The real deal

Women are an increasingly transformative force in our transport and logistics industry. One such example is Marle Visagie, general manager: dealer development at UD Trucks Southern Africa (UDTSA). An industry stalwart, Visagie has seen industry attitudes evolve firsthand. ROWAN WATT-PRINGLE spoke to her about how UDTSA empowers women across its dealerships. 

Tell us about your role and journey to get here. How did you navigate challenges in a male-dominated industry? 

As general manager: dealer development, I’m responsible for UD Trucks’ South African dealer network, comprising 39 private dealers, from big commercial groups to smaller private investors. I’m involved in competence development, appointing dealers, and developing dealer standards and training.

I began in passenger vehicles… moving to CVs was a huge jump! It took time for people to get used to having women in this industry, but things have changed a lot – women are much more accepted now and definitely welcomed in the UD Trucks network. From my experience, confidence and assertiveness were key, as was good mentorship: I had an amazing, experienced mentor, Johan van der Merwe, whose position I took over when he retired. Women shouldn’t be afraid to ask for advice, and above all be proactive – seek out growth and development opportunities and build a strong network.

What inspired UDTSA to focus on empowering women? How does this align with your overall business strategy?

We have a huge focus on diversity; women are obviously an integral part of that. Diversity brings more creativity, different perspectives, and innovative problem-solving – it is one of our biggest success factors. Being a woman definitely makes me more passionate about women’s empowerment. Because of some of the obstacles I’ve had to deal with, I empathise with their challenges and I see all their positive contributions. Empowering women isn’t just the right thing to do, it makes good business sense.

This is why we’re very proud of our partnership with Commercial Transport Academy (CTA) and the establishment of the UD Trucks “Ultimate Women Program”. The programme was launched in 2022 and its primary objective is to offer extensive year-long training to young women to become professional truck and bus drivers. We consider ourselves a smart, modern, and innovative brand that wants to do things differently. Women provide a huge amount of this impetus – they are key drivers of progress and growth in their communities, exemplifying our “Better Life” purpose: Better for people, Better for the planet, and Better for growth.

Can you tell us about specific initiatives empowering women in your dealer network?

Our role is to offer development opportunities and we’re investing a lot in developing women managers. In October, we were recognised with naamsa’s Accelerator Award for spearheading Women and Youth Empowerment, showing our commitment and diversity – but we plan to do more. 

We’re moving away from one- and two-day training programmes towards longer curricula qualifying candidates for specific roles. We actively engage dealers to fill at least 30% of training slots with women. We’re also really keen to appeal more to young women starting their careers. Our cadet programme in particular aims to grow the number of women cadets across the network, bringing fresh talent into the industry.

How does UDTSA ensure equal opportunities for development and advancement within your dealerships?

Management used to be very much a man’s world, but women have proved themselves repeatedly. They are highly sought after in our network. We ensure women are allocated spots on management training programmes, and dealers

send management candidates to us for assessment; we always appoint the best candidate regardless of gender. I believe this bodes very well for the company’s future. 

About Girl Power

This inspiring new series in collaboration with UD Trucks Southern Africa (UDTSA) pays tribute to the accomplishments of leading ladies in the industry and the profound impact they have made in paving the way towards a more inclusive and vibrant industry.