Africa-Press – Lesotho. In this changing world, women seem to have come forth to take control and occupy leadership positions in big companies and ‘Mapusetso Ntšekhe is an example as
she holds a position of General Manager Marketing, Communications and Customer Experience at Econet Telecom Lesotho (ETL). Ntšekhe, who joined the ETL team back in 2012 as a Roaming Manager
and beginning of 2014, her responsibilities were expanded to include interconnect services. She then served as acting Head of Products and Services before being officially appointed in March 2020. In December 2020, she was
appointed to the position of acting General Manager Marketing, Communications and Customer Experience. She studied Information Technology (IT), majoring in Software Development.
“I wanted to know everything I could about the IT environment. I loved computers and was fascinated by their intricacy. I felt I needed to know more,
and I also recognized that this course and industry were male dominated,” she said. Ntšekhe added that she needed to prove her capabilities to counter the gender stereotypes in careers.
She noted that ETL contributed to her professional empowerment because it backed her up-skilling and even accepted her ideas and requests for course trainings to better her performance. She said her
management provided her with tremendous support and motivation. “As a woman in leadership, it is vital to always keep a modest demeanor while making decisions,”
she said and noted that she makes certain that her job is completed successfully and she contributes to critical issues and stands up when duty calls.
“Women are, without a doubt, undervalued. This might also occur as a result of our anxieties and failure to step out and
lead as we should. Some women desire to be more successful but lack confidence in their abilities. Furthermore, the world still believes that men are superior,
particularly in technical and information technology contexts,” she said. She pointed out that aggression, whether in males or females is not what propels
individuals to the top but the most crucial characteristic is leadership. Ntšekhe said her main duties as General Manager is managing the full Marketing and Customer Experience services to
acquire and retain the right Customers and to position ETL well in the market. “I am in charge of brand visibility and product and services awareness, product
development, ensuring that customers are satisfied and hence stay loyal to the company,” she explained. Ntšekhe encouraged women to push forward in pursuing their goals. She reinstated that should strive
to leave their imprint and ensure that their presence is felt by their compassion, hard work, respect for themselves and others and most importantly, love. She said these are the special traits that women are born with.
