In 2000 when CFAO bought the company, she was given the opportunity to manage the branch. She has never looked back since, growing through the ranks. And she has never left.
“It has been an amazing journey,” she told Success Afrika.
Usha admits that it has not been all smooth sailing, however.
“I have enjoyed every moment of it, with a mix of challenges, opportunities and triumphs that have served to groom me during my 40 year journey with DT Dobie,” she says.
“Being accepted as a female head of department was very difficult in the late ’90s and the decade after that,” she reflects. “But there have been moments of sweat and tears.
She however says she was lucky to have a committed mentor who pushed her to the limit.
“He had his own assessment of my talent and there were times I shed tears, because, after a period in which I thought I had performed exceptionally well, he still wanted more. For instance, our target for Nissan was 140 units a month. Every time I achieved this, he would demand for 160!”
In the male-dominated boardroom, they got used to her presence. “You can say anything in front of Usha, she can take it…”
Temptation
During her time at DT Dobie, attractive offers have come in from competitors, attempting to prise her away. Her sense of loyalty and appreciation has always stood in the way.
“I have passed through and grown up 8 rungs of the corporate ladder in this company. Why move elsewhere? The challenges I might seek I have already met and overcome here,” she says.
So how has she achieved longevity in such a demanding job?
Continuous learning
Along the way, she has learned (and imparted) skills including the so-called “soft” skills. “I was taught he 5 Ps of marketing, setting vehicle specifications and pricing. I was also mentored along the way by some great minds.” She says. Usha has represented the company in conferences around the world, and has maintained healthy relationships with customers, and manufacturers, the sales staff and managers.
“I have set a goal of continuously holding my door open to provide guidance to those seeking mentorship,” she says. “I ensure my team is properly equipped with skills on how to handle and address customers, conversation and selling skills, and grooming,” she says.
Honesty
To achieve “stickability,” one needs to earn the trust of customers, staff and bosses. This is the firm foundation of lasting relationships, which earn you referrals that are crucial in sales, and a complement of people on whose phone you are on speed dial.
“Today I have customers calling from Nakuru, Kericho, Kisumu and Eldoret because I have sold them a product,” she avers. “Let your transaction with a customer be an experience that will be memorable for all the right reasons.”
Usha lists ways in which one can achieve longevity in employment:
- “Apart from accomplishing performance goals, aspire to add value and make contribution that will ultimately make you non-expendable. Achieve harmony that will transform your workplace into a second home.
“All my years at DT Dobie, I steadfastly stayed away from gossip and stabbing people in the back. This raises your stock with both colleagues and management.”
- Apply yourself to your job to the best of your ability
- Be punctual. Avoid wasting your and colleagues’ time, cheating your employer who has expectations of you during your time in the office, in the form of deadlines and deliverables.
- Maintain a good attendance record.
- Develop soft skills which will give you an advantage when dealing with customers. A sales job needs very high visibility.
- Always be on standby to offer assistance. It helps build harmony at the workplace and cement relationships.
Usha recently went into semi-retirement. She says that she gave up the GM sales post to give opportunity to others, and take up a new role. The company, reluctant to let her go yet, gave her leadership in the new showroom on Uhuru Highway Nairobi where she will lend her vast experience to growing the branch which will be selling Mercedes and Volkswagen models.
Her parting shot and advice to youth with growth ambitions? Be patient. Learn every step of the way. Time is one valuable resource that they have on their hands that shouldn’t be wasted. Use it in ways which will enable you put your best foot forward, always.
