Tatenda Samukange Of Skylake Borehole Drilling - Young CEO on the Rise
ProWater Solutions caught up with 25-year-old Tatenda Samukange, founder and CEO of Skylake Borehole Drilling Company Zimbabwe.
With a complex background that entails a tale of rags to riches, Samukange describes his path as a fortune that arrived at the right time when he was ready to face whatever life could offer at a tender age.
MM: Tell us more about yourself.
TS: Tatenda Samukange is a 26-year-old even-keeled, industrious and business-oriented young man who grew up in the Chishawasha Suburbs, attended Chishawasha Primary School, and later completed Ordinary and Advanced Level at Rusununguko High School.
Born in Harare Zimbabwe, into a very small family. Tatenda always had a keen interest in cars and constantly impersonated any driver he would see, hoping to perhaps become a Formula One Driver one day. With a modest upbringing, Tatenda’s life in boarding school was comprised of the basic “dollar and a dream” narrative which ultimately landed him into the borehole drilling business soon after high school.
MM: If you had the chance to start your career over again, what would you do differently?
TS: I would definitely enter the industry with more insight on what the business requires, I was a victim of major setbacks as well as scams when I was starting off but I am still happy with all those things in particular because I don’t believe I lost, I learnt.
MM: What was your key driving force to become an entrepreneur?
TS: I would confidently say I coupled passion and grit, a unique passion for the work I was involved in, which should be a recipe for anyone who wants to go far.
MM: What would you say are the three top skills to be a successful businessman?
TS: My top three would be Creativity, Innovation, and Diligence. Above all one needs to be a leader, who grows, knows, and shows the way.
MM: What have been some of your failures and what have you learned from them?
TS: In terms of failures, as mentioned before, in 2018 while trying to secure my first drilling rig, thinking I had found a cheaper option. I was naive and did not exactly follow through in the acquisition processes, as a result, I was drawn back of my hard-earned money as the people I trusted to deliver were scammers, it taught me that sometimes “cheap is expensive”, one thing we have observed gravely at Skylake and it was through such a major setback that we learnt this.
MM: What services or products do you offer?
TS: We at Skylake offer geological siting, solar pump installation, tank installation, domestic boreholes, industrial boreholes, agricultural boreholes, domestic and agricultural irrigation, exploration holes, borehole maintenance, borehole rehabilitation (cleaning), borehole yield testing, borehole pump installations, borehole camera inspections and also completion and testing of unfinished boreholes. I would also call us the fastest-growing borehole drilling company.
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| Tatenda Samukange Of Skylake Borehole Drilling - Young CEO on the Rise |
TS: Our business is solely focused on having our team in alignment as to what the future looks like. The future is digital and as a result, we have kept up with the times in ensuring we are up-to-date with digital campaigns and models everywhere. This includes our individual objectives, company-wide strategic objectives, and even ideas for my own development as a business owner. We also do regular performance reviews, which I believe are key in keeping us on top.
MM: How far are you willing to go to succeed?
TS: Being a young business leader in a pool of older subordinates – that in itself makes me push myself harder every single time, allowing me to see the importance of not seeing a limit to the success and whatever I can do to see it through.
MM: How do you define success?
TS: I would define success as running a profitable establishment that conducts business with honesty and integrity, makes meaningful contributions to the communities it serves and nurtures high-quality, balanced lives for its employees.
MM: How do you build a successful customer base?
TS: We as Skylake have managed to build a successful customer base by doing the following; personalizing the customer’s experience, aiming for excellence, creating an interactive customer experience, leveraging customer advocates, utilizing customer service tools, harnessing social media which we have been really religious with, highlighting customer experience stories on these platforms and finally ensuring we obtain customer feedback.
MM: Who has been your greatest inspiration?
TS: I look very close to home a lot and consider the legendary Strive Masiyiwa, Executive Chairman and Founder of Econet Wireless to be a great inspiration to me, everyone who knows me is aware that goes without saying.
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| Tatenda Samukange Of Skylake Borehole Drilling - Young CEO on the Rise |
TS: It has to be the book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki and obviously the Holy Bible.
MM: What is your favourite aspect of being an entrepreneur?
TS: Perhaps for me, it’s because I am in the broader entrepreneurial space where I am among one of the youngest in the game so I would say what I favour most is the fact that everything that comes with being an entrepreneur right now is coming as early knowledge through some of the testing and challenging experiences and encounters.
MM: To what do you most attribute your success? What would you say are the five key elements of running a successful business?
TS: I would say the keys are Integrity, Innovation, Social Responsibility, Professionalism, and Accountability. These are pillars that have held us upright and unshaken as Skylake.
MM: What survival strategies do you think can work during this Covid-19 pandemic?
TS: Never underestimate the power of having a formidable and ‘out there’ online presence. It’s funny you asked that, because it was during this pandemic we hired our first-ever fully dedicated Marketing personnel and what I can say is the face and image of the company saw an incredible shift because of that. So I would say being digitally present also opens up to better and improved ways of making your product superior and faster and finally being GROUND-BREAKING even if the digital arena does not apply to your business is the way to go.
MM: In one word characterize your life as a businessman?
TS: A “DEAL CLOSER”. But if you need one just CLOSER but that’s only applicable to deals!
MM: What is your opinion on the Zimbabwe industry and general performances of all the sectors?
TS: Opportunities are everywhere we look, I am generally happy with the Zimbabwean borehole industry as a whole as we have seen the sprouting of more competitors over the past few years, these are people who saw a market and decided to enter into the game. That’s commendable considering some of the challenges that come with being in business here in Zimbabwe. I also have to express, all sectors are slowly improving and it is a matter of time until Zimbabwe reaches its full potential.
MM: What sacrifices have you had to make to be a successful businessman?
TS: I have sadly not had the proverbial ‘enjoyment of my youth’ yet as I have had to enormously cut my social life and even time with family and close friends in a bid to grow and FOCUS on the business but I am now slowly catching up, so wish me luck.
MM: On a lighter note, what are your hobbies? How old are you? What do you do in your non-work time?
TS: I am 26 year old who enjoys fishing, I take my Chinese and Traditional Cuisine very seriously, any day and I do thoroughly enjoy reading about aircraft and the art of being in the sky.
MM: To close the interview, any word to all those young men and women who look up to you, admire and aspire to be like you?
TS: Yes, my favourite message to ANYONE, notwithstanding even those who look up to me and have aspirations to be running a successful business is, ‘Learn to appreciate life, don’t be greedy, and be humble.
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We also have a substantial presence and exprerience in Borehole Siting and Borehole Drilling, Borehole Installation and Solar Systems.
Please Call Us On +263 77 389 8979 or +263 71 961 3479.
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