Ep. 110 Rachel Johnson: Defining a personal operating manual to help managers get the best out you.

Rachel has spent 20 years in various Automotive OEM roles across Australia and New Zealand.  

Her career to date has included roles with Volvo, Holden, Jeep, Ford and MG. She has often been the first and only female in her department. 

Most recently, Rachel was New Zealand Country Manager at MG. She was literally stopped in her tracks when she shattered her ankle and lower leg. This injury has led to her taking a career break while undergoing a full year of intensive rehabilitation.  

During her recent enforced downtime, she’s reflected on what is important from her next career step - and concluded that it’s all about being transparent in how she works, especially with regard to the skills we often don’t talk about in interviews, yet which can be career-defining.  

Rachel is self aware and she’s used that self-awareness to develop a personal operating manual.  

She finds that sharing it with managers helps them to get the best out of her.  

This realisation prompted her recent social media post “Dear Future Boss" which is an open letter to potential future managers highlighting certain elements from her personal operating manual. 

I saw Rachel’s post on LinkedIn and it resonated with me so I invited her to join me to create this episode.  

In our conversation we touch on many interesting topics including her desire to be independent and put her career first, her love of automotive and a curiosity to try different parts of the industry and get as broad an understanding as possible and the reminder that even someone who is self motivated and takes ownership of their career can't control everything.  

We wish Rachel all the best in her search for her next automotive position. 

LinkedIn: Rachel Johnson 

Episode Directory on Instagram @careerviewmirror  

Email: cvm@aquilae.co.uk 

If you enjoy listening to our guests career stories, please follow CAREER-VIEW MIRROR in your podcast app.  

Episode recorded on 13 March, 2023 

Transcript

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Rachel Johnson: 0:00

If I go back to when I started in automotive 20 years ago, the most common words that I heard was, but you're a female, what are you doing in cars? What do you know about cars?

Aquilae: 0:12

Welcome to Career-view Mirror the automotive podcast that goes behind the scenes with key players in the industry looking back over their careers to share insights to help you with your own journey. Here's your host, Andy Follows

Andy: 0:43

Hello, listeners, Andy here. As always, thank you for tuning in. I really appreciate that you do and love hearing from you when you give us feedback. In this episode, we're celebrating the career to date of Rachel Johnson. Rachel has spent 20 years in various automotive OEM roles across Australia and New Zealand. The purpose behind each of her career moves has been to gain experience of a different function in the industry. Her career to date has included roles with Volvo, Holden, Jeep, Ford, and MG. She has often been the first and only female in her department. Most recently, Rachel was New Zealand Country Manager at MG. She was literally stopped in her tracks when she shattered her ankle and lower leg. This injury has led to her taking a career break while undergoing a full year of intensive rehabilitation. During her recent enforced downtime, she's reflected on what's important from her next career step and concluded that it's all about being transparent in how she works, especially with regard to the skills we often don't talk about in interviews yet which can be career defining. Rachel has a degree in marketing and human resource management and has completed postgraduate papers in both these areas. She's a customer advocate understanding that often the only differentiator between brands may be the people your customers are dealing with. Rachel loves to know how things work, whether it be a new car feature, a project forecast, or individual human behaviour. As a child, she was used to listening to family members discussing business concepts and strategies at the dinner table. Her own curiosity motivates her to continuously increase her awareness and knowledge. Rachel's self aware, and she's used that self awareness to develop a sort of personal operating manual. She is true to her values and has learned that sometimes, you need to explain how you work for someone to get the best out of you. She finds that sharing it with managers helps them to get the best out of her. This realisation prompted her recent social media post, Dear Future Boss, which is an open letter to potential future managers highlighting certain elements from her personal operating manual. I saw Rachel's post on LinkedIn and it resonated with me. So I invited her to join me to create this episode. Rachel has an entrepreneurial mindset and has developed an interesting career journey in an industry that she's passionate about. She's a woman who has an absolute love of cars. I'm pleased to be able to introduce you to her and I look forward to hearing what resonates with you. Hello, Rachel, and welcome. Where are you coming to us from today?

Rachel Johnson: 3:17

Hello Andy, coming from Auckland in New Zealand.

Andy: 3:22

Wonderful, and I have not been back sadly yet since I left Auckland at the beginning of January 2015. So I'm very excited to talk to you this evening or your morning from Auckland. Where did your story start though? Where were you born?

Rachel Johnson: 3:41

So I was actually born in Christchurch in the South Island of New Zealand. We lived down there until I was five and then moved to a small forestry town in New Zealand called Thames then up to Auckland with my father's job. So got to travel a little bit and live in different places throughout New Zealand as I was in my very young youth.

Andy: 4:06

Yeah, so you'd already moved a couple of times when you were growing up. So first time was five years old, up to Thames and then up to Auckland at what sort of age were you then?

Rachel Johnson: 4:16

I was eight.

Andy: 4:17

Okay, I always ask what jobs my guests parents had, because that's some exposure we have to seeing seeing different jobs. So what did your dad do?

Rachel Johnson: 4:26

At the time he was working for Fletcher wood panels, so a big forestry operation. He actually started there as the foreman driving forklifts and so on. And He then moved through that and became the GM of the Mill down in Thames, that prompted the move to Auckland and he moved to a competition brand and eventually became New Zealand general manager for for that brand. at which stage he decided to go and do his MBA. And then moved on into a completely different industry and went into oil and gas and energy and became CEO of a large energy company in New Zealand.

Andy: 5:12

So he had quite some progression in his career.

Rachel Johnson: 5:15

Yeah, he did. So he actually started left school at 14 and became a motor mechanic because all he was interested in was cars. So he had that background. And he as well as his MBA, he also did a Bachelor of civil engineering. So really into the mechanical engineering, and obviously, the car side of it, which is where my own personal passion comes through as well.

Andy: 5:39

Yeah, so I'm sure he has a fascinating story then of starting out how he did, leaving school pretty young, and then going back into education, and ending up in very senior corporate roles.

Rachel Johnson: 5:51

Yeah. Really good mentor for me to watch the changes and the developments in his career, and where it moved us as a family and our own values and ethics and integrity that came through the whole family as well.

Andy: 6:06

Yeah, you must have witnessed him, his mindset and his approach to things as to carry on being a continuous learner, if you like, and to keep moving forwards and up.

Rachel Johnson: 6:17

Yeah, one of the things that prompted him to to better himself was that when his parents passed away, my grandparents, he was actually left with the mortgage on their house because they never had insurance. So he decided then that he was never going to put our family into that situation, or his children into that. So he wanted to be the best that he could be so that no one or his children myself and my brother never had to experience what he had to when his parents passed away not having those those basics of mortgage or life insurance.

Andy: 6:54

Yeah. It's fascinating how those crucible moments that we sometimes call them in in our lives affect us and then that has a huge impact on how we behave going forward. Really interesting. So staying with the family topic, what about mum? What What was her role?

Rachel Johnson: 7:12

So Mum was a stay at home mother. And that was something that my, my brother has also done with his children, which is that never wanted children to be bought up by somebody else. Always wanted to have a parent available.

Andy: 7:27

Yeah, so another example of him being influenced by the way he was brought up and wanting the same for his children. I was going to ask you about siblings. So you've obviously got a brother, any any others?

Rachel Johnson: 7:39

One just one older brother

Andy: 7:41

one older brother. What about school then Rachel. You moved school I guess at five, you'd be kind of moving school anyway, wouldn't you so or starting school, but you move during your childhood. How was school as an experience for you.

Rachel Johnson: 7:59

I really enjoyed school. The one thing that I didn't enjoy when I got to secondary school was that I was always compared to my brother. And so straight away, I said, I will not do anything that my brother does. I'm marking my own way. I'm not a clone of him. I'm my own person.

Andy: 8:21

What sort of things was he known for then

Rachel Johnson: 8:24

predominantly basketball, but, any sports, so very, very good at sports, good at academic academia as well. But he was also or he is six foot six and a half with bright red hair. So he stood out a little bit at secondary school and everyone knew who was. I remember my first day at secondary school, when they did the parent teacher introductions. I walked in with my mother. And the House Leader said, Ah, your Blair's sister? Right, we'll put you straight down before the senior A basketball, Sr A tennis, Sr A volleyball exactly the same. And at that stage, I said to him, don't put me down for anything, I will make my own way. I don't do anything that he does, because I will never be as good as what he is in those areas.

Andy: 9:15

That's really interesting. I was having this conversation as recently as yesterday about how that happens with siblings, that one will have a territory, if you like, they might excel at something. And it's almost forced that you as the next one along have to pick something else. You think, Well, I can't you know, that's gone. Those options have been taken. I'm going to have to do piano and something else. Do you think you sort of missed out as a result of that? Or have you ended up doing did you end up at school doing the sort of stuff that you were best suited to anyway?

Rachel Johnson: 9:48

I think that I was probably quite fortunate that we are very different people and I actually went down the path of public speaking, debating, drama. I did play netball because we it was compulsory to play a sport for school. Roller skating was my thing as well. But I think that what that actually did was it really meant that I could carve out a niche for myself and think, outside the box of what a normal standard career path may have been so that I was doing something different. And I think that probably started me in my thinking of what's different to achieving a result?

Andy: 10:30

Say a bit more about that then.

Rachel Johnson: 10:32

So, for me, when I do things, I look at what we what can we do that's a little bit different to get a result. And I think that stemmed from that behaviour, right back at school, which was, I'm not doing what people expect me to do, which is what my brother does, I'm doing something that might be different. So what's something that's completely different that he wouldn't be involved in?

Andy: 10:58

Yeah, where can I have a space of my own? My own name? Yep. And what was your parents attitude towards education? What were their expectations of you?

Rachel Johnson: 11:11

It was you can do whatever you want, as long as you go to university and come out with a degree, as my father always said, to me, doesn't necessarily matter what your degree is in, it's actually the way that it formulates your thinking processes. And it shows that you can commit long term to or 3, 4, 5 year plan and stick to it and achieve the goal at the other end.

Andy: 11:37

Yeah, I'm nodding, I've come across that interpretation, or that understanding of why you're going and what you're gonna get out of it before. So academically, how were you at school?

Rachel Johnson: 11:49

I was in the A stream, so the top grade class, and then got to university. And my parents had said to me that they would finance my university papers. But if I've failed a paper, I was on my own. So I had that over me. And knowing that I was had to find myself, if I didn't put in the work.

Andy: 12:14

It's like a no win no fee.

Rachel Johnson: 12:21

Good Life lesson was that, you know, if you put in the work, you get rewarded, if you don't want to put in the effort, then there's a consequence to your action. So there was a couple of papers I did that I didn't really enjoy that much economics being one of them. And from that, I knew that I had to work hard at it. I passed, but only just but I learned very quickly, it was definitely not my forte,

Andy: 12:45

right? And what had you chosen to do? What subjects had you chosen to do at university?

Rachel Johnson: 12:50

So I did a double major of human resource management and marketing. I didn't know what I wanted to do. But those were papers that I enjoyed the most. And I found were almost innate or, or natural, my answers seem to just flow and come through the process. I guess that at that stage being 19, or 20, I found them easy but from self learning what I know now is that it was that inherent knowledge of just knowing it just seemed to resonate papers that resonated with me, were the ones that I succeeded in. And what I learned from that is, it's always important to follow your passion.

Andy: 13:35

So at that stage, though, did you have any ideas about career direction you wanted to go in? Or were you following I like these subjects. And I'll do better in these and I'll get a good degree if I'd go down this route. And I'll enjoy it. Was that more than philosophy,

Rachel Johnson: 13:50

I had no idea what I wanted to do at all. I was never someone that was going to be an accountant. I wasn't going to be a lawyer. I wasn't going to be a doctor or a dentist. So I tried to be quite generic in my education so that I could move around until I found what what would be my niche. And again, though, I had that background, and that learning of sticking to a plan, but also looking at all angles of what works and what doesn't. As I mentioned, I knew economics didn't work for me. Okay, I have to do economics. So how do I work that into doing what I need to do to get my outcome, which was obviously to pass that. So I think that at that stage, I really enjoyed human resource management, and I did industrial organisational psychology, which I really, really loved. And I think that really started my affinity for understanding people and understanding why people do things in different ways and what drives individuals as well. So I probably through my career come at things a little bit differently, because I do still use those learnings and thats what past edged a person as a whole and their thinking style and working style, as opposed to popping them in a box.

Andy: 15:14

Yeah. Now that sounds interesting. And we'll talk more about that as we go through your journey. I'm sure how you've used that in different roles. So it sounded like if you found something wasn't necessarily for you like the economics, for example, the way you viewed it was, this just isn't really for me, it didn't make you feel sort of that you weren't good, or it was just okay, I've tried this one, this, this doesn't fit quite as well. I'm just thinking of Cinderella and the slippers, you know, this, this subject doesn't fit quite as well as some of the other, you know, the human resource ones do. It wasn't a problem. It's just an exploratory phase, trying stuff and seeing what worked. Sure,

Rachel Johnson: 15:53

definitely. And I think, particularly at that age, and you don't have a defined career path, you want to follow it as a little bit about exploring, and what's going to fit and at that stage you're sort of thinking, I've got to spend the next 40 years and what I choose to do now, so if it doesn't fit, it's a long time to spend doing something that you don't enjoy doing.

Andy: 16:15

Yeah, it's it's a really healthy mindset and approach to have it sounds like and so as you got to the end of university, did you start to have some ideas about what you want to do, or talk us through how you got into your first role.

Rachel Johnson: 16:29

I sort of fell into my first role, really, I was working part time in hospitality in a bar while I was at university. And there was a regular person who came in with a group of people once a week on a Friday to have the Friday drinks. And I sort of got chatting to him being that I was there, serving him every Friday, and asked him what he did. And he actually worked for a bank. And I thought that's actually something that might be quite interesting to, to work for a bank and sort of probed a little bit found out a lot and asked him a lot about his journey, his career, what he was doing. So I really sussed out, I guess it's the first thing of sales where you're sorting out the person and understanding them before you actually launch in with the pitch. So I said to him, Look, I've finished university and working in the bar while I get a job, is there any way I could come in and perhaps have a chat or shadow you or or do something like that. And it just so happened that he actually had a an opening as a lending manager back then in the branch doing home mortgages. So my first job out of university was actually doing home loans and mortgages for a bank. So quite interesting given that I had always thought that I was not an economics person or I was more of a soft skill than a hard skill person. But ended up in that path and thought, well, let's there's always going to be banks. So at least it sets me up to start my career.

Andy: 18:04

Yeah, so was a little bit of you looking for some financial security as well,

Rachel Johnson: 18:09

definitely, especially when it's your first job. And you know, it's really looking at what's going to get my independence as well, I guess where I could move out of home, I also had a goal that I did want to go over and do my OE, go to Europe,

Andy: 18:25

Your overseas experience,

Rachel Johnson: 18:27

my overseas experience. Yeah. So that was always in the back of my mind as well that I wanted to do that. But I needed to get some work experience behind me before doing that. So what I did is I actually stayed working at the bar while I was working in the bank. So worked in the bar at night, and my money from working in the bar, I put it in a separate account, and that was overseas experience money. So my goal on that was that I would go overseas once I had sufficient funds to be able to support myself once I got there.

Andy: 19:03

I remember coming across that term for the first time when we were in New Zealand at the OE abbreviation and it's a very normal standard expectation almost it seemed you'd know better than me, but that at some point like a rite of passage, you're going to go and spend a couple of years overseas, and then hopefully come back to New Zealand. So where did you go and what did you do and how did that affect you?

Rachel Johnson: 19:29

One of the girls I worked within in the bar was actually from Dallas in Texas. And she was heading back over to Texas and it coincided with the time that I was going over to start my my overseas experience and you're right what you say Andy, it's definitely a rite of passage and I think that's where New Zealand does get a little bit of that intrepid reputation from whereby we do just go and do it. You know, it's can we do this? Yep, pack a bag and off you go. What are you going to do? I don't know, I'll find out when I get there. So I actually went and spent time in Texas first, back then everyone was saying, why on earth are you going to Texas? What's in Texas?

Andy: 20:14

I can't imagine the contrast from Auckland to Texas. What was it like?

Rachel Johnson: 20:19

It was definitely an eye opener.

Andy: 20:21

I've never been to Texas, but I just imagined it being quite different than Auckland.

Rachel Johnson: 20:25

Yes, very much. So I think one of the memories that sticks with me above anything is going into a nightclub. And bearing in mind we were 25 26. And actually standing in a queue and having to ask my friend why we had to walk through this box. And she said, that's a metal detector to make sure you're not carrying guns. And I was going that's a completely different lifestyle that I've ever experienced before. And the other thing was driving down the road and having gun free zones around schools. It was a real eye opener to sort of go that's a lifestyle that is completely foreign coming from New Zealand. I mean, as you'd know, Andy, our police don't even carry guns on day to day patrol. So yeah, it was really interesting experience that those things resonated with me. I've always been really interested in geography and history. And my friend, she actually said to me, or there's nothing to do in Texas there's nothing to see. And I did a little bit of research and said there's actually a lot in Dallas there is where JFK got assassinated. The Grassy Knoll, and the bookstore repository is the Alamo. So we went down to the Alamo down and did a road trip down through Austin, right down to Houston and back up again. And so we did the Alamo. There's Fort Worth going to a rodeo genuine rodeo. My friend was determined on our road trip that I had to meet a genuine Texan redneck. So we went through a few of the very small places to allow me to meet a genuine redneck backwater Texan. So interesting experiences of trying to find a redneck Texan. So what it really did for me though, is I was lucky enough to be able to do that with a local and what I found from that is you really you get to know a place or a city or even an experience if you're with someone who lives and breathes it every day, and their experience is going to be different to someone who is just popping in and visiting for a week or so. So I was really fortunate. And in fact, when I got to London, my friend decided to pack up and move over to London with me as well.

Andy: 22:49

So how long did you spend in Texas? Five months, and then you came to London. And she came with you, she decided to. So this career journey that has started, first of all was because of someone who happened to come into the bar that you serving and that you got talking to. And then you could go anywhere in the world. And it started off as Dallas because of the person you're working with your colleague in the bank. Yeah, it's fascinating that luck, the circumstances that end up triggering a journey or kicking a journey off. So you came to London and what did you do in London.

Rachel Johnson: 23:31

So I actually was fortunate enough to get a role. Back then it was Arthur Andersen and their client services division that managed to use some of my HR background, looking after HR projects for the big financial services clients. So I was sort of combining the two of the banking and the HR and working for what was at that stage, a big five. There was all sorts of things going on. And I guess having a bit of an inquisitive mindset. All of a sudden, we were being told to find anything we could with the logo, Arthur Andersen on it and get rid of it. I thought this is a bit strange. And it was actually not long after that the arbitration process for Arthur Andersen occurred and the whole name changed through to Accenture. And it became very, very clear then what was going on. And of course, that led on through the whole collapse of Arthur Andersen and that really taught me a lot with going it's really good to look outside the square of what is actually going on within a business and pick up on some of those cues that may not seem right or correct in general business turns. That was a really interesting experience to be able to be involved or see how the clients reacted as well because I was looking after these clients who were going, what's happening with the different name? And where are we going? And How stable is the company? And why are we investing all our money with using you as a consulting arm that you're not going to be around. So there was a lot of challenges there to be able to ensure that or reassure those clients that who they dealt with and the business that was conducted was going to continue, even though it was under a different umbrella or a different name.

Andy: 25:27

And how long did you spend there, Rachel?

Rachel Johnson: 25:29

So I was there for two years, which was my visa, I had a really, really, really fantastic manager there. And he understood the visa requirements of only being able to work one full year of the two years that you were on your visa. So what he did is said, well, it actually works out that there's no limit on the amount of hours that you can work per day, we broke that one year right down into hours. And said well basically, from a legal point of view, if you work three days a week, we can stretch out the time period to be a year. But if you work 10 hours a day, then we will be able to pay you for the full week. So I was working a 30 35 hour week in basically three and a half days, so that we could get the requirements for my visa. But I could also financially be able to survive with a full pay packet, which again, I really liked the way that he thought outside the square and came up with an option that actually suited both of us to be able to continue and do what I was doing. So naturally, you always end up working sort of four four and a half days, but on paper and most of the time, I was only contracted to work three days, but did 10 12 hour days to get my time in so I guess it was really developing me into being able to look at things really differently and not just necessarily take things on face value again, but look at things like how can we get the best out of an employee by offering a carrot that's going to suit them.

Andy: 27:13

Flexibility sounds like he was demonstrating a lot of flexibility that we're starting to see more commonly now and more accepted and expected. But this was a little while ago.

Rachel Johnson: 27:25

It's almost like we've come full circle. What he was suggesting 25 24 years ago, is actually what companies now are testing to become the norm. So that's really interesting that it's almost a full circle of thinking.

Andy: 27:42

It sounds like he was somewhat ahead of the game. He was looking at it from the point of view of how do I get a win win? What's the mutual mutually beneficial way of setting this up so that it works for us all? Which doesn't sound like rocket science does it? Who would have thought that that would be 25 years later that would be popular. And it actually made me you put a post on LinkedIn recently that I noticed where you went to some lengths to describe how to get the most out of you how to get the best out of you. I noticed it and thought it was a really, really good idea. And something that would be helpful if we all had something like that and shared it with our managers. Do you want to say a bit more about that and what caused you to put that out there?

Rachel Johnson: 28:30

Sure. It was actually I had a quite a nasty accident in 20, the start of 2022 I was running down a mountain and my foot actually slipped on the top of a rock forcing my other foot to go straight down on a tree trunk, but I actually ended up dislocating and breaking my ankle in seven places. So I had the adrenaline version of being winched off the mountain by the rescue helicopter. And I must say that the rescue helicopters did such an amazing job and little bit of a plug for them. But they're actually fully rely on donations. And we couldn't we couldn't survive without them. So rushed off to hospital and had surgery on the breaks in my ankle, and was promptly told by the surgeon, I would have to have a minimum of six to eight months of work. Obviously, that prompted a lot of thinking time. And during that time, I thought you know, there's a lot of people on LinkedIn and a lot of people that I talked to who are currently not working or looking for their next opportunity and whether that be COVID related, whether that be to pivot into a change and I thought what's going to make me stand out a little bit differently. And I thought one of the things for me is that there's a lot of things that you can't say in a one hour interview to a prospective manager. And it's all those soft skills and I've found in my in my experience that a a lot of interviews end up being a list of questions that they're asking every candidate the same question, and then just comparing answers. So I thought what's something that actually differentiates me. And I think that that is my Soft Skills and the way that I think and I put that post on LinkedIn, because it's things that have come up in my experiences, which have perhaps been misinterpreted by management or leadership in the respect of my actions may not have been my intention. I don't mean that in necessarily a good or a bad way. And it can be both, but perhaps it's my style of thinking was a little bit different to theirs. And so I thought, if I summarise it all into a little blurb, then it really gets the point through and as you comment on having read that Andy, I think, for example, one of the things I put in there was, and I entitled it Dear future boss, but I, you know, I've got, I've always got your back, but only if you've got mine. And I think that's something that I'm really big on honesty and integrity and accountability. And one of the other things was that I put my hand up, and I get frustrated when I will suggest things and propose ideas and try and move the business ahead. And it's business related. And it sort of gets shut down. And then I see someone else suggesting exactly the same thing. And it gets, it gets accepted. So yeah, I thought, Look, you know, it's something that's a little bit different. And it's certainly, the post has certainly resonated or been read by a number of people who have also viewed my profile from that. And I think it's perhaps being in automotive that there's a lot of people in automotive who have fallen into it, rather than directly wanting to be in it. And perhaps, and a lot of them have come through from selling cars as a 16 year old or 17 year old. And the tenure within the industry has meant that they've worked their way up. And their thinking style is a little bit different from perhaps someone who's come through from university, and then finance and banking systems. So I guess in some ways, it was kind of explaining where I come from. And what's really important to me in the soft skills area that perhaps a question and an interview doesn't give you an opportunity to express so. So yeah, it's definitely got a bit of interest. And it is things that to me, I'm being authentic and true to myself, by putting it out there and saying, This is how I work. And if it doesn't work for you, we're never going to have a close working relationship.

Andy: 32:49

So as you say, it was entitled or started Dear future boss. So that caught my eye as being original way to start. And then, when I was reading it, I was thinking there's a lot of experience gone into this. These are hard learned, this awareness, a lot of self awareness there, that I'm sure there was some challenging times along the way, where were these that come to the fore. And because I'm a big fan of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. And in the I think it's the 25th anniversary edition of that book, the foreword is written by Jim Collins, he wrote the foreword to the seven habits of highly effective people 25th anniversary edition, and he describes it as like, an operating system for human beings, the seven habits, and that made me think that ah you're kind of putting out there, this is the operating manual or a user guide for me, Dear future boss, if you know, if you want to make the most out of get the most out of me, these are some of the things to be aware of. And I thought that was good. And I do an exercise with some of the leaders I work with where I'll get them to ask their team so if I want to get the best out of you, what should I stop, start and keep doing. And then they leave the room and we have a bit of a discussion around what we think we're going to tell tell the leader, and it just gives them accelerates their opportunity to get the most out of the people in their team. And you were doing that you were proactively sticking that to instruction manual or user guide on LinkedIn for your future boss, and I really liked it.

Rachel Johnson: 34:29

From my point of view, Andy, it's also, as you said, it's lessons learned over my career path. And if I go back to when I started in automotive 20 years ago, the most common words that I heard was, but you're a female, what are you doing in cars? What do you know about cars? Yeah, there's some challenges right from there, and there's so many different ways of managing and I think in my own experience, I've taken what's good and created my own paths. And I've also taken what's bad and know that I never want to act in that way. So we've we've all had good and bad experience throughout our career. And I will just throw in there as well while you're talking about leadership and books, and so on. And there's a book that was written by a guy called Martin Hoffman. And I'll double check that for you called American icon. And that's actually the story of how Alan Mullally came into Ford and turned the business around at GFC, GM, Ford and Chrysler or went cap in hand to get a bailout, Ford chose to bring Alan Mulally into the business and he turned round and went, we don't need a bailout, we're not going to rely on the government to do it. We're going to do it internally. And it's his story about what he did to turn around the brand during GFC. And some of the leadership quotes or ideas that he had are just really, really fascinating. And one of the key things that has always resonated and always stuck with me, he's said, people said to him, why did you come out and say all these things to the media before you spoke to the board? And he said, because then I'm accountable to the people. I thought that was a really interesting way of putting it that he made the comments in a public forum, because he knew then he had to actually perform and achieve on those, there was no hiding from the results, because he put it out in public first. And I really liked that, because I thought that actually showed me that he was true to form and he was being his authentic self. And he believed in what he could do.

Andy: 36:41

Excellent. Thank you very much for explaining that, Rachel. And if people want to, if they're curious about I wanna see, what did she put in this in this note, I'm saying well go to Rachel's LinkedIn, and look her up, and you'll find it in her post history there. So there's, for the curious ones, you'll go and see what does it look like, rather than spell it all out for you now? Let me take a moment to tell you about our sponsor. Could you use some additional experience resources who can work alongside you and your team on a flexible basis to help you achieve your priorities? I started Aquilae in 2016. And since then, we've worked internationally with established automotive OEMs, EV startups, fintechs, and insurance companies to achieve their unique mobility goals. Aquilae team members are highly experienced senior leaders with complementary areas of expertise who've run businesses and divisions internationally in our industry. Because we've all had many years experience of operating in the industry ourselves, we don't just advise our clients on what to do. Instead, we tend to work alongside them delivering their specific projects. We're happy to develop strategy, and we're equally happy to then get involved delivering the plan. Mobility businesses are all about people, processes and technology. We leverage our Aquilae Academy for people development, and Aquilae Consulting for those wider business topics. To give you some examples of the sort of work we do through the Aquilae Academy, we work with CEOs and their first line to develop cohesive leadership teams. We create continuous learning environments for leadership development, we develop bespoke programmes to improve the performance of specific teams, and we provide one to one coaching for high performing individuals. To give you some examples of the sort of work we do through Aquilae Consulting. We help create paperless digital end to end customer journeys for direct to consumer finance and subscription models. We conduct strategic reviews. For example, one client asked us what's the best financial services structure for each market we operate in. We produce feasibility studies for new market entry, we advise on and support regulatory applications. We help design, implement and monitor regulatory compliance procedures. We run tenders and vendor selection projects, we conduct end to end operational reviews to improve effectiveness and efficiency. If you're looking for some help with people or business topics, and you like the idea of having some additional very experienced resources, who can work flexibly alongside you, please get in touch with me for a conversation. You can email me directly at andy@aquilae.co.uk. Okay, let's get back to our episode. Let's go back to how you got into You've mentioned a number of times automotive's your passion and we know you've had a number of jobs in automotive, so I want to talk about some of those. So let's go back to Arthur Andersen two years there or Accenture as it became what came after that and when did you get into automotive?

Rachel Johnson: 39:32

So I went back to the States spent time in Los Angeles, then came back to New Zealand. I actually got into automotive through a friend that I had gone to university with who was the sales manager for Peugot in New Zealand. And we were away for a weekend and he was talking in a group about anyone could come up with ideas to increase the sales of Peugot and I thought You know, I'm actually giving him some ideas that he's quite liking, and I'm producing more out of this conversation than him. And it's a passion of mine. If he can do it, then I can do it. So I decided that I wanted to learn the industry from the ground up. And I actually went into a dealership as a f&i or business manager, doing finance and insurance in the dealership world. So I started learning the ropes from that, and I had a fantastic dealer principal, by the name of John Hazelmore, and he had come from Toyota, the dealership I was that was a Volvo dealership. And he said to me, You're too good for this dealership. And that's something that I thought was just such a lovely thing to say. But he said, the way that you think the way that you interact your skills is too good for a dealership, you need to be putting yourself into an OEM or a manufacturing level business so that you can continue your own corporate career. Again, that showed me leadership that he was actually prepared to offer me that as my manager, that he could see some potential there. So being involved,

Andy: 41:14

he was putting your interests before his immediately then,

Rachel Johnson: 41:18

yep. Then there was a role that came up and it was actually in Australia. For a regional manager for Volvo. I thought, well, I'm already working in the dealership world. So I literally just threw in my CV, and said I'm open to moving and I know the brand, and I love the brand and familiar with the way that you work because New Zealand was being operated from Australia anyway. And I was fortunate to get the job. So I packed up everything again and moved to Sydney, and was looking after Victoria, Tasmania, Western Australia, and South Australia, so almost half of Australia's my territory. To put it in perspective back then that was only nine dealerships. Nine dealerships and a lot of travel

Andy: 42:05

A lot of territory. Yeah. So it sounds quite effortless. Rachel, were you just that comfortable moving? Having done your OE? Or were there some challenges associated with going to Sydney and having a region going from being an f&i or business manager in a dealership to suddenly having regional responsibility?

Rachel Johnson: 42:29

Look, I believed that I had got the job because I sold myself as the best candidate. I did find out at an end of month drinks, there was a manager, not my immediate manager, but a manager who said to me, the only reason that you were employed is because head office told us we needed more females in management positions. But that meant, well, that means I have to prove that I can also actually do the job. And as you'd know, we've always can, there is no way that you will be able to get away with employing someone that had that view. These days. I was lucky enough, I guess that I had moved to different cities before. So I knew sort of what to do. And I thought I did think it's Australia, it's going to be just like New Zealand, as everyone says. And as you'd know yourself Andy, it's completely different.

Andy: 43:28

Yeah, you're absolutely right. If you're sitting in Europe, and you're looking at the map, and Australia and New Zealand look pretty close to each other from over here. And you assume that they're very similar, and they're not. So what differences Did you notice when you went to Australia?

Rachel Johnson: 43:45

So being in Sydney, I noticed, obviously, the size and the busyness of the city, compared to New Zealand, everything was a lot more fast paced. The other thing I noticed straightaway, was that I found it really, really difficult to find anyone that would actually help. So I found that there was a lot of challenges around getting things done. The people were a lot of people were very caught up in that outside of work, was there a time or that sort of thing. So I'll be honest, that I didn't really enjoy Sydney as much as I thought I would but it was giving me a really good opportunity. And it also gave me a great opportunity to be able to see the rest of Australia through the territories I was looking after. So that was one of the big challenges. So I found it very fast, very cutthroat, very. Dog Eat Dog. If I can say that term. I actually had someone in my wider team who offered to show me around Sydney, this is as an example. And we were driving around and so on. And then at the end of the day, he said, and I'm looking for a flatmate and I need someone to pay xyz dollars in my house. And I'm like, Ah, so you spent the day doing all of this for me because you want somebody. And sure enough, that was his gig. So I just didn't resonate with Sydney. But I knew that I was there for my career. And that it was doing what it needed to do. I never felt that Sydney was going to be my home forever. Yeah, so I stayed there and did my time. How long did you do? So I was in Sydney for two years.

Andy: 45:32

Right. Thanks for sharing that. Because it sounds so glamorous that you you know, you went from the f&i role in the dealership in in Auckland to going over to Sydney, it sounds exciting, and you, you know, get a regional job. But thanks for pointing out that actually, it was quite tough, and it was hard yards, and you knew you were doing it for your career. And because this is the side that you know, you don't get on the Instagram, you know, the real version is people have to work hard and suck up a couple of years, because that's what's required at the time.

Rachel Johnson: 46:07

Andy as well that I actually I went over to Sydney on my own, so I didn't have the support of a partner or family. I didn't know anybody in Sydney, and I'd never been there before. So I was literally starting from scratch.

Andy: 46:21

What sort of age were you at, then?

Rachel Johnson: 46:25

I was early 30s

Andy: 46:28

And were you thinking towards the end of that, right I'm gonna go back to New Zealand, or what were your thoughts? What transition did you do?

Rachel Johnson: 46:36

My transition was probably a bit different to what a lot of people do. And that I will go where the best opportunity or the best job is, as opposed to the place I want to go and then get a job. So little bit round the other way.

Andy: 46:53

Right, so you prioritise the job over the location? Yep. And what was the driver for putting the career first if you

Rachel Johnson: 47:03

Yeah, I think that that was probably a bit like? inherent from family. Both my father and my brother are extremely career driven, and have always had career first to provide them with where they wanted to be in life. So I think that probably the dinner table conversations when I've been growing up, I've always been around business, and in leadership, and decision making and nothing out around the table, different opportunities, and so on. So my brothers are a CFO. So the conversations have always dealt around that. And I think that, that always permeates into your mindset, when those are the conversations that are going on around you all the time. So to me, it was also that I always been very independent, and I'll never, I will never rely on somebody else. I like having my own independence. So for me, it was the one thing that no one can ever take away from me is my career.

Andy: 48:07

You've grown up in an environment where career progression and we heard the story, the short story of your dad's career progression, which is very impressive, and your brother's also successful. So that was the environment that you grew up in, where you did talk about careers, and you did talk about what good jobs were and transparently make those decisions or hear about decisions that were being made and what was being evaluated. And then you're independent, and you want, you want to preserve that. And so what's within my control, I will I'm going to make the career decisions that are going to allow me to stay independent, and allow me to progress. Okay, so where did that mean you ended up then after Sydney?

Rachel Johnson: 48:53

What I will add in there as well Andy that another analogy but, going around that sitting at the dinner table and listening to conversations in the office and so on. And there's the old quote that there's a reason why you've got two ears and one mouth because you should spend double the time listening than what you do talking. So putting that in mind, I've always been someone who will listen to what's going on around me and be aware of what's going on around me because I'm learning. I'm learning something different. And in fact, in my post, I put I know stuff about other departments. And it's literally is that whole, like, open plan office. I'm working but I'm also listening as to how things are being approached and what's being discussed and what's going on at all different levels of the business. So I think that that's where I get that whole I know stuff. But it's not necessarily on my CV, because it's stuff that I've learned by hearing and listening and picking up different conversations. So

Andy: 49:55

yeah, that curiosity, a number a good number of my I guests have you know been curious about what's going on around them and not stayed in their lane if you like, or their their cubicle or their department. But they've wandered around and got to know people and understand how their bit of the business works and how it all links together. And that's been part of their progression. But yeah, difficult to stick on a CV, that skill,

Rachel Johnson: 50:23

I always had my own personal goal of wanting to either be a national sales manager or run a car brand. To me, I've always thought the more I know about the industry, and every department, the personalities and the differences, and what's in and out of the industry, the more that as I go through my career, it's going to make my career easier, because I already know this information. So I've spent, I would spend a lot of time wanting to know and wanting to understand and understand how what someone else does fits into what I'm doing

Andy: 51:03

very internally motivated to learn this stuff, and you're taking ownership of your journey, and you knew where you wanted to go. And you saw this as a good way to increase your chances of getting there. And we know you do without wanting to spoil anything we know you do get. So the other thing I noticed I liked just your reference to the sitting around the dinner table, and the image that conjures up of, you know, family dinner times where topics are being discussed, and the younger members of the family are involved and can listen and learn. And I just think that's really valuable. And it's good to hear. And you also mentioned, you know, learning from colleagues, and I've got em I'm interested as well in how much we learn from our colleagues that certainly when we're in the office together, and I've got my own thoughts, which I won't go into now about you know, what we miss out when we're not working in an office together and learning from each other. So did you say what we haven't got, I haven't got that far yet have I as to where this took you after Sydney?

Rachel Johnson: 52:10

So I ended up basically in a nutshell, I came back to New Zealand for family reasons. But I did spend time with Holden as a regional manager, same same different personal reasons wanted to come back to New Zealand for a while. And then I went back over to Australia again. So yeah, so I was at Holden doing a regional sales role for a while, and then went back over went to work for pet Pricer on a contract. Now the reason for that was it was in dealer development, network development. And that was a skill that I felt that I needed to hone a little bit more deeper on to personally as part of my career journey that interested me, but I didn't know it inside out. So I was lucky enough to to get a contract and be able to, to hone my skills and learn from that as well. So having been in original role, you sort of get fed in reports and so on from network development, I wanted to understand how it all operated. Yes, so I did, I did the contract. And then when that finished, I ended up back in New Zealand part time. And basically from then I ended up getting a roll with Ford and went up to Brisbane. So across the ditch again. And again, all of these moves have been for the job that's really appealed to me. And I will say as well that I've actually transferred myself so I paid my own costs for my job, knowing that I'm going to reap the benefits.

Andy: 53:45

So you've invested in your career personally. Yeah. After that first experience in Sydney Did you find next time you went back to Australia? It was a bit easier?

Rachel Johnson: 53:56

Yes, 100%. Definitely. I already had those basics setup then as well. So bank accounts, Medicare, driver's licence, what areas that were good or bad to live and what the process was to get somewhere. All those sorts of basics. Were already in line. I went to Brisbane, I had a friend in Brisbane. So again, I was staying with a friend when I first got there, which was a bit of support as well. Ultimately, Melbourne is my favourite city in Australia. Absolutely love Melbourne. It's such a it's a little London. For those people that haven't been to Australia. I always think Sydney is like a small Los Angeles and Melbourne is like a small London

Andy: 54:42

being British I can't possibly not mention the weather um, I think the weather's better than London but that"s just our obsession. I love Melbourne too. And I think I was saying before we started recording we have our highest percentage of listeners to this podcast are in Melbourne. So Well, hi folks in Melbourne, you lucky people you. So I also love this example of your comfort zone getting bigger. So the first time you went over to Sydney, it was uncomfortable for lots of reasons. But once you've done it once you've expanded your comfort zone by doing the uncomfortable thing. You were then hopping backwards and forwards. I'm sure it wasn't super straightforward. And there would have been challenges each time. But

Rachel Johnson: 55:28

yeah, and I think too with is the advantage that New Zealand citizens can work on a reciprocal arrangement, technically, without a visa in Australia. I say technically, because it is a visa, but it's an open ended visa, and you don't need to go through any visa requirements. As a New Zealand passport holder, you automatically get working rights in Australia.

Andy: 55:50

So what happened next, what were we up to?

Rachel Johnson: 55:53

So I went to Ford. And that was again, you mentioned briefly there, Andy, comfort zones. I got the job and made the decision to go to Ford Australia, one week after Ford announced that they were closing manufacturing in Australia,

Andy: 56:14

one week before or one week after

Rachel Johnson: 56:17

One week after. So they announced they were closing manufacturing. And then I got the job offer and accepted it a week later. Right. I was really again, it's the curiosity, I was really interested into what they were going to do because they held such a large market share, I was interested in in what they were going to do with the brand. I also had my interview with my manager, my first manager at Ford, a gentleman by the name of Robert DeFilippo. And a extremely, extremely talented manager, extremely talented person who really summed it up for me in such a way that I really understood the journey that Ford was about to embark on, and that he was leading. And I was excited about that journey. But I was also excited about the opportunity to work for and learn from someone like Rob, and I'd still say this day I hold him in the most highest regard.

Andy: 57:16

And you knew, you were mindful at that stage of the benefits of getting yourself a really good boss.

Rachel Johnson: 57:25

Definitely. I think that one thing that stood out in my career is that getting a really good manager is absolutely paramount to your own career journey. And that self awareness, that person will make or break your journey. And I fully believe that that is the case. If you can't trust and get along with your manager, then there's going to be all sorts of issues within the team anyway.

Andy: 57:54

So choose wisely.

Rachel Johnson: 57:56

Yep, it's not just about the job because it looks glamorous on paper. And I'm sure that you've had this as well, Andy, people think that the job when you give your job title sounds very glamorous, because you're an automotive and you're in brand new, sparkly, shiny cars all the time. And I always say, Yeah, but you've got to remember that you actually only drive that company vehicle of yours to and from work, you're spending eight to 10 hours in the office, you might be talking about bright and shiny cars. But you're certainly not spending eight to 10 hours a day driving. That's a perk of the job, just like someone who works for Coca Cola gets free cans of Coke. It's the product that you're working with. And it's a pretty exciting product. And I always equate it to FMCG because it is a fast moving product, the industry moves so fast, and there's always something newer and better. And the competition is doing something else. And there's constant change going on. And it's really important to be able to match your own personality and skill set to the manager that's going to take you on that journey so that you can really create a cohesive team.

Andy: 59:05

And I imagine you treat it very much when you're going for an interview or looking at an opportunity. It's very much a mutual process of are we a good fit?

Rachel Johnson: 59:14

Yeah, and I've made some decisions that weren't necessarily a good fit in my past. And I will say that, when that's happened, I've walked out of an interview and haven't felt like it's 100% the right thing for my journey. But I've made exceptions and kind of ah but ah but

Andy: 59:35

You've talked yourself into it.

Rachel Johnson: 59:38

Yeah, yep. And what I've initially thought were my immediate potential reservations have ended up coming to fruition. So I know now that I've got to be true to myself, and that's how the manager is going to get the best out of me is that I'm true to myself, which makes me able to be true to them.

Andy: 59:58

So listen to your intuition in these meetings and don't let your ego or some other part of you talk you out of it or talk you into something that doesn't feel right.

Rachel Johnson: 1:00:08

Yeah.

Andy: 1:00:10

What happened after Ford?

Rachel Johnson: 1:00:12

I was in Brisbane at Ford, we actually established a team, which was the consumer experience team. And what we found was that people bought Fords, they didn't actually like Fords. So we're at the bottom of all of customer satisfaction. So it was basically a team put together to turn around people's perception. And that was the start of turning the brand in Australia from a manufacturing company into a national sales company, looking after the customer. So really interesting journey. And I then got transferred down to Melbourne head office. And my last role of Ford was running all of the events for customers and dealers. So new car launches, dealer meeting meetings, conferences, that side of it, which I really loved. Because, again, then I was playing with bright and shiny all day.

Andy: 1:01:02

Yeah, it's big budgets.

Rachel Johnson: 1:01:07

Yeah. So we were doing, we were lucky to have products like taking Mustangs on race tracks and taking the new Ranger Raptors driving that sort of stuff. But you know that there's a lot as you know, there's a lot that goes on behind the scenes, and it's bright and shiny during the day. But at night, I was sitting there making up goodie bags and putting lanyards on name cards and sorting out table settings then and that side of it. And that's the side that people don't see. And if you're putting on a good event, they don't need to see they don't need to know, all they need to see is the face that's on while they're attending an event

Andy: 1:01:49

What happened then what what did you choose to do next,

Rachel Johnson: 1:01:52

So the consumer experience team was actually disbanded. The reason for that is that we had gone from the bottom of the heap number 17 in sales and service, up to number three, number four, in external, so JD Power surveys and so on. So we've really gone as far as what we could do with the results and so on, the team was disbanded, I was offered a redundancy which I chose to take. And I then moved into a role at Suzuki something a bit different as business development manager. I wasn't there for very long, because there was this little thing called COVID that that hit the market. I actually came back to New Zealand, I was at Suzuki for only about eight or nine months. But I came back because New Zealand borders were closing. And I did have my life set up in Australia. However, when there's a pandemic going on, and your own country is closing its borders to it's own citizens, it's quite a scary thought when you don't know how long it's going to go on for. The other thing that people don't realise is that although you have reciprocal rights in Australia to work as a New Zealand passport holder, you don't actually qualify for any government assistance or benefits whatsoever. So my fear was that if something happened to my role, or my job, I would be in a situation of not being able to return to my home country. And this did happen to people and not being able to get any assistance as required. So that's was my reason for leaving and coming back to New Zealand. And I came in three days before the borders closed.

Andy: 1:03:47

Wow. I'm thinking about your your desire to be independent and to have financial security. Sometimes people can be happy enough with their ability to work. So they take a sense of security about they know they'll be able to work and they'll be able to make money rather than because they got particular job. So, for example, you offered redundancy by Ford, and you take it is that because you know you don't derive a sense of security from having a particular job with Ford, but you derive a sense of security from knowing I have the skills, the knowledge, the experience, the mindset, the capability if you like to find another job.

Rachel Johnson: 1:04:33

Yeah, a bit of both, really. And I think that just knowing that exactly as you say the skills capability and mindset. I also thought that I had crossed transferable skills within an industry. But I also felt that yeah, I guess that it was that whole What's next? What's next? What's next for me? And I knew that what we'd achieved as a team at Ford really put me in a very strong position, because anyone in automotive had seen what Ford had done on the journey, and to be able to have that on my CV as part of my journey as well. And it definitely has definitely moved me in a different or in the right path. Because more and more manufacturers or automotive are really understanding that as brands come together and amalgamate at high level and at factory, and they're all working together, or buying each other out, the only thing that really can differentiate the brands is the people. And I think that people are becoming more aware of the importance of the people. And if you go to three or four dealerships, even if it's the same brand, you're going to buy from the person that you like the best. That's the bottom line. That's human nature, people buy from people they like. So I think more and more that being able to have on my CV, that time at Ford, particularly around that the customer or consumer experience field shows that I really understand the whole customer journey. And it doesn't end, it's only just beginning, when that customer gets in the car and drives out of the dealership after buying the car, that's just the very, very start. Because any brand wants that customer to come back, whether it be the servicing, to tell the friends to buy another one, all of that sort of stuff. So I think it's becoming a really critical part of any brand is the customer side of it. So I really wanted to be able to pass on my learnings and my experience and to other brands so that we can really turn around some of the negativity in the industry, and show that it is actually customer friendly. And it's not the Cowboys of the 1970s. anymore, it's really about so much easier to keep a customer than get a new customer. And yet we sit there and keep on pushing and pushing and pushing what our monthly sales figures for new cars are and new customers. But are we looking at our retention figures, which to me tell you a lot more because if you bought once, and then you buy again, how many people are you telling that you've stuck with the same brand? And how many of those people are saying, well, it must be good because to buy the same one again?

Andy: 1:07:26

Yeah, there's no stronger signal is there? You scraped back into New Zealand three days before the borders closed, presumably with no job at that point. It was just I've got to get home and straight into lockdown, I guess.

Rachel Johnson: 1:07:44

So I did my ten days in managed isolation to be able to, of course, yeah, get through. That was challenging. Certainly when you're in a room that you can't come out of for 10 days, it is an interesting proposition, the way that I tackled that was rather than thinking of it as 10 days before I could get out I actually started my countdown while I was still in Australia. So by the time I actually got into managed isolation, I was halfway through my time, so to speak.

Andy: 1:08:16

That's interesting psychological game.

Rachel Johnson: 1:08:19

That made it a lot easier. I think, when people were going, Oh, my goodness, I've got 10 days ahead. I'm going I'm halfway through my time and of my countdown. So So yes, no came back, no job, but knowing that at least, if I needed to, I could get financial support short term on any benefits and so on. I hate that term having to go on to benefit as required. But even as my dad said to me, you're actually the person that a benefit was originally designed for where you are between jobs because of circumstances outside of your control. And that's why you're getting a little bit of cash to help you out. So again, that positivity of overcoming it. So yeah, so I came back without a job and my stuff on a ship on its way back.

Andy: 1:09:13

And so then how do you because I know you then did get a job. So how did you get the next job.

Rachel Johnson: 1:09:17

So I randomly saw a role that I didn't know whether I would get or not. And applied for it because I needed a job and that was moving into a role as New Zealand Country Manager for MG. Very small brand at that stage in New Zealand. So 160 cars a month was the volume that I entered into and obviously being able to use those skills that I had honed through all the different areas and understanding different sides of the business and understanding not just sales but what goes on behind it and and the numbers and the figures and budget and after sales and customer and marketing, etc, etc. So I started at MG as Country Manager, being that it's a small brand and a small team. So, as I said, volume was 160 cars a month. And there were six people in the team being managed out of Australia. So it was really like a small regional office of an Australian branch.

Andy: 1:10:26

And did you have your own dealers?

Rachel Johnson: 1:10:28

Yep. So 14 dealers in New Zealand at the time. So I joined them. And in the time I joined, it took me three months to get the volume up to 450 sales a month. So

Andy: 1:10:41

Good growth then. What was driving that Rachel?

Rachel Johnson: 1:10:46

the main driver was the clean care rebate. So

Andy: 1:10:46

Right. So you could see the opportunity coming. moving into the EV space, although it certainly helped and the clean car rebate is very significant in New Zealand. It's$8,600 rebate on a new new EV or$4600 on a hybrid new hybrid. So very substantial. But in saying that, and in fact, my manager has said, you've done your volume off the clean car rebate. And I responded, but But you had to have all your ducks in a row. And I'd actually been talking to procurement or manufacturing in China. And I'd said to them, again, it's that inherent business style. And I said to them, don't worry about past history, don't worry about sales, give me every EV you can get, I'll just take them all, don't care. what they were saying was, but it doesn't fit with your sales history. I don't care. Don't care, I'll sell them. That's my problem. That's what I do. You just get me the cars. So I took a risk. And when the clean car rebate came out, I had all of a whole lot of EVs already on a ship anyway. So we could actually meet demand, while others were scrambling to try and increase the amounts.

Rachel Johnson: 1:12:07

Yeah, I mean, New Zealand is known as a very green country. And we tend to adopt these things a lot faster. We also don't get caught up with red tape and bureaucracy as much as some other countries. So I knew that we could move fast. And I could see the increase in the volume. And I could see the opportunity that that's the way the market was moving into that green area. And if I didn't take them, someone else was going to. So being a small country and small volume, if I didn't put my hand up, we could miss out altogether. S o yes, I said put your reports away, put your put your past history away, don't care, it's a whole different game that we're playing, just send me everything you can, I then also worked with with my PR person. And as you've seen, like one of the biggest problems in New Zealand is actually supply. And that's a key for all of the media onto the supply, supply supply supply. So I said to them, what we're going to do is compile a message, whereby we have a message in the media, that we have consistent supply. Behind the scenes, that was then a matter of managing the supplies that were coming in to ensure that we could the old Alan Mullalle rule, put it into the media, then you're accountable. So making sure that I could actually live on what we'd put out in the media and provide that consistent supply. Didn't say a number, just that every month, there was EV sales. I also put the message out there very loud and clear that MG was the most affordable on the market, after clean car rebate. It was overcoming those objections that were in the public space. For those that said EVs were too expensive, this is how much it's gonna cost you. So putting out some messaging around the same time as the rebate was coming in. And being able to get those live and to market very, very quickly meant that we did manage to capitalise on it. But you still had to have the work done behind the scenes to make sure that you could fulfil that. So there's a lot of planning and a lot of strategy. When I left it kind of went a little bit haywire of just getting everything out and sold. But that's a different message from a different person now, so that was my plan was just to do that. And then I fell down a mountain and broke my ankle.

Andy: 1:14:31

That brought an end to that particular role then and gave you quite a long recovery area to go through and now you're back on your feet.

Rachel Johnson: 1:14:39

I'm back on my feet I now have medical clearance for full work duties. So to put it in perspective, I was actually in a cast for nearly five months and Yeah 23 screws and two plates. So I did a did a number on it.

Andy: 1:14:54

You won't be going through that metal detector in Dallas without making

Rachel Johnson: 1:14:58

Well I had haven't actually been overeas again since I had the accident so I'm just waiting to see what what happens when I go through and jump on an international flight. But I have actually also got my full medical clearance for full duties not just in a tree. So that makes all the difference. And again, my tenacity, I was told the surgeon told me it would be at least two years, and I'm 15 months in and full clearance. So I'm not back in my full work high heels and stilettos. But I'm all moving around and completely mobile now.

Andy: 1:15:34

Very good. And what are you looking for next? And Rachel,

Rachel Johnson: 1:15:38

I'm looking for something that is, obviously, the points in my Dear future boss on LinkedIn. But one thing I've really learned as well, and I guess I've probably had the opportunity by having some time out during my interim during my rehab and what's really important to me is getting that very supportive manager that I can work with that has a thinking style the same as me, but understands that the way that I do it may be a little bit different from what they do, because I've got different experiences from them. And someone that appreciates the fact that I'll give 110% all the time. But I will ask questions, just to make sure that we really go into market or going in the public with the right messaging. I love my automotive I do. I'm very, very, very passionate. If my next move is something outside of the direct car, and in fact OEM level, then, maybe that's the way it's meant to be. In fact, my marketing person always said to me, I've never met anyone that knows just so much about every part of the industry. I guess for me, I spent 20 years in cars, that's what I know best. And I love it. I won't discount something else. But if I could be with another OEM, then that's where my passion lies.

Andy: 1:17:03

And given all your experience, how are you going about finding your next position?

Rachel Johnson: 1:17:10

So I'm on obviously, LinkedIn, things like LinkedIn jobs, and so on, I do, again, have the flexibility of being in either New Zealand or go back to Melbourne, or even up to Brisbane without no questions asked, because I know the places really well. The other thing that I do is I look at comments or posts on on LinkedIn, from my connections. And I look at actually who has commented on those posts, and what their roles their roles are. You never know, six degrees of separation, or three degrees and so on. I do keep my finger on the pulse, I'm lucky to still have very strong relationships with both dealers and staff that I've worked with, I still talk to them and and let them know my situation, you get nowhere without word of mouth. New Zealand works very much on networking, and who you know, and word of mouth and that kind of stuff as well.

Andy: 1:18:08

So you're self aware, you know, where you want to be, you know how people can get the best out of you, you know, you want a really good manager, you want someone who understands how you think and is able to accept you doing things in a slightly different way because of your different experience.

Rachel Johnson: 1:18:25

I do also I like working for a strong brand that has a good strategy in place as well.

Andy: 1:18:30

Well, is there anything I haven't asked you that you think I should have asked you? Because it sounds like we're very much at present day now.

Rachel Johnson: 1:18:40

I think we've pretty much covered everything pretty well, Andy? And yeah, look, it's been a journey. But the journey is certainly not over and only halfway through, really. So it's full steam ahead.

Andy: 1:18:53

Yeah. Well, I wish you all the very best in finding your next position. I look forward to hearing what it is. And so thank you very much indeed for joining me to share your career story so far.

Rachel Johnson: 1:19:07

Thank you for the time and I really appreciate it spending it with you and being able to get the word out there that everyone's got their own journey.

Andy: 1:19:14

You're welcome. You've been listening to Career-view Mirror with me, Andy follows. I hope you found some helpful points to reflect on in Rachel's story. Some of the points that resonated with me were her father experienced significant career development on his journey. Having left school at 14 and going back and doing an MBA. I imagine that mindset towards work and learning had an impact on Rachel. Some helpful support that she received from her parents like the message that you can study whatever you want, as long as you get a university degree and we'll pay for your university papers as long as you pass. The desire to be independent and put her career first, her self awareness about how to get the best out of her If you're her manager, her love of automotive and a curiosity to try different parts of the industry and get as broad an understanding as possible, the reminder that even someone who's self motivated and takes ownership of their career, can't control everything and the sudden dash back to NZ to get in three days before the borders closed because of COVID. Finally getting to the country manager position that she'd aspired to, identifying the opportunity for EVs in New Zealand and securing supply from China, borrowing a tactic from Alan Mulally by putting the message into the market, that supply would be consistent and growing the sales significantly as a result of those combined actions, only for that to be followed by another example of the impact of external factors and the misfortune of having an accident and having to be airlifted off a mountain by the Westpac Rescue Helicopter, and being signed off work. Her putting the Dear future boss post on LinkedIn and sharing what is effectively an operating manual or user guide for getting the best out of her if you're her manager, which prompted me to invite her to share her story in this episode. We wish Rachel all the best in her search for her next automotive position. If you'd like to reach out to her you'll find her LinkedIn contact details in our show notes. If you enjoy listening to my guests stories, please could you do me a favour and share an episode with someone you lead, parent or mentor or a friend you think might also benefit? Thanks for listening