Joseph Tsolo’s life-altering transition from security guard to junior manager is a masterclass in perseverance and dreaming big. A beneficiary of a workplace skills development initiative, Tsolo’s ebullient rise through the ranks also showcases why South African corporates need to embrace more practical and effective ways to unleash the country’s talent.
“Recognising my potential, my manager suggested that I enrich my practical experience by studying at a business school,” says Tsolo. “I eagerly embarked on a journey of continuous learning, starting with a higher certificate in management practice and, a year later, enrolled in the diploma-level advanced certificate in management practice [ACMP]. Graduating with my ACMP is a milestone that fills me with immense pride, as I was the first in my family to graduate with a diploma.”
Joseph’s story reflects a broader shift taking place in executive education. Organisations are increasingly looking beyond standalone training interventions in favour of long-term partnerships that strengthen leadership pipelines, support succession planning and address strategic business challenges.
For Henley Business School Africa, these partnerships have become central to its approach.
Building capability where it matters
While many organisations recognise the importance of investing in people, the challenge lies in making learning relevant to the realities employees face every day. The World Economic Forum estimates that by 2030 almost 40% of today’s workplace skills will have changed, placing a premium on continuous learning that can evolve alongside organisations.
“Management is notoriously hard to learn and is mostly learnt the hard way, through failure and hard knocks,” explains Jon Foster-Pedley, dean and director of Henley Business School Africa. “Our mission at Henley has always been to make it easier for people to learn these hard skills to benefit their individual career progress and their organisation’s growth and sustainability.”
He adds that this is particularly critical in a country like South Africa where few people get the degrees and training they need to succeed, eroding their hope, confidence and belief in their own intelligence and capability.
“We are deeply committed to developing the people who build the businesses that build Africa. That means working with our clients — leading organisations across the continent — to create learning experiences that are practical, transformational and relevant to the realities our clients face every day.”
Henley is a global business school, part of the University of Reading, with campuses in the UK, Europe and Joburg. It offers a complete ladder of learning, with qualifications spanning NQF levels 5 to 10 that, while open to individual learners for “open enrolment”, can also be customised by clients to make sure they are speaking directly to the needs of that organisation.
In South Africa, where there is already a backlog in education and a dearth of opportunities, workplace learning on a massive scale, without losing the personal touch, holds the key to unleashing the country’s talent, believes Foster-Pedley.
“It is only through one-on-one partnerships between the likes of Henley and committed corporate citizens that we can start to change the odds decisively. Each year, Henley graduates upwards of 2,000 capable managers and leaders who go into South African workplaces to make a difference and add value. Many of these are through our executive education programmes.
“Like it or not, future success is linked to further education, and we need a revolution in how we think about education and training to ensure that working South Africans can make headway in a complexifying world,” he adds.
That philosophy is reflected in partnerships across sectors.
Employers recognise and value what Henley can do for them
At Discovery, Selo Govender, executive head of talent, learning and development, worked closely with Henley when the organisation redesigned its leadership development strategy. Today, Henley delivers Discovery’s advanced management development programmes, including its senior development programme. “Our people are passionate about developing themselves, and we want to enable them with high-quality education that supports their career growth,” says Govender. “Henley Africa is a phenomenal partner.”
Bryte Insurance has taken a similarly long-term view. Through its Bryte Academy, employees gain access to executive education, while initiatives such as the NextCo shadow executive committee allow emerging leaders to apply their learning to live strategic projects. “We want diverse thinking in how we approach projects and strategic initiatives,” says Tebogo Baloyi, head of HR at Bryte Insurance. “Talent and succession are key.”
Professional services firm SNG Grant Thornton partnered with Henley Executive Development to create its Africa director development programme, preparing high-potential professionals for future leadership responsibilities. “Our programme aims to capacitate promising professionals who have the potential to lead the firm to the next level,” says CEO Viktor Sekese.
Leadership development with measurable results
The effectiveness of this partnership model is also reflected in Henley’s international standing. The 2026 Financial Times Executive Education Rankings place Henley 23rd globally for customised executive education, maintaining its position among the world’s leading providers. The school is also ranked first globally for faculty diversity and 24th for the quality of its teaching faculty.
Importantly, these rankings are driven largely by client feedback, with organisational evaluations accounting for nearly 80% of the assessment methodology. “That makes this recognition especially meaningful,” says Linda Buckley, pro-dean of teaching, learning and student experience at Henley Africa. “It comes directly from the organisations we partner with. They are telling us that the learning experience is relevant, practical and helping them solve real business challenges.”
Henley’s globally diverse faculty also enables executives to engage with international perspectives while remaining firmly rooted in African business realities — an increasingly valuable combination for organisations operating across complex and fast-changing markets.
“Employers recognise and value what Henley graduates can do for them,” says Buckley. “Education is ultimately about change, and South Africa’s employers see first-hand how Henley’s graduates are personally transformed and go on to transform their workplaces, creating new value.
“We make sure we stay up to date with emerging trends by continuously finding ways to adapt our programmes to the current business environment. This includes making use of virtual and augmented reality, experiential immersions and global perspectives. We aim to create new and unique simulations for current and future-focused learning that capture the rapid acceleration of today’s technological world.”
As African organisations confront economic uncertainty, technological disruption and changing workforce expectations, the strongest competitive advantage may not come from hiring better leaders but from building them.
About Henley Business School Africa
Henley Business School is a leading global business school with campuses in Europe, Africa and Asia and is the first international business school in Africa with quadruple accreditation from the leading UK, European, US and African accrediting bodies: AMBA, EQUIS, AACSB and AABS. Henley is committed to transformation and holds level 1 BBBEE status and has been rated by corporates for eight years running as the No 1 MBA business school in South Africa (PMR.africa 2018-2025). Offering qualifications from NQF levels 5 to 10, Henley’s vision is: “We build the people who build the businesses that build Africa.”
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