On a personal note, I am happily married to my wife and together, we proudly embrace parenthood. Our daughter entered our lives in October 2023, and since then, we’ve been navigating the beautiful chaos of parenthood. Thankfully, our daughter is an absolute sweetheart—a far cry from what some might call a “difficult” baby.

Our journey began in South Africa, where my wife and I both grew up. However, “fate” led us to the Netherlands in May 2021, right in the heart of the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, we call Ede our home – a charming town just an hour’s drive from the bustling capital city of Amsterdam.

Despite the demands of parenting, we remain avid travelers. Living within close proximity to other European countries, we seize every opportunity to explore new horizons.

And when life grants me those rare moments of “me time,” you’ll find me either exercising or immersed in a good book. After all, balance is key—even for busy parents!

On the professional front, I have 7+ years of management consulting experience in the field of data & analytics, with a demonstrated track record of shaping and leading technology change in the financial services and oil/gas industry across multiple continents (Africa, Europe & North America).

I am a Principal Consultant at CGI and currently work for a large Dutch financial services company with its headquarters based in Utrecht. In my capacity as Product Manager, I lead two teams (13 full-time employees) responsible for improving the reliability of platform data (hosted in the cloud).

Founded in 1976, CGI is among the world’s largest IT and business consulting services firms and is recognized by Forbes magazine as one of the World’s Best Management Consulting Firms. They are insights-driven and outcomes-based, helping to accelerate returns on your investments. Across hundreds of locations worldwide, they provide comprehensive, scalable, and sustainable IT and business consulting services that are informed globally and delivered locally.

In October 2023, I was selected for the Developing Future Directors (DFD) Programme. This experience-based program is aimed at preparing Senior Consultants and Managers to step up into a Director role in the coming 2 years.

Ever since my career started back in 2018, I have always been on the lookout for ways to accelerate my career progression and many would argue that I am currently on the “fast track” (at the risk of sounding arrogant).

This blog is aimed at sharing some of the secrets behind my accelerated growth, hopefully enabling other young professionals to achieve the same personal benefit and career progression throughout their tenure.

A young professional is described as follows: “someone who, although he or she may be employed full-time, is within two years of graduation from a full-time Bachelors, Masters or PhD program (or ABD, post-docs) and is under the age of 35.”

Drawing from my own personal journey and hard-earned lessons, my mission is clear: empower ambitious young professionals—especially those in IT and business consulting services. Together, we’ll tackle the obstacles often encountered on the path to success. Put simply, I want to share the information I wish I’d known when I embarked on my career in 2018.

Entrepreneur and investor Naval Ravikant once wisely said, “To write a great book, you must first become the book.” The same holds true for any blog. So, consider this your invitation—an open door to join me on this writing journey. Let’s explore, learn, and share our stories.