Whilst in pursuit of his Civil Engineering qualification from the Durban University of Technology, Gavin was determined to obtain international working experience. He was offered a great opportunity to join HATCH in Mississauga, Canada – a global EPCM firm servicing the mining, metallurgical, energy and infrastructure sectors. After successfully completing this internship, he returned to South Africa to conclude his studies before taking up permanent employment with HATCH in Johannesburg, South Africa. Gavin was employed by HATCH for 6 years where he gained valuable insight into engineering design and construction management on various mining projects in South Africa and Botswana.

Gavin’s career took a turn into the HR field when he was approached to support in providing specialist technical recruitment services which ultimately lead him to the Middle East. His career in Human Resources progresses rapidly, starting as Recruitment Manager, moving into HR Operations and finally HR General Management with recognised industry leaders operating in the construction sector across the UAE, KSA, Qatar and now Kuwait .

Much of this success is attributable to his thorough understanding of operational requirements, strong people management skills and his desire to always find practical solutions to HR related issues in a market faced with extraordinary challenges resulting from the regions unprecedented resources growth. Gavin has maintained that being able to defend decisions and keeping a focus on doing what is right is key.

Amongst Gavin’s accomplishments was taking the lead in an aggressive company ramp-up which saw in excess of 20,000 employees recruited over a period of 3 years. In addition to this, contributing significantly to the successful design and implementation of Grading, Compensation & Benefit frameworks in large Contracting organisations with in excess of 50,000 employees.

In his free time, Gavin enjoys spending time with his family, playing golf, squash or fishing. He is thrilled to join the Bristol community and looks forward to networking with other like-minded individuals.