Danny is one of SuperCool’s longest-serving team members, having joined the company fresh out of high school over 12 years ago.
After a chance connection with Mark Mitchell through his school-based apprenticeship, Danny found his calling within the SuperCool family and has been enthusiastically solving customer problems ever since.
How long have you worked at SuperCool and what attracted you to a career in this industry?
I’m coming up on 13 years with the team here. Towards the end of high school, I was looking for something hands-on, and the school put me in touch with Mark. We hit it off immediately and it wasn’t long before I was able to complete my Certificate III in Spare Parts Interpreting apprenticeship and put all my focus on my career with SuperCool.
As part of becoming a well-rounded employee, Mark helped me arrange a few months on secondment in an auto workshop in Toowoomba. This provided invaluable experience working on AC systems of all types – I had my hands on everything from planes to tractors.
After returning to SuperCool, I spent a lot of time in the SuperTest division which helped build my problem-solving skills, and then eventually moved into looking after operations.
What does a typical day look like as Operations Manager?
My favourite part of this role is that it’s never boring, so my days are far from ‘typical’. Most days include a combination of managing the other guys in the team here, picking and packing orders, dealing with customer requests and managing inventory. But within that, there are always fresh problems to solve and new people to help out.
It’s also a running joke that I know where everything is here because I’ve been here since the building was built – if anyone needs to find stock or parts the solution is to ‘go ask Danny!’. I’m always happy to point the team in the right direction when they need something.
What's the most rewarding part of being the Operations Manager at SuperCool?
There’s always something new going on, new challenges to overcome, and new customers to assist. You’d think we’d have seen it all by now, but our team is always kept on our toes by customers with new applications or uses for products that we haven’t seen before. No two days are the same and that keeps life interesting!
Why do you think SuperCool stands out in the industry?
It sounds a bit cliched but it’s absolutely the people. I’ve seen this business grow from the ground up and I don’t think there are many other family businesses out there that are this open and welcoming from top to bottom.
At 29 I’m one of the youngest team members here and I’m treated with respect and care – almost like a 3rd son to Mark. He is so open with all of us here: there are no secrets, and that really spurs everyone on to help make the business a success, as we all know what the priorities are and who needs to do what to reach our goals.
And because we’re happy and we feel secure at work, that really comes out in our customer service – we treat this like our own business and we’re motivated to go the extra mile for our customers.
What do you get up to when you're not at work?
As the token Pom who was born and raised in Blackpool, you can probably guess that I’m going to say football! I’ve played most of my life and am a staunch Liverpool fan, however dealing with several injuries over the past couple of years has prompted me to follow my wife and daughter into Muay Thai.
What started as a way to keep fit while I was rehabbing an ACL injury has become a daily practice that I really love. I’ve got 3 little kids so it’s a great outlet and it keeps me fit enough to run around after them. I’m making it sound like I’m a health nut but my rigid competitive nature definitely doesn’t extend to my eating habits! My office lunches are famous for their lack of veggies.
Daniel Drennan is based at SuperCool’s head office in Ormeau, Queensland, and can be reached via email or at +61 7 5549 4000.
