Peter Ndungu

Peter Ndungu first discovered his passion for construction during his childhood, leading to a career in cost consultancy and ultimately to his current position as a director at YMR. Now working alongside Mace, Peter looks forward to the opportunities and business growth that will come from the partnership. 

How did you get into what you do?

My interest in tall buildings led me to pursue building economics at university and quantity surveying. My first job was in the Kenyan civil service and involved the refurbishment of 62 health facilities spread across Kenyan coast counties. I then joined YMR in 1989 where my first project was the construction of the Safari Park Hotel in Nairobi, which helped me develop my affinity for hospitality industry projects, amongst others.

What do you enjoy most about your role?

I love training staff to improve their work; watching them progress and develop from new graduates to experienced professionals is probably the best part of my role. I also enjoy the satisfaction of seeing a project evolve from an empty site up until the point where you can hand over to a customer reasonably within budget. I appreciate listening to clients and offering new and alternative solutions to any challenges they may have.

What advice would you give to someone looking to get into what you do?

Well, besides from a good education and training, which are mandatory, I would say that you need to have a real passion for the job and industry. I think in this business there is a noticeable advantage to enjoying the work that you do, not only do you achieve better results – it will give you a huge advantage over your competitors! 

What do you see as the big trend for East Africa in the next five years?

The construction industry in East Africa has grown in leaps and bounds over the past few years and is projected to continue over the next decade. A few years back, only a handful of clients looked for the services of a project manager, whereas now it is a norm in the majority of projects.  

A new trend of procuring services of specialists and sub-specialists in other spheres has already started to develop - I expect there to be a significant growth in this in the future as the local construction industry in East Africa aligns itself with the global trends.

Effects of Climate change have led to more environmentally conscious building designs; a trend that will continue growing for the foreseeable future.

What do you think are the benefits to clients of Mace and YMR coming together?

I believe that MaceYMR will provide the resources and experience to achieve better results for our clients. Mace has a much wider range of services, global presence and a new way of doing construction consultancy business. When you couple this with YMR’s local knowledge of the East African market, it will lead to greater growth and resilience. So, our clients will benefit from the diverse expertise of both companies – which is an exciting prospect! 

What are you passionate about outside of work?

I am such a people person! Meeting and learning about people’s culture and communities is one of my main passions. It is probably this trait that inspires me to assist at children’s homes and spend a lot of time working in charities and schools.