Adrienne Watkins

Adrienne Watkins is a Senior Client Partner for Korn Ferry Executive Search, based in the firm’s Johannesburg office.

Ms. Watkins has over fifteen years of experience within executive search and has successfully worked on highly complex search assignments, working with both international and local leadership teams to appoint Non-Executive Directors, CEO's, Managing Directors and C-Suite Executives of leading multinationals and listed organisations. Ms Watkins is responsible for CEO, Board and Executive Search across Southern Africa and forms part of the Africa leadership team and CEO Succession Practice.

Prior to joining Korn Ferry Adrienne spent several years in research before leading an expansive search portfolio as the Key Account Director for a boutique executive search and leadership advisory firm in Johannesburg. Her experience spans a multitude of sectors, including financial services, insurance, private equity, banking, legal, chemicals and materials, manufacturing, industrial services and equipment, logistics, automotive, agriculture, energy, infrastructure, construction and engineering, pharmaceutical, life sciences, consumer, fmcg, information technology, digital, mobile and telecommunications.

Ms. Watkins passion for people and knowledge across the talent value chain developed very early within her career where Adrienne consulted for a number of entities (both local and multinational) within RPO across the logistics & supply chain; automotive; consumer, technology & IT services sectors.

Before her career within executive search and talent advisory, Ms. Watkins spent a number of years within the strategy, media, and sponsorship sectors as the Head of Short Form Production & Brand Producer for a leading Broadcast Media House working with Global Sponsors. Ms. Watkins was also part of the core team which pioneered a sponsored production and multimedia platform celebrating corporate social responsibility initiatives across South Africa. As Producer and Director for the national production, Ms. Watkins successfully managed brand exposure for corporate sponsors where she interviewed and profiled hundreds of corporate executives from Blue Chip Companies within South Africa including those of local and international entities. She is fluent in English and Afrikaans.

Ms. Watkins holds a Bachelor of Economics degree from the University of Stellenbosch with three majors in industrial psychology, business management, and logistics. She is recognized as a member of the Golden Key International honor society (a society by invitation only offered to the top fifteen percent of academics in recognition of academic excellence) .