New boss takes the helm of DMS

DMS Progrowers' new chief executive officer Derek Masters.

It's business as usual for DMS Progrowers' new chief executive officer Derek Masters.

Mr Masters was the company's chief operating officer for the past nine years before stepping up to the new role, and says strategic objectives would not change for the high-performing orchard management and post-harvest company.

This means investing in infrastructure, continuing to focus on team culture and, of course, building on their brand promise of "increasing grower profits".

"Where we, as a company are going, is we will continue to expand, both in terms of fruit volume and infrastructure capacity. At the Te Puna site, we're just laying the foundations for another two very large, fully racked, automated coolstores," Mr Masters says.

This would increase DMS' static coolstore capacity by another 1 million trays ready for the 2019 packing season. They are also adding an additional packing machine in Te Puna, which would arrive in January, ready for the 2018 season.

"We'll continue to offer excellent orchard management services and leasing arrangements. We are orchard champions - which means that DMS provides very skilled, experienced orchard managers to our growers, to achieve grower returns superior to industry averages," he says.

While it is too early to discuss the very recent season's industry results, as there was still fruit on shore, Mr Masters said indications were DMS' result would be far superior to industry average.

"The industry onshore green fruit loss is very low, currently at less than 1 per cent, but we are significantly better than this, as expected. We're certainly on track, as we have been for the past seven years, for a very good result," Mr Masters says.

"DMS is also performing very well offshore, in terms of fruit quality out-turns, compared to current industry results. A key factor is that our inventory management systems ensure both our sites are loading out the right fruit at the right time."

While Mr Masters has been with DMS for nine years, he's a qualified mechanical/production engineer. He worked in logistics, production management and as group manufacturing manager of an Asia-Pacific division of large American industrial manufacturing company, Ingersoll Rand, in Auckland, before moving to the Bay 25 years ago. He then worked locally for Design Mobel Furniture, Mastercraft Kitchens and a local horticultural company before joining DMS as chief operating officer.

He says his previous roles had given him good experience in change management, general management and team culture building skills, which were proving very useful at DMS. Team culture is incredibly important to him and is "a cornerstone attribute for our company success".

"Our vision and core values are engrained right through our company. We employ people based on attitudes, whether they can live our core values and 'fit' within our business, rather than skills," Mr Masters says.

"We can teach skill."