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So far our business journey has spanned several decades. Our first customers knew our founders well and over the years the word spread that you could find quality aftermarket truck and bus parts and enjoy high-quality service.

The daily choice to procure parts and consumables through PTB Group has helped us grow over all these years, creating more than 50 permanent full time jobs. 

That’s at least 50 families building toward better lives because our customers keep choosing us. We don’t take it lightly.

We are researchers

One of the many ways in which we go far beyond the sale of parts and consumables is in industry research.

Every transaction tells a story about the market and the broader logistics industry in South Africa. Knowing which brands work well for you and under what circumstances you’d like to try something else helps us continually improve the way suppliers develop products and how we can get those to you more efficiently over time.

We are listeners

Logistics and fleet management is one of South Africa’s toughest professional sectors. Days are long, threat detection and management is a 24/7 responsibility, and the unexpected breakdowns demand immediate attention.

There are days when our customers come into our stores or call their PTB Group sales concierges, just needing to vent and to share the burden that goes with taking responsibility for safely transporting goods and service providers from A to B.

We’re here for that, and we’re always looking for new ways to help manage and prevent stress for our customers. Our competition prizes, for example, include spa treatments and even luxury holidays.

We’re pioneers

There are some things considered commonplace amongst parts suppliers, like the Wors Day, that grew out of our continual innovation efforts. We’re grateful for every conversation and completed survey because it helps us share information with the right team members.

Right now as you read this article, in fact, there’s a dedicated team working on new events, concepts and value-adds just for you as our treasured customers.

Your continued support makes it possible for our team to breathe life into all kinds of ideas, so please remember that every bit counts. Whether it’s opening an email newsletter or taking time to complete a survey in-store or online, it all adds up to more ways in which we can add value for you.

We’re lifelong learners

If you collect your parts in-store, you sometimes see our stock consignments arrive, or some of the warehouse activities. What you might not see is the training and development that takes place behind the scenes.

We take pride in recognising the career ambitions of our employees, and striving to align the growth of our business with the growth of every individual person on the team. We’re always hungry to learn more and to do and be better even at the things you’re already complimenting us about.

This is the PTB Group way, and we’re proud of it.

We’re a team that cares

One of our greatest privileges has been growing alongside our customers over the years. We feel every triumph and every challenge, from the awards that our customers win, to the stress of a breakdown.
The more information you can share with us about your business, the better we can service your specific needs.

If you haven’t yet had the chance to share the details about your fleet you are welcome to request an appointment with one of our sales concierges — we operate seven days a week at most branches and we’d be glad to come to your office or depot for your added convenience.

We’re #PTBGroupies!

Every day our people wake up to arrive at work, fully ready to embrace your challenges alongside you. Keeping your fleet running in top form is important to us so that your business can run smoothly and together we can grow our economy and provide a path forward to prosperity for our fellow South Africans.

We’re proud to wear the PTB Group uniform and we live for the thrill of reaching new heights at your side. We’re #PTBGroupies and we thank you for choosing us every day. ■

Every year we attract thousands of job applications at PTB Group. Our HR Department goes through each one in relation to the vacancies we list on websites like PNet or Indeed. It’s not always possible for us to give detailed feedback to candidates who don’t make it through the initial screening process so we created this article to help you understand what we’re looking for in potential employees.

If you’re looking to enter the logistics supply chain or hungry to be part of a fast-growing and innovative company, this article will go a long way in helping you improve your chances of doing this through Protea Truck and Bus Parts.

Application tips

Read carefully

We’re looking for people who pay careful attention to documents and instructions. Read the job overview and requirements carefully and be clear about which position you are applying for. 

The same applies to your applications: check your documents and emails carefully, removing any spelling, punctuation and grammatical mistakes.

Comply with instructions

Reading carefully is one thing, but how well can you follow instructions?

Submit all of the required documents and look out for any particular details like file formats or subject lines to be used when submitting applications by email.

It’s also really important to allow enough time for your application to be processed. If you’d like to follow up on an email, don’t use the same email thread as your application because it can send the entire set of emails to the back of the processing queue!

Check your information

Sometimes we find great candidates whose contact numbers and email addresses don’t work.

There’s nothing more frustrating for an employer, or tragic for a candidate, than matching an application to an interview slot but not having functional contact details through which we can make the arrangements.

Be honest

Even if you rely on an AI tool to help you build your CV, make sure that everything you include in your application documents is 100% true.

Falsifying information on your CV is a criminal offence and it can lead to awkward and uncomfortable moments in your interview if you get selected: you could be asked about anything you include on your CV.

Not only are we listening to what you say — we’re paying attention to how you say it.

Do some research

Again, even if you’re just using an AI tool to learn more about us the day before your interview, make sure you verify what the AI tool tells you.
If you’re selected for an interview, you’ll be given the opportunity to ask us questions too.

Your approach in this section shows us how curious and attentive you are to what we know we’re publishing online from one week to the next, and your potential future with our company.

Present yourself professionally

If you are invited for an interview, make sure you look presentable. Have a shower, neaten your hair and use clean undamaged clothing.

Arrive on time and answer questions respectfully and with honesty. If you truly don’t know the answer to a question, after giving it some thought, say so. Your interviewer/s may ask the question in a different way to help you along.

Embrace constructive criticism

If you don’t proceed beyond the first interview, your rejection notice may contain insights as to why.

It might hurt your feelings if you’ve tried really hard to prepare for the interview, but how you engage with this feedback might help keep the door slightly open for you in the future — becoming angry, threatening violence or slandering people and business online because you didn’t get a job is a sure way to drive out any other opportunities.

Qualities and qualifications

Our business was built by commitment to a clear concept and hard work over several decades.

Every bit of advice we’ve shared so far in this article is based on how our leadership team has approached work over all these years.

Your qualifications have value, but do not guarantee an open door for you. You need to demonstrate the right values and characteristics.

It’s up to you to demonstrate the link between any qualifications and experience you have, with the path you’d like to take within PTB Group.

We’re on the hunt for these qualities

More important that what you come into the team knowing is your attitude to learning new things.

From our entry level positions to our company directors, every single person in our company learns new things every day.

Our values are always available online so you can decide how closely you align with us already — there’s room for good honest people who embrace challenges and are willing to do the required work to reach shared goals.

You need to be individually competent and at the same time you must be a good team player.

We’re looking for disciplined people who can respect the mission and each other as teammates. ■

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This question sparked the first thought that has grown into a flourishing business known as Protea Truck and Bus Parts (PTB Group): your trusted supplier of European truck and bus parts in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

“Think Quality. Think Protea.”

These are not just words that we utter.
It’s a reminder of what we’re called to bring into each day we show up ready to serve our customers and community.

We think high-quality thoughts.
We produce high-quality work in every department.
We choose only the best brands to add to our inventory.

Quality vision

Before we can even think high-quality thoughts, we need something to believe in. Our leadership team is constantly analysing data from our business and market, exploring what more we can do, what we can do differently and what kind of impact that has on our growing customer base and surrounding communities.

We want to set the highest standards not only for our business but for what South Africa’s logistics industry can become. We’re not afraid of the challenges that inevitably come with being a pioneer or wanting much better for our people — we are led by a true visionary and supported by extraordinary leaders each and every day. We enter each day ready to learn, fully apply ourselves in service of your business and celebrate when that turns into your company’s success.

Whether you started yesterday or you’ve been managing a fleet for decades, you’ll be able to find the right person in our team to support you in maintaining and even growing your business.

Quality people

Over the years as our core team has evolved, so too has each of our departments. Whether it’s an in-house hire or a new supplier or service provider, we keep raising the bar when it comes to who we let into our ecosystem and who gets to stay. Our training and development programmes ensure that everyone receives an equal opportunity to learn, grow and thrive through a long term career with our company.

Quality parts

Equally important to hiring the right people is making sure that the right parts reach our warehouses before moving on to your workshops. Our procurement team spends months, sometimes years, vetting brands and products, reviewing research and recall patterns around the world before deciding to trial a brand. When you buy a part or a consumable from Protea Truck and Bus Parts, you’re buying the painstaking effort that goes into making the decision to stock that item.

If you do encounter issues, our comprehensive returns and claims policies inform everything from the return of the item, if permissible by law, to the lengthy series of investigations that take place to find out what caused you the issue to begin with. We challenge our suppliers when it’s your business uptime at risk, and we advocate on your behalf just like a good retailer should.

Quality processes

In recent years this part of our business has undergone some of the most significant transformation, and it continues to evolve monthly. Business Process Optimisation (BPO) is a fast-growing focus area for our research and development (R&D) team, and for each of our functional leaders. The faster, more cost-effective and more impactful our processes are, the greater the success for your business as a customer of ours.

Your success and growth is what motivates us to keep pushing boundaries and keep exploring what more is possible. Please participate in our annual surveys and keep sharing your feedback with our in-store promoters and your dedicated sales concierges — we exist to serve you and if your fleet is evolving, we need to know so that we can evolve with you.

Quality compliance

With the growth of our business comes the responsibility of new compliance requirements. Our investment into learning and adapting continues to pay off so that we can source better products and build relationships with trusted suppliers around the world on your behalf.

Buying a product or consumable for your fleet from us at PTB Group means getting behind all of these investments into quality. We show up daily to make progress on this mission for the benefit of your business, the growth of which we hope to celebrate alongside you for many years to come. ■