Andrew
Business Reporter
AT first glance, those not very familiar with Mr Tamuka Chihota, the founder and managing director of Frontline Contracting, might think he is an upstart in the local building and contracting industry.
Slim, youthful-looking, the 38-year-old man, who was recently named Young Contractor of the Year by the Zimbabwe Building Contractors Association (ZBCA), is not the usual type of business executive who always wears formal suits. Instead, Mr Chihota, who spends much of his time at construction sites, prefers to wear construction attire such as work-suits and safety boots.
Despite his young age, Mr Chihota, who is humble, is the man at the helm of one of the country’s biggest construction and civil engineering companies. Since its formation in 2014, Frontline Contracting has successfully worked on a number of major projects for reputable companies.
Among the companies for which Frontline did business is the Zimbabwe National Road Authority, Cangrow Trading, Zuva Petroleum, Old Mutual, Zimbabwe Defence Industries, Ruwa Local Board, Total Energies and the Grain Marketing Board.
As part of the Emergency Road Rehabilitation Programme (ERRP), Frontline Contracting rehabilitated the Gutu-Buhera road.
In recognition of his achievements with Frontline Contracting, which he started when he was only 27, and has concluded important national projects, the Mhondoro-born business executive scooped one of the most prestigious awards in construction.
Rising from humble beginnings, Mr Chihota started and grew Frontline Contracting from virtually nothing.
“When I started this company, I had nothing. After registering the company, I bought a printer and a laptop, and started marketing the company using social media, flyers and through direct marketing,” he said.
Under his stewardship, the company has grown in leaps and bounds and now employs 14 full-time workers.
Among the full-time workers are engineers; quantity surveyors; project managers; and safety, health and environmental technicians. The company also offers students an opportunity to learn on the job through internships.
Currently, Frontline Contracting has six students on work-related programmes.
“We also have women in leadership positions at Frontline Contracting as part of women empowerment programmes,” he said.
The company is also involved in corporate social responsibility programmes.
Frontline Contracting donated soccer kits to Chitungwiza Municipality and Rujeko Secondary School.
“We also pay school fees for bright disadvantaged students, especially in areas we would have done projects,” Mr Chihota said.
Work is underway to establish a scholarship fund foundation to assist bright but underprivileged students access university education.
Depending on the size of the contract, the company can hire as many as 150 casual workers. Mr Chihota’s humility and youthfulness has on many occasions worked to his disadvantage.
“I remember there was this mining company which wanted to give us a contract. The moment they saw me and realised that I was the director of the company, the firm lost interest and we lost the job,” added Mr Chihota.
Most businesspeople, he said, believe that young people do not have the capacity to deliver on big value projects or contracts.
Asked what challenges they encounter as a company dealing with employees, some of whom are much older than the founder, Mr Chihota said he had devised ways to effectively deal with all such scenarios.
“I always strike a balance whenever I will be dealing with the employees.
“As much as I need them to work for me, I always remind them that they also need me. At Frontline, employees are partners, they have to own the processes and develop a great sense of responsibility. This enables a lot of buy-in and allows employees to perform to their maximum ability. Although managing can be a daunting task, I have since mastered that art,” Mr Chihota said.
Mr Chihota’s rise to lofty heights of success is a typical rags-to-riches story. After graduating with a Special Honours in Psychology degree and a Diploma in Personnel Management and Salary Administration, he worked in Dubai for a construction company.
It was in Dubai that his interest in the construction industry started.
Although he was in the human resources department, he always visited the construction sites.
“I was impressed with the technological advances in Dubai, which is more technology-oriented, follows modern trends in construction and is not very manual, that’s when my interest in construction grew.”
Feeling homesick, he left the lucrative Dubai job and returned home
“I wanted to join a local company so that I can see if what I learnt in Dubai was applicable at home. I also wanted to start my own company, so I came and joined a construction company in the human resources department.
For Mr Chihota, the Dubai sojourn proved to be an eye-opener.
“In Dubai, most of the things are automated. Here, we still monitor concrete curing manually. In Dubai, they use smart sensors to detect defects, curing and possible cracks unlike here,” added Mr Chihota.
For Mr Chihota, the breakthrough came in 2014, when his company was awarded a contract by the Ruwa Local Board to build a classroom block.
Although initially hampered by lack of necessary funding, Mr Chihota teamed up with nine of his friends, mobilised the required funding and successfully completed the project.
After completing the contract, his partners in this initial project went separate ways.
“We faced many challenges, with the major one being access to capital. Also, the clients lacked trust and we had very few clients. We had nothing to show our potential clients about our capabilities,” he recalled.
The company, which at first faced cash -flow challenges, struggled to retain skilled personnel.
However, under his unwavering stewardship, Frontline Contracting rode through all the storms.
“We were forced to be innovative. At one time, we partnered with one individual who used his house as collateral. It was risky as we put his house on the block. There are no shortcuts to success, but it is possible to weather any form of adversity and reach your goal. To the youth and those aspiring to be entrepreneurs, I say do not stop running towards your goal,” Mr Chihota, who is a soccer fanatic, said.
The local construction industry, according to Mr Chihota, can be hostile at times.
Mr Chihota learned it the hard way. They worked on a renovation project and faced challenges in completing it. As a result, the company faced legal challenges and this forced Mr Chihota to apply a hands-on approach of being ever available on site for each and every project.
“I am always on site, we work together with the team, we face challenges, brainstorm and come up with solutions together. This has made me bond with the employees on site. We even share meals together.
“Now we complete our projects well ahead of schedule, hence the repeat business we now keep getting from our trusted clients,” added Mr Chihota.
This increases productivity as employees feel a sense of ownership
“Most construction companies are owned by people who are already in the construction industry like quantity surveyors, engineers and project managers, among others. In my case, I am coming from an administration type of job and some of the players in this sector were not that welcoming,” said Mr Chihota.
The chairperson of the ZBCA youth desk, Mr Chihota urged players in the construction sector to support the efforts that are being made by the youths towards the development of the construction sector.
“I noticed that youths in construction are always relegated to the periphery whenever there will be serious discourse. We are also pushing for the youth quota in which we want the youths to have a 40 percent chunk,” Mr Chihota said. The Frontline Contracting boss also wants the relaxation of the terms under which the youths access capital.
“As youths, we do not own properties that can be used as collateral. I urge the Government to provide some guarantees and also to introduce mentorship programmes for youth-owned companies,” said Mr Chihota said. He sits on the ZBCA board and has also previously sat on the Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce board.
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