Forged in the Field

Starting on the Tools

I joined CJD in 2009 after working for a Volvo dealer, Titan Plant in New Zealand. The Global Financial Crisis hit, and

I decided to come to Western Australia. So anyway, I popped over on holiday, met the Aftermarketing Executive, GM Steve Salman, and had a tour of the workshop down here in Guildford. I began in the Guildford workshop as a retail workshop technician.

Hands-on learning about how the machines operated and repairing them to suit Australian conditions. After six to twelve months, I moved into field service. That was my first real test of responsibility.

In field service, I was operating independently and remotely. Organise the parts, research the equipment failure, plan travel to the site, and do not return until the machine is operational. Mining sites, remote infrastructure projects, Barrow Island, Thevenard Island, the Northern Territory, wherever a Volvo machine required support, we went.

Looking back, that autonomy carried more responsibility than I realised at the time.

Progressing Through Accountability

From field service, I stepped into a workshop supervision role. It was challenging and not always comfortable. Managing customers’ expectations, technicians, and commercial pressures simultaneously forces you to grow quickly.

I then moved into the Field Service Supervisor role and later into Product Support for Western Australia. I joined Bevan Klanjscek, who mentored me in this role.

Product support changed the nature of my customer interaction. Instead of being seen as a cost, you become a partner in problem-solving. You assess, advise and work with the customer before failure becomes downtime. That shift strengthened long-term relationships and deepened my understanding of regional operations across Bunbury, Geraldton and the Pilbara, working with legends Stuart McDermott and Jim Drummond.

Those years built credibility, both internally and with customers.

Transitioning to National Product Manager

In 2021, I transitioned into the National Product Manager role for Volvo Construction Equipment. CJD structured a handover period with Lindsay Daniels, who was the National Product Manager at the time and the father of James Daniels, WA Volvo CE’s State Sales Manager, to facilitate knowledge transfer and continuity.

That transition was deliberate and worthwhile for me. As Product Manager, the perspective shifts. Instead of seeing the machine at the failure point, you see it at the specification stage. Instead of responding to issues, you anticipate them.

My grounding in field service and product support was critical in this role. When we discuss machine builds with Volvo Construction Equipment, particularly for harsh Australian conditions, I can speak from my hands-on experience.

Australia is hot, abrasive and remote. Safety regulations are increasingly stringent. Mining and infrastructure standards continue to evolve. Our standard machine specifications for the Australian market must reflect that reality.

That requires ongoing dialogue with Volvo. They listen. The machines continue to improve. But the goalposts move constantly: safety, emissions, technology integration, electrification. The work never stands still.

Understanding the Product Full Lifecycle

When I started as a mechanic, we were working on C & D-series articulated haulers and early B-series excavators. Technology has advanced rapidly since then.

In my current role, I now see product development before it reaches our shores. Not every innovation is well-suited for the Australian environment or market. Understanding that distinction is part of my responsibility, and CJD as the dealer in Australia.

Balancing Volvo Construction Equipment’s capability with local operating requirements. This protects the customer’s investment and ensures equipment performs where it matters most.

Responsibility and Trust

If I reflect honestly, field service was the first true moment of trust. You are sent out alone with significant consequences attached to your decisions.

Supervision and product support are built on that foundation.

Each step carried greater expectation. Trust at CJD is not given; it is earned; it follows demonstrated capability. Once you show you can manage complexity, more is placed in your hands.

Culture That Sustains Progression

What has kept me here is the people and the product. The people are what make CJD what it is today

Over the years, I’ve worked alongside experienced leaders and technicians who push me to improve, sometimes directly, sometimes by example. There is strong mentorship within CJD, whether formal or informal.

Beyond that, the business has supported me personally through family milestones and difficult periods. That matters over a career that spans 17 years.

You do not build longevity in isolation. It is built within a culture that values performance and supports its people.

Advice to the Next Generation

If anyone is considering an apprenticeship or entry-level role at CJD, my advice is simple:

Put the effort in.

The business offers multiple pathways, workshops, field service, supervision, product support, and national roles. I started with the tools in the workshop. I did not plan to become Volvo’s Product Manager.

Progression came from saying yes to responsibility and committing to continuous learning.

The environment today is safer, more structured and more advanced than when I started. But the core principle remains unchanged: you get back what you put in.

Looking Back

What am I most proud of?

The progression itself.

From workshop mechanic to national product responsibility. Each role is built on the previous one. Each milestone expanded my capability and knowledge.

I did not map the entire path at the beginning.

But I stayed, learned, and stepped forward with support when opportunities appeared and the “universe provided”.

That is what a long-term career at CJD can look like.

Explore apprenticeships, field service and national product careers.