Managing director of Paratus Namibia, Andrew Hall, says innovation is key

From an apprenticeship with Telkom Ericsson many years ago, Andrew Hall has come a long way in the industry. He now runs Paratus and, as MD of the company in Namibia, his particular focus is on sales. As well as sales, the value-added services department – a total of 45 people – all report directly to him.

The customer is always at the forefront of this innovator’s mind and Andrew and his team are constantly looking for unique and innovative ways to offer their clients the best possible solution. This is then backed by excellence in terms of customer service. “We strive to make the customer happy”, says Andrew, “no matter what it takes.”

Andrew’s other main focus is Open Access which allows multiple operators to share the Paratus fibre infrastructure and deliver services to their customers without the need to duplicate the costly development of that infrastructure. It enables and promotes healthy competition between operators, without any monopolistic action, and makes the service affordable to customers. It promotes and provokes entrepreneurship, drives digital transformation and is a win-win for Namibia.

He is a proud Namibian, born and bred in Swakopmund and loves living a healthy lifestyle. When Andrew is not managing the line-managers, he manages his line in the water when bass fishing competitively for Namibia or out mountain-biking in the mountains.

Andrew has been with Paratus longer than the company has been registered. “I have never had to leave one company to move to Paratus”, says Andrew, “because the companies I have worked for have just changed ownership over the years. I started working for Telkom Ericsson which was acquired by Orion Telecom then changed to Vox Telecom which then got bought out by Paratus in 2014, so theoretically I have never changed jobs.

“And why would I want to change jobs? Because Paratus is a company with great values, business ethics and very disruptive. We work hard and we play hard, and I am proud to be part of such a game-changing, innovative company and working within such a fast-moving and exciting industry. We think big and we are very happy to be helping deliver unlimited connectivity to the people of Namibia.”

When asked what he would do or change if he were given a magic wand, Andrew replies: “I would make Covid-19 instantly disappear with the devastation it has created on people’s lives and economies around the world.”

Characteristics

· Very focused

· Loves adrenalin

· Loves motorbikes

· Loves a challenge

· Likes to keep fit with an active lifestyle (cycling, gym)

· He is driven

· Hard working, gets the job done and makes it happen

· He breaks boundaries

· He is very customer service orientated

· He innovates on products and new services

· He is improving connectivity and cost