What’s Next — Celiwe Ross on how Old Mutual’s partnership with Singularity is driving access to exponential technology in South Africa
In this What’s Next with Aki Anastasiou interview, Celiwe Ross discusses the Singularity South Africa Summit and explains how to attend.
Ross is the Group Chief Human Capital and Corporate Affairs Officer at Old Mutual.
She is a seasoned executive with a strong track record in enterprise transformation, people and culture change, corporate strategy, corporate reputation, and strategic growth in complex, regulated environments.
She holds a Bachelor of Science in Mining Engineering from the University of Witwatersrand and an MBA from the University of Cape Town’s Graduate School of Business.
Ross began her career as a Mine Planner for BHP Billiton in 2002, before becoming the Business Development Manager and later the Marketing Manager for Domestic Coal Sales.
In 2006, she joined Standard Bank as the Manager of Mining and Metals Finance, and has remained in the banking industry ever since.
She became Head of Project Finance at Stanbic Bank in Ghana in 2011, and has held several other roles in the Standard Bank Group from 2014 until 2017.
During this time, Ross gained invaluable experience across project finance, structured finance, and origination in the mining, energy, power, and infrastructure sectors, supporting many critical development initiatives.
Ross joined Old Mutual in 2017. She started out as the Executive Assistant to the Chairman and CEO, before becoming the Chief of Staff.
In 2022, she took on a Director title, becoming the Director of Group Strategy and Group Human Capital.
One year later, Ross became the Director of Strategy, Sustainability, People, and Public Affairs, before taking on her current position in 2025.
As the Group Chief Human Capital and Corporate Affairs Officer, Ross has overseen major enterprise-wide transformation initiatives, including the redesign of the operating model, technology-enabled people systems modernisation, and culture change programmes.
What’s Next interview
In this interview, Ross begins by discussing the Singularity South Africa Summit.
She explains how the Summit helps to close technology gaps and talks about South Africa’s role in solving global challenges.
Ross then discusses how Old Mutual is leveraging technologies like AI to enhance the customer experience, and unpacks the Old Mutual-Singularity connection.
Finally, she talks about leadership and how it is shifting, and tells viewers how they can attend the Singularity South Africa Summit.
Watch the full interview with Celiwe Ross below.
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