Elsbeth Dixon

Chief Executive of Common Purpose South Africa

Elsbeth is the Chief Executive Officer, Common Purpose South Africa and heads the operations of Common Purpose in Africa. With the local team, she has grown the African footprint of Common Purpose by diversifying the programmes offered to include public and bespoke leadership programmes, as well as programmes focusing on youth, student and women’s leadership, spreading the footprint of Common Purpose into 21 countries. Elsbeth believes that good leadership is the most powerful way to transform the future of the African continent.

Elsbeth has designed and facilitated leadership and diversity programmes for a wide range of clients, from rural communities to blue chip corporates, from global foundations to government departments, and has delivered programmes in the USA, Europe, Asia and Africa. Elsbeth started her career as a scientist at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research in South Africa, before moving to Adcorp, in the private sector, to run the Technology Top 100 Awards Programme. She then co-founded the Da Vinci Institute, a private university specialising in management and leadership education, before joining Common Purpose in 2006.

Currently she is working to grow the African team of Common Purpose into a diverse group, representing the different regions of the continent, and bringing together multiple cultural perspectives to deliver powerful pan-African leadership programmes.

Born in a rural South African family, Elsbeth trained in applied mathematics and psychology, as well as counselling, coaching and group process facilitation. She holds a PhD in Applied Mathematics from Cambridge University, UK and is an alumnus of Harvard Business School’s Executive Development Programme.

When she is not exercising her passion for facilitating the growth journeys of her clients, Elsbeth is a dedicated road-runner, an avid sports fan across many disciplines, and finding her way thoughtfully into the role of mother of adult children.