Jeff has had long experience in the truck business in Australia – but that wasn’t always the case. He actually started his working career as an apprentice aircraft mechanic in 1984 with Trans Australia Airlines (TAA) which became Australian Airlines, but his feet were firmly planted on the ground in 1989 when he decided to give working on aeroplanes away and enter the truck business.
“I took on a job as a mechanic working on the workshop floor at a truck dealership along the strip at Somerton in Melbourne, effectively leaving the airlines above and getting into the pace of road equipment. Interestingly I was offered three jobs in one day, giving me the opportunity to do what I wanted to do,” Jeff tells.
“It was a major change but I took on a role that saw me in the workshop and the office. The role entailed me doing a variety of work including attending to breakdowns of a night, something that brought me up to speed with industry knowledge very quickly.”
It was evident Jeff had been bitten by the diesel bug and he worked solidly for two years, gaining immense knowledge, before moving to Albury/Wodonga to take on a sales role in a multi-brand dealership.
“I thought sales would be great fun, and it certainly was, but what the experience did do was give me a great respect for people and their requirements, plus allow me to form some great friendships. It was a family owned new and used truck business and I continued to develop a love for trucks and trucking, so much so I thought I could go further, perhaps run my own dealership,” Jeff reflects.
“I was next offered a job as regional manager and as I had developed a preference for the heavy truck market I decided to accept the position and made a move to Sydney where two years later, in 1998, I was made an offer to join Volvo where I took on various roles including regional sales manager which took me to most parts of Australia and New Zealand.”
The rest is history, Jeff has been National Fleet Sales and Export Sales Manager among other roles, reflecting his professionalism and high customer regard, something he has concentrated on as his career in the truck business progressed. His lengthy time of service with the Volvo organisation is something he sees as being a major part of his professional career but the time came to take on another position with a new company, something he thought long and hard about.
At the end of January 2010 he came on board with one of the newest trucking brands in the market, NC2, to head up the new Cat truck global release and take on the challenge of presenting a new player to the market.
“The opportunity presented itself to go forward with this challenge, actually it is a huge challenge, one I decided to take on following a lengthy period of time in which to make my decision. I have a lot of respect for Volvo, the organisation and the people in it, and it was difficult to move on, but I parted on good terms and can be proud of the roles I undertook with the company,” Jeff says.
Moving onto market a new brand is a complex and exacting task, but Jeff Tyzack is the ultimate professional with one of the highest levels of respect within the road transport industry.
“It certainly is complex,” Jeff points out, “there are things to do like put a team together, including new people, in order to best present, represent and support the Cat truck brand in what is a tough market.
“It is a good feeling to know you have good people to look after our important clients and there has been a lot of water under the bridge since we started on the people challenge to achieve that milestone, but it has been a lot of fun. Bringing together two huge organisations such as Navistar and Caterpillar, two different companies, and bringing in a third set of ideas with good dealers and a great team of people working as a single unit has been very successful,” Jeff indicates.
“We have a long way to go, we are not going to change the world in an instant, and there is still plenty to do but we are working through the challenges. We have a plan and things are starting to happen with the Is dotted and Ts crossed to ensure we can offer the best in sales and service for customers.”
The global Cat Truck launch at Uluru in the Red Centre was an event that firmly reinforced the brand’s commitment to not only Australia but the world. As the first country to see the fruits of the NC2 development of a new truck, operators were treated to what is just the start of a new range, with other countries to follow closely behind with models ideally suited to individual markets.
Jeff Tyzack was so proud of the introduction of the Cat branded truck he physically drove a B-double unit into the centre of festivities before taking the microphone to detail features and impress on guests why they should buy one for their individual operations.
He is rightfully proud of the work done behind the scenes to ensure operators receive the best in both product and after sales service and can be rightly proud of the role he has played so far in bringing plans to fruition. As he says, “Things still need to take place, but we are very much on track to make a difference in the world of transport.”