I had to go through a massive reinvention to reach where I am today’ - Noel Eric B. Ang

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Noel Eric B. Ang feels like he is very blessed for where he is right now. However, climbing in this stage comes with multiple sacrifices. He said that he had to go through a ‘massive reinvention’ to reach his current status. His thirst for knowledge continued to arm him in his journey through various careers.

Currently, Ang is working at Cultivate group as the General Manager of Craft Autocare and Project Director of Cultivate Landscape & Gardening Works LLC. For Craft Autocare, he handles the overall business into the car servicing industry. The auto company aims to differentiate itself from the thousands of garages and quick service repair centres by increasing the car’s maintenance and repair program. “We address their main concerns when they come in whole educating them in prioritizing and scheduling future repairs so that they can budget the cost and their time,” he said.

Ang has been working in the UAE for 12 years now, however, the Gulf country is not his first foray abroad as he was previously connected with Shell and was deployed across 19 countries, launching Shell’s car servicing offer to its global fuel station network. All in all, Ang is credited with launching 1,200 car repair centres.

Noel Eric B. Ang

‘I had to go through a massive reinvention to reach where I am today’

During his several stints abroad, according to Ang, he realized that there is an opportunity for him to help other Filipinos earn more hence when he got the chance to work in Dubai, he started recruiting Filipino mechanics to work for him. Some 65 percent of his 1,500 staff with his previous company were Filipinos.

Honing himself

Despite being in the automotive industry for over two decades now, the overseas Filipino worker is not an engineer by profession. He is a graduate from the University of Santo Tomas (UST) with a degree in BS Medical Technology and wanted to become a doctor back then. After graduation, he decided to take a summer job in an advertising agency which eventually turned out into seven years with the same company. After that, he worked in various industries from pharmaceuticals, retail, theme parks, to oil and gas.

To further hone his skills and knowledge, he took relevant courses and event completed several postgraduate degrees. He completed his Masters in Business Administration, Major in International Business also from the prestigious UST. In 2007, he started his Doctoral Degree in Education at the University of Perpetual Help, however, it was cut short when he accepted a job offer from ENOC. His first interest in automotive began when his former company entrusted him with an old Volkswagen Beetle. “They are iconic and are quite sturdy. Whenever can, I would tinker with my car,” he shared adding that he even went to complete a Technical Course in Automotive Maintenance just to deepen his understanding of cars.

“But my true passion is not in the technical side of car servicing but on the people side. Being able to experience car repair from both the customer and management’s point of view, there are always glaring gaps in the industry that center around the principles of repair transparency, customer awareness, and value for money. At Craft Autocare, we have advocated these and more. We want to create educated car owners since we believe they will eventually become safer and better drivers,” Ang said.

Keeping fit and active Outside of his work, he is passionate about keeping fit and active too. Ang is into Mixed Martial Arts and Brazilian Jiujitsu and has been joining competitions in the field. Through these sports, he was able to bag the Abu Dhabi World Professional Brazilian Jiujitsu win for two consecutive years for his weight and belt category. He has also been a competitive powerlifter and bodybuilder and has won several titles both at the local and national levels in the Philippines.

“Living abroad especially if one has been apart with their family is indeed a struggle for anyone regardless of nationality or race. As such I embrace to LAUGH every day:

Live each day for your family and your closest friends. Have them as your inspiration and fuel to go to work. Acquire new knowledge or a new skill every day. Never stop learning. Read a book, watch documentaries. Unwavering focus on your personal and professional goals. List down 3 major goals every year. God-centered existence. Offer to him all your struggles, all your triumphs. Health is indeed wealth. Invest in your health. Our body is the main machine we use to achieve our goals here.