Andrew Kirby is the president and CEO of Toyota South Africa, which has dominated the country’s new car sales for 44 years.with AutoTrader South Africa CEO George Mienie, Kirby revealed his personal life journey and the road to the top post at Toyota South Africa was not clear-cut.
“I could see myself being in corporate and hopefully rising to be an executive but not necessarily in the motoring industry.” “I would honestly say that in the first three months, I didn’t know what they were talking about, even though they were speaking English,” Kirby said. “I really thought I joined a different industry.”
“I started having discussions with former Toyota SA and Europe CEO Johan Van Zyl. He was very persuasive.” “I had been used to not a lot of thought. Execute, but then rework, rework, and rework, until you get it right. In July 2013, Kirby returned to South Africa and was appointed Toyota SA’s senior vice president of corporate administration.
Speaking of Toyota South Africa’s milestones since he took over as CEO, he said he is most proud of how the company has responded to crises — including the Covid-19 pandemic, the 2021 riots, and the 2022 floods.