Henley Africa’s Makhoalibe selected for sought-after international women’s leadership programme

Dr Puleng Makhoalibe, Head of Henley Business School Africa’s School of Innovation, Creativity and Entrepreneurship (Henley ICE) is one of 20 women globally selected to participate in the 2019 Women Leaders for the World Program (WLW).

This gives her access to a 12-month transformative, global leadership-training programme offered by San Francisco-based women leaders network How Women Lead. It aims to give women a platform to solidify their roles as global leaders who are making an impact on the world. Through co-creation, collaboration, coaching, mentorship and sharing of stories and resources, the women develop their full leadership potential while envisioning new possibilities and new ways of working so as to have a greater impact in their organisations and communities. Thus far more than 200 programme graduates have gone on to start non-profits, run government organisations and take on leadership roles in businesses across the globe.

Makhoalibe will be joining the 19 other participants in Petaluma, California in the US from 24-29 March 2019 for a short residential session at the start of the programme.  She will also present her vision for transforming education in Africa at a Meet the Women Leaders event in San Francisco on the 28th March 2019 where she will share her story and vision of unleashing creativity and innovation on the African continent. Throughout the programme, Makhoalibe will have access to an online mentor and coach to assist her with progressing her vision.

Her international peers have long recognised Makhoalibe as a global leader in creativity and innovation. In 2013, she received an award recognising her contribution to the international community of innovators and creatives. Besides her work at Henley Africa, a business school that is part of the University of Reading’s business school network, she also works for Knowinnovation, a company accelerating interdisciplinary scientific innovation and for Inclusive Innovation, which focuses on innovation in developing countries. She is a past board member of the US-based Creative Education Foundation, whose mission it is to grow the next generation of innovators and creators and she is also involved with the African Creativity Conference in South Africa and the SA Innovation Summit – international platforms for innovators.

“I feel extremely humbled to have been accepted to join this transformational programme. I believe it will assist me in reaching my full potential as a global leader and help me to develop my vision so that it has global reach, better serves communities, touches more lives and leaves the world a better place.”

Makhoalibe is an inspirational example of someone who came from a humble background in Lesotho, yet has developed herself into a global leader for good, an educator, an author and a sought-after thought-leader.

“My journey has been driven by passion, initiative and a lot of risk-taking. After a light-bulb moment in 2007, I embarked on a process to realise my purpose, which has been very focused on unlocking the creative potential in others so that they can expand into the fullness of their beings and create abundance.”