When Govar Reddy arrived in Aotearoa New Zealand in December 2014, his belongings consisted of two bags of clothes.
He came to complete a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Administration and was seeking a part-time role he could fit around his studies. More importantly, he was looking for an employer whose values aligned with his own, particularly one that recognised the ‘dignity of labour’.
“Whatever role someone performs, their contribution should be respected,” he says. “A cleaner, supervisor and manager should all be treated with the same dignity.”
Govar joined OCS as a part-time cleaner at an Auckland CBD site in November 2015, working 10 hours a week around his study commitments.
“I wanted to do the best job I could,” he says. “After four or five months, I was offered 20 hours. Then a Night Team Leader position became available, and my manager recommended me.”
Govar took on the night team leader role in July 2016 as he completed his studies and, by October, moved into a daytime position as a Site Supervisor.
The Site Supervisor role brought a greater focus on compliance, health and safety, and rosters. It also provided Govar with more customer contact and a deeper understanding of contracts, both of which he enjoyed.
“I enjoyed – and still do – getting to know our customers and their businesses.
“Over time, I kept showing the results,” he says. “I wanted to understand the budgets, where we could make savings and how we could do things better.”
More responsibility followed. Govar became a Contracts Supervisor in June 2019, a Contracts Manager in November 2021 and in January 2024, Operations Manager (Auckland CBD).
Each position opened another part of the business to him, and he was eager to learn more. OCS obliged and so he learned about budgeting, estimating, quotations, tenders and customer presentations.
Govar credits Auckland Area Manager, Mo Yang and National Commercial Support Manager, Mike Lo for sharing their knowledge and giving him room to develop.
“They guided me, but they also let me prove myself,” he says. “I’m still learning. I don’t think you ever finish!”
Govar now oversees 155 colleagues across OCS’s Auckland CBD sites. Working with his team, he has helped double the business through customer retention, new contracts and expanded services.
“Mo taught me to treat every customer concern seriously – whatever its size,” Govar explains. “When an issue is raised, I follow a process. I’ll investigate what caused it, agree on a corrective action, keep the customer informed until the work is complete, and then look at what needs to change to prevent the same problem from happening again.
“Customers need to know we’ve understood their concern and are acting on it,” he says. “Keeping them updated builds trust. It also gives us the chance to fix the cause of the problem, rather than dealing with the same issue again.”
Despite having other job offers from competitors, Govar says he’s not going anywhere.
“OCS gave me my bread and butter in New Zealand,” he says. “I could see there was scope to build a career here. I had friends in other companies who didn’t get the same chance to learn and grow. OCS gave me those chances.”
As Govar’s responsibilities have grown, so has his role in helping other colleagues see a future in facilities management.
He knows from experience that a few additional hours, a manager’s recommendation or the chance to learn something new can change the direction of someone’s career.
“I came to New Zealand with a bag of clothes,” Govar says. “Now I have a home, a family – we’re expecting our first baby in February – and a career. When I look back, a lot has changed. I’m looking forward to what’s next!”
