Neville’s dream of working internationally comes true

“You must make the best out of what you have. Think positive – always!” says our very positive-minded Neville.

He started working for DB Schenker in Cape Town, South Africa, before moving to Essen, Germany, and is currently based in Singapore. As a DB Schenker employee, Neville has realized his dream of working on three different continents, all while broadening his logistics knowledge and cultural experience.

You must make the best out of what you have. Believe in a brighter future and think positive - always! My personal slogan - 'The best is yet to come.'

^{Neville, Business Unit Operational Leader}

From Africa via Europe and Singapore - never give up, believe in yourself and push yourself

Seeking to live out his dream, Neville searched for an international company in Cape Town that provided the opportunity to live and work on different continents. He found what he was looking for in DB Schenker, where Neville started in 2009 as a warehouse manager charged with turning around a site that was losing money.

After driving a successful turnaround at that site, Neville quickly took on more responsibilities to become the regional Logistics Manager. In 2012, he participated in a project manager seminar in Germany, where he met some of his colleagues at the Head Office in Essen. This was the chance he had been waiting for: Almost immediately, he was encouraged to relocate to Europe, taking on the opportunity as Manager of Workflow and Knowledge Excellence in Contract Logistics in 2013.

DB Schenker Employee Neville and Colleague

A Blending of Two Different Cultures

Upon moving to Essen, Neville immediately experienced a culture shock. “My colleagues in Germany were so well organized and focused on problem solving in a way I had not known before,” he says. This brought a new perspective into his life. I learned how not to jump to conclusions too fast without finding the root cause of the problem.

Talking to Neville, you have the impression that he now has two cultures combined in his personality. From Africa, he holds a strong belief in positive thinking; from Germany, he has learned to stop and analyze a problem before deciding. Having started his career as a problem solver and being faced with multiple challenges every day, this attitude was key to Neville’s further development.

One other shock Neville experienced in Essen was the long, cold and grey winters where the sun doesn't always shine as brightly as in Africa but he could at least enjoy some snow!

Falling in Love with Singapore

In early 2018, he was assigned to a six-week project in Singapore. Neville immediately fell in love with the people and the city and started to seek out his next carrier step. He relocated again in 2019, this time becoming Assistant General Manager in the Schenker Singapore Organization.

A problem solver by nature, Neville says he always takes his time to pinpoint the problem areas and in collaboration with his team, figure out a way to solve them. This philosophy helps him today as Business Unit Operational Leader in the Applied Materials Program, where he leads, coaches, and inspires 370 team members working in four different facilities.

As Neville moved across three different continents, his wife has been firmly by his side building on their future for the past 30 years. The couple’s children are grown up and married; their son lives in Cape Town, South Africa and their daughter lives in Essen, Germany.

Interested in more employee insights?

Yasuhiro, Director

“I have a strong passion for geographies and working with people from different cultures. Diversity inspires me and it moves me forward every single day."

Heidi, Head of Hotel Logistics UK

"With every project we complete, we are learning and developing."

Gerrit, Facility Coordinator

“My brother worked in trucking and I liked what he was doing; that’s why I came to work here.”

Angela, IT Supervisor

"Within my team, we always look for opportunities to continuously improve each project."

Simon, IT Developer

"What I'm doing here is playing a small part of the big system. But every cog in the wheel is important to bring the customer further."

Mabel, District Manager

“I don’t like to narrow it down to a single opportunity; I always like to leave my options open, let's see what's next"

Yosvani, Warehouse Manager

"Diversity has helped me to recognize and respect ‘ways of being’ that are not necessarily my own."

Frank, Truck Driver

“I am not a number; I’m personally important and recognized.”

Nouri and Benjamin, Branch Manager

“There’s never a dull moment around here.”

Jan, Truck Driver

“Representing DB Schenker while driving the Golden Truck has been a great experience,”

Nell and David, Apprenticeship

"There are so many different attractive and complex work areas, I’d never guessed."

Jördis, Trainee

"The great thing about the trainee program is that each trainee can decide for themselves what they want to focus on."

Lara, Program Lead

"Working at DB Schenker is exciting and challenging at the same time. Every day is another learning experience."

Contact

Do you have any questions about an open job position? Then please contact the person listed in the job offer. You can find out more about current vacancies here.

If you would like to learn more about our employee stories, please get in contact with us. We look forward to receiving your call/email.