Specialisation Head – Engineering at Illovo Sugar Africa

Minimum Qualification:

• Engineering degree or equivalent. Registration as a Pr.Eng with the Engineering Council of South Africa would be an advantage

Minimum Year's Experience:

• 10+ years sugar operations experience at senior manager level with relevant on-site sugar milling cross engineering functional leadership experience

Minimum Skills:

• Sugar equipment design and sugar mill Energy and Mass Balance compilation and review experience

Responsibilities

• Applications are invited from suitably qualified persons for the position of Specialisation Head – Engineering in the Specialisation section of the Manufacturing function, based at the ISA Head Office in Ridgeside, Umhlanga. Reporting to the Manufacturing Head, the successful incumbent will be expected to ensure the highest quality of engineering specialist support services are provided exceeding minimum standards and aligned with internal & external best practices.

KEY PERFORMANCE AREAS:

•  Ensures each individual area of Specialisation (Mechanical, Steam and Power Generation, Automation, Electrical, Technical Equipment Supply) has developed a medium- and long-term support approach
•  Sets minimum standards for the approach to servicing business unit requests, including governance thereof
•  Coordinates codification of minimum standards and ways of working for the discipline
•  Establishes specialization-specific SME Communities of Practice to leverage in-country expertise
•  Ensures specialist engineering services are provided in line with internal & external best practice and that SLA’s enable direct access for in-Country teams
•  Builds and manages relationships with key stakeholders for outsourced areas of engineering specialisation that support Illovo
•  Ensures Illovo Group understands the costs, timelines and processes for requesting specialist services from ISA
•  Manages and leverages a consolidated view of queries to inform decisions to use permanent FTEs or outsourced resources
•  Coordinates deployment of specialist engineering resourcing in-country (incl. determining whether outsourcing is required)
•  Ensures internal & external resources are engaged in answering optimization queries to achieve the best results at the lowest cost
•  Provides Group-wide input into key decisions and reports that require specialist engineering expertise (e.g. capital projects, insurance, interviews for critical roles, training, reward target setting)
•  Provides design expertise where required for sugar milling equipment and capital projects
•  Co-Creation of selected strategic capital projects
•  Validates and enhances Group Technical Risk Engineering audit items and assurance
•  Actively monitors & improves the quality of specialist engineering support provided using feedback systems
•  Supports ISA Procurement through technical input into group procurement contracts
•  Supports ISA Agriculture through provision of electrical engineering expertise

SPECIFICATIONS:

•  Working knowledge of Illovo equipment (current and required)
•  Track record of technical credibility and building effective relationships at sugar sites
•  Proven ability to lead and manage a group of technical experts, and effectively prioritize support
•  Proven ability to provide clear direction, achieve alignment and ensure delivery of set objectives
•  Strong international sugar equipment supply and design networks
•  Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the proven ability to build strong relationships, coach and influence stakeholders at all levels
•  Strategic thinking & cross functional integration
•  Willingness to go the extra mile and work beyond normal hours of work, where required, to meet deadlines
•  Willingness to travel frequently to all Illovo’s operations, including sites outside South Africa