Roger Maxwell is Nissan sales manager at Courtesy Garage.
Are you where you’ve always wanted to be?
In many ways, yes. My aspirations were always to be a manager in my chosen career and I have been employed in the automobile industry for many years. Of course, I have been setting new goals and aiming to be the best that I can be, while working with a great team and sharing the knowledge I have acquired with others
What is your biggest professional challenge?
In the highly competitive automobile industry with customers having many choices, this could be keeping our team of workers, in various areas, motivated to provide the best possible service to demanding customers every hour of the day or night. We have to balance employee interests and their personal challenges to ensure that professional standards are never compromised. It could also be challenging to deliver the right type of vehicles to fit the needs of customers while ensuring that their choices remain affordable.
What is your biggest life challenge?
To dedicate enough time to doing all the things I would like to accomplish and sharing quality time with all the people that are deserving. I am very committed to my job and most times it seems as if there are not enough hours in a day to balance personal and professional obligations. I am a person who enjoys making people happy, but with growing demands on time, I have learnt to prioritise and have also found a balance between work and family life.
When you look to the future, what do you see?
I can possibly see Nissan cementing its place as being the vehicle brand of choice in Barbados and the Caribbean and also more and more demands for instant gratification at the global level. We therefore need to improve our skills in handling increasing demands on us and continue to function as a team in a changing environment.
What is your favourite pastime?
I don’t have a favourite pastime but I enjoy family time especially when enjoying a game of table tennis with my two sons. There was a time when I was the champion, but these days they joke and tell me I have to make an appointment to play with them. It may be true, but I enjoy every point I win.
What is your favourite meal?
Sweet potatoes and breadfruit done in any style. But if I was forced to make a choice, I would lean towards breadfruit cou-cou and saltfish.
On Saturday nights, where are you likely to be?
At home relaxing with my family and watching a good movie or surfing the internet and reading various articles online.
What upsets you the most?
Reckless drivers and persons who are dishonest and care little about the welfare of others. I believe we should care about others and not do things to promote selfish agendas.
What is your guiding philosophy?
I am a spiritual person and follow the tenent of loving God and our neighbours as we would ourselves. As I continue to grow in doing so, challenges that would normally be controversial are now amicably resolved. I also believe in not becoming stressed out about matters over which I have no control.
If you had the chance to manage Barbados for a day, what would you do?
I would create a programme to reach out and understand why we have so many disconnected and wayward young people in such a small island. We have been seeing an increase in crime, with more and more young people before the courts on a weekly basis and this clearly shows that our young citizens have lost their way. It seems that good parenting and guidance are missing factors in all of this, and since most parents are caught-up in trying to survive and get ahead in challenging economic times, I would also seek to work with corporate Barbados, where possible, to devise methods to allow flexitime for working parents so that more quality time can be spent with their children. (SC)