New Energy

24th October 2014

By: Tracy Hancock

Creamer Media Contributing Editor

  

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For the first time in 150 years, there is a woman at the helm of Siemens South Africa – German-born Sabine Dall’Omo, who has fallen in love with more than the country.

The former Siemens South Africa CFO has worked at Siemens for over 25 years and points out that, although she is dedicated to the multinational engineering and electronics conglomerate, she does not conform to stereotypes often associated with the company, quipping that “being a women, you can get away with a little bit more” than your male counterparts. However, she adds that, in her position as Siemens South Africa CEO, “you will be challenged regardless of gender, especially in South Africa, where having a woman at the helm of an organisation is not that unusual”.

Looking to Siemens’ focus for South Africa, Dall’Omo states that the company’s Vision 2020 is valid for South Africa and Africa alike. Vision 2020’s the strategic focus involves identifying long-term growth opportunities in attractive fields, aligning the company’s portfolio along the strategic imperatives of electrification, automation and digitlisation and achieving cost reduction and business excellence.

Dall’Omo says, in South Africa, electrification and infrastructure are the most urgent demands at present and, therefore, they are Siemens’ main focus for the country.

A permanent South African resident, living with her South African husband, and two dogs, Dall’Omo says settling in the country was a private choice.

She admits that she did not know much about South Africa. “I liked it more than I expected to . . . People in South Africa have a different spirit for life. “They make something out of a difficult situation.

“I grew up in Germany, when the economy was stressed, in an area called Ruhrgebiet – in the city of Oberhausen.”

“It was a heavy industrial, densely populated area, which, in the 1970s, experienced socioeconomic challenges. It was difficult for young people to find a job after school,” the 46-year-old tells Engineering News.

Dall’Omo describes herself as a “surprise” to her family, being the youngest and only girl, and, as a result of her late arrival, benefiting from her parents’ experiences in raising her brother.

Dall’Omo obtained her higher commercial certificate from Heinrich-Thoene College in 1985 and did her vocational training at Siemens Germany from 1986 to 1989.

“I started in the power plant division. The Chernobyl nuclear disaster had just taken place [in Ukraine on April 26, 1986]. “Therefore, global nuclear power plant projects were significantly reduced and the factory I worked in was downsized. I then realised that a job is not something permanent,” shares Dall’Omo.

Climbing up the ranks at Siemens Germany, she took on the responsibility of business administrator in Dusseldorf and, shortly thereafter, business administrator of the sales office until 1995. Dall’Omo’s career path at Siemens then led her to California, in the US, as a financial analyst for Siemens Rolm Communications.

She then returned to Siemens Germany as senior financial analyst of corporate planning and controlling.

In 1998, Dall’Omo became commercial manager within Siemens’ Automation & Drives business unit at Siemens Germany for just over three years, later taking up a similar role at the Siemens sales office in Shanghai, China.

While in China, life threw a spanner in the works – a time Dall’Omo claims to be her most defining moment. “I got divorced when I was in China. When you are too focused on your career, you miss out on your private life. “I was in China for one year and underestimated the distance and time difference involved.”

Following her divorce, Dall’Omo decided to escape the Chinese New Year, a time of the year for family, and the unpleasant German winter, and boarded a plane to visit friends in Cape Town.

This is where she met her husband. “So I made a plan.”

In May 2004, Dall’Omo made the move to South Africa as head of performance controlling for Siemens Southern Africa and, from September 2008 to January 2012, she was CFO for Siemens Africa’s healthcare sector.

During this time, she also served as a member on the board of Siemed, Impilo and Siemens Medical Services Diagnostics, and in February 2012, Dall’Omo became the CFO of Siemens Africa, including the South African organisation

In July, she became CEO of Siemens South Africa, assuming responsibility for steering the company in the key growth markets of south-east Africa.

Her additional responsibilities include Botswana, Comoros, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Namibia, the Seychelles, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Edited by Martin Zhuwakinyu
Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor

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