Annabelle Egessa

Why do you work at Nova Pioneer? What keeps you here?

I absolutely love learning new things and every day is a learning experience here. Not to mention that the culture here is absolutely amazing! We have a great culture of togetherness. What I love about the culture here is how well people embrace it. It’s like always reuniting with your cousins who you haven’t seen in the longest time. People are always warm and welcoming, you always feel that you have a great support system that you can rely on.

What inspires you most about your work at Nova Pioneer?

I work with an amazing team. The people here just make everyday worth it. Even when you are having a tough time you can always count on your team for support. Every one here brings that special sauce to the team and the work ethic is amazing. People here are passionate about their job. I can honestly say I have gained a family here. People here make things happen – nothing is impossible!

In what ways have you grown since joining Nova Pioneer?

I think the toughest thing for me when I joined Nova Pioneer is learning to give and receive feedback. This was a pretty new concept to me. It took time to get used to and I never thought that I would be comfortable with the being given criticism in a positive way. Working in this type of environment has made me open to feedback and I no longer fear it. I can honestly say that I have grown the most in situations where I have been given tough feed

Can you share a story of one of your most memorable moments at Nova Pioneer?

My first day at work was nerve wrecking. I really did not know what to expect. I walked into the office and met with my Manager. She gave me a brief on what I would be doing and an hour later I was making calls to prospective parents. I was literally thrown into the deep end.

Most people don’t know this about me but I actually dread phone calls despite the fact that my job requires a lot of interaction with parents via phone. So I made my calls to all 8 parents on my list and I remember after finishing my calls, feeling so liberated. I was pushed out of my comfort zone and all that happened within the first 2 hours of reporting to my first day at work.

I kept thinking if in one day I stepped out of my comfort zone and did that one thing that scares me (no matter how small it was), imagine how much growth I will experience while at Nova Pioneer. Needless to say, everyone at home knew how much I loved my first day at work!

What are you passionate about? What makes you tick? :)

I am passionate about young people, Africa and telling African narratives. Getting to work with young people is helping me shape how people perceive Africa.