••••
RELATIONSHIP MANAGER BLOEMFONTEIN
T RADE N E W S
Willem Pienaar
enjoys job satisfaction
WILLEM PIENAAR, RELATIONSHIP MANAGER IN
BLOEMFONTEIN, JOINED SENWES 41 YEARS AGO AND
HIS JOB IS STILL SATISFACTORY.
AUBREY KRUGER
W
illem started working
in 1975 at Dewetsdorp
at the company. He started as
a clerk and even acted as relief
branch manager at Edenburg
and Reddersburg at one stage.
He started farming with his
brother, Saai, on land which they
leased in Dewetsdorp, but he
joined Senwes again in 2000 at
Dewetsdorp as head of the spare
parts division. He was appointed as relationship manager in
Bloemfontein in 2002.
HOW DOES HE EXPERIENCE HIS JOB?
“I manage relationships with our
clients and I work closely with
Senwes Credit, since I deal with
some of the production credit
applications".
In order to
achieve success, Willem
has to play
a number of
Relationships, family and farming
are Willem Pienaar's passions.
24
roles. He is, after all, a representative of Senwes Credit as well as
Hinterland and has to manage a
myriad of tasks.
As Willem's job title inidicates,
he is fully aware of the importance
of relationships with suppliers, clients, family and colleagues.
THE SUPPLIERS
Your success depends on how well
you get along with your suppliers.
“You simply have to get along
with them.” For this reason he
contacts them regularly and they
know he is always available. His
success depends on his relationships with suppliers - one always
wants business to be channelled
in your direction. "You have to
be the one who comes up in the
supplier's mind first".
THE CLIENT
The client is the ultimate factor.
Willem says that he realised as an
ordinary clerk already that one has
to retain the client's trust at all
times. "This is a very important
factor. You have to render good
service at all times. We are nothing without our clients."
FAMILY
Willem stays in Dewetsdorp and
services Bloemfontein, Petrusburg
and Dealesville and he often
works late. Relationships at home
and a family who understands
his work situation, are therefore
very important. "Without my
OCT/NOV 2016 • SENWES Scenario
family I am nothing". He has been
married to Rina for 38 years and he
has been blessed with two beautiful
daughters, Ansunet and Mandi,
and four granddaughters and one
grandson.
COLLEAGUES
Relationship managers such as
Willem have good relationships
with his colleagues: “I have good
relationships with Senwes Credit,
my key account managers, my
debtors clerk, my order clerk, my
storeman and my branch managers". One's success depends on
how you deal with your people, and
if you are a team player, it makes
things so much easier".
HIS JOB IS PURE SATISFACTION
He does all things with a smile.
It is a gift to be able to work with
people. I love people and I enjoy
working with people. He comes to
work every morning with gratitude
and excitement. It is not always
easy, but pulling together during
difficult times makes it worthwhile.
At 62 retirement is the last thing
on Willem's mind. "I am one of
those guys who will never retire".
When he retires eventually, farming
will keep him going. He is passionate about his sheep and the time
spent with them is regarded as a
time of healing of the soul.
Despite the fact that it is "a
dangerous world out there", he still
enjoys his job. "When you see a
young farmer grow over a number
of years, when you can take a young
farmer to Senwes and Hinterland
- it is incredibly satisfying". Let's
hope Willem will still be able to do
this for some time to come.