Human development · Leadership · Innovation
The Leadership
Academy
Aspire Higher.
We don’t just develop leaders. We develop builders.
We help organisations build the people, leadership, culture and creative capability required to thrive in a changing world.
Explore our workTalk to usThe Leadership Academy
Our Mandate
Build human capability. Unlock possibility. Transform the future.
We exist to grow and develop innovative and leadership capabilities, from Africa to the world. We have been challenging outdated mental models since 2015, and we continue to do so today, even more boldly.
As our world evolves and we welcome a bright, young future of leaders, we recognise that what brought us here will not take us where we need to be. This requires courageous Good to Great Leaders to pioneer new paths that are bold, innovative, inclusive and transformational.
We develop builders
So, what are
you building?
The world doesn’t need more people who know how to look like leaders. It needs people who can build. Build businesses. Build organisations. Build cultures. Build innovation. Build teams. Build possibilities.
Because leadership isn’t the destination. It’s the capability you use to create something that matters. Whatever you’re building, leadership is what you build with.
Build the business
Turn your ambition into a business that can grow, with the leadership, entrepreneurial thinking, strategy and execution to build something that matters.
Explore Leadership + InnovationBuild the organisation
Create an organisation that can adapt, innovate and thrive, with the leadership, culture and capability to turn strategy into reality.
Explore FutureMindBuild your future
Develop the human capability to navigate uncertainty. Challenge assumptions, create possibility and build the agency to shape what comes next.
ExploreBecause knowing isn’t enough. You have to build.
Free guide · The Self-Awareness Canvas
Whatever you’re building, start with you.
Designed to help you deepen your understanding of yourself. By mapping out your purpose, values, priorities, strengths, blind spots and blindfolds, the canvas encourages reflection and personal growth. It helps you identify patterns in your behaviour, recognise areas to grow, and cultivate self-compassion.
It saves straight to your device. We’ll email you a copy too.
I · Who we are
The future
is human.
The Leadership Academy is a human development, leadership and innovation partner. We work with organisations to strengthen the human capabilities that make performance, transformation and innovation possible.
Our work connects organisational advisory, leadership and capability development, and innovation. We help clients understand what needs to change, grow the people who will make it happen, and unlock new ways of thinking and working.
Our ambition
To build the human infrastructure for adaptive leadership, transformation and innovation.
Our approach
Designed for application, not learning for its own sake.
II · Three pillars
Three pillars.
One ambition.
Transform human potential. We help organisations build the people, leadership, culture and creative capability required to thrive in a changing world.
Pillar one
Transform
Organisations
Organisational advisory & transformation
Helping organisations build the human infrastructure for sustainable performance, transformation and innovation.
Services
- 01Organisational Development & Transformation
- 02Culture & Employee Experience
- 03Talent Development & Human Capital Advisory
More aligned organisations, healthier cultures and stronger human capability to deliver strategic priorities.
Pillar two
Develop
People
Leadership & human capability development
Building the leadership, coaching and human capabilities required to navigate complexity, unlock performance and lead confidently into the future.
Services
- 01Leadership Development & Executive Coaching
- 02Learning & Development Solutions
- 03Psychometrics & Organisational Diagnostics
- 04Coaching Certification & Professional Development
People with greater self-awareness, capability and confidence to lead, collaborate and perform.
Pillar three
Unlock
Possibility
Innovation & FutureMind
Developing the creative intelligence, adaptive agency and human capacity to imagine, experiment and create new possibilities.
Services
- 01Innovation & Creative Intelligence
Flagship intellectual property
More curious, creative and adaptive people who can shape what comes next.
III · One connected approach
Three pillars.
One transformation.
The pillars work independently or together, depending on the challenge and ambition of the organisation.
Transform
Organisations
Organisational Advisory & Transformation
Develop
People
Leadership & Human Capability Development
Unlock
Possibility
Innovation & FutureMind
A more adaptive, innovative and human-centred future.
Our process
One service.
Two pillars.
An integrated transformation programme across all three.
In the room
“Your success will be as unique as you.”
Written by a programme participant
In the room
Where the work comes alive.
Every engagement is designed for application, not learning for its own sake. People think, draw, move, laugh and lead together, and leave with something they can use the very next day.
IV · What we stand for
Our Values
Curiously
Creative
Passionately
Innovative
Super Pumped
Positive
Fierce
In adding value
Knock the Guts Out
Of expectations
Desperately Hungry
To change the world
Aspire higher.
V · Clients we serve
Trusted worldwide.
From Johannesburg to global institutions, we partner with organisations across Africa, the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Asia Pacific.
Global partners
Clients include
VI · Our founder
Elaine
Jacob
Founder · Executive Coach
Leadership & Innovation Strategist
A leadership and innovation strategist and the creator of FutureMind, a movement to reclaim, develop and celebrate the deeply human capabilities we need in a future increasingly shaped by technology.
With more than two decades in leadership development, organisational psychology, innovation and international development, Elaine works with senior leaders and organisations navigating strategic change, growth and transformation. Her focus is the space between strategy and behaviour: why well-designed transformation so often struggles to become lasting cultural change, and how leaders can build the human capabilities and conditions to make it stick.
Her international portfolio spans humanitarian organisations, global institutions, financial services and technology businesses, including UNHCR, the Global Fund, the World Bank, the FAO, Deloitte, Zoom, HP, Boomi and Confluent. With UNHCR’s Global Center for Learning, she supported people and leaders through a period of profound organisational transformation.
“Technology may redefine what is possible. Our humanity will influence what we choose to make possible.”
Frameworks
NeuroEdge Leadership Coaching Certification™ · Navigating Change™ · Adaptable Leader
Faculty & affiliations
MIT Sloan School of Management, Inquiry-Driven Leadership Program · Yale School of Management, Global Business Strategy and Decision-Making in the Age of AI · Humainly (UK)
VII · Our coaches
A global faculty,
curated for you.
Our ICF-certified leadership coaches are leaders in industry and in coaching, each with a minimum of 20 years’ management experience. Based across Africa, Europe, North America and Asia, they form a faculty we draw on and curate for every bespoke engagement.
management experience
Where our coaches are
Learn the way. Live the way. Lead the way.
VIII · Experience & contact
Trusted to develop
people and possibility.
2nd Floor, Nelson Mandela Towers
Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa
The Leadership Academy
Aspire Higher.
Specific scope, deliverables, assessment instruments, accreditation status, programme availability and commercial terms are confirmed for each engagement.