Feroza Grosso Ciponte has spent more than three decades working across supply chain, operations, transformation and strategy. From leading teams in East and Southern Africa to working at Nestlé’s headquarters in Vevey, Switzerland, her career has taught her that sustainable business performance and people leadership cannot be separated.
“Results matter, and leaders must be accountable for delivering them,” she says. “But lasting results are achieved when people understand the purpose, trust their leaders and believe they have a meaningful role in creating the outcome.”
Today, as Strategy Transformation Director for Nestlé East and Southern Africa (ESAR), Feroza helps translate strategic priorities into action across 23 diverse and complex markets. Her experience in supply chain continues to shape how she approaches that responsibility.
“My experience and exposure in Finance and Supply Chain has taught me to understand a business from end to end. It showed me that no decision exists in isolation. Every choice affects another function, another team and ultimately the consumer.”
That end-to-end perspective has been central to the transformations she has led. But Feroza is clear that transformation is not simply about structures, systems or technology. “Transformation becomes real when people can understand it, support it and see their place in it,” she says. “A technically correct solution will not succeed if you have not brought your people with you.”
Doing the difficult right
One example was the automation journey at Nestlé’s Longmeadow Distribution Centre. It was a demanding programme that required technical change, resilience and sustained teamwork, internally and externally, as a change as significant as this requires buy-in from your stakeholders.
We often said that we were doing the difficult right, not the easy wrong. There were challenging moments, but the team continued to show resilience, perseverance and grit. Seeing them create something they were genuinely proud of was one of the most rewarding parts of the journey.
The strength behind the strategy
Her belief in resilience is deeply personal. Feroza has spoken openly about the influence of her late mother, whose sacrifices shaped her understanding of opportunity and perseverance.
My mother taught me that circumstances do not have to define your future. She worked tirelessly to give us opportunities she did not have herself. Her strength, optimism and belief in us shaped who I am and how I lead.
That experience also informs Feroza’s commitment to developing others, especially those who may not immediately see their own potential. Graduates she has championed have gone on to lead critical functions across the organisation, from automation to planning and procurement.
“I have always cared deeply about creating opportunities and lifting others as we grow,” she says. “Sometimes people need someone to see their capability before they can see it themselves. But support is not about lowering expectations. It is about giving people the trust, challenge and opportunity they need to grow.”
Leadership under pressure
For Feroza, leadership is tested most clearly when circumstances become difficult. Her emphasis on care and trust is genuine, but she is equally clear that kindness is not softness.
Leadership is relatively easy when the targets are being achieved and everything is going well. Character is revealed when a project slips, performance is under pressure or the team is struggling. In those moments, people watch whether you search for solutions or scapegoats and whether you carry the pressure with them or simply place more pressure on them.
She describes her approach as kind leadership, but rejects the idea that kindness means lowering standards. “The kindest leaders I have worked with maintained exceptionally high standards. The difference was that they stood with their teams, remained honest and helped remove obstacles. Empathy and accountability should strengthen each other.”
Creating the conditions for women to succeed
As South Africa celebrates Women’s Month, Feroza believes organisations must move beyond celebrating individual women and focus on creating the conditions in which more women can succeed. It is a conviction that aligns with Nestle ESAR’s broader commitment to empowering women across its value chain, from farming communities to corporate leadership.
“Recognition matters, but access matters more,” she says. “Access to meaningful work, honest feedback, sponsorship and decision-making opportunities. We also need to ensure that women are not only invited into the room but are heard, trusted and given the opportunity to lead.”
Her advice to emerging women leaders is to remain grounded in their values while being courageous enough to take on difficult assignments. “Build credibility through what you consistently do. Do not wait until you feel completely ready before accepting an opportunity. Surround yourself with people who will support you, but also with people who will challenge you to grow.”
What success really means
Outside work, Feroza’s children and grandchildren, partner and close friends remain her grounding force and an important measure of what success means.
“As I have grown older, I have realised that success cannot be measured only by your career. You can spend your life building professional achievements, but you must also make time for the people you love.”
Ultimately, the legacy she hopes to leave is not a list of roles or accolades.
The achievements matter, but they are not the whole story. My greatest pride comes from seeing people I have supported grow in confidence, take on leadership roles and achieve more than they believed possible. Leadership is built by character, and legacy lives in the people whose lives you have helped change.
