Global Advisors
Trustees
Senior Advisors
ALLIANCE FELLOWS
GLOBAL ADVISORS
CAROLINE RUPERT
KATHAKA
Caroline Rupert is the Founder and Chairwoman of Kathaka, a single-family office deploying capital and strategic resources into investment and philanthropic endeavors across Sub-Saharan Africa. Ms. Rupert holds a BA in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics from the University of Stellenbosch and an MA from the University of Cape Town. Ms. Rupert is the inaugural host partner of the Harambeans Global Summit in South Africa.
STEDMAN GRAHAM
S. GRAHAM AND ASSOCIATES
Stedman Graham is chairman and CEO of S. Graham and Associates, a management and marketing consulting firm. He is the author of 12 books, including two New York Times best sellers and one Wall Street Journal bestseller. As a businessman, educator and speaker, Graham lectures and conducts training programs for corporations and educational organizations worldwide on the topic of Identity Leadership, based on the philosophy that one cannot lead anyone else until you first lead yourself. He has delivered Identity Leadership programs in The Netherlands, Germany, China, Canada, the UK, Bermuda and South Africa. Graham serves on several boards and has received numerous awards. Mr. Graham has facilitated Identity Leadership Sessions with Harambeans.
Michael Hastings CBE, Lord Hastings of Scarisbrick
British Parliament
Lord Dr Michael Hastings is a member of Parliament in the British House of Lords and former Global Head of Citizenship for KPMG International. He currently serves as the Stephen R. Covey Endowed Professor of Leadership at the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business. He has also served as a Member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Council on Diversity and Talent, the WEF’s Global Agenda Council on the Role of Business and joined the WEF Global Agenda Council on Migration. He was previously a non-executive Director of British Telecom (on the Board for Responsible and Sustainable Business) and was a Global Board member of Millennium Promise. In 2017 he was installed as the second Chancellor of Regent’s University London. Lord Hastings is a mentor to several Harambeans and Co-Chair of the Harambeans Global Advisory Board.
FLAMINIA GIOVANELLI
VATICAN
Flaminia Giovanelli is the retired Under-Secretary of the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, and as such was recognized as the highest-ranking laywoman in the Roman Curia. Giovanelli is an expert on economics and political science, with a profound knowledge of ethical, work-related, economic, and financial issues and was able to make decisive contributions to the Holy See’s input on questions of integral development, poverty and social cohesion at international institutions such as the UN, the EU, the Council of Europe and the World Labour Organisation. She is author of several children’s books and co-founder and President of O Viveiro Girl School in Mozambique. Giovanelli has been mentoring and welcoming Harambeans to the Vatican since 2011.
CHIDO MUNYATI
WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM
Chido Munyati is the Head of Africa, and a Global Leadership Fellow, at the World Economic Forum. Chido previously worked as a lawyer at the leading Swiss law firm, Froriep, and the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. Graduated with a Doctor in Law from Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University.
REGINA ABRAMI
THE LAUDER INSTITUTE (WHARTON SCHOOL)
Dr. Regina Abrami is an award-winning teacher, public speaker, and institutional innovator. She currently serves as the Chang Sun Term Professor and Faculty Director of the Global Program at the Lauder Institute of Management & International Studies at the Wharton School of Business. Well-known for her passion for changemakers, curricular design, experiential education, and the practice of strategic foresight and leadership development, Dr. Abrami considers herself an “early adopter” of the Harambean mission to build Africa’s entrepreneurial ecosystem together and better. Prior to joining the Lauder Institute, she was on the faculty of Harvard Business School where she served as Chair of its Immersion Experience Program (IXP).
AMBASSADOR CHRIS TROTT
BRITISH AMBASSADOR TO THE HOLY SEE
Ambassador Chris Trott is the British Ambassador to the Holy See, and has been diplomat since 1991. Ambassador Trott also serves as the Chairperson on the board of Trustee of Ibba, a South Sudan Girls School. Prior roles include, Special Representative for Sudan and South Sudan (2016-2019) and British Ambassador to South Sudan (2019-2020). Ambassador Trott is also the host of the welcome reception of the biennial Harambeans Forum at the Vatican.
JEFF HOFFMAN
global entreprenuership network
Jeff Hoffman is an award-winning global entrepreneur, proven CEO, worldwide motivational speaker, bestselling author, Hollywood film producer, a producer of a Grammy winning jazz album, and executive producer of an Emmy Award winning television show. In his career, he has been the founder of multiple startups, he has been the CEO of both public and private companies, and he has served as a senior executive in many capacities. Jeff has been part of a number of well-known successful startups, including Priceline.com/Booking.com, uBid.com and more. He is a mentor to Harambeans and frequently shares his knowledge and experience with Harambeans through the Knowledge Transfer Sessions.
TRUSTEES
MARY DE WYSOCKI
CISCO
Mary de Wysocki is the first-ever Chief Sustainability Officer of Cisco. In this role, she leads the company’s sustainability strategy and helps Cisco drive long-term value for the business, its value chain, and the planet. Ms. de Wysocki is an emeritus member of the Harambeans Board of Trustees, where she served for nine years.
SNEHA SHAH
SEI investments cOMPANY
Sneha Shah serves as the Head of New Business at SEI. She has served as a Managing Director at the London Stock Exchange, Refinitiv and Thompson Reuters. She is a global business leader with deep commercial acumen and a passion for business as a force for good. Multi-faceted growth leader with proven P&L, product innovation and sales leadership experience at global scale. Change agent and culture carrier with an ability to inspire entrepreneurialism and mitigate risk. She is a member of the Young Presidents Organization and mentor and investor in several Harambeans.
BRIAN TIPPENS
CISCO
Brian Tippens is the Senior Vice President and Chief Social Impact Officer at Cisco. In this role, Mr. Tippens is responsible for advancing Cisco’s social impact across communities around the world and creating tangible business value. Mr. Tippens is a graduate of University of San Francisco and the McGeorge School of Law. He is a World Economic Forum Contributor, a proud member of the Executive Leadership Council (ELC) and a mentor and partner to a growing number of Harambeans.
MARK WEBER
TECTONIC VENTURES
Mark Weber is a Principal at Tectonic Ventures. Mr. Weber is an applied AI researcher and early stage investor who finds his purpose in connecting dots across disciplines and supporting entrepreneurs in their efforts to solve meaningful problems. In his previous role, Mr. Weber was A Senior Lead of Business Innovation at IBM Research. He is a holder of an MBA in finance from the MIT Sloan School of Management and a mentor to several Harambeans.
YONAS BESHAWRED H'08
STACKSHARE
Yonas Beshawred is the founder and CEO of Stackshare, a Silicon Valley startup on a mission to transform the way that all SaaS tools and infrastructure services are bought and sold. He studied Information Systems at University of Maryland, worked at Accenture and joined the inaugural class of Harambeans in 2008. Mr. Beshawred is a founding member of the Harambe Board of Trustees.
MATTHIAS REICHWALD
HARAMBEANS
Matthias Reichwald is a freelance designer. He has worked with Interbrand and Pentagram in London and contributed articles to Design Indaba. Mr. Reichwald served as Harambe’s inaugural Director of Design and is a founding member of the Harambe Board of Trustees.
ROBERT MACPHERSON
Strathpoint
Robert MacPherson is an advisor to US private equity and is internationally active through his work in the AgTech software space. He previously worked in Singapore as Junior Partner at Reciprocus International and published research with the Center for African Studies at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.
okendo lewis-gayle
harambeans
Okendo Lewis-Gayle is the author of Harambeans, founding partner of Harambeans Prosperity Fund and Founder & Chairman of the Harambe Entrepreneur Alliance. He is the inaugural Schwarzman Founder in Residence at Tsinghua University in China and has served as Africa Advisor to the Vatican, Rhodes Scholars, and Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. Mr. Lewis-Gayle is a member of Lynn Rothschild’s Council on Inclusive Capitalism and a graduate of Harvard University.
Senior Advisors
AKUNNA COOK
COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS
Akunna Cook served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs in the Biden-Harris Administration. Previously, she served as the inaugural executive director of the Black Economic Alliance, a non-partisan organization focused on driving economic progress in the black community through policy development, advocacy, and supporting candidates for office. Ms. Cook practiced law Covington & Burling LLP, where she advised former Attorney General Eric Holder on political and legal strategy related to redistricting around the country. She is a graduate of the Yale Law School and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. Ms. Cook is a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a member of the Washington, D.C. bar. Ms. Cook advices and mentors several Harambeans.
JEREMIAH GORDON
CAPITALG
Jeremiah Gordon joined Google in 2011 and has been the General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer of CapitalG since its creation. Jeremiah is a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School. Jeremiah and his wife Josephine have hosted a number of Harambeans at their residence in San Matteo during Alliance Silicon Valley treks.
GLENDEAN HAMILTON
Bloomberg Philanthropies
Ms. Hamilton is the Chief of Staff for the Greenwoods Initiative at Bloomberg Philanthropies. Previously, she served as Senior Director in the Office of the 30th President of Harvard University and was a founding team member at the Harvard Bloomberg Center for Cities, overseeing strategy and communications. She also worked as an Associate Partner and Social Impact Investor at New Profit, supporting social entrepreneurs. Hamilton holds a Masters in Public Policy from Harvard University and helps welcome the new class of Harambeans at the annual spring reception in Harvard Yard.
Alyana Popat
Simba Corporation
Alyana Popat is the Chief Hospitality Officer of Simba Corporation. Alyana also serve on Simba Foundation Board and the Kenyan Advisory Board for Shining Hope for Communities. Ms. Popat holds a Masters of Management in Hospitality from Cornell University. She is hosting partner of the Harambeans Global Summit in Kenya.
OSCAR ADELMAN
REMI
Oscar Adelman is the Founder and CEO of Remi, a VC-backed direct-to-consumer sleep and wellness company. He previously served as an investor at Sinai Ventures where he sourced investments including Esusu, Swiftmile, and Skyryse. In addition to sourcing and diligence, he supported the fund’s operations including running their quarterly and annual LP reporting process. Oscar was also previously on the VC investment teams of BMW i Ventures and OurCrowd. Oscar serves as a Director and Treasurer of the Emerging Venture Capitalists Association. Oscar is a graduate of the New York University Stern School of Business and serves on the Budget & Audit Committee of Harambeans.
PARDON MAKUMBE
CRE VENTURE CAPITAL
Pardon Makumbe is a Founding Partner at CRE Venture Capital. He served as a Principal at EL Rothschild in New York and London and is a graduate of Princeton University and the Wharton School of Business. Pardon is a mentor to Harambeans and, through CRE Venture Capital, has invested in Andela and several other Harambean-led ventures.
PROFESSOR ANYWHERE SIKOCHI
HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL
Anywhere Sikochi (Siko) is an assistant professor and Berol Corporation Fellow at Harvard Business School, where he teaches the Financial Reporting and Control course in the MBA required curriculum. Before his graduate studies, Professor Sikochi was a consultant at Lexecon and Charles River Associates. Professor Sikochi is the author of the case studies on Harambean venture LULA (a mobility startup in South Africa), and the case study “Harambe: Mobilising Capital in Africa.” He also supports and advises many Harambeans.
TIM HARRIS
WESGRO
Tim Harris is a partner at public sector advisory firm Consulum where he leads the Competitiveness practice and the Cape Town office. He was previously the CEO of Wesgro, the Tourism, Trade & Investment Promotion agency for Cape Town and the Western Cape. During the more than six years that he led the agency it was regarded by the World Bank as the best sub-national agency in Africa. Before that served as a Member of Parliament and Shadow Minister of Finance in South Africa. Tim is an Associate Professor of Practice at Johannesburg Business School, a Senior Advisor to the Harambe Entrepreneur Alliance, the leading network of entrepreneurs on the African continent, and a member of the Cape Town Chapter of YPO.
FRANCESCO TRONCI
INVESTINDUSTRIAL
Francesco Tronci is Senior Vice President at Investindustrial, a leading ESG-responsible private equity group based in Switzerland. He is a long-time officer for the NOVA-MBA Association (uniting thousands of Italian MBAs abroad), a volunteer/supporter of Mentors4u (pro-bono mentoring network for university students) and a co-founder of Sardinia in Business and Finance (bringing executives to teach pro-bono to students on the island). Francesco mentors Harambeans and hosts summer seminars for them in Switzerland.
BRIDGET FURY
BRIDGET FURY CONSULTING
Bridget Fury served as Founding Director of the Oppenheimer Generations Foundation and South Africa Director for the Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs. In previous role, Bridget advised a range of governments, donors, NGOs, corporations and individuals in social and impact investment strategies and structures. Bridget advises and mentors Harambeans.
STEVEN OBIAJULU
ROPES & GRAY
Steven Obiajulu is a lawyer at Ropes & Gray, with a focus on private equity and venture capital transactions. He has advised clients regarding IP and technology issues in corporate transactions (private equity transactions, public company M&A and minority investments) and has represented clients in M&A deals for the acquisition of proprietary software platforms. Steven is a graduate of Harvard Law School (JD 2018) and MIT (SB Mechanical Engineering 2013). Steven supports and mentors several Nigerian-based Harambean companies.
LORENZO LARINI
MINT
Lorenzo Larini is the CEO of Mint, a global leader in advertising resource management (ARM) software, with offices in New York, Milan, London, Paris, Berlin, and São Paulo. Prior to Mint, Mr. Larini was the CEO of Ipsos North America, the world-leading research and insights organization. Mr. Larini also worked at Gartner, where he was responsible for the global business dedicated to Technology and Digital Leaders, one of Gartner’s largest and fastest-growing business units. Mr. Larini is an advisor and mentor to a growing number of Harambeans.
Harambean Advisors
ELIZABETH MASIYIWA, H'18
SIMBA EDUCATION
YASMIN KUMI, H'16
AFRICA FORESIGHT GROUP
Yasmin Kumi is the founder of Africa Foresight Group, an African-owned and managed firm that provides locally accessible, world-class insights and advisory services to grow local companies into global champions. Their services include research, strategy development, implementation support and stakeholder engagement. Kumi became a Harambean in 2016.
MELVYN LUBEGA, H'16
GO1
Melvyn Lubega is the co-founder and director of the GO1 team in South Africa. After honing his skills with the Boston Consulting Group, he joined GO1, an established leader in online learning and education, working alongside some of the largest companies in the world covering a wide range of industries and regions. GO1 empowers organisations to offer world-class training and invest in their most important asset – their people. Lubega became a Harambean in 2016.
MAYA HORGAN-FAMODU, H'17
INGRESSIVE
Maya Horgan-Famodu is a Nigerian-American entrepreneur, founder and partner at Ingressive, a firm that provides market entry, technology research and market operations services for firms and businesses expanding into Africa. She also founded Ingressive Capital, a venture capital fund investing in Africa-based technology companies. Horgan-Famodu became a Harambean in 2017.
CHRISTIAN OKOYE, H'13
SIDEWALK INFRASTRUCTURE PARTNERS
Christian Okoye is a Partner at Sidewalk Infrastructure Partners, a Palo Alto firm responsible for origination, diligence, and execution of technology-enabled infrastructure transactions. Prior to this he was an Investment Manager at Emerson Collective where he managed late stage VC and growth equity investments in emerging market energy access and sustainable infrastructure. Mr. Okoye holds an MBA and MS in Energy Resources from Stanford University and became a Harambean in 2013.
ALLIANCE FELLOWS
DENVER ISAACS
ALLIANCE LIAISON
Denver Isaacs is the Liaison of the Harambe Entrepreneur Alliance. In this capacity, Mr. Isaacs leverages the global and pan African community of the Alliance to achieve the objectives of the organization. He completed his BA in Psychology at Cornerstone Institute and is a mixed martial arts fighter in South Africa.
BRIAN SIMIYU
SYSTEMS FELLOW
Brian Simiyu serves as the Systems Fellow at the Alliance. He is a also a a member of the inaugural cohort of Jasiri Fellows – a program by the Allan and Gill Gray Philanthropies, a partner of the Alliance.
MILAIN FAYULU
strategy Fellow
Milain Fayulu is a Strategy Fellow of the Harambeans Entrepreneur Alliance. In this role, he published research on the nexus between elite networks and global capital flows. Mr. Fayulu holds a Bachelor in Economics from the University of Miami and a Master of Science in Political Science from the Massachusetts Institute of technology (MIT)
RYAN LEE
TECH OPERATIONS Fellow
Ryan Lee is a Tech Operations Fellow of the Harambe Entrepreneur Alliance. He is a graduate of Boston College and Harvard University. Mr. Lee co-founded two edtech startups involving virtual reality and served as co-director of the Harvard Vatican Leadership Summit.