John joined us in 2018, and we’ve been so happy to have him on board. He brings with him a wealth of building knowledge (thirteen years infact!), and years of experience in project management. His work ethic and potential, that have been recognized by so many before us, make John a pleasure to work with and we are excited to watch him continue to push up and up!
John’s background in Project Management
John first entered the world of building and construction thirteen years ago. Having no technical training and in fact, no building knowledge at the time, this was a bold move for John. He began his career as a site inspector, for a man named Paul Greenwood who was building his house in Kommetjie. John’s job at first was simply to sit on site and report the days ongoings back to his boss, Paul. However, within a week John’s initiative and work ethic shone through and he was placed in charge of managing and ordering the building supplies. After the completion of his house, Paul invited John to come and work for his company then called Urban Space.
“So that is how I started working. I began as a labourer at his company and within a week I was promoted to junior foreman. From there I was given a site to manage, and so I went up quickly. I was promoted also to do office work and I was assisting in admin for seven years. I then followed Paul to his new company Leading Edge properties and worked there for some time too,” says John.
Going solo
John enjoyed working for Paul, and indeed still holds a strong relationship with him to this day, but something bigger was calling him.
“Around 2017 I started running my own business part time. The demand grew and soon I left Leading Edge to work for my own company full time in 2018. I work with ten guys now and we do everything from new builds to smaller jobs,” says John.
“At first, I was afraid to start my own company. Before I was getting a salary every month and I didn’t have any risk. So, the first few months were difficult when I decided to work full time for my company.”
Going forward with Fix Forward
“There were a lot of things I didn’t know when I started my business. For example, I didn’t know how to quote properly. I’d only ever seen someone else do it but had not done it myself,” explains John. “Fix Forward helped me with that and I did their quoting workshop. We had some individual coaches training us and helping us and we also had a mentor for the whole year. Fix Forward also helped me with budgeting,” says John.
“It helps to know I have someone behind me. Whenever I have a problem I always phone back to Fix Forward and ask them for advice and what we can do,” says John, who notes that this has helped with some of his anxiety around going solo.
John’s business has grown so much in just a few years, and we can’t wait to see what 2021 has in store for this hardworking and talented individual. By using Fix Forward you are supporting entrepreneurs like John. Book John or another contractor here and help us turn dreams in to reality!
