Who are we?

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Women’s leadership initiatives are an essential element for creating a society that is gender neutral and empowering for all. By actively challenging the status quo, the WeLead series of conferences, events and products enable conversation across a variety of mediums that focus on inclusivity, rather than exclusionary practices.

WeLead exists not only to inspire current and future leaders but also to help shape them. By effectively supporting and showcasing the women leaders of today, WeLead seeks to support emerging leaders and enable them to talk frankly and openly with their personal heroines (and heroes).

The WeLead Conference is not a normal conference. While the average conference focuses on proceedings and events that occur during its agenda or programme, WeLead places its focus on conversation, growing your network and also on what happens after the conference closes. By looking beyond the programme and actively working to help delegates affect change in their lives and workplaces, WeLead celebrates and highlights the extensive women’s leadership potential that exists on the African continent.

The WeLead Women’s Leadership programmes, including the WeLead Conference, satellite events and other initiatives, feature a variety of keynote speakers, panel discussions and facilitated workshops that enable effective dialogue. With an emphasis on showcasing accessible and easily relatable stories from a wide range of women in business and society, WeLead creates opportunities for real conversation to create real change.

But WeLead moves beyond the conference and networking events, taking the conversation on women’s leadership to a variety of sectors and through a wide range of mediums.

Through other events like WiredWomen, InspiredTeachers and the WeLead Women’s Leadership range of workshops, WeLead works to inspire and highlight leaders in a range of workplaces, industries and social spaces.

By taking the women’s leadership conversation online, WeLead opens up the dialogue to the world, encouraging rigorous and dynamic debate around pertinent issues. The weekly #welead chats on Twitter, coordinated by QualityLife Company, offer a space for anyone to participate and learn from some of South Africa’s most prominent and active leaders (as well as shining a light on some of our still undiscovered rising stars).

About QualityLife Company

QualityLife Company has acquired a sterling reputation as the South African leadership and training company with a reputation for consistently tackling the tough issues around gender mainstreaming for the last ten years.

Since introducing our first women’s leadership conference “We Are The Leaders We’ve Been Waiting For” nearly a decade ago, much research has emerged to strengthen the case for gender diversity.

As the conversation has gained traction, it became important for us to re-evaluate our strategy of hosting only women speakers. So, in 2013 we invited male speakers to join our line-up for the first time. Our male speakers over the last two years have included Mpho Makwana, Chairman of ArcelorMittal SA, Grant Pattison, ex-CEO of Massmart Holdings, Bobby Godsell, chair of Business Leadership SA and Prof Nick Binedell, Dean and founding director of GIBS.

We believe that gender diversity has become a business issue rather than a women’s issue and our work and conversations are expanding to reflect this.

Debby Edelstein

Co-founder of QualityLife Company, Debby has earned her reputation as South Africa’s Women’s Leadership champion. In addition to the Annual Women’s Leadership Conference (now in its 9th year and in two cities) her ongoing innovations include the WiredWomen Conference (Empowering Women in Tech), weekly #welead twitter debates and the InspiredTeachers Conference (celebrating leadership & innovation in education). A leading thinker in women’s issues, Debby has spoken at leadership conferences in Europe and SA. A speaker, writer and facilitator, she has earned a formidable reputation for her creative leadership and learning interventions.