Colin Douglas, founder of Douglas Knowledge Partners, has spent over two decades as the knowledge partner of choice to some of the world’s leading organisations, working with them to conceive and create books, reports, and articles on topics that shape the world’s future for the better. Previously, Colin served as a contributing editor to the McKinsey Quarterly and worked with the firm’s senior leadership to develop and publish articles, reports, and books on key knowledge topics.
Chief Knowledge Partner
Melanie Blythe, over the last 15 years, has carved out a career as a strategic communicator, working with organisations to hone their tone of voice, messaging, and audience engagement strategies. She spent 10 years in London at a communications agency and a top multinational healthcare company, where she led global communications campaigns. A writer and editor with a passion for translating complex ideas into ‘plain English’, she has developed knowledge across topics as diverse as sustainability, finance, law, consumer packed goods, insurance, health, and more.
Managing Knowledge Partner
Courtney Cox is a creative strategist and thinker. As Creative Knowledge Partner, she leads, manages, and recruits for multiple complex projects both internally and externally. As a digital artist, she has worked with leading design thinkers and multimedia experts, harnessing her design capabilities to create end-to-end publications. Her training as a molecular engineer gives her the unique advantage of combining her analytical brain with her creative side. Courtney leads Douglas' Sustainability Hub, a network of writers and researchers with special interests in sustainability.
Chief Growth Officer
Jackie Fermo has seven years of experience as a writer and editor and has worked on a wide range of articles, reports, and books covering topics such as healthcare, education, diversity, productivity, and public-sector reform. She works closely with clients to develop their ideas, refine the content, and produce and publish a final product that brings their research and expertise to life. Jackie brings a mix of creativity, business acumen, and academic skill to her work: She has an MBA, a fine art degree, and an entrepreneurial background.
Senior Knowledge Partner
Nella Freund is a Senior Knowledge Partner at Douglas,where she helps clients develop their ideas and get them across in the clearest, most effective way. Her responsibilities include client liaison, writing, and copy-editing. Nella has over 30 years' experience of working with the written word within the corporate, creative, and educational fields. She holds an undergraduate degree in journalism and a master's degree in creative writing.
Senior Knowledge Partner
Jocelyn Newmarch is a Senior Knowledge Partner at Douglas, where she supports companies to tell their stories effectively, build their reputations, and change stakeholders’ perceptions. Jocelyn has worked in journalism, public relations, and content marketing and holds an MA in development studies. She now supports thought leadership ideation and delivery for clients both local and international.
Senior Knowledge Partner
Henrietta Rose-Innes is a world-renowned novelist and experienced commercial writer, using her sense of narrative to produce professional prose with the pace and drama of great fiction. She holds a PhD in creative writing. Henrietta has worked with our clients on topics ranging from financial services to technology, and from healthcare to education. She is also an outstanding editor, whose skills have sharpened major novels, non-fiction works, and articles and reports for Douglas clients.
Senior Knowledge Partner
Mvuselelo Dyabaza is the Chief People Officer. In this role, he is responsible for Douglas’s people, wellness and finance matters, as well as overall project pipeline management and client liaison. Mvuselelo has worked in start-ups to medium enterprises across all organisational levels. He has worked in the creative industry across Africa, with experience in live television, broadcasting, directing, producing, filmmaking, theatre, scriptwriting, TV content distribution, and management. He’s also experienced in processes and project management systems, with years in managerial roles.
Chief People Officer
Nicola Weaver has worked across academia, not-for-profit, and for-profit organisations. An economist by training, she previously convened a master’s degree in inclusive innovation at the University of Cape Town, ran the SAB Foundation, which focused on entrepreneurship and social innovation, and worked in a number of roles across SABMiller plc globally, including corporate strategy. Nicola worked for INSEAD and the European Union on a joint academic-corporate project on sustainable development, developing a toolkit for industry for product service systems, and as a strategy consultant for Kearney.
Senior Knowledge Partner
Kathryn Wooldridge is Head of Operations at Douglas. She makes sure everything runs smoothly and efficiently. She is also passionate about partnering with clients to help solve process and operational problems and is a wiz at project management. She has helped manage many projects from beginning to end and loves building strong, positive relationships with those she works with. She has a master's degree in industrial sociology and also has a background in research, policy writing, and analysis.
Senior Knowledge Partner
Courtney Fagg as a Knowledge Partner at Douglas, works closely with clients to manage the end-to-end publishing process for articles and reports, coordinating the writing, editing, and design aspects to produce refined, impactful knowledge pieces. With a Master of Science in Zoology, she brings sharp critical thinking to her writing and project management skills, and is comfortable working across a range of topics, including scientific and technical subjects. She has published research in the African Journal of Marine Science and continues to work on numerous publications, enhancing her research and data analysis expertise.
Senior Knowledge Partner
Crystal Ball is a Senior Knowledge Partner at Douglas, where she taps into her experience as a social anthropologist to connect big ideas to everyday lived experience. Her writing process is collaborative and analytical; she tackles projects with a view to learn from the experts, extracting nuggets of meaning that can be refined into impactful prose. Her ethnographic research on indie game development and her prior role as a learning technologist in theEdTech space has incited a special interest in emerging technologies. She is particularly passionate about interrogating inclusivity in the production and consumption of tech innovation.
Senior Knowledge Partner
Darren Browne is a Senior Creative Knowledge Partner at Douglas. As Partner, he leads his team in creating engaging and unique designs that unite and embody our clients’ vision. Trained in copywriting and 3D animation, with years of experience working in the Visual Effects and advertising industries, Darren has gained an innovative perspective for taking ideas and magnifying them into captivating marketing campaigns, ranging from 3D animation to traditional design. Always thinking of new and inspiring ways to develop and boost our offering for our clients, he remains strategic and understanding of all things design.
Senior Knowledge Partner, Creative
Edmund Rodseth is a Senior Knowledge Partner at Douglas, helping clients to develop, refine, and communicate their ideas for maximum impact. In this role, his responsibilities include project management, writing, and editing. Edmund holds a PhD in Molecular and Cell Biology from the University of Cape Town and has extensive experience in data collection and analysis, as well as effective communication of complex topics. He is passionate about effecting change in the world through the formulation and communication of important ideas.
Senior Knowledge Partner
Julian Misell, insight specialist with over twenty years’ experience, is passionate about understanding the needs of organisations and delivering innovative research solutions. He has worked with an array of global organisations across sectors as diverse as technology, finance, retail, leisure, education, and consumer goods. Having cut his teeth at a consultancy providing evidence-based messaging advice to the UK Government and leading business figures,Julian then spent 14 years at Ipsos, eventually heading its customer research practice. Here he focused on helping clients address challenges such as how to build customer loyalty, strengthen employee relationships, improve their reputations and re-position their brands.
Senior Advisor
Pierre Liebenberg is an Industrial Engineer by training, with a specialisation in Data Science and Machine Learning. His experience as a data engineer at a health-tech company revealed to him the vast world of software development, and ignited his passion for creating beautiful software – a realm where in he can combine his creative brain with his mathematical brain.
Chief of Staff
Aderinsola Adebulehin, better known as Derin, is a Knowledge Partner at Douglas, where she collaborates with clients to position their voices as experts, by way of simple and effective communication. Her responsibilities at Douglas include leading client projects, managing client partnerships, writing, editing, and business development. Aderinsola completed a joint MA in Development Studies degree from the University of Cape Town, University of Freiburg in Germany, and Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, India. She has worked in academia, the EdTech sector, and the SEO-content creation space.
Knowledge Partner
Luandri Emslie is a Creative Knowledge Partner at Douglas Knowledge Partners, where she helps build good client relationships through communication, supporting clients to form their ideas into something creative, inspiring, and unique. Her responsibilities include illustration, PDF and book layout, creative thinking, design ideas and art direction, social media designs, mentoring, and client liaison. With years of experience in layout design, graphic design, and freelance social media management, as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Visual Arts from Stellenbosch University, her passion for the arts motivates her to thrive in any creative field. She aims to explore new ideas, visualise creativity in many forms, and inspire the people around her.
Knowledge Partner, Creative
Kirstie Schwerdtfeger is a Knowledge Partner at Douglas Knowledge Partners, whose responsibilities include writing and editing projects for clients. She holds a master’s degree in microbiology from Stellenbosch University, focusing on biotechnology. During her six years of studies, she developed her problem-solving, data collection, analysis and writing skills, while cultivating a passion for learning and new ideas. She has presented at many national and international conferences, working on communicating her ideas and findings. She is passionate about delivering high-quality work and impacting positive change.
Knowledge Partner
Mumta Hargovan is a medical doctor and holds a Masters in Public Health. She is passionate about social justice, and leads an NGO that promotes gender equality within the evolving field of planetary health. As a Knowledge Partner at Douglas, she draws on her experiences in healthcare, research, and advocacy to engage with new ideas, build effective partnerships, and communicate for impact.
Knowledge Partner
Gabriella Flynn is a Creative Knowledge Partner at Douglas. Her top 3 passions are all things creative, animals, and helping those in need through innovative design. She is known for her bold and bright designs and always aims to challenge herself to create, inspire and lead through creativity. Her background in Graphic Design and Digital Marketing aids her to make an impact in the industry. She is passionate, loud, and bright and brings a fun flavour to the Douglas team.
Knowledge Partner, Creative
Luke Watson is a writer, researcher, and Senior Knowledge Associate at Douglas. He is a terrible cook and an utter failure at parallel parking, but makes up for these shortcomings with a pleasant prose style. Luke completed a MA in Literary Studies and has considerable professional experience in academia, journalism, and learning design. His passions include contemporary African literature, the geopolitics of football, and convincing people that verbs are better than nouns.
Senior Knowledge Associate
Waseem Bahemia is a Senior Knowledge Associate at Douglas and is passionate about socio-economic issues and development in Africa. He is a writer and researcher in the Media Studies field in which he is currently completing his MA at Rhodes University. Waseem holds a BA in Film and Media Studies from the University of Cape Town and a BA(Hons) in Journalism and Media Studies from Rhodes University. He has experience working in academia, as a journalist and in the Search Engine Optimisation space. He is a sports fanatic and ironically a nemophile and thalassophile as well.
Senior Knowledge Associate
William Barron is a Senior Knowledge Associate at Douglas. A young writer, he helps clients shape and deliver content to match their visions. He studied literature and history at the University of Cape Town, and is now wielding the meticulousness and craftsmanship of those disciplines to produce impactful knowledge strategies.
Senior Knowledge Associate
Helen Mupani is a Senior Knowledge Associate at Douglas, where she uses her expertise in research and analysis to support the team. She holds a BSocSc Hons in Gender and Transformation, and is currently pursuing an MPhil in Environmental Humanities from the University of Cape Town. Helen is committed to using her education and skills to make a positive impact on the world, and is always seeking out new opportunities to learn and grow.
Senior Knowledge Associate
Limika Nel is a Senior Creative Knowledge Associate at Douglas, working with clients in order to help them communicate their ideas with the world as effectively as possible. Limika holds a certificate in Graphic Design and has experience in the field. Her role includes project management, client liaison, and high-quality design production and thinking.
Senior Knowledge Associate, Creative
Alison van Kuik is the Production and Social Media Manager for Douglas Knowledge Partners. She helps build and shape the processes and operations of the design team, including project management, client liaison, and high-quality design thinking. Her BBA degree in Brand Building and Management, along with her many years of experience in the marketing field, allow her to oversee all marketing and social media activities at Douglas.
Design Production Manager
Adrian Lock is a Creative Knowledge Associate at Douglas Knowledge Partners. He holds a Diploma in Digital Animation, and he is always looking for ways to speed up his workflow while maintaining and improving the quality of his projects. Adrian specialises in 2D and 3D animation, as well as traditional sculpture.
Knowledge Associate, Creative
Alice Sholto-Douglas is a Knowledge Associate with experience in writing, copyediting, and academic research. She completed her Master’s in Literature at the University of Cape Town, where she spent six years teaching undergraduate students. She also holds a BA (Hons) in Arts and Literature from New York University, and has worked in museums and as an editorial assistant for academic journals. As a fierce believer in the value of research and strong idea expression, writing is tangible and gratifying to her. She has honed her skills and expertise while working for various publications and organizations on an array of subjects, including art, law, business, and education.
Knowledge Associate
Luthando Neo Rwanqa is a Rhodes University Law, Politics, and International Relations graduate and speaker. Her sizeable industry experience and professional background allow her to co-create high impact knowledge strategies, project-manage, and deliver exceptional service to all Douglas Knowledge Partners clients. She formerly held the position of Compliance Manager at a leading South African automation company, while managing the Vizikhungo Foundation – an NGO she founded in 2017, which focuses on bridging the gap for less privileged students who are yet to enter higher institutions of learning.
Knowledge Associate
Zinita Swanepoel is a Production Manager at Douglas. Drawing on her experience in the aviation industry, she understands the importance of efficiency, attention to detail and professionalism. She passionately collaborates with clients and our team to ensure that all editorial operations are conducted in a systematic manner, while overseeing that our company's quality standards and those of our clients are met.
Production Manager
Thembakazi Ndlebe is the Office Assistant of the Cape Town office. She is responsible for the day-to-day running of the office and excels at making sure it runs smoothly and efficiently, creating a space for excellence. Themba has an eye for detail and is always ready to help. She is an independent woman who likes travelling and connecting with nature when she is not working to make the office thrive.
Office Assistant
Zandri Daneel is a Creative Knowledge Associate at Douglas. Zandri holds an honours degree in Graphic Design and has experience in the field by developing creative solutions to client both on-and off-screen. Her approach to design effectively balances research, conceptual development, strategic thinking, and creative problem solving. She is a skilled multi-disciplinary creative, specialising in digital design, photography and illustration.
Knowledge Associate, Creative
