KPC acquires six new top executives

KPC has recently opened her doors to six new top executives who have joined a revamped management team to deliver the Company’s Vision 2025 – an ambitious plan designed to transform KPC into ‘Africa’s Premier Oil & Gas Company’. The team that is drawn from diverse fields of expertise is expected to boost the Managing Director’s office in providing strategic and operational direction to the company as it eyes leadership and efficiency in the region’s oil & gas space.

“The new team will certainly improve our strategic competitiveness in this dynamic oil & gas sector. When you aspire to be premier, you must also go for top talent and that is what we have done,” Joe Sang, KPC Managing Director, told Kenpipe News in his office recently. The KPC boss was optimistic that the new team will be instrumental in ensuring that the Company remains at the heart of the oil & gas industry in Kenya and the region.

“The regional economic landscape is changing fast as a result of economic growth but also due to the discoveries of substantial oil & gas reserves. These are huge opportunities for KPC,” Sang reiterated and added that the new team will help position Kenya as the region’s oil & gas hub.

Below are short profiles of the new managers just to give you a glimpse of who they are and what they stand for:

Vincent Cheruiyot
MCIPS; MBA (Finance); Bachelor of Science in Electrical and Electronic Engineering

General Manager, Supply Chain

Vincent is an experienced business leader with specialized expertise in Supply Chain Management and Project Management. He brings to KPC a rich experience gained in a career spanning 15 years from the British American Tobacco (BAT). Anchored by his engineering background and additional professional post graduate diploma in Procurement and Supply, Vincent spearheaded various end to end supply chain process re-engineering, optimisation and SAP rollout in East and Central Africa for BAT delivering massive sustainable savings. He is a licensed supplies practitioner, member of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (UK), Kenya Institute of Supply Management, and the Institute of Engineers of Kenya.

‘I aspire to drive multinationals and national organizations in improving business performance through strategic leadership and optimization of Supply Chain business processes and systems,’ Vincent.

Zilper Michelle Abong’o

Masters of Science in Economics & Policy of Energy and the Environment; Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy Analysis/ Language & Communication [Double Major]
Manager, Customer Relations & Marketing

Zilper possesses over five years’ work experience in petroleum mid and downstream sectors having worked as an oil trader and supply chain specialist. An oil markets enthusiast who aspires to hone her competence within the regional and international energy spectrum from the vantage-ground of sustainable energy systems, her last assignments before joining KPC were Project Manager with Lotus Consulting Limited and Group Supply and Trading Manager at Hashi Energy Limited. Besides being a Commonwealth scholar, Zilper is also an accomplished writer who has published in a number of fields such as women empowerment among other social impact issues.

‘I derive immense pride in championing business ideation, inspiring and leading entire teams and challenging them to always develop new insights for business and industry-wide growth,’ Zilper.

Joel Mburu
Masters of Arts (Project Planning & Management); Bachelor of Arts (Business Studies & Economics)

Manager, Supply & Logistics

A member of The Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supplies (MCIPS UK) and Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (MCILT UK), Joel boasts a career spanning over 15 years in supply & logistics. He brings to KPC experience gained from the Oil Industry Secretariat where he served for over a decade as the Pipeline & Supply Coordinator. He has been instrumental in formulating ullage sharing guidelines at KOSF; and facilitated the implementation of KRA systems such as SIMBA 2015 & COSIS with minimal disruptions.

‘I actively engage in seeking the best solutions in supply chain management that is sensitive to total acquisition costs. This is through harnessing and building consensus with stakeholders in focusing on the bigger picture in the supply chain solution,’ Joel.

Paul Njuguna

Bachelor of Commerce (Marketing)
Manager, Business

With over 13 years’ work experience in senior business roles across East Africa, Paul possesses strong financial & strategic planning, analysis & marketing skills. He has worked in the fast-moving consumer goods and renewable energy sectors specializing in new business initiatives, new product commercialization and brand building. He comes to KPC straight from d.Light Limited where he worked as Senior Manager, New Product Commercialization and successfully oversaw business in regional markets winning the 2015 Spark! Award alongside prestigious brands such as Boeing/BMW, Tesla, HTC & Mercedes Benz.

‘I have a keen eye for detail and a strong belief in continuous improvement. I pride myself in being able to understand root causes and translate raw data into insights and action plans,’ Paul.

Eng. Okova Wangaki Derek

Master of Science (Civil Engineering); Bachelor of Science (Civil of Engineering)
Manager, Operations

Okova is a professional registered civil engineer with the Engineers Board of Kenya and a member of the Institute of Engineers of Kenya. Derek has 16 years’ experience, 11 of which are in the oil industry. He has worked in LPG, Customer Service & Operations at Libya Oil before joining Total Kenya Ltd. as a Technical & Engineering Manager for 3 years from where he joins KPC. Among the projects he has undertaken include the new Total service station and Habari Oilibya service station in Mombasa among others. A sports enthusiast, Wangaki has previously represented Kenya in Rugby by playing for Shujaa.

Bernice Sialaal Lemedeket

Master of Science in Development Management; Masters of Arts in Project Planning; Bachelor of Arts (Sociology and Psychology)
Manager, KPC Foundation

Bernice is a self-driven person whose strength lies in program conceptualization and implementation. She has over 12 years’ experience in the development field with vast experience in community networking, partnership development, project conceptualization and resources mobilization in development. Fresh from the University of Maryland Global Initiative Kenya where she served as the TB/HIV Program Advisor, she has achieved key milestones in the health and development fields. She brings to KPC a rich and tremendous knowledge in the area of Corporate Social Investment to boost the newly created KPC Foundation. Her focus is on driving positive social change for disadvantaged communities through corporate social responsibility. She thrives on the diversity that her career presents. Experiencing different thematic contexts, stakeholders, and legal frameworks has always been her personal and professional highlight.

‘I go for results that have transformative impact on communities’ growth,’ Bernice.