Championing women in the workplace and an inimitable leadership style have earned Yael Geffen, CEO of Lew Geffen Sotheby’s International Realty, yet another national award when she was won the CEO of the Year title by The Woman of Stature Foundation on 9 March at its 8th Annual Woman of Stature South African Awards.
The glittering event was hosted at the Indaba Hotel and Conference Centre in Fourways, Johannesburg on International Women’s Day and other category winners included: Entrepreneur of the Year (Hazel Bango-Moyo); Women in Arts and Culture (Palesa Makgato), Women in Beauty and Fashion (Conny Oberrauter), Women in Coaching and Mentoring (Keshni Mathi), Women in Education (Professor Corne Davis), Women in Media (Katy Katopodis), Women in Science and Innovation (Dr Nandi Malumbazo), and Women in Technology (Dr Stella Bvuma).
Previous accolades for Yael include winning the Top Woman in Property Award in the Standard Bank Top Women Awards in 2020, and in the same year she was also a finalist in four categories in the ABSA Jewish Achievers Awards, including Business Leadership, Professional Excellence, Entrepreneur of the Year and Women in Leadership as well as a finalist in the Europcar Women in Leadership Awards.
In 2021, as a South African representative she was a speaker at the World’s Largest Leadership Summit and a finalist at the Strategic African Women in Leadership Top 30 Trailblazers. And last year Yael was invited to judge the Standard Bank Top Women awards and had the honour of being invited to be a TEDX speaker at the TEDX Gresham Place Reframe Conference.
The Woman of Stature Awards is a prestigious event that recognises the hard work and passion of South African female entrepreneurs and businesswomen across different industries. In addition to the prestigious awards ceremony which was held on 8 March, the Woman of Stature Foundation also chose to include a two-day business summit where, for the first time ever, a Deal Room was available for successful entrepreneurs to pitch their companies to a panel of investors. The theme of the 2023 summit was ”DREAM BIGGER,” which aimed to open the minds of female entrepreneurs and give themselves permission to think beyond traditional strategies and consider the possibilities beyond South African borders.
