OfW Member CV

Education & Training

Higher Certificate in Short Term Insurance Studies

Legal Framework of Short-Term Insurance,Introduction to Marine and Aviation Insurance,Personal Insurance Practice,Principles & Practices of Insurance,Commercial Insurance Practice,Property Insurance, Insurance Institute of the Cape of Good Hope
Cape Town, Jan 1996 to Dec 1997
I was given a comprehensive overall education in all forms of short-term insurance to prepare me for the role of contact broker who would represent the then Price Forbes,now Alexander Forbes Risk Services, in the new South African dispensation. I ended up heading my own accounts of The RSA Parliament, City of Cape Town including being involved in the broking of large corporates such as Pick n Pay, Oceana, Lusitania , Lewis Stores and many others.

T3 Mechanical Engineering towards National Diploma in Mechanical Engineering

Maths,Physics,Technical Drawing,Thermodynamics,Strength of Materials, Peninsula Technikon
Belville, Cape Town, Jan 1992 to Nov 1992
I came from the Universityof Natal ( Durban) already having a few BSc Mechanical Engineering 2nd year credits so I was able to complete both T2 National Diploma Mechanical Engineering and T3 NdipMech in 1992 semester 1 & 2.I was then employed by Caltex Oil (SA) in semester 2 of 1993 whilst doing my T4 National Higher Diploma MechEngineering because T4 could only be offered in the second semester

BSc Mechanical Engineering dropped out 2nd year

Maths,Strength of Materials,Technical Drawing,Thermodynamics,Introduction to Computers,Physics and Chemistry, University of Natal (Durban)
Durban, Jan 1989 to Nov 1990
I passed my first year far too easily because it was mostly work from the Bridging Course.I didn't apply myself as much as I should have in the second year because I had become a large part of the campus social life as a result I dropped a few courses in my second year which my sponsor refused to pay for. I then had to come back home because I did not have the money to continue.

Engineering Bridging Course

Maths,Physics,Chemistry,Thermodynamics,Strength of Materials,Introduction to Computers, University of Natal (Durban)
Durban, Jan 1988 to Nov 1988
I was continually in the top 3 of this bridging course which was designed to give us a better chance of passing the BSc degree.

Matric Pass with "C" Aggregate

Maths Higher Grade,Physical Science HG,Business Economics HG,English First Language HG,Afrikaans 2nd Language HG,Xhosa 3rd Language HG, Diocesan College (Bishops)
Rondebosch ,Cape Town, Jan 1984 to Dec 1987
I am one of the first 4 African boys to win an Anglo American Scholarship to study at the prestigious Diocesan College(Bishops) from 1984 to matriculate in 1987.Every year after 1984 , more boys were chosen from primary schools around black townships to compete for this honour and of the 4 who were chosen each year, most of did quite well. I was then offered another scholarship to study for a BSc in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Natal -Durban.I dropped out in my 2nd year due to extra-mural activities after my funding was revoked.

 

Employment

Driver, Recruiter and security organiser

University of Cape Town
Cape Town South Africa, Aug 2022 to Nov 2022
I go and visit the Enumerator Assigned Areas a few days before I take my team there and speak to the Ward Councillor,Area Committee or the Neighborhood Watch and organise 2 or 4 area members from them who will accompany us on that day depending on the safety of the area. I then pick up my 4 lady fieldworkers in the morning and take them to the Enumerator Assigned Area as per UCT schedule. I first go to the nearest police station where I have a brief chat with the Station Commander or the Shift Supervisor about the safety of the area to be visited.I get them to sign a Community Gatekeepers Form.I then drive to the area and introduce my team to the pre- arranged security personnel and we begin working. Throughout the day I'm driving from one team to the other delivering equipment and taking them to their next respondents that I have recruited whilst they were busy. When the quota is done I get the security personnel to sign the Community Liaison Register and pay them R150 and go and drop my team at their respective houses. I'll go and pre-arrange the next area if we are to change areas the next day.

Fieldwork Manager

IDInsight-Instructional Leadership Institute Study
Cape Town, Apr 2022 to ongoing
I went around the Western Cape on a rented car confirming the participation of schools in their involvement into the Schools Management Practices Study and dropping Consent Forms for the students to take home to parents for signatures. I then accompanied a team of 2 who would conduct the actual test as both protector and "meeter and greeter."

Fieldworker-Dept.of Science and Innovation Study

Human Sciences Research Council
Cape town, Feb 2022 to Apr 2022
We had a list of 420 graduate interns who have been inserted into various companies for the next two years all around South Africa. On a 1hr to to 1 1/2 instrument I interviewed on average 5 respondents per day using Microsoft Teams and then captured the interview on Redcap. We also recorded everything we did on a Management Information System spreadsheet so as to show who we called, when and what the results of the call were.

Telephonic Fieldworker-Dept.of Employment and Labour Study

Human Sciences Research Council
Cape Town, Nov 2021 to Feb 2022
I regularly called over 30 respondents per day on a Department of Employment and Labour : Youth Skills Unemployment Study. It was not always easy to locate and get respondents to consent to be interviewed ,however, I averaged 5 and 1/2 completed (30 -50 minute) interviews per day using Microsoft Teams and captured those interviews on Redcap. We also had to complete a Management Information System spreadsheet that documented what we did and when,the entire day.

Paid Online Survey Respondent

Various Online Payed Survey Networks
Around the World, Jun 2020 to ongoing
Whilst in-between jobs and especially during the lock-down period I registered with a number of Paid Online Survey Websites who daily send me surveys to complete every day. So far I have completed over 500 online surveys on my phone for points that I will convert to money through PayPal. So far from the following websites: Lifepoints, The Panel Station, YourView, Enlighten Panel, Valued Opinions, Mobrog and Toluna. This has become my way of keeping mentally sharp and because I utilise the Free Township Wi-Fi it costs me nothing,

Fieldworker

Citizen Surveys
Cape Town, Mar 2020 to Jun 2020
An Afrikaans and a Xhosa speaker were employed to go to the Cape Town Magistrate's Court on a 30 minute questionnaire for the pilot Court User Survey. From 9am to 3pm we both completed 7 questionnaires each.Sadly the Covid-19 lockdown came a few days later.We were then invited to go to the offices of the the survey company in Woodstock where we were given tablets and material to study for training. An online training course on the City of Cape Town Performance Evaluation Survey was carried out and we were then furnished with contact details of people to call. The questionnaire was approximately 90 minutes long and despite many difficulties of mainly to keep a stranger interested, on the other side of the line, I could do minimum 2 per day. One could stop the interview and continue at a later stage so at times you could complete 4 interviews on the Survey2Go app on the tablet.

Senior Fieldworker then Supervisor (Electricity Study)

JPAL Africa (International NGO affiliated to the UCT School of Economic
Rondebosch, Cape Town, Jun 2018 to Nov 2018
I would pick up the work equipment which included tablets, respondent lists, the incentive (money and sweets) and occasionally payslips and other correspondence from the office. I would then drive to pre-arranged spots to pick my crew up and take each one of them to the houses I had allocated them to interview the qualifying respondencts.Through WhatsApp I would pick up and drop off fieldworkers the entire day, including having to drop the required incentive amount requested by the fieldworkers.At end of day I would first drop fieldworkers at their homes or in safe public transport stations and then either park the car and recharge equipment at home or drop car and recharge equipment at UCT.Next morning I would have to replenish the incentive (money and sweets) at UCT and begin the same process again.

Fieldworker - Water Study

JPAL Africa (International NGO affiliated to the UCT School of Economic
Rondebosch, Cape Town, Mar 2018 to Jun 2018
We would meet at a prearranged place and then with our tablets loaded with Survey CTO we were driven to preassigned houses where we had to determine who the qualifying respondent was (the responsible person) and interview them for a minimum of 45 minutes.We would communicate with the office through WhatsApp for them to send the incentive (electricity) whilst constantly letting the rest of the team know where we were for safety reasons.We started in Langa, then it was Guguletu and later Phillippi where we requested a security guard (member of the neighbourhood watch) to be around us most of the time.As the only male fieldworker I had the added responsibility to go into houses that looked dubious and interview those scary respondents.

Community Liaison Officer

Department of Water & Sanitation
Cape Town, Oct 2015 to Apr 2016
I was stationed at the Stodels Nursery in Kenilworth to remind their customers of the then 2015/2016 Level 3 Water Restrictions, what they entailed and the implications thereof.We wore clearly written vests for easy identification and had pamphlets to handout.I could speak to and record details of up to 70 flower buyers in a single day. Mr Prins ,my boss, called me his best Water Ambassador by far.

Fieldworker Supervisor

Human Sciences Research Council
Cape Town, Jul 2013 to Dec 2013
I supervised 11 fieldworkers (including 2 data capturers) and took them to the same places I had been to on a more comprehensive questionnaire (minimum 30 minutes).Half-way we were moved to the SAMRC in Parow where my job was to pick up questionnaires from the office,using public transport, go and meet the team at a predetermined place.The entire day would consist of me going around checking that the fieldworkers were conducting their interviews in an ethical manner.At the end of the day we would assemble at the closest public library and check each others work. I would then tell them where we would meet the next day ,make sure they new how to get there using public transport , and then be on my way to drop the completed questionnaires at the SAMRC and pick up new ones.In those 6 months we completed over 1400 questionnaires at a rate of minimum 5 questionnaires per fieldworker per day.

Fieldworker

Human Sciences Research Council
Cape Town, Feb 2013 to Jun 2013
I was given a Garmin GPS instrument and a stack of questionnaires to travel all over Greater Cape Town, by public transport, to map, photograph and interview each and every street food vendor who sold anything from "vetkoeks" to braaied chicken feet.I could speak to and interview up to 50 vendors in a day.On Mondays I would go to the office to make photocopies of the questionnaire that would last me the entire week and have the data in the GPS downloaded for safekeeping.Whist doing that I would also submit a detailed account of my Weekly Travel Expenses by public transport for reimbursement by the Accounts Department and then go to the field, to comeback the next Monday. At the end I also helped input most of the more than 2400 data that was on the GPS and questionnaires.

Various positions from Relief Manager to New Business Broker

Various Companies
Port Elizabeth/Cape Town and Johannesburg, Jul 2003 to Dec 2012
My first formal job was with Caltex Oil(SA) in PE where I achieved the position of Relief Manager from being a Trainee Manager from 2003-2005. From 2005 I worked in various positions in the Short-Term Insurance industry,starting as a trainee with Alexander Forbes and moved on to CommSure Insurance Brokers as a Technical and Contact Broker in 2001 and finally moving to Johannesburg with Aon Risk Services as a New Business Broker in 2003 to 2005.I then joined the tender wave but because i was not as sufficiently connected as I thought,ended up doing little jobs as a sub-tender.

 

Skills

Community organiser Customer service Good computer literacy Marketing Spreadsheets Teaching / tutoring Transcription Translation Warehousing Writing reports