Can you tell us a bit about your background?

I was born and raised in Durban, South Africa. I am a qualified Graphic Designer and Developer, specialising in the Microsoft Stack. I moved to Dublin in the summer of 2022 and currently automate business-critical processes at The Project Foundry. I have a wealth of knowledge and experience in the power platform stack and development languages such as C#, MVC ASP.net and HTML.

Can you tell us about your role with The Project Foundry?

My role involves automating business-critical processes. I work closely with the process mapper, who gathers and visualises business processes in the form of a process map, which I interpret to digitise and automate from end to end. Part of this process includes working with stakeholders and process owners to define their processes, and consult and advise on how to optimise in readiness for automation.

What motivates you to do what you do?

It stems from the desire to achieve personal growth. Ideally, I would love to do my job to the best of my ability, in the shortest time frame and in the easiest way possible. This led me to automation. The combination of fulfilment and recognition mixed with challenge is what motivates me.

How have you evolved personally and professionally over the years?

I have evolved personally by starting a family and moving my family across the world to start a life in a completely different environment. Professionally, moving from a print shop doing graphic design to custom development specialising in process automation is an evolution that I did not foresee. However, it’s one that I embraced and made the most of.

What does Culture in a work environment mean to you? Why is it Important to you?

For me, a culture in a work environment needs to be built on meaningful work and core values. It is the character and personality of the organisation. This is important to me because having a positive culture in the workplace reinforces my confidence in working and impacts my overall satisfaction, happiness and, in-turn, performance.

How do you maintain a healthy balance between your work and personal life?

I have a few strategies that help me manage this. A work-life balance is challenging but very important. For me, enjoying the work is most important as this alone has a direct impact on my mental and emotional health. A combination of setting boundaries and practising time management ensures I have sufficient time to take a break, focus on my health and nurture relationships both in the workplace and AFK (away from keyboard).

Are there any misconceptions about your work/field that you would like to clarify?

The biggest misconception around robotic process automation (RPA) is that it will make humans redundant in the workplace. It is true that the goal of RPA is to achieve efficiency by limiting the level of human work when it comes to repetitive administrative tasks. In reality, these employees get to shift their focus onto more meaningful tasks that rely on unique human capabilities, tasks that require emotional intelligence ability to reason and judge.

Is there a particular aspect of your work that you are especially passionate about?

For me, my passion lies in overcoming challenges. The ability to automate a process is satisfying, but overcoming a challenge as part of this process is fulfilling.

How do you deliver value to clients?

Value to our clients is given through the experience we have in our field. This involves being able to consult with your client and not just answer questions when asked but challenge certain requirements in the hope of proposing a more refined and better solution that will not just meet their needs but surpass it.

What is the one thing that very few people know about you?

I was a guest speaker at the Microsoft Round Table. I have hosted numerous workshops and presentations for large enterprises to Microsoft’s most valued clients. I have worked on projects with the Microsoft stack in multiple countries around the world including New York, Dubai, Angola, and Ireland.