Republikein Newspaper

Mariselle Stofberg

Oscar Haihambo is a dedicated, focused and tenacious woman who believes in equipping oneself with knowledge while following your passion.

Haihambo attended various customer service training courses and basic computer courses throughout her career to broaden her knowledge and equip her with as many skills as possible.

Today Haihambo is the frontline manager at the Pick n Pay Namibia Wernhil branch.

Haihambo’s career path has its roots in her love for working with people and helping them to reach their full potential. “I had a dream I wanted to pursue and had a passion for life. Through my leaders within the industry I was driven in this career direction. My love for people made me what I am today,” she says.

Whenever young people have to make decisions on their career paths, Haihambo encourages them to follow their dreams and to stay true to who they are. “You must have passion, integrity and believe in yourself.”

Haihambo started her career at Pick n Pay 22 years ago as a cashier and was later promoted to customer service.

“Today I am a frontline manager. I am responsible for ensuring that services run smoothly at the tills and that we keep all the customers happy as we are their last point of contact in the store. I also need to ensure that my team is following the right company procedures,” she added.

“I face challenges every day, but I make sure to overcome them and do my work to the best of my ability. The most rewarding part is when I see every customer and staff member happy and to be able to witness growth in the shop sales.”

Haihambo is working towards being a customer consultant for PnP in the whole of Namibia.

Haihambo believes her corporate superpower is her ability to stay true to her moral standards and maintaining her efficiency in everything she undertakes.

“In life things are not easy. You need to be strong to ensure a secure future for yourself and the people surrounding you.”

If Haihambo could change anything in this world it would be the detrimental mentality and attitude of society and she would want to find ways in which the community can fight poverty.

Haihambo believes that there is more to a person than meets the eye. “Some people see me only as Oscar, but they don’t necessarily know who the real me is. I am strong, observant, a good listener and a problem solver. I might come across as very soft spoken, but I am also very strict and traditional. I can analyse something and someone and get to the bottom of that scenario.”