CEO Today Africa Awards

SOUTH AFRICA 65 www.ceotodaymagazine.com CEO Today Africa Awards 2017 www.klmempowered.com LYN MANSOUR: CEO OF HEARTS She is all about the power; all about the passion; all about the people. She is Lyn Mansour - CEO of KLM Empowered Human Solutions Specialists and the honoured recipient of the prestigious award: CEO of Africa 2017. A title earned through her national contributions to South Africa’s expanding adult educational system and her endless devotion to her enterprise and dynamic team. KLM Empowered Human Solutions Specialists is an established Project Management company in the field of Skills Development and a Further Education and Training College. A Humble Beginning: As a start-up entrepreneur from a young age, Lyn has always had her finger on the pulse of change. Her insatiable thirst for knowledge and heightened curiosity has been contributing factors to KLM Empowered’s relevance and strategy. Married at a young age, Lyn was no stranger to the trials of life, innumerably prioritising her family and home over her entrepreneurial aspirations in order to ensure support and financial stability for her household. Lyn never let circumstances dictate her vision or opportunities; her belief in her skillset and inner power is what propelled her determination and success. “ I made up my mind that for every challenge faced, I would find a solution. It was a choice I made. We all have choices; we can choose to wallow or we can choose to pick ourselves up and to believe that we are wired for power and abundance; that we are wired for something more ,” says Lyn. Today, Lyn’s success hails from her lifework; dedicated to changing lives positively and to creating opportunities for others that were once unavailable to her, inside and outside of her organisation. A born entrepreneur, Lyn has always had the gift for connecting with people. At the age of 19, her early entrance into the world of recruitment in 1982 saw her start up her own small recruitment agency, Selective Personnel. After riding the peaks and valleys of business, and a few years thereafter, Lyn continued with her entrepreneurial ventures by establishing KLM & Associates Recruitment Specialists CC, in 1989. With a determination and vision, Lyn set her course growing the company into a successful and reputable top end recruitment organisation. “ After the establishment of the Skills Development Act of 1998 and witnessing the tremendous benefits of Learnerships first hand, by hosting 5 young talented learners within my company, back in 2003, I was sold! ” she says. “ I knew I wanted to do more and go further in bridging the divide, and tapping young minds and talent across the country. I started researching the Skills landscape and invested in having material designed and accredited for in-house training, with a greater vision in mind. KLM & Associates shortly transformed and KLM Empowered Human Solutions Specialists was born, ” explains Lyn. True to its name, KLM ‘Empowered’ lives its ethos beyond the scope of a client brief, empowering all dedicated individuals who aspire for more in their lives. Lyn’s ambitions to empower learners of all ages and persons living with disability, extends to her team members, affording each of them the opportunities of personal and professional development. Paying it forward is the cornerstone of KLM Empowered. A True Firelighter: Lyn Mansour is driven by her passion for business and for people empowerment, through the transfer of knowledge and through wealth creation. This is evident in KLM Empowered’s growth path and the difference that the company continuously makes with regards to empowering disadvantaged individuals across regions. Her people centric, bottom-up-top-down approach inspires both her team and the aspirations of young minds in the classroom. Lyn’s aim is to contribute positively towards the future of South Africa and Africa at large, by developing young talent for the 21st Century. Lyn is a firm believer that the moral fibre of a nation lies in the collective positive energy of its people. “ I believe in a purpose driven life and educating for purpose. My organisation is not built on my dreams alone, and if, as business owners, we learn to acknowledge the personal and professional growth of our teams proactively, we will affect change not only in our own business but also in the economy, our people and our communities ,” says Lyn. This drive for change is instilled within the various skills programmes and qualifications offered by KLM Empowered. Through the encouragement of learners to give back via their community, the “I made up my mind that for every challenge faced, I would find a solution. It was a choice I made.”