Hao’s journey with FrieslandCampina spans nearly two decades. Today, she is the Plant Manager of the Ha Nam factory in Vietnam. But it all began somewhere else. “I grew up in the Mekong Delta, in a very rural area,” Hao explains. “At that time, almost all children in my village stopped going to school very early, because they needed to work and earn money for their families.” Hao shares, a memory that stayed with her.
Continuing her education was not an obvious choice. “When I was young, my family faced many difficulties. There were periods when we had very little food, and nutritious products like milk were not available to us. But my parents believed in education and supported me to keep going,” Hao shares. Hao eventually became the only person from her village to attend university. While studying Food Engineering, she received a FrieslandCampina scholarship. Hao recalls, “That moment changed everything for me. It gave me financial support, but also my first real insight into factories, technology and professional development.”
Growing through trust, teamwork and opportunity
Growing up in challenging circumstances shaped one of Hao’s strongest personal values: respect. “Because of my background, I learned very early how important it is to respect people, no matter who they are or what role they have,” she explains. That value is something she strongly recognises within FrieslandCampina. “Act with respect is one of the company’s core values, and it truly matches my own,” Hao says. “I’ve worked in many different roles and departments, Quality Control, R&D, Operations, and this respect is something I feel everywhere in the organisation. That makes the way of working feel very natural to me.”
Her connection with FrieslandCampina goes beyond values alone. Purpose plays an equally important role. “Because of my childhood, I always wanted to contribute something meaningful to the community,” she explains. “Nutrition matters to me on a very personal level.” That connection became especially clear during her time in R&D. Hao reflects, “Working in R&D gave me the opportunity to contribute directly to developing the best possible nutrition for Vietnamese consumers. Knowing that our products could make a real difference for families like the one I grew up in was very motivating.”
