SA Affordable Housing March - April 2019 // Issue: 75 | Page 26

PERSONALITY PROFILE
‘No lowlights’
– Mariana Lamont
For the majority of her life executive director for the Clay Brick
Association of South Africa (CBA) Mariana Lamont, has worked in
sales and marketing and she is clearly well suited to her job.
By Warren Robertson
W
hen asked questions about her work life, Mariana
Lamont’s every word is spoken carefully for
maximum impact and her answers are threaded
with the kind of inspirational statements that define a
person destined for leadership.
On memories of the early days of her career Lamont
responds, “I remember always working hard, pushing and
exceeding deadlines, the adrenalin of achievement,
enjoying the successes and going for the next level.”
It is this resolute work ethic that has contributed to her
meteoric rise in her chosen field.
Starting her career at Map Studio as a sales
representative, it took Lamont just two years before she was
promoted to regional sales manager. She stayed in that
position for seven years and her next job defined her work
life and was to be the launch pad into her current position.
While technically a sideways move in terms of position,
her role at Ocon Brick as regional sales manager meant that
Lamont was working for a much larger company and it is
where she took her first steps into the clay brick market.
She spent 14 years there but her passion for the
construction industry is clearly as keen now as it was when
she first joined Ocon Brick.
“I’ve always been a marketer at heart and the
construction industry is very rewarding. You help people
build their new, dream home, new business or new property
investment. Clay brick making is particularly exciting right
now, it’s a 2 000-year-old skill that has been transformed in
the past 20 years as new technology and our understanding
of the environment evolves,” she enthuses.
Lamont stepped into her current role in January 2018
and she couldn’t imagine – as a young ‘small town’ girl –
that she would be where she is today.
“I’m the traditional small town girl – I was raised with
good Christian values in a semi-rural community bordering
the Vaal River between Gauteng and the Free State. It was a
wonderful place to grow up where children learned to live
close to nature, to respect their elders and work hard with
integrity. My parents encouraged us to always do our best –
for God, for ourselves and for others,” she explains.
Despite being a world away from that small community,
the foundation of growing up there has stood her in good
stead as it has helped her to forge her way forward with
determination and integrity. Among her educational
achievements, she studied marketing management at the
Vaal University of Technology and Unisa.
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MARCH - APRIL 2019
“I struggle to recall any lowlights, I believe that every storm
has its rainbow, so in life I always focus on positive
outcomes. A lowlight is just a learning curve – you don’t fail
until you give up!” she says explaining that, looking back,
she would not do anything differently.
“It probably sounds like a cliché but I would change
nothing. Everything is a learning experience and you can’t
jump to the end. Don’t underestimate the importance of
struggle and the discipline you learn by going forward step-
by-step.”
Lamont credits the people around her for her positive
outlook and the fact that she has always enjoyed her work.
“Always do what makes you happy. The construction
industry is hands-on, so if you are thinking of entering this
sector learn from the bottom up, listen to advice and never
underestimate the power of a mentor,” Lamont says.
"Today’s footprint is
tomorrow’s legacy."
“I have been lucky with the remarkable clients that I worked
with over the years. They supported me with well wishes
and compliments when I accepted my new role at the CBA.
We keep in touch and they still call me for advice and a
chat,” she says, before identifying one person who had a
particular impact on her.
“One of my most inspiring mentors is Ray Wilkinson, CEO
and founder of MapIT. I will always remember his advice to
me, ‘Mariana, enjoy work, work hard but never neglect your
family as a result’. His wisdom has stayed with me, and it
helps me maintain a balance between my career and my
family.
“Making time is the most important aspect of a balanced
family life. Our family is very active and we love the
outdoors. I spoil them with a coffee in bed every morning
and we take turns cooking dinner during the week, which
frees up time for us to relax after work,” she says, adding
that she enjoys every aspect of her home life from
supporting her son or daughter on the sports field on
Saturday mornings to relaxing at home.
“We make long weekends count and as an outdoor family
we enjoy camping; it refreshes the mind, body and soul to
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