From Tech Startups to BPO Leadership: The Journey of a Successful Serial Entrepreneur, Kobus van der Westhuizen

In this episode of Rod's Pod, I sit down with Kobus van der Westhuizen, a true pioneer in South Africa's call centre, contact centre, CRM, customer experience and BPO/GBS, sectors. With a career spanning decades, Kobus has been at the forefront of building, scaling, and transforming businesses. From his early days in tech sales to founding Interact CRM, leading workforce management innovation, and bringing global BPO players into South Africa, his journey is nothing short of remarkable. Key Discussion Points: • How Kobus transitioned from tech sales to South Africa's early call centre boom in the late 80s and early 90s • The founding of Interact CRM and its influence on customer relationship management • The role of workforce management solutions in driving operational efficiency • How he introduced major global BPO players like Aegis to South Africa • The shift towards automation and data-driven decision-making in customer operations: o How Genii Analytics is delivering True Root Cause Analysis for customer interactions o How Gennii Analytics is partnering with Callbi Speech Analytics to create a mile-wide and mile-deep approach to CX insights o Using advanced analytics to bridge the gap between real-time data and actionable intelligence o The future of predictive analytics in BPO and its impact on customer engagement This episode is essential listening for anyone in CX, BPO, GBS and CX technologies—whether you're an industry veteran, a startup founder, or simply interested in how data, automation, and AI shape customer operations.