Thriving in Australia does not Come Easy
Linda Vergnani
Buffeting across the jade waters of Sydney harbour in his Bayliner boat with his South African "mates", or gazing out of his office window at the golden observation decks of the Sydney Tower, Greg Haskins knows he is living the dream.
As director of recruitment company My Departure Lounge, this urbane 28-year-old former Durban chartered accountant sells the Australian dream to other South Africans. The firm, established in mid-2007, recruits South African chartered accountants for investment banks, multinational companies and other blue-chip clients in Australia.
He admitted that he gets "lots of flack" for recruiting South Africans to Australia. Haskins's response is that with globalisation, chartered accountants can work in multiple countries. "With a chartered accountancy qualification, the world is your oyster, especially if you come out of the auditing environment."
It was easy for Haskins to move to Australia. In 2004, Deloitte Australia called "out of the blue" and asked him to assist with a major auditing contract. He flew into Sydney for a four-month contract, which turned into a permanent job.
"It was a pull factor. I was doing the must see the world, working in different cities' thing. Having tried it out and seeing what Sydney had to offer, I decided it was a great place to live. My career could progress a lot faster in Australia than in South Africa," Haskins said.
He and Australian colleague Tammy Frame realised there was a general shortage of chartered accountants for companies in Australia and decided to open their own specialist recruiting firm. Frame, previously an audit director with Deloitte, said South African chartered accountants are highly sought after in Australia. She has found them very entrepreneurial, straight talking, continuously pushing for improvement and "very have fun" which gels with Australians.
Haskins works up to 11 hours some days. "I'm working a little longer than I should, but I'm still having fun doing it."
He rents a flat in the swish 43-storey Horizon building, designed by iconic architect Harry Seidler. The curvilinear building, known as a party block, is within walking distance of his rented office. After work he meets friends at trendy bars, with a favourite, the Opera Bar, on the quay overlooking Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge.
He has no immediate plans to return to South Africa. "You feel proud to be South African, but also proud to be able to integrate into another country," he said.
Zimbabwean Rufaro Maunze has had a meteoric rise to become a director of technical and training for a global accounting firm. She said she enjoys the security of living in Sydney, where she rents an apartment in the posh waterside suburb of Wollstonecraft. She can walk home alone from the bus stop at 3am without fearing attack.
What she found a struggle is Sydney's racial mix, which she estimates features only 1% black Africans. People were curious about her and would sometimes ask where she learned to speak such good English.
Maunze said she found Johannesburg faster paced than Sydney and more stylish, and would eventually like to move there, mainly because she would be closer to her family in Harare.
Lyndsay Brotherton, senior manager: group financial control for Westpac, constantly debates returning to South Africa, though she said it never seemed to be the right time. Brotherton said there were a variety of businesses opportunities in Australia, but described her first 18 months in Sydney in a global accounting firm as really tough.
"You spend a lot of time proving yourself. It took me 18 months to be promoted, whereas I would have been promoted automatically in South Africa."
Since moving to Westpac, she feels a "lot more settled" and enjoys her work.
NEW FRONTIERS: South Africans Greg Haskins and Lindsay Brotherton and Zimbabwean Rufaro Maunze at home in their new home – Australia.
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