Consumer Services
Manufacturing
Professional Services
Technology, Information and Media
Transportation, Logistics, Supply Chain and Storage
Utilities
Active

Niel

I help organizations and leaders navigate complex transformations

About Me

A life's career of successful Business Transformations across Verticals and Value Chains that inspires me to take challenges and "making it happen" through People and Technology! Currently leading Whitewater Reinventions, which is a global platform that provides Transformational-minded leaders, the opportunity to transition into building your own meaningful and value- adding business. Whitewater is also a system that helps organizations and leaders navigate complex transformations from within. I began my career in Electrical Engineering within the Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution sectors, before transitioning into Supply Chain Management across utilities and engineering. I later led Global Digital Transformation initiatives in the beverage industry, with a focus on operational efficiency, acquisitions, integrations, and divestments. Alongside this, I’ve built experiences as an entrepreneur and early-stage investor, supporting startups from concept through growth. Each pivot has deepened my ability to lead complex transformations—expertise I now apply at Whitewater, where I partner with organizations and leaders to navigate change and unlock strategic value from within.

Jurisdiction

South Africa | Australia | Colombia | Czech Republic | Ecuador | France | Germany | Ireland | Japan | Namibia | Netherlands | New Zealand | Norway | Panama | Poland | Portugal | Romania | Slovakia | Slovenia | Switzerland | United Kingdom | United States

Notable Employer

  • Global CEO and International Expert at Whitewater Reinventions
  • Chief Digital & Information Officer (CDIO) & Board Member at Asahi Breweries Europe Group
  • VP Global Business Process Management - GBS at SABMiller Plc
  • Group Supply Chain Lead – Shared Services at Eskom Holdings
  • Electrical Engineer (HC) at Eskom Holdings

Experience

Seniority LevelExecutive
Years of Experience20+ years
Current StatusActive
Global CEO and International Expert NotableWhitewater Reinventions
2021 - Present

CEO of Whitewater Reinventions, specializing in transformation, capability building, and execution support for complex change and transformation initiatives. We do not consult, we don't do strategy. We reinvent organisations from within. Full P&L accountability, with direct responsibility for operations, business development, revenue growth, EBITDA margin, cash discipline, client retention, delivery quality, and scalable IP development. Personally support and coach all International Experts' from on-boarding to successful client delivery. Industry agnostic and present in all major regions and diverse cultures and languages. • Critical role in supporting the founder and Chairperson building a reputable business model and service delivery to clients. • Led strategic initiatives that repositioned Whitewater Reinventions as an innovator in Transformation practices, which boosted brand visibility and attracted new partnerships in the FMCG, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Media & Broadcasting, Event Management and Energy sectors. • Oversaw a comprehensive stakeholder and partner onboarding design and implementation, driving 50% in growth of knowledge base, regional coverage and proven activation of new capabilities and capacity. • Championed a new global market expansion strategy, which increased international sales by 30% within the first year and opened valuable new revenue streams. • Fostered a culture of innovation by implementing regular brainstorming sessions across team members, which inspired creative business development approaches and product-market-fit solutions. • A trusted leader driving strategic growth initiatives, unlocking latent client potential, and accelerating pivotal international projects. • Cross-functional expert in ERP modernization, helping and partnering with clients to drive modern ERP roll-out methodologies. • Achieved significant client value delivery, including an 11-fold expansion in EV charging manufacturing, a four-fold revenue increase for a global FMCG client, and a $70 million optimisation of a worldwide automotive manufacturer’s P&L. • Developed and implemented digital onboarding and micro-learning platforms, hastening the digitalisation of methodologies and the adoption of GenAI products. • Fostered strategic partnerships with consulting and technology SMEs specialising in AI and Digital Twin solutions, enhancing business development and market positioning.

Chief Digital & Information Officer (CDIO) & Board MemberNotableAsahi Breweries Europe Group
2017 - 2020

Group CIO, reported to the CEO, accountable for enterprise technology strategy, ITOT, data, and operational performance enablement across 9 countries and 15 manufacturing sites. Acted as executive owner for digital initiatives directly tied to CEO KPIs, including revenue growth, EBITDA margin expansion, Cash Conversion Cycle improvement, OTIF reliability, safety, and sustainability reporting. • Successfully led a complex technology landscape divestiture from AB InBev, delivering under budget and exceeding quality and performance expectations. (SAP ERP, infrastructure, networks, applications, service delivery and support, BI/MI landscape, data and analytics, cyber security) • Developed and implemented an optimisation roadmap, achieving a 48% reduction in IT spending per NPR within two years post-divestment. • Directed a three-year Digital Transformation strategy, enhancing infrastructure and network capabilities, consolidating data centers, optimising IT/OT application landscapes, and ensuring sustainable operational models with favourable ROI. • Spearheaded the consolidation of EU and UK Group IT/OT functions for the Asahi portfolio during 2019/2020. • Contributed to 5-10% increase in revenue 2017-2020, +5% on core operating profit and +2% EPS attributed to the European group.

VP Global Business Process Management - GBS NotableSABMiller Plc
2010 - 2017

Global VP of Business Process Management for a multinational Beverage group. Accountable for designing and implementing global end-to-end processes, driving large-scale digitalisation, and leading post-merger integration across regions. Owned standardisation of main business processes Demand Fulfilment, Demand Generation, Demand Synchronisation, Enterprise Operations, Insight and Decision Making, Strategy and Governance, from L1 to L4 processes, with direct linkage to CEO-level Strategy and KPIs/OKR’s: revenue synergy capture, EBITDA margin improvement, working capital efficiency, service reliability, compliance, and scalability. During this time I also held the role of Director Solutions Deployment Lead - GBS and Director Global BPM - GBS (Distribution & Logistics) • Directed multiple strategic workstreams within SABMiller’s Global Digital Transformation Program (GBS), overseeing comprehensive business process re-engineering, governance, and design authority. • Led SAP ERP implementations across nine major geographical markets and twenty-seven breweries as part of a £1.6 billion program, successfully delivered over seven years. • Supported the effective strategic divestment of Coca-Cola Bottlers Africa (CCBA) from the SABMiller Group before AB InBev acquired SABMiller Plc. • Contribution to SABMiller pre acquisition results (NPR): US$24.15bn (+5%), Volumes +2%, FCF +6%, and EPS +12% (constant currency).

Engineering and Supply Chain Consultant NuGen Technologies
2010 - 2010

Freelance consultant and delivered strategic engineering and supply chain advisory services, optimising operational and manufacturing processes in the energy - utility sector.

Group Supply Chain Lead – Shared Services NotableEskom Holdings
2000 - 2010

Held cross-functional responsibility across electrical engineering, materials management, and supply chain operations in a national utility environment. Supported grid reliability, asset performance, maintenance execution, and inventory/capital efficiency for high-voltage infrastructure. Worked directly on availability, safety, service continuity, cost control, and working capital — the same levers later tracked at exec/CEO level. • Established a strategic sourcing organisation that achieved total-cost-of-ownership (TCO) savings exceeding R1.8 billion (ZAR) (audited) while continuously optimising the shared services model. Accountable for Materials Management: • Senior leader who reinvented and optimised multi-million procurement, inventory, warehouse management & logistics operations and services, which delivered leading and strategic capabilities to build and secure electricity supply to all commercial, industrial and domestic clients on a national scale.

Electrical Engineer (HC) NotableEskom Holdings
1991 - 2000

• Played a key role in delivering Eskom’s national capital expansion program (Generation, Transmission, Distribution), a multibillion-pound infrastructure project over a 20-year period. • Held senior engineering and operational leadership positions in critical electrical infrastructure maintenance, support, and management.

CEO & FounderN&N Plastics
1997 - 1999

CEO and co-founder of a plastics container and packaging manufacturing SME serving FMCG / personal care / food / industrial clients. Full P&L ownership: commercial growth, operations, supply chain, finance, people, and customer relationships. Responsible for driving revenue growth, EBITDA margin, cash discipline, service reliability, manufacturing efficiency, safety, and sustainability performance. • Founded and led a socially impactful packaging manufacturing enterprise, overseeing end-to-end business operations and achieving sustainable commercial success. • Implemented employment strategy of female-only workers with enormous success.

Education

Masters of Master of Business Administration (MBA) North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa
2000 - 2004
Degree of Bachelor's Degree in Commerce North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa
1994 - 1997
Diploma of Electrical EngineeringVaal University of Technology, Vanderbijlpark, South Africa
1986 - 1991
Project Management Diploma (PMI) University of Pretoria, School of Project Management
1997 - 1997

Skills

Core skills0
Languages2

Languages

English
Dutch