Anneke Ferreira, Managing Partner of Ferreira & Associates International Executive Search, was honoured by the AESC with the Future of the Profession Award at the Global Annual Executive Search and Leadership Consulting Industry Awards held by the AESC in New York in 2015. The Future of the Profession Award recognises the next generation of leaders in executive search and leadership consulting.  The award honours someone who has made a material impact on the profession or on their firm through creativity, innovation, leadership and strategic direction.  The first ever Future of the Profession Award was bestowed on Anneke Ferreira for her contribution to executive search. Anneke made a move from marketing management into an exceptionally successful career in recruitment and executive search in 2004. Fluent in both English and Afrikaans, Anneke holds a Bachelor of Commerce Marketing degree from the University of Pretoria (SA), a BCom Honours Industrial and Organisational Psychology degree (Cum Laude), from the University of South Africa, an Advanced Programme in Executive Search and Leadership Consulting from Cornell University (USA), a Masters in Business Administration, (MBA), Cum Laude, from Henley Business School at the University of Reading (UK) and is a certified Enneagram coach (SA).  She is a member of the Businesswomen’s Association of South Africa, the Association for Executive Search and Leadership Consultants and  serves on the Nominations Committee of Panorama, an international executive search consulting network. Anneke is well travelled with a background in international marketing management and executive search. This international experience adds to her first-hand understanding of the issues that confront businesses seeking to operate in a global economy. She was invited as a speaker at the 2013 World Executive Search Congress held in Las Vegas to discuss growth and executive search in emerging markets. In 2019 she was invited to speak at the Integral African Conference on “C-Suite leadership evolution in the 4th Industrial revolution”. During her specialist consulting career she successfully completed over 350 assignments, mainly in the mining, manufacturing, information technology, financial, consulting and telecommunications sectors. She has accomplished many executive searches at C-level by using her vast network and industry knowledge in combination with her strong business acumen. Anneke’s rapid trajectory within her career resulted in her appointment as DAV’s Head of Enterprise innovation and Corporate Relations divisions. She was part of their consulting council for seven years, has served as its President and earned the status of honorary lifetime member. Her motivational leadership style has inspired many consultants to succeed. By establishing a new Africa and Emerging Markets Division, she opened doors to more international business opportunities which earned her an award. In 2012, Ingrid Kast CEO of her previous company asked Anneke to join her in a executive search partnership called Kast & Partners International Executive Search.  After three successful years Anneke is now on a new journey, taking the lead in building the next generation Search firm – Ferreira & Associates International Executive Search. Anneke is continually aiming to raise the bar in the local executive search industry and is considered a formidable broker of top talent. Her long career as a well-regarded, accomplished search professional for multinational firms and her exceptional combination of strategic and tactical intelligence, positions her to assist global companies with talent searches and starting up in new markets. “This is more than a career for me,” says Anneke. “I have a real passion for successfully completing top influential assignments and building leadership teams that achieve measurable results. I love that I am involved in finding executive search solutions for my clients while offering life-enhancing opportunities to senior executives.” In her private time, Anneke travels to her bucket-list of destinations to build memories of a lifetime and capture the special moments with her camera. She enjoys spending time in the magical South African bush and is moved by the embattled Rhinos; to this end Ferreira & Associates support stoprhinopoaching.com to save these beautiful animals. Despite her demanding schedule, Anneke also makes time to play golf, a pursuit she says she is enjoying thoroughly! 

Ingrid Kast, non-executive Chairman of Ferreira & Associates International Executive Search.

Ingrid is a leading figure in the field of human capital and international recruitment.

Born and educated in Stuttgart Germany, Ingrid came to South Africa at the age of 23 and started her own recruitment company, DAV Professional Placement Group. 

Ingrid says:  “Coming to South Africa was the most wonderful experience for me, I felt as though I was fated to be here and to be a part of an industry where I could unleash the very best in people. This was my purpose then, and it still is now. This is my contribution to the Country where I have been allowed to make my life and home”.

Under Ingrid’s unique leadership and vision, DAV grew into South Africa’s foremost recruitment company, winning more awards and accolades during her time as leader, than any other company.

In 1999 Ingrid sold her company to Adcorp Holdings Limited. John Barry, Founder and former Chairman of Adcorp, in his book Leading from the Front, describes Ingrid as, “one of the most passionate and enthusiastic company heads that I have had the good fortune to meet”.

Continuing as CEO with DAV until May 2013, DAV will remain very close to Ingrid’s heart. In a moving testament to this, Richard Pike, the current Chairman of Adcorp, commended Ingrid on her leaving DAV, at the 2013 Gala Awards evening:

“The world as we know it, is subject to change. Forever shifting, forever evolving, forever forging a new path.  Tonight we would like to honour an extraordinary person, who has built an extraordinary business, built around extraordinary people…for decades of excellence we salute Ingrid Kast”

Ingrid has been the recipient of many prestigious awards, including:

Finalist  “Business Woman of the Year”

National Business Awards July 2012

 Finalist “Top Women Executive”


Top Women Awards August 2012

Finalist  “Business Woman of the Year”

BOTY Award October 2010

 Winner  “Positive Newsmaker of the Year”


Top Women Awards August 2007

“Starting my career in the recruitment and search industry when feminism was at its peak, confirmed my belief that women in business are extremely good at maintaining a high level of client trust, which is essential to success in this field.”

In 2012 Ingrid founded Kast & Partners together with her business partner Anneke Ferreira and gave testament to Ingrid’s conviction that women can achieve great levels of success in business.  After three wonderful years she has finally decided to adopt an ‘almost-retired’ status, which means she will travel even more in the future than in the past.

Her long-time friend and business partner Anneke Ferreira will continue to fulfil their purpose within Ferreira & Associates International Executive Search and Ingrid will serve as non-executive Chairman in the role of mentor and coach.

Creating the perfect match over the years has been a great magnet for Ingrid to use her people skills to build strong networking relationships.     It is rooted from a fascination with the way in which the right leader can unleash their employees to achieve their star potential in the modern working world.

Over the years Ingrid has seen just what is required for the kind of leadership that companies now look for. More than ever, companies are turning to the kind of leaders who through their ability to inspire the people they lead, create a winning culture that drives strategy to deliver superb results.  In Ingrid’s view this alignment makes a company unstoppable. 

Both Ingrid and Anneke share the same passion for executive search, which gives Ferreira & Associates its great strength of purpose today.

Ferreira & Associates’ working practice is benchmarked against the best in the world and is continually refined. In her own leadership role Ingrid places strong emphasis on clear high standards, working from the heart with a deeply held set of values.

Ingrid never stops reading. She sees herself as a life long student, ever enthusiastic in professional and personal development which constantly adds to the adventure.

As a very happy mother of two daughters, one also being a proud mom of two and the other deeply committed in the humanitarian field, her family are central to her life, with whom you might well find her schussing down an Alpine slope, or scuba diving in the Maldives, or soaking up the magnificence of the African bush she so adores.