HighChem Group head of ICT Dan Wachira’s thrill for finding solutions has shaped his journey at the group. What began as a three-month internship has seen him take charge of the conglomerate’s IT transformation and lead the effort to streamline systems.
For Dan Wachira, head of ICT at health and productivity chemicals group HighChem, every challenge is a puzzle waiting to be solved. Currently, the challenge, as he describes it, is ‘finding the right system for the right task’.
“In our department, we’re carrying out a full audit of the current ERP systems we’re running. Integrations with Kenya Revenue Authority and others have forced us to look for solutions that can easily integrate with external systems, not just closed-off systems that we’re hosting here and can’t link to other systems. Right now, that’s a priority because we’ve been forced by our tax regulator to push our data to them instantaneously. Some of the devices out there aren’t really doing the part, so we’re trying to look for native solutions to integrate with their system and make our work easier for reporting and the like,” he says.
Intern to leader
It is no small feat, but Dan is equal to the task. Having worked at the company since he was an intern in 2012, he understands its systems inside and out and has played a large role in optimising HighChem Group’s IT infrastructure. This has kept the company technologically agile, ensuring it remains competitive in an evolving business environment.
“It’s actually a funny story. I came here as an intern while doing my internship for college. After I did my three months, I went back to college. When I cleared, I reached out to my then supervisor, who said there was an opportunity and brought me in to do an attachment for three months. After three months, he ended up getting a better position, and I was recommended for his position. So, I picked it up, and I’ve been growing in the role until I became the head of IT here,” he says.
Now at the helm of the IT department, Dan oversees all aspects of the company’s ICT needs including sourcing, purchase, support, maintenance, update and reporting of all systems. Under his leadership, the group has streamlined processes across its companies, improving efficiency. Over the years, Dan has seen previously costly technologies evolve and become more affordable, allowing the company to integrate new solutions. This has been one of the more satisfying aspects of his work. His in-depth knowledge of the organisation has proven an asset in this regard.
Looking ahead
“All the headaches and issues we’ve had over the years now have solutions popping up. So, you can say, ‘Wow, yes, I had this issue in this department some time back. Maybe this can come and sort it out.’ Slowly, we’ve been deploying more and more solutions and systems to solve the issues that were experienced a while back in other departments through talking and collaboration with them,” he says.
As technology rapidly evolves, Dan is constantly looking ahead to the next phase of HighChem’s IT transformation. True to his millennial roots, he often turns to YouTube for innovative approaches to work challenges. He draws inspiration from content creators across the globe, against whom he benchmarks his own efforts.
“Right now, problem-solving is about streamlining all our systems. Over the years, priorities have been elsewhere, and now we’re trying to streamline the systems we have and the data in them so that it’s consistent across the board. We’re a group of companies, and we manage and operate several companies. So, we’re trying to align across all of them to make it more understandable to someone from the outside looking in, so we have an easier base to start conversations with other people and investors,” he says.
As the company expands into the regional market, Dan hopes to strengthen its IT infrastructure to support seamless operations across multiple countries.
“There is a lot of job creation at our factories, but it’s usually when you’re developing a new product that you get that initial jump in personnel. After that, as you align the processes and the manufacturing process, you slowly stabilise and maybe reduce some of those personnel. So, it’s here and there as you bring efficiencies into the process,” he says.
For Dan, problem-solving is not just part of the job – it is the engine behind his life. This perhaps explains his love for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, whose superheroes must often find ingenious ways out of seemingly impossible situations.
