Kurt April

Kurt April is currently the Allan Gray Chair, an Endowed Professorship, specialising in Leadership, Diversity & Inclusion and Director of the Allan Gray Centre for Values-Based Leadership at the Graduate School of Business, University of Cape Town (South Africa, 1998-present), is a Faculty Member of Duke Corporate Education (Duke University, USA, 2008-present), and is Adjunct Faculty of Saïd Business School (University of Oxford, UK, 2000-present).

Previously, he was a Research Fellow of Ashridge Business School (UK, 2004-2016), Visiting Professor at London Metropolitan University (UK, 2014-2017), Visiting Professor at Rotterdam School of Management (Erasmus University, Netherlands, 2001-2013), and Visiting Professor in the Faculty of Economics & Econometrics (University of Amsterdam UvA, Netherlands, 2004-2007).

Outside of academia, Kurt is the Managing Partner of LICM Consulting (South Africa, 2001-present), Managing Director: Leadership, Diversity & Inclusion Practice at Oxford Acuity (Singapore, 2019-present), Shareholder and Director of the Achievement Awards Group (South Africa, 2007-present), as well as Ambassador of the global Unashamedly Ethical movement (2016-present). He plays a range of roles and consults to many companies and organisations around the globe, having worked in 24 countries.

Previously, he was an Owner-Director of Helderview BMW Somerset West (South Africa, 2010-2016), Chairman of the International Advisory Council (DIAC) to Novartis International AG (Switzerland, 2006-2019), Executive Director of Complex Adaptive Systems (South Africa, 2003-2006), Non-Executive Director of Power Group Holdings - Construction & Developments (South Africa, 2012-2018), Global Agenda Council Member (Talent & Diversity) of the World Economic Forum (Switzerland, 2009-2013), Non-Executive Director of the International School of Cape Town (Education Development Trust, UK, 2013-2019), and an Advisory Board Member to the Unit for Diversity, Inclusion & Community Engagement (DICE) at the University of Leicester (UK, 2015-2019).

Kurt is a Series Editorial Board Member of Palgrave (Springer) on Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Indigenization in Business (Switzerland), an Associate Editor of Design Science (UK), an Editorial Board Member of the European Management Review (UK), Editorial Review Board Member of the Africa Journal of Management (USA), and an Editorial Board Member of Good Governance, Ethics & Leadership (UK).

Previously, he was an Editorial Board Member of the British Journal of Management (UK), an Editorial Board Member of the Journal of Management Education (USA), an Editorial Board Member of Annual Review of High Performance Coaching & Consulting (UK), an Editorial Board Member of the International Journal of Information Systems & Social Change (USA), an Advisory Board Member of the Knowledge Management Professional Society (USA), an Editorial Advisory Board Member of the Academy of Taiwan Business Management Review (Taiwan), and previously the Chief Editor of the Journal for Convergence (SA).

Kurt holds a doctoral degree in Economics & IT Strategy (Ph.D), Certificate in Japanese Production, Masters degree in Business Administration (MBA), Masters degree in Electronic Engineering (MSc(ElecEng)), Higher Diploma in Education (HDE), Bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering (BSc(ElecEng)), National Diploma in Electronic Engineering (NDip(EE)), National Diploma in Logic Systems (NDip(LS)) completed at the University of Cape Town (South Africa), University of Oxford (UK), Wingfield College (South Africa) and AOTS Nagoya (Japan). He has published over 210 academic articles/book chapters/conference papers/reports/op-eds/dissertations, and written 11 books.