Making it happen

· Mariselle Stofberg

Windsor Markus believes that you have the power within you to take charge of your life and make sure you live it to the best of your abilities.

“My greatest fear in life would be to miss my purpose on earth and to go through life without leaving a positive mark. I am therefore mindful of wasting time and not contributing to the world as much as I am capable of doing because I know I have a purpose that I am not yet serving.”

If Markus was able to do anything, he would love to be able to do magic and if he was given the opportunity he would eliminate human greed and ultimately poverty.

Markus was born and bred in the buoyant ‘sand’ suburb of Rehoboth. “My banking journey started straight after school as a teller in faraway Tsumeb and the rest is history. I am married to the most amazing wife and truly believe that children are a gift from God, so I must be highly favoured since I am abundantly blessed with four beautiful children.”

As the head of treasury sales at Bank Windhoek, Markus is responsible for formulating and implementing the treasury, international banking and trade sales strategy of the bank. “My typical day involves maintaining and servicing existing client relationships while developing new business relationships through the sale of the bank’s treasury products such as, foreign exchange, investments, derivatives and trade finance,” Markus added.

“I have always loved sales and thrive on the excitement of landing new clients or the sight of a satisfied client, so I am a little obsessed with growing people and enhancing processes and systems to ensure a smooth and customer centric experience.”

After starting work and having his first son, Markus had to study while working. He completed an Advanced Diploma through the Institute of Bankers, Management Development Programme, Dealing Certificate, Certificate in Financial Markets and recently his Senior Management Development Programme. “I think my biggest challenge was earlier in my career when I had to balance my career and personal life. Work- life balance means different things to different people as we all have different commitments but time management and setting priorities was key for me.”

Markus is very proud of the diverse and dynamic teams under his leadership. His family definitely inspires him to give his best every day. “I love spending time with my family and friends and I love Arsenal, despite our current situation.”

His advice to aspiring young people out there would be to not always allow money to be the deciding factor when they make career choices.

“Nowadays young people change jobs frequently for quick financial gain. I’m not saying you should stay with one organisation for life but my advice is, do not follow the money, keep on working hard, keep on learning and the money will follow you.”

In his experience as a banker, Markus knows how hard it is when you have to start from the bottom and you just want to climb that ladder very fast. “Looking back, I would not have had it any different because it is about the journey and young people should see it as a period of exploration and just soak up all the knowledge and opportunities they can.”

One of his plans includes growing into an inspirational leader with a focus on fostering a culture of positive change and growth in his teams. “I am convinced that growth and career development opportunities make employees stay longer and drives performance. Happy employees make happy customers,” Markus added.

“My longer-term goals include continuing my education and growing my professional and personal skillset to ensure that I remain relevant in my field and prepare myself for future opportunities. I believe life is what you make of it and while I am enjoying the current phase, I think the best is yet to come.”