Roz Thomas is CEO: Africa of Hill+Knowlton Strategies responsible for driving growth, strategic communications and client engagement across the continent. Prior to that, she was MD of H+K South Africa and before that, was a partner at Corporate Communications Consultants which was acquired by Hill+Knowlton Strategies in August 2013.

In the past 20 years, Roz has counselled clients in a cross section of sectors including media and technology, resources, financial services; industrial and professional services.  Roz is a well-rounded communicator who has carved out a niche for herself in supporting clients to tackle complex business issues. This includes being front-line counsel to organisations in crisis.

Roz has worked with global and regional clients such as BlackRock, Boston Consulting Group, Deloitte, Dow, Distell, Hogan Lovells and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange on internal and external communication programmes, ranging from launching new market entrants across Africa to training and coaching the next layers of management.

Roz holds a Master’s degree in Journalism & Media Studies and Anthropology.  She is a member of the National Business Initiative in South Africa.

Lerato is the Managing Director of Hill+Knowlton Strategies South Africa. She is a solution-orientated and versatile professional with 13 years’ experience in providing strategic communications and public relations advice and counsel to senior executives in public and private sector organizations.

She has the ability to motivate and lead individuals and teams, as well as effectively interface with all business representatives.

Throughout her career, Lerato has gained considerable experience in consumer and brand PR having worked with clients such as Procter & Gamble, Gold Reef City, BlackBerry (RIM SA), Nashua Mobile, Acceleration, The Headache Clinic, Consology, Legal & Tax, Pepsico/Simba, Unilever, McDonald’s SA  and MWEB to name a few.

In her recent position at H+K, Lerato was in charge of overseeing the Consumer, Lifestyle and FMCG Practice  with clients such as MSC Cruises, Reebok, Western Digital, Lenovo, Huawei, DJI, Mazda and BrightRock.

She is also a key member of H+K’s culture committee which was formed with the aim to help the company’s central principles and values permeate the day-to-day work experience.

Aside from her H+K role, Lerato is also the PR Lead for WPPTeamLiquid, a bespoke WPP agency created specifically for beverage’s company Distell, where she leads the PR team responsible for Tier 1 brands in the Distell stable such as Hunter’s, Savanna, Amarula, Scottish Leader, Viceroy and Bains.

Lerato holds a National Diploma in Public Relations Management and a Certificate in Events Management.