Page 119 - KZN Top Business Portfolio - EBOOK 2019

Chairman of Talksure Trading While Jess has the vision, it’s not all up to him.
With the intrinsic value of treating people well at
ESS MEREDITH WATTS, chairman of Talksure the core of his leadership ethos, he has built a loyal
Trading, started his 20-year career in the contact front line of employees that are ready to take the
centre industry in the UK in 1989. After a year business forward.
Jat Manchester University studying Economics When asked what he finds the easiest about
and Accounting, the driven and passionate Jess rallying people around a vision, Jess says that he
left to establish Cell Talk, a telesales company. The treats his people well and so when it’s time to go the
company went on to sell more than 750 000 mobile extra mile, they have no hesitations.
contracts and became the leading distributor of
cellular devices for the UK’s largest mobile network. “I’ve tried to build a culture of success,” Jess adds,
“I want to give people a sense of purpose.”
In 2003, he relocated to South Africa and set up
an offshore Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) That’s not to say that there aren’t challenges to his
company. It traded for seven years, selling mobile job, “Being patient is hard,” he admits, “but you can’t
contracts back to the UK. force things to happen overnight.”
Jess then founded Talksure Trading in 2010. Based “I’m also quite a strong-minded person,” Jess says,
in Umhlanga, Durban, Talksure has since grown “I think people sometimes think that I don’t listen,
into a 600-seat call centre that has more than but that’s not true.”
800 employees. Jess’ is a multi-passionate entrepreneur and as such
The contact centre handles in excess of 10,000,000 has also helped raised R1 million for StreetSmart, a
inbound and outbound client contacts every year and Cape Town-based charity that funds education and
is fast approaching an active client base of 400,000 skills training of street children.
people. The flourishing company also boasts He is also the founder of Food 4 Thought, a
partnerships with Blue Chip international companies charity that seeks to support children living on the
such as Marsh Risk, and significant domestic names streets of Durban. Funding for this venture comes
including Tracker and MiWay Insurance. from a supportive network of restaurants across
But for Jess this doesn’t mean it’s time to sit back and South Africa as well as through the sales of a recipe
relax. “Don’t ever think you’ve cracked it,” he advises book, a compilation of favourite dishes from these
aspiring entrepreneurs, “You’ve never perfected your restaurants.
business - there’s always more to learn.” On the weekends Jess spends time with his 10-year-
This is evident in his determination to keep old son Oliver and enjoys playing tennis. “I’m also
developing products that add value to people’s fortunate to have travelled extensively,” says Jess, “I
lives. Jess believes this is one of the challenges of have a passion for Southeast Asia and their food and
working in the call centre industry – companies culture.”
need to strive to be creative and innovative in their When asked about his life plan, he said, “I’m living
product development. it. It happens every day, I love my life.”

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