Gary Crouse, Compsol’s newly-appointed CIO, has spent 13 years rising through the ranks in the company and is now reshaping its technology strategy through AI, talent development and process modernisation.
Gary Crouse wakes before five each morning, heads to his home gym, puts on a podcast and trains. He is currently working through The Accidental CIO, a book about a developer pushed into leadership before he feels ready, a parallel he recognises in his own journey.
Gary is the newly-appointed CIO at Compsol, a Port Elizabeth-based company that facilitates workmen’s compensation claims. During his 13 years at the company, Compsol has grown from 280 to 580 employees. He has progressed from developer to the C-suite, and says the transition has reshaped how he understands the business.
“When you’re within a department, you actually don’t see all the flaws and the shortcomings until you get into the nuts and bolts. I assumed things would work differently.”
From fitter and turner to the C-suite
Gary was born in Johannesburg and moved to Port Elizabeth at the age of eight when his father, a train driver, was transferred. His early career path was not directed towards technology.
In his matric year, he pursued an apprenticeship as a fitter and turner but did not secure a placement. On the advice of a friend, he applied for a computer science course, passed the aptitude test, and completed a one-year programme covering software development, networking and hardware.
His first role as a developer ended following a leadership change that reduced the IT team. He then joined Spec-Savers as a help desk support agent, where he began teaching himself VB.NET and a manager identified his potential and created space for him to grow.
“He let me do what was best for the business, not what I wanted to do and in doing so, I was able to grow myself.” That manager later worked with Gary again at Compsol on an outsourced basis, and Gary credits him as a significant influence on his career.
Building talent in the Eastern Cape
Operating from Port Elizabeth presents structural challenges. Vendors prioritise larger markets such as Johannesburg and Cape Town, while experienced developers are also difficult to attract and retain. Gary’s response has been to invest internally, focusing on developing junior talent and upskilling existing staff.
His 34-person team spans IT administrators, developers, project managers, senior DBAs and business analysts. He is conducting skills assessments across the team to define individual learning paths and has introduced a learning management system alongside GitHub Copilot.
“We forget about the staff that’s been here for many years and we don’t upskill them. One of my mandates is to get the current staff up-skilled.”
Automation and AI integration
Compsol’s core business involves processing high volumes of documents and claims, creating opportunities for automation. Since late 2025, the company has implemented Microsoft’s AI Vision to extract and classify documents automatically, replacing manual processes that previously required staff to read and route emails.
“We now use Copilot and Copilot Studio to look at the documents and send them to the right teams. This has been a game changer for our productivity and efficiency,” he adds.
Gary is deliberate in how he communicates these changes to staff, acknowledging concerns about job security while positioning AI as a tool for role evolution rather than replacement. At the same time, he emphasises governance, with an AI policy that allows the use of additional tools subject to vetting and approval. “It does hallucinate, so always make sure you check your answers.”
A more complex challenge lies in modernising a core system built in VB6 in 2000, which has evolved over 26 years with contributions from multiple developers. Rather than pursuing a direct rewrite, his team intends to reassess the underlying business processes as part of a broader modernisation effort.
He maintains his Microsoft Azure Expert Architect certification to stay technically current and to retain credibility with his team. On security, he supplements internal capabilities with external oversight and is currently working with Microsoft on a funded data loss prevention initiative covering email, SharePoint, and AI usage.
“You get it wrong. Your day-to-day gets so busy you may forget to look at something. I always have two sets of eyes on our infrastructure,” he explains.
Staying sharp outside the office
Outside of work, Gary participates in sim racing on iRacing and plays Call of Duty, both of which he views as contributors to mental sharpness. “Call of Duty keeps me sharp. In the boardroom, when someone’s trying to shoot you down with their arguments, you need to be quick. Not always on the defence, but ready with an answer,” he says.
His morning training routine serves as a point of reset before the workday. After gym sessions, he walks his dachshund, and notes a measurable difference in his performance in meetings on days when he does not train.
In his first 100 days, Gary has reintroduced Compsol’s technology council, which meets biweekly and brings department heads together with IT to address operational challenges. He leads the initial sessions to establish the format and demonstrate how technology can be applied to business problems.
He cites a recent example where a manual task consuming four hours each week was reduced to 30 seconds through collaboration between IT and the business. “People in the business are scared to ask for help. You need to get them to work outside of their box and ask for assistance.”
His immediate priorities include driving consistent use of AI tools within the development team, embedding the learning management system, and repositioning IT as a contributor to business value rather than a cost centre. “Sometimes they think IT is just there, we spend money, and they never hear from us. I want to change that.” he concludes.
