Welcome once again to our Introducing Series, where this time we hear from Andri Sumardi, Business Development Manager for Indonesia, Australia and the Phillipines. Having worked with Gantrex for 7 years, Andri is well regarded for his passion, energy and unswerving commitment to total customer satisfaction. So, in an increasingly complex and competitive marketplace, filled with different people, products, projects and cultures, what is that Andri thinks is the secret to his, ours and our customers success?
Andri Sumardi – Quick Facts
Position: Business Development Manager, Gantrex Pte Ltd
Base: Singapore
Industry Experience:15+ years experience across general and heavy industries, along with distribution and network management
Responsibility: Business development and anew client engagement throughout Indonesia, Australia and the Philippines
Guiding Principle: Never shy away from a challenge and don’t ever promote anything that you wouldn’t be prepared to purchase yourself.
So Andri, it sounds like you thrive on a challenge? How does that play into your role?
As a Business Development Manager, I am often the person that a prospective customer will see first. I have to embody all the values that Gantrex has, and I have to accurately reflect the technical, innovative and quality standards that our brand has come to represent. Quite an important role for one person!
I am often the first to learn about a company’s challenge, and that customer can be from a variety of industries, cultures and skill sets. However, one thing all customers have in common is that they have a challenge that they need to be resolved. And they are looking for an expert partner to help them achieve this.
I see it as my role to bring to life our company’s vision and values so that the customer can see that we are the expert choice, with advanced technical solutions, quality products and outstanding technical expertise. Again, another challenge for me, as I have to have to really understand our product and technical offer, and convey these, whilst building a strong rapport with the customer.
Can you share an example of a recent project where this has played out?
We have been working on a number of crane rail track projects at the Teluk Lamong Terminal (TTL) port since 2014. This is a pilot project for the first semi-automatic port in Indonesia and the first green port in the Southeast Asia region which began operations in early 2016.
The terminal is environmentally friendly with all service activities in the Terminal making use of green energy solutions. Crane operations is controlled centrally from a control room. Most of the cranes operate at high speed as part of the overall efficiency of the port operations. These lighter cranes, accommodating high speed, with more flexible structures presented a potential challenge, necessitating a different solution to conventional port projects that the customer had worked with before.
Thanks to smart engineering design, great communication and technical insight, we were able to deliver a solution that was right first time and continues to deliver what the customer needs. Such is the trust that was built throughout this project, that we have gone on to secure further work with this customer as the project has gone on to expand, with our well respected RailLok products featuring heavily in specification. This has been an unforgettable project for me and one which I have got a lot of satisfaction from.
You clearly need to know a lot about the products, but what about the people? How do you manage relationships to get the best result for everyone?
I consider myself fortunate to have a very people orientated role. I get so much from working with others, be that colleagues, customers or partners I really believe that my ongoing success is a result of the lessons I have learnt from customers, the interactions that I have on a daily basis, and the fact that the others share their thoughts and ideas with me. It all comes together to bring about a great result…for everyone. The feedback from customers, colleagues and partners really drives my motivation to do the very best job and find the absolute best solution. And I think this motivation brings about an energy and a pace in the way that I work and how others work with me. It leads to an openness and honesty between the whole project team and that’s when good things start to happen. It’s like an electric shock flowing through a circuit, it’s contagious. None of us can solve a problem by ourselves, we need each other to find the best solution, and I am very grateful to work with great teams in all the Gantrex sales regions across the world, knowing I have their full support when I need it, to bring about success for our customers.
And what is it about being part of Gantrex that makes this possible for you?
It’s my strong belief that in order to be able to meet complex challenges and be able to offer innovative, market leading solutions to our clients, there needs to be a strong foundation of quality that runs through every aspect of an operation. From R&D, to manufacture, marketing to pricing and after sales support. We have this at Gantrex. The culture that runs across every team, every country and every business group means that I know, when I’m in front of a customer that we will all keep the promises that we make. And that’s priceless.
Where is your next challenge coming from?
We’re currently working on another expansion project in Teluk Lamong Terminal for the total 600 m railroad using semi-automatic Ship to Shore Cranes. Again, what makes this project particulary special is that the crane has a higher speed with lower STS’s weight than the general STS crane which is often used at ports. For the past 6 months, I have been working with the team to find an appropriate design solution using our RailLok system which is perfectly suited for the requirement of this proejct. The client seems to be very onboard with the proposals so far, and I am hoping for a positive outcome for us all.
Of course the impact of Covid has brought an array of additional challanges, notably around travel and logisitics. This has had a direct impact on our ability to mobilize our installation teams to sites, often with short deadines as restrictions are lifted. Finding solutions to this, whilst minimizing any cost or service impacts to our clients has been key. And I am delighted to say that we have achieved this, thanks to the agile solutions approach of our technical team and the commitment of everyone involved.
And finally, what advice would you offer to those wanting to follow a career like yours?
Don’t be afraid of challenges. Very often the greatest challenges give you the greatest rewards in terms of satisfaction and personal development. Also never try to sell something that you wouldn’t be prepared to purchase yourself – quality is everything. And finally listen to your customers. What they have to tell you, should always come before what you have to say. Only by really listening to a customer can you even begin to work out what you need to deliver a great result. Yes, work with them to find the solution, and always encourage innovative thinking. But to start, listen to what they tell you they need.
