Using creativity to bring humans back to the centre of everything
Our aspiration is for a world where all forms of connecting, conversing, creation starts and end, with the human in mind. A world where we demote our consumptive selves and elevate the being-selves. We believe that we are customers some of the time and are human all the time. Therefore, brand builders and custodians have a responsibility to engage beyond the transactional by placing humans at the centre of the complete value chain.
Working at the intersection of commerce and culture and applying a unique brand of creativity (humancentric creativism), we help brand builders and custodians build inclusive and sustainable futures.
What do you learn:
The ultimate outcome is a business/brand that is not only future conscious but is also robust, meaningful, different and salient.
What Does Liberation, Embracing Authenticity & Curiosity Amid Chaos Mean?
Creativity is the ability to solve problems uniquely. I’ve been asked this before because often, we think of creativity as artistic talent, and I can’t draw a cat even when it’s walking away from me, I can’t. So, if that was the measure, I wouldn’t have been able to sustain myself for the last 20 years in the brand brand-building and advertising field.
So, what then, do we talk about when we talk about unleashing creativity?
We’re talking about admiring the many ways in which we can challenge ourselves, explode our imagination, and explore a third and fourth dimension in problem-solving.
Who Should Attend
Everybody.
If you’re in business, whether for yourself or others or even in your personal life, and you’re just trying to evolve and understand how you might overcome one problem before your next birthday, this talk is for you. There’s chaos, there’s madness, there’s imagination, there’s freedom, there’s creation, there’s collaboration, but, more importantly, there are outcomes that truly deliver new and unique solutions for the world in which we live.
So, join us. Trust me, there’s a method to the madness and you will be mad in the right way.
This talk is about introducing Africa’s newest F-word.
I know what you’re thinking. F-word, why would she be doing F-word on a business platform? It’s not about famine. It’s not about the future being female, because you’ve seen that movie and we’ve moved on from it.
What Is The F-Word – Fentrepreneur™?
Fentrepreneur™ is a phrase we have given to a woman who’s fierce, who’s a self-starter, who’s incredibly mindful about the need for business to generate more than just profit, but also, she’s part of a community that we’ve now called the Five G community.
These are women who have:
Who Should Attend?
Whether you’re a start-up or you’re a midway or you’re ready to supersize, or even you, who’s sitting in corporate thinking, “when I get my next bonus, I want to finally turn my passion into a business.”
What Does It Mean To Have A Silenced Voice And Resilient Soul?
In this talk, it’s a celebration of everything that makes you who you are. So, what are the things that make you unique? What are your values and what is the personality you project, but also how do you extract meaning from your own lived experience?
You may have heard already increasing noises around diversity, inclusivity, equity and belonging, all of those things are aspects of identity and when you know who you are, whatever space you then enter is a space that you will enter with a full understanding of what you are able to contribute, but more importantly, what you’re also able to extract so that you can continue to evolve.
Who Should Attend?
We address people from all walks of life.
We have a conversation that may be relevant in terms of race, gender, sexual orientation, profession choice, reproductive choice.
So, if you look at me, I’m black, I’m female, I’m childfree, I’m a creative strategist, I’m a social scientist, and I’m my mother’s daughter. The thing that really, really marks my primary identity marker is being my mother’s daughter.
In the end, however, we choose to integrate who we are starts to pull together the magic that makes us who we truly are unique and special.
Dr. Sizakele Marutlulle is the founder and CEO of a pan-African strategy and advisory firm dedicated to reshaping business with a human-centered lens. With decades of leadership in advertising, brand building, and corporate innovation, she has pioneered Humancentric Creativism™ an approach that places people, not just profit, at the core of business success.
Her career includes transformative leadership in global and African corporations, guiding executives to design inclusive futures and impactful brands that foster both societal transformation and commercial resilience. Sizakele is also known for coining Fentrepreneurship™, a framework celebrating women entrepreneurs who embody grace, grit, growth, generosity, and gifts. Her work empowers leaders to embrace authenticity, inclusivity, and creativity in solving complex challenges.
Sizakele Marutlulle, founder and CEO of a pan-African strategy and advisory firm, is a powerful voice in reimagining business through a human-centered lens. She champions Humancentric Creatives, a pioneering approach that places people, not just profit, at the heart of organizational success. Sizakele’s advisory work guides leaders across the continent to design inclusive futures, build impactful brands, and shape resilient organizations. With a career marked by executive leadership and transformative initiatives in advertising and corporate sectors, Sizakele has built a reputation for creating value-driven brand strategies that inspire societal transformation.
Sizakele Marutlulle’s expertise in human-centered strategy and branding is built on decades of leadership in the fields of advertising, brand development, and corporate innovation. She has worked with global and African companies to shape campaigns and initiatives that resonate authentically with diverse audiences, capturing the cultural nuances of Africa. Her work integrates deep market insights, creativity, and a passion for societal impact, making her a highly sought-after advisor for organizations seeking to align purpose with profit. Sizakele’s unique ability to bridge corporate objectives with community values has helped organizations develop strong brands that foster trust, loyalty, and impact.
Her firm’s ethos of “Humancentric Creatives” underscores her philosophy: every business decision and innovation should serve people first. Her extensive background in both creative strategy and executive leadership equips her with the knowledge and experience to offer actionable, culturally relevant insights. This holistic perspective positions Sizakele as an industry leader, uniquely able to address the challenges African and global brands face in an ever-evolving marketplace.
As a strategic advisor, she has worked with a range of high-profile clients, guiding them through complex challenges to realize their potential for both profit and positive change. Sizakele’s insight into corporate dynamics, combined with her innovative mindset, enables her to craft customized solutions that address unique organizational goals while fostering inclusivity and societal benefit.
Sizakele Marutlulle is a transformative leader in the fields of strategy, branding, and human-centered innovation. As the founder and CEO of a pan-African advisory firm, she has dedicated her career to helping organizations build meaningful connections with their audiences. Sizakele’s unique approach to business, which centers on people and purpose, has made her a sought-after speaker and consultant across Africa and beyond. Her insights into brand strategy and organizational resilience equip leaders with the tools needed to drive positive change.
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Opening with high energy and audience engagement, Dr. Sizakele frames her talk around purpose and practicality. She shares how selecting a personal “word” of influence guides who she works with, what she builds, and what she walks away from. Influence, she explains, is the concentric ripple beyond impact’s initial splash. She warns that “be true to yourself” is incomplete; we are many selves. What matters is a golden thread of values across those selves.
Her “give a damn” centers on pro-Africa companies and women in business. To name and dignify that space, she coined Fentrepreneurship™: fierce, grounded women who pursue greatness and practice generosity. She urges founders to adjust belief to drive behavior. If you believe you belong, you take a seat at the table. If you sit by the wall, do not later claim you were ignored. Beliefs shape posture, participation, and performance.
Community beats “family” at work because truth requires respectful, complete sentences. Celebrate wins, hold each other accountable, and assume best intent. Kindness is a hiring criterion. “No jerks” is a rule because barking signals insecurity, not leadership. Lead by example in small things. Her tea-making anecdote illustrates that showing up for the small stuff invites the great stuff.
She names “frogs” as the hard conversations we avoid. Swallow them early. Fire the misaligned partner, confront the cousin hire who is not delivering, push back on exploitative arrangements. She distinguishes positional power from personal power with a candid story about ego at home, reminding leaders that big wallets do not make better humans. Comparison steals joy; be the tulip, not a gerbera. Discipline fuels promises to self. Define goals, write them where you will confront them daily, and build ecosystems that support the human operating system. She closes by returning to her triad: care first, the money follows, and purpose becomes impact that lasts.
00:00 Opening and contract with the audience; purpose of the session
02:00 Influence vs impact; the golden thread across many selves
04:10 Give a damn: pro-Africa companies and women in business
06:00 Fentrepreneurship™: grace, grit, growth, generosity, gifts
08:00 Belief drives behavior: take the seat, own the room
10:10 Community over “family”; truth with kindness and accountability
12:20 Hiring for kindness; “no jerks” and assuming best intent
14:00 Lead by example; the tea-making story and small things done well
16:00 Frogs: hard conversations you must stop postponing
18:00 Positional vs personal power; ego, partnership, and humility
20:00 Be the tulip; end comparison, master your craft
22:00 Discipline, goals, and daily structures that keep promises
24:00 Close: give a damn, earn a dime, make a difference; Q&A invite
Sizakele Marutlulle emphasizes the importance of authentic leadership and purpose-driven business. In this short clip, she encourages entrepreneurs and leaders to focus not only on building sustainable enterprises but also on creating meaningful impact in society. Her message centers on the belief that leadership must be rooted in values, authenticity, and a commitment to making a difference.
Sizakele Marutlulle introduces herself as a recovered corporate executive turned entrepreneur, a trained sociologist, brand builder, strategist, lecturer, leadership guide, investor, mentor, and diversity scholar. Her work is tied together by a golden thread of creativity, which she defines as unconventional problem-solving.
In 2014, she founded a Pan-African strategy and ideas practice that helps businesses prepare for future success through creativity and collaboration. Her team focuses on growth strategies, ideation workshops, strategic facilitation, leadership coaching, and curated networks of collaborators.
She highlights her commitment to female entrepreneurs (whom she calls fentrepreneurs), social change agents, and youth mentorship. To scale her impact, she created The Exchange, an annual mentorship platform where established women leaders (“lionesses”) guide emerging female entrepreneurs.
Her vision is clear: helping leaders and businesses become future-ready so they can compete, win, and prosper.
Yes, her approach applies to corporations, startups, and community organizations.
Absolutely, through her Fentrepreneurship™ framework.
Yes, her insights into inclusive branding and leadership have global relevance.
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