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Group sales manager shares his passion for people and Paratus
Group sales manager shares his passion for people and Paratus

Group sales manager shares his passion for people and Paratus

Innovating solutions that take their clients’ service offering to the next level
Medeline /Gases
Staff Reporter



Ian Grassow is a proud Namibian, born in Walvis Bay, and is currently in the Group Sales division of Paratus Namibia.

Ian has been with Paratus for 17 years. He is a high-performance character who understands how to support and unlock the potential of his sales team to achieve success.

He shares his expertise to empower his team, while innovating solutions that take their key clients’ service offering to the next level. He is a long game player too, understanding that success takes commitment and focus.

This can also be seen in his personal life, as he has competed in extreme cycling events such as the Cape Epic and the Namibia Desert Dash, a gruelling 24-hour race across 373 km of Namibia’s gravel roads. His calm, logical, goal-focused approach is the key to Ian’s success and is balanced by his desire to cross the finishing line a winner, no matter how long it takes.

“I love coming to work, I love cooking, I wanted to be a chef, and I love working with people and building relationships,” says Ian.

“The favourite part of my day is – lunchtime, it’s usually my leftovers from the night before.”

“One of my biggest challenges as well as my biggest accomplishment at Paratus was working on a bandwidth ring solution for one of our large financial clients in SADC. It took us over a year to sell the idea and implement the solution whereby we connect all their branches in SADC and they have control of the bandwidth. They are essentially an ISP within the company.

“But getting the deal doesn’t happen overnight, it takes time to gain the client’s confidence – it can take a year or two, but with persistence and a no limits attitude, you will always come out on top. I am very proud to be part of growing Paratus and very proud of being part of a Namibian-born company.”

The term ‘hold and defend’ – is what he applies to his customers. Once he has them on board, he looks after them and, for him, the customer is always right. The most important thing is keeping the customer happy.

If he were able to make a difference in this world, Ian would look after nature and stop over-fishing and the people he most admires are Sir David Attenborough and Flip Stander of the Desert Lion Foundation. The person Ian would most like to have met is Mahatma Gandhi because he never gave up and he fought for what he believed in. Grassow’s parting words to everyone out there are: “stay humble and don’t ever give up.”

10 facts

· He thinks big and, like a Formula 1 coach, he manages a high-performance team in terms of mentoring, sales and support.

· He ensures the team works at optimum level of capability.

· He lends expertise to ensure the team gets across the finishing line.

· Endurance guy – he is in for the long-game and sees it through to the winning end.

· Calm and resolved …and very committed.

· Focused and goal orientated.

· Loves nature.

· Loves being active.

· Loves cooking.

· Loves travelling and camping.

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Namibian Sun 2024-03-19

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Six Nations: France 33 vs 31 England | Ireland 17 vs 13 Scotland | Wales 21 vs 24 Italy Premier League: Brighton 0 vs 0 Manchester City | West Ham 1 vs 1 Aston Villa | Everton 0 vs 0 Liverpool | Fulham 3 vs 0 Tottenham Hotspur | Manchester United 0 vs 0 Sheffield United | Luton Town 1 vs 1 Forest | Wolverhampton Wanderers 0 vs 0 Bournemouth | Crystal Palace 0 vs 0 Newcastle | Burnley 2 vs 1 Brentford | Arsenal 0 vs 0 Chelsea LaLiga: Atletico Madrid 0 vs 3 Barcelona | Rayo Vallecano 2 vs 0 Real Betis | Las Palmas 0 vs 1 Almería | Villarreal 1 vs 0 Valencia | Sevilla 1 vs 2 Celta Vigo | Athletic Club 2 vs 0 Deportivo Alaves | Getafe 1 vs 0 Girona | Osasuna 2 vs 4 Real Madrid | Mallorca 1 vs 0 Granada SerieA: Internazionale 1 vs 1 Napoli | AS Roma 1 vs 0 Sassuolo | Atalanta 0 vs 0 Fiorentina | Hellas Verona 1 vs 3 AC Milan | Juventus 0 vs 0 Genoa | Frosinone 2 vs 3 SS Lazio | Salernitana 0 vs 1 Lecce | Monza 1 vs 0 Cagliari | Udinese 0 vs 2 Torino European Championships Qualifying: Leeds United 2 vs 0 Millwall FC | West Bromwich Albion 2 vs 0 Bristol City | Plymouth Argyle 0 vs 1 Preston North End | Rotherham United 0 vs 0 Huddersfield Town | Stoke City 0 vs 3 Norwich City | Middlesbrough 0 vs 0 Blackburn Rovers | Birmingham City 0 vs 1 Watford | Ipswich Town 6 vs 0 Sheffield Wednesday | Sunderland 0 vs 0 Queens Park Rangers | Swansea City 2 vs 0 Cardiff City FA Cup: Manchester United 4 vs 3 Liverpool | Chelsea 4 vs 2 Leicester City | Manchester City 2 vs 0 Newcastle United | Wolverhampton Wanderers 2 vs 3 Coventry City English Championship: Leeds United 2 vs 0 Millwall FC | West Bromwich Albion 2 vs 0 Bristol City | Plymouth Argyle 0 vs 1 Preston North End | Rotherham United 0 vs 0 Huddersfield Town | Stoke City 0 vs 3 Norwich City | Middlesbrough 0 vs 0 Blackburn Rovers | Birmingham City 0 vs 1 Watford | Ipswich Town 6 vs 0 Sheffield Wednesday | Sunderland 0 vs 0 Queens Park Rangers | Swansea City 2 vs 0 Cardiff City Katima Mulilo: 18° | 37° Rundu: 20° | 38° Eenhana: 20° | 36° Oshakati: 23° | 35° Ruacana: 21° | 36° Tsumeb: 21° | 37° Otjiwarongo: 18° | 35° Omaruru: 20° | 37° Windhoek: 19° | 34° Gobabis: 19° | 36° Henties Bay: 19° | 24° Wind speed: 19km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 06:31, High tide: 12:45, Low Tide: 18:51, High tide: 01:21 Swakopmund: 17° | 19° Wind speed: 16km/h, Wind direction: W, Low tide: 06:29, High tide: 12:43, Low Tide: 18:49, High tide: 01:19 Walvis Bay: 18° | 26° Wind speed: 22km/h, Wind direction: W, Low tide: 06:29, High tide: 12:42, Low Tide: 18:49, High tide: 01:18 Rehoboth: 18° | 35° Mariental: 24° | 37° Keetmanshoop: 22° | 37° Aranos: 24° | 37° Lüderitz: 24° | 36° Ariamsvlei: 27° | 38° Oranjemund: 17° | 29° Luanda: 27° | 29° Gaborone: 23° | 37° Lubumbashi: 16° | 26° Mbabane: 18° | 22° Maseru: 15° | 33° Antananarivo: 16° | 25° Lilongwe: 17° | 27° Maputo: 23° | 27° Windhoek: 19° | 34° Cape Town: 20° | 27° Durban: 22° | 24° Johannesburg: 18° | 32° Dar es Salaam: 24° | 32° Lusaka: 17° | 28° Harare: 15° | 32° Currency: GBP to NAD 24.02 | EUR to NAD 20.57 | CNY to NAD 2.64 | USD to NAD 19 | DZD to NAD 0.14 | AOA to NAD 0.02 | BWP to NAD 1.34 | EGP to NAD 0.39 | KES to NAD 0.14 | NGN to NAD 0.01 | ZMW to NAD 0.73 | ZWL to NAD 0.04 | BRL to NAD 3.76 | RUB to NAD 0.21 | INR to NAD 0.23 | USD to DZD 134.4 | USD to AOA 832.63 | USD to BWP 13.71 | USD to EGP 47.13 | USD to KES 132.48 | USD to NGN 1572.01 | USD to ZAR 19 | USD to ZMW 25.65 | USD to ZWL 321 | Stock Exchange: JSE All Share Index 72430.44 Down -0.77% | Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX) Overall Index 1504.69 Down -0.83% | Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE) MASI 13085.63 Up +0.17% | Egyptian Exchange (EGX) 30 Index 29091.29 Down -6.34% | Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) DCI 9055.2 Same 0 | NSX: MTC 7.75 SAME | Anirep 8.99 SAME | Capricorn Investment group 17.34 SAME | FirstRand Namibia Ltd 49 DOWN 0.50% | Letshego Holdings (Namibia) Ltd 4.1 UP 2.50% | Namibia Asset Management Ltd 0.7 SAME | Namibia Breweries Ltd 31.49 UP 0.03% | Nictus Holdings - Nam 2.22 SAME | Oryx Properties Ltd 12.1 UP 1.70% | Paratus Namibia Holdings 11.99 SAME | SBN Holdings 8.45 SAME | Trustco Group Holdings Ltd 0.48 SAME | B2Gold Corporation 47.34 DOWN 1.50% | Local Index closed 677.62 UP 0.12% | Overall Index closed 1534.6 DOWN 0.05% | Osino Resources Corp 19.47 DOWN 2.41% | Commodities: Gold US$ 2 154.06/OZ DOWN -0.0038 | Copper US$ 4.07/lb DOWN -0.0092 | Zinc US$ 2 501.60/T DOWN -1.49% | Brent Crude Oil US$ 86.81/BBP DOWN -0.0028 | Platinum US$ 902.07/OZ DOWN -0.0157 Sport results: Six Nations: France 33 vs 31 England | Ireland 17 vs 13 Scotland | Wales 21 vs 24 Italy Premier League: Brighton 0 vs 0 Manchester City | West Ham 1 vs 1 Aston Villa | Everton 0 vs 0 Liverpool | Fulham 3 vs 0 Tottenham Hotspur | Manchester United 0 vs 0 Sheffield United | Luton Town 1 vs 1 Forest | Wolverhampton Wanderers 0 vs 0 Bournemouth | Crystal Palace 0 vs 0 Newcastle | Burnley 2 vs 1 Brentford | Arsenal 0 vs 0 Chelsea LaLiga: Atletico Madrid 0 vs 3 Barcelona | Rayo Vallecano 2 vs 0 Real Betis | Las Palmas 0 vs 1 Almería | Villarreal 1 vs 0 Valencia | Sevilla 1 vs 2 Celta Vigo | Athletic Club 2 vs 0 Deportivo Alaves | Getafe 1 vs 0 Girona | Osasuna 2 vs 4 Real Madrid | Mallorca 1 vs 0 Granada SerieA: Internazionale 1 vs 1 Napoli | AS Roma 1 vs 0 Sassuolo | Atalanta 0 vs 0 Fiorentina | Hellas Verona 1 vs 3 AC Milan | Juventus 0 vs 0 Genoa | Frosinone 2 vs 3 SS Lazio | Salernitana 0 vs 1 Lecce | Monza 1 vs 0 Cagliari | Udinese 0 vs 2 Torino European Championships Qualifying: Leeds United 2 vs 0 Millwall FC | West Bromwich Albion 2 vs 0 Bristol City | Plymouth Argyle 0 vs 1 Preston North End | Rotherham United 0 vs 0 Huddersfield Town | Stoke City 0 vs 3 Norwich City | Middlesbrough 0 vs 0 Blackburn Rovers | Birmingham City 0 vs 1 Watford | Ipswich Town 6 vs 0 Sheffield Wednesday | Sunderland 0 vs 0 Queens Park Rangers | Swansea City 2 vs 0 Cardiff City FA Cup: Manchester United 4 vs 3 Liverpool | Chelsea 4 vs 2 Leicester City | Manchester City 2 vs 0 Newcastle United | Wolverhampton Wanderers 2 vs 3 Coventry City English Championship: Leeds United 2 vs 0 Millwall FC | West Bromwich Albion 2 vs 0 Bristol City | Plymouth Argyle 0 vs 1 Preston North End | Rotherham United 0 vs 0 Huddersfield Town | Stoke City 0 vs 3 Norwich City | Middlesbrough 0 vs 0 Blackburn Rovers | Birmingham City 0 vs 1 Watford | Ipswich Town 6 vs 0 Sheffield Wednesday | Sunderland 0 vs 0 Queens Park Rangers | Swansea City 2 vs 0 Cardiff City Weather: Katima Mulilo: 18° | 37° Rundu: 20° | 38° Eenhana: 20° | 36° Oshakati: 23° | 35° Ruacana: 21° | 36° Tsumeb: 21° | 37° Otjiwarongo: 18° | 35° Omaruru: 20° | 37° Windhoek: 19° | 34° Gobabis: 19° | 36° Henties Bay: 19° | 24° Wind speed: 19km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 06:31, High tide: 12:45, Low Tide: 18:51, High tide: 01:21 Swakopmund: 17° | 19° Wind speed: 16km/h, Wind direction: W, Low tide: 06:29, High tide: 12:43, Low Tide: 18:49, High tide: 01:19 Walvis Bay: 18° | 26° Wind speed: 22km/h, Wind direction: W, Low tide: 06:29, High tide: 12:42, Low Tide: 18:49, High tide: 01:18 Rehoboth: 18° | 35° Mariental: 24° | 37° Keetmanshoop: 22° | 37° Aranos: 24° | 37° Lüderitz: 24° | 36° Ariamsvlei: 27° | 38° Oranjemund: 17° | 29° Luanda: 27° | 29° Gaborone: 23° | 37° Lubumbashi: 16° | 26° Mbabane: 18° | 22° Maseru: 15° | 33° Antananarivo: 16° | 25° Lilongwe: 17° | 27° Maputo: 23° | 27° Windhoek: 19° | 34° Cape Town: 20° | 27° Durban: 22° | 24° Johannesburg: 18° | 32° Dar es Salaam: 24° | 32° Lusaka: 17° | 28° Harare: 15° | 32° Economic Indicators: Currency: GBP to NAD 24.02 | EUR to NAD 20.57 | CNY to NAD 2.64 | USD to NAD 19 | DZD to NAD 0.14 | AOA to NAD 0.02 | BWP to NAD 1.34 | EGP to NAD 0.39 | KES to NAD 0.14 | NGN to NAD 0.01 | ZMW to NAD 0.73 | ZWL to NAD 0.04 | BRL to NAD 3.76 | RUB to NAD 0.21 | INR to NAD 0.23 | USD to DZD 134.4 | USD to AOA 832.63 | USD to BWP 13.71 | USD to EGP 47.13 | USD to KES 132.48 | USD to NGN 1572.01 | USD to ZAR 19 | USD to ZMW 25.65 | USD to ZWL 321 | Stock Exchange: JSE All Share Index 72430.44 Down -0.77% | Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX) Overall Index 1504.69 Down -0.83% | Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE) MASI 13085.63 Up +0.17% | Egyptian Exchange (EGX) 30 Index 29091.29 Down -6.34% | Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) DCI 9055.2 Same 0 | NSX: MTC 7.75 SAME | Anirep 8.99 SAME | Capricorn Investment group 17.34 SAME | FirstRand Namibia Ltd 49 DOWN 0.50% | Letshego Holdings (Namibia) Ltd 4.1 UP 2.50% | Namibia Asset Management Ltd 0.7 SAME | Namibia Breweries Ltd 31.49 UP 0.03% | Nictus Holdings - Nam 2.22 SAME | Oryx Properties Ltd 12.1 UP 1.70% | Paratus Namibia Holdings 11.99 SAME | SBN Holdings 8.45 SAME | Trustco Group Holdings Ltd 0.48 SAME | B2Gold Corporation 47.34 DOWN 1.50% | Local Index closed 677.62 UP 0.12% | Overall Index closed 1534.6 DOWN 0.05% | Osino Resources Corp 19.47 DOWN 2.41% | Commodities: Gold US$ 2 154.06/OZ DOWN -0.0038 | Copper US$ 4.07/lb DOWN -0.0092 | Zinc US$ 2 501.60/T DOWN -1.49% | Brent Crude Oil US$ 86.81/BBP DOWN -0.0028 | Platinum US$ 902.07/OZ DOWN -0.0157