If you’ve kept up to date with our social media, you will have seen that our MD, Ayanda Mzondeki, has spent eight days jetting from South Africa to America, England, and back again. While we can agree that she has been hard at work all year, and deserves a well earned break, the HR champion has been attending conferences for just over a week.
Wednesday, 13 November, 2019 began the four-day Strategic Growth Forum in Palm Springs. Started by EY over a decade ago, this entrepreneurial program is geared at facilitating the advancement of startups with potential across the globe. Ayanda represented Liyema Consulting as an EYWW alumni, class of 2016, among the elite companies invited to be part of the event.
Entrepreneur and Philanthropist, Raegan Moya Jones, formed part of a star studded program that included three-time Olympic Medalist, Lindsey Vonn, American Soccer Players Alex Morgan and Carli Lloyd, actress Nicole Kidman and many more. While Ayanda gained a great deal of insight from each speaker sharing their unique stories, her key takeaway was in considering how she and her team would position Liyema for the year ahead; whether it be going full steam ahead, proceeding with caution or adopting a defensive strategy.
When the conference ended on Sunday, 17 November, 2019, the passionate social entrepreneur hopped on a flight to London for the WEConnect International Europe Conference that began on Monday, 18 November, 2019.
In between catching up with familiar faces and making new connections, Ayanda had to prepare herself for a breakaway session she was presenting titled: Leading Global Growth With Heart From Africa. While entrepreneurs from Nigeria, Ireland, Portugal, Switzerland, Germany and more attended the annual conference, there were interrogative points that Ayanda raised that most of those who were at her session, including representatives from Boeing, Accenture, and Standard Chartered, could benefit from.
“When you lead with heart, put people first, and you lead with resilience, you’ve got no other option but to enable your business to grow,” Ayanda shared as she closed her session. This is true of everything that we do, and is confirmed by some of the most profitable businesses in history. Great success came to those who were looking to solve a problem more than solely concerning themselves with profit Altruism is a moral perspective that many people gravitate towards. It is a trait that forms the backbone of Liyema Consulting.
On her return, Ayanda spent her first day back in South Africa participating at the #UnlockingGreatness Conference with Unjani Clinics in partnership with Johnson and Johnson.
For her presentation, Ayanda had a chance to offer her experience and expertise by leading a session about Human Resources Management. Head of the WEConnect South Africa chapter, Jean Chawapiwa was in attendance too, introducing the health care personnel to the international opportunities and exposure WEConnect offers. Jill Lithgow stressed the importance of “Caring for the Caregiver,” Jacob Pretorius shared about Johnson and Johnson’s effort on using women owned businesses in their supply chain, and certified attorney Yolisa Ngxabazi’s presentation covered legal compliance.
It has been an exciting couple of days for Liyema Consulting, and we are happy that we’ve managed the final push of 2019 with enthusiasm and positivity. We continue to be proud of our MD and everything she does for our local community, as well as for the army of fierce female taking on the corporate industry all across the world.