Richard studied at Kingston University in Accountancy and Finance and initially worked in a Chartered Accountancy practice before moving into financial recruitment.

He has over 25 years’ professional recruitment experience, operating and managing businesses recruiting at the most senior level across Commerce and Industry, Sales and Marketing, IT, HR and Finance. Richard has previously held Managing Director and Director roles within UK-based international recruitment companies.

Having covered the African market since 2007, he brings specialist experience in the Telecoms, FMCG and Energy sectors. He has been personally involved in multiple Executive level searches over the last ten years including placing a full CXO team for a leading telecoms provider in Chad, Group CFO for a FTSE250 FMCG company in Nigeria, Group CFO for a Mining Services company in Ghana, COO for an Oil Services Company in Nigeria as well as several CEO/MD/ Country Manager roles.

Graham Palfery-Smith has been involved in the recruitment industry for over 35 years. He is an accomplished and highly experienced strategic senior manager who has run a wide range of specialist recruitment businesses internationally, including HW Group, Robert Walters, Faro and FiveTen Group. Presently he is working with a small portfolio of businesses in, or allied to, the recruitment sector in the UK, Europe, US and Far East, as a Non-Executive Director or Board Adviser, helping them achieve strategic success.

A highly effective communicator and a team creator, Graham is considered a superior motivator with exceptional leadership skills. He brings an energetic, enthusiastic and passionate approach, international contacts and an excellent market intelligence network.

Having studied Law at Liverpool University, Jon qualified as a chartered accountant with Grant Thornton in 1999. He moved from public practice into commerce progressing his career within industry within various sectors including marketing, media, film and sport. Whilst at Tiger Aspect Television he oversaw the finances for films such as Billy Elliot and Kevin and Perry Go Large, and as Finance Director at Ska Films oversaw the financial production of the film Layer Cake. Jon was also responsible for running the takeover of the Football League club Peterborough United in 2006 for one of his high net worth clients.

Utilising his experience Jon is now Finance Director for Executives in Africa as well as for a portfolio of organisations providing a balance of financial rigor and commerciality to the Finance function.

Gary studied law at the University of Zimbabwe, then spent the first 2 years of his working career working for the Zimbabwe Ministry of Justice where he rose to the position of Registrar of the Supreme Court.  After this, Gary was appointed as Head of Contracts at Old Mutual Zimbabwe where he successfully migrated the entire Zimbabwe contracts creation and maintenance portfolio from South Africa to Zimbabwe.

Gary was headhunted to join ICL Limited in Zimbabwe and within two years was headhunted by NCR Corporation.  He went on, through rapid promotions, to hold a Marketing Management post at NCR’s Middle East/Africa Headquarters in Cyprus and then on to be the Managing Director and Chairman of NCR East Africa, based in Nairobi, Kenya.

After returning to Zimbabwe in 1998, Gary and his wife, Barbara, set up their own recruitment company, which they jointly ran successfully for 17 years recruiting a range of positions based in multiple African countries as well as the Middle East.  Gary recently immigrated to the UK to join the Executives in Africa team bringing with him a wealth of Pan-African experience.

Steve has over 20 years’ experience in Recruitment having been responsible for the Global Centre of Excellence for Talent Acquisition across Africa, Asia and Europe within FMCG.  He has developed and introduced recruitment processes, profiling tools and recruitment skills training, aligning the recruitment strategy and processes to change programmes, resulting in controlling costs and improving retention.

Most recently working for PZ Cussons Plc, Steve’s focus for the last 10 years has been specifically on sourcing local talent for operating units, especially in Africa, always aiming to grow senior talent pipelines for the businesses, not just delivering on single critical hires.  He also brings over 15 years’ experience in coaching HRBP’s & Line Managers globally to deliver a strong end-to-end candidate experience and improve Employer Brand and EVP.  Now working as an Executive Search Consultant for Executives in Africa, Steve continues to work within his sectors of strength, being FMCG, Agribusiness and Industrial Manufacturing.

Ryan holds a Higher National Diploma in Business and Finance and after a short stint working as an accountant, began his twenty-five-year career in recruitment, working firstly in professional Finance recruitment for six years before establishing a Search and Selection business for the UK market.

For the past fifteen years, Ryan’s area of expertise has been within Financial Services internationally, with a particular specialist focus on all areas of Risk and Compliance within this.  He adopted a research methodology to map, track and attract candidates in niche areas across risk within Capital Markets, Retail & Corporate Banking, Wealth and Asset Management.  Ryan’s keen interest in the development of financial inclusion for individuals and microenterprises on the continent of Africa led him to join Executives in Africa, where his specialism remains in Financial Services along with Banking, Wealth Management and Fintech.

Recent examples of completed mandates include: Credit Risk Quant Manager and Digital Transformation Director for a Financial Services organization; Risk Management Consultant for a Management Consultancy; Structural Reform Manager within a Financial Services organisation; Senior Compliance Manager for a Boutique Bank; Legal Analyst for a Fintech and Compliance Manager for an Asset Management organisation.

Andrea joined Executives in Africa after re-patriating to the UK from South Africa in June 2018 bringing valuable local knowledge of Southern and South African culture and a passion for empowering and uplifting the local African talent.  She has over 25 years’ Sales and Management experience including 10 years in Freight Forwarding and Clearing and 15 years in Recruitment and Executive Search having owned her own recruitment firm in South Africa.

Andrea focused mainly on the Financial Services sector and was awarded a substantial contract with a blue-chip insurance company in Johannesburg as a result of her thorough approach and commitment to delivering results.  She was responsible for all levels of Recruitment throughout their entire Policy Services Division from Call Centre through to Director Level hires.  Since joining Executives in Africa, Andrea has been involved in a number of Director and MD Level Searches within Financial Services and Real Estate.

Reece spent the first 4 years of his career working in the retail and customer services sectors before joining EiA in 2015, initially as an Intern before being made a full Research Associate in March 2016.   His natural talent in interviewing and identifying the best candidates for a role has led to his rapid development to become a Consultant within our Delivery Team.

Reece has successfully delivered Searches across a wide range of locations and sectors in Africa including CEO roles in South Africa and Sudan within the telecoms sector, Regional Sales Director covering Francophone West Africa for a satellite giant and Chief Digitalisation Officer, Regional Head of Credit Risk, Head of Legal and Company Secretarial, Head of Consumer Banking and other specialist roles based in West Africa for a Financial Services Organisation.

Matt spent the first 4 years of his career working for companies such as McLaren and the National Rifle Association and is a determined and meticulous individual who can adapt to working effectively within a team or individually.  He went on to study History at Swansea University, graduating with First Class Honours in 2018 before joining Executives in Africa as a Research Associate.

Having completed his Gold Duke of Edinburgh in Nepal working alongside charitable organisations and travelling through South Asia, Matt brings valuable experience in working with diverse cultures and an international outlook.  He has delivered high quality research for multinational FMCG and Financial Services companies as well as for leading Property and Real Estate investors.

Clare graduated with a BSc Hons in Valuation & Estate Management, becoming a member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors in 1992 and working as a real estate professional in the UK until 1996.  After travelling widely in southern Africa, Clare relocated to Boston, where  she turned her focus to marketing and communications, heading up Learning and Digital Media for Jack Morton Worldwide in Los Angeles.  Whilst achieving her MBA from Pepperdine, Clare was talent-spotted by Herbalife Nutrition and appointed Vice President of Global Marketing, responsible for running the matrixed multi-functional support teams across 90 countries.

Clare focuses on business growth, brand development and process optimization within Executives in Africa, ensuring everyone within the business is well equipped to lead the discussion around human capital leadership in Africa.  She is passionate about supporting EiA to continue to find the brightest and the best leaders for companies who will have an impact on the continent.

Graeme joined Executives in Africa in August 2019 after emigrating to the UK from South Africa in January 2019.  He brings valuable hands on knowledge of not only Southern Africa but Africa as a whole as well as the Middle East.  He has over 40 years’ Financial Management experience including 16 years with a leading Mobile Telecommunications Company in Africa having been based in South Africa and the Middle East.

Most recently Graeme utilised his strong communication skills in a Customer Experience Manager position in a regional role covering Southern and South Eastern Africa.  Besides Telecommunications, Graeme had also had exposure to a number of other sectors including Venture Capital, Hospitality and FMCG.  This extensive corporate experience gives him a unique insight from the “client’s” perspective and enables him to bring first-hand experience of the challenges of operating on the ground across Africa.

Louise graduated from University of York in 1988 with a degree in Music.  She has over 25 years’ experience working within Global and Boutique Executive Search, having started her career as a Researcher with Russell Reynolds, focusing on Financial Services.  During her career, Louise has worked with specialist global Retail, FMCG and B2C Search Firms as Head of Research and also as a Delivery Consultant.

Louise has worked extensively at Senior Divisional and C Suite Level for Search Mandates based across the world.  Whilst raising her family, she operated as a freelance Research and Delivery Consultant as well as extending her experience to Career Performance and Leadership Coaching.  As Head of Research and Professional Development with Executives in Africa, Louise oversees the Associate Team as well as driving professional development and growth at all levels through coaching and training.

Ed has recently graduated from Bournemouth University with First Class Honours in History and joins Executives in Africa as Research Associate.  He has previous experience working in the Finance sector as an Assistant Administrator at Crestbridge, a company managing trust funds on the island of Jersey.

For the past 14 years Ed has competed at a high level in different disciplines of Motorsport, giving vital experience in interacting with sponsors as well as showing versatility when problem solving as an individual or as part of a group.

Blen Girmachew has a Bachelor of Science in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Addis Ababa University and Bachelor of Degree in Marketing Management from Admas University in Ethiopia. She was involved in a charity group and was also one of the Members of a Public Relation Committee of Ethiopian Civil Engineering Students Association (ECESA) Club at the University.

Blen spent her early career working for a Private Garment Shop as a sales person and Private Tour Guide in Addis Ababa. She is also a part time College Instructor. As part of the Executives in Africa team in Ethiopia, Blen now works on Research Projects including database integrity.

Surafel has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Addis Ababa University.

He undertook an internship job at Metals and Engineering Corporation (METEC) working on both technical production line and inter office management.

Since joining EQOS global, he has worked extensively on lead generation and data projects for International Clients.

Surafel also has an interest for technology and football.

Carla graduated from the University of Scranton (Pennsylvania, USA) with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Secondary Education in 1997. After spending a short time in private banking with Brown Brothers Harriman on Wall Street, New York she moved to the UK where she taught French and Spanish for 9 years at secondary level.

Portuguese by birth, Carla joined Executives in Africa in 2012 to support Consultants specialising in Portuguese-speaking C-Level mandates, assessing Candidates’ language skills in order to deliver to Clients the very best available individuals who best match the target profile. Now a permanent member of the team as a Quality Assurance Manager, she is a critical member of our delivery team ensuring excellence on every Search.

Wilhelmina has a HND in Business and Finance from Portsmouth University. She has 8 years’ experience in the Financial Services, Investment Banking and Retail sectors before joining Executives in Africa as Quality Assurance Manager.

Previously, she worked as Personal Assistant for C level Managers within large and small organisations which has helped her to gain a clear understanding of company organisational structure, human resources and recruitment processes. She has strong administrative skills and attention to detail, which will help her ensure that the EiA team are able to continue to deliver the best quality standards to Candidates and Clients alike.

April obtained her ATll (CTA) in Taxation Accounting in 1989 and holds Level 3 Diplomas in Business Administration and Customer Service.  She has over 30 years’ work experience across Financial Services, Education, Retail and Leisure & Tourism industries before joining Executives in Africa as Office and Events Manager in 2018.

April’s over 20 years of experience in Management and Administration roles ensures that the Executives in Africa teams are well supported to provide exceptional service to our clients and candidates.  She has the ability to think quickly and solve problems whilst ensuring details are not missed and standards are consistently high.