Peninah Thomson

Peninah Thomson OBE is a leadership specialist, executive coach and international speaker who excels at unlocking strategic thinking and decision-making in senior leaders. As chief executive of The Mentoring Foundation and partner at Praesta Partners, she directs the acclaimed FTSE 100 Cross-Company Mentoring Programme, where 51 FTSE 100 Chairmen and CEOs mentor senior women towards board candidacy. With doctoral credentials from Oxford, board-level experience at PwC, and early career service in the UK Foreign Office and NATO, she has also advised the World Bank on conflict resolution. Her sessions equip leaders and teams to see more options, communicate with greater clarity, and move confidently from insight to action.

When Peninah Thomson was awarded an OBE for Services to Women and Equality in 2012, it recognised a career already distinguished by her commitment to opening doors, expanding choices, and turning insight into meaningful action. From her early years in the UK Foreign Office and working directly with the Board of NATO National Delegates in Paris, through doctoral studies at Oxford and eight years with PricewaterhouseCoopers across government services in India, Africa, Singapore and Hong Kong, she has consistently focused on three core principles: the power of real communication as the foundation of understanding and cooperation, helping people discover more options than they thought possible, and guiding leaders from decision to action. Her secondments to the UK Cabinet Office and the European Investment Bank, followed by her promotion to Director in PwC's Corporate Transformation Practice, established her as a trusted adviser at board level in FTSE 100 companies.

As chief executive of The Mentoring Foundation and partner at Praesta Partners, Peninah directs the FTSE 100 Cross-Company Mentoring Programme, a pioneering initiative now in its second decade in which 51 FTSE 100 Chairmen and CEOs mentor senior women to become credible board candidates. The programme has been emulated internationally and stands as a practical model for advancing women into leadership positions. She has published four books and refereed articles on women's leadership, corporate governance and business ethics, and her expertise has been sought by organisations including the World Bank, where her combination of technical and process skills has supported the conversion of conflict into negotiated settlements. Her advisory roles have included serving on the Strategy Group of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, the UK Commissioner for Public Appointments' Advisory Board, and as an adviser to the Center for Work-Life Policy in New York.

Peninah works exclusively with senior executives and leadership teams on strategy, organisational change and decision-making, applying her skills in coaching, counselling, process consultancy and facilitation with an approachable style grounded in experience and common sense. Her sessions help leaders and teams see their challenges from fresh perspectives, communicate with clarity and confidence, and move decisively from analysis to implementation. Audiences leave equipped not just with new frameworks, but with the practical tools to navigate complexity, resolve conflict constructively, and lead with greater conviction. Her ability to combine intellectual rigour with human understanding ensures that the insights gained translate into lasting impact, enabling organisations to unlock potential and individuals to step into leadership roles they may not have imagined possible.