NCCI Swakopmund hosts Sven Thieme

The Swakopmund branch of the Namibia Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NCCI) hosted a breakfast meeting at Strand Hotel Swakopmund yesterday with Mr Sven Thieme, President of NCCI and Executive Chairperson of Ohlthaver & List (O&L). The main focus of the meeting was on innovation as the key to success and sustainability.

“We, as the NCCI, are about to have a major strategic meeting about unifying us as the private sector, the business community to be a critical voice or partner to government in all the plans and dreams we have with the Harambee Prosperity Plan, Vision 2030 and our own vision 2020 to be aligned. We really make a significant difference and want to get everybody on the same page. We need to create one voice which is significant, just as the president said he wishes to have one big voice so we have meaningful and good discussions to take the country to the next level,” Thieme said to all attendees.
According to him innovation is the ability to generate useful ideas, but unless those ideas are scaled they remain just ideas. “I believe that there are people out there with great ideas, but great ideas remain great ideas until they are executed,” he said.
Thieme further said innovation is about staying relevant.
“We are in a time of unprecedented change, what may have helped us be successful in the past could actually be the course of failure in the future, so we need to adopt and evolve to meet the ever changing needs of humanity.” He added that most companies don’t have a problem with innovation, but have employees who are frustrated when they see how their company killed a project in favour of other properties.
“Framing the changes correctly is the critical key to innovation,” Thieme said. Thieme shared some advice with the business community and said that “you should always work ahead, especially when things worry you, and do not wait for deadlines.” He added that this is the only way to still have free time even though the responsibilities are piling up.
During the breakfast meeting Sven Thieme also launched the raffle draw competition of Mokuti Etosha Lodge. The winner of the raffle draw will win a stay for two at the Mokuti Lodge for two nights. Raffle tickets are available from the NCCI Swakopmund branch.