A widely celebrated Corporate Communication executive takes over the reins at the USAf Office
She was born and raised in KwaZulu-Natal and has lived in that province throughout her career. Pretoria felt like another country: new people, a new language, totally different surroundings.
That is the cultural shock that hit Ms Gcinekile, known as (Gcina) Thembile Nhleko (left), in her first two weeks in Pretoria. “I was greeted by a dead quiet office with everyone working from home, safe for the three individuals who eased me into the logistics of working for USAf.” Gcina says it was not until she stumbled upon individuals who could speak basic Zulu that she began to ease up: This is her new home, after all.
She has since observed that people in Pretoria are friendly, polite and accommodating. On public roads, they tend to courteously allow one the right of way – quite a refreshing and heartening experience.
Ms Nhleko assumed her new role as Manager: Corporate Communications at Universities South Africa (USAf) on 7 April 2026, bringing with her over 15 years of experience across corporate, higher education, and development sectors.
Her career trajectory reflects progression across industries, starting in the transport and logistics sector, where she initially served in a secretarial role at Transnet Port Terminals, supporting port operations. She later transitioned into corporate communications through a specialised programme aimed at strengthening marine ocean economy reporting and stakeholder engagement, which coincided with the opening of Transnet Port Terminals’ flagship Pier 1, and she was appointed as the inaugural Communications Manager.
Reflecting on this transition, she notes that her early career days required adaptability and a willingness to apply communication principles in practical settings. “This opportunity was a natural progression for me because I had already demonstrated the attributes that the organisation was looking for,” she says.
She has since served in various roles at the Richards Bay Coal Terminal and the University of South Africa before moving into senior leadership at the University of Zululand (UNIZULU), where she rose to Director: Communications & Marketing.
An astute organiser
In the latter role (at UNIZULU), she led an integrated marketing and communication department, contributing to strengthening institutional visibility and stakeholder engagement. Ms Nhleko was the force behind the success of numerous colloquia, conferences, and book launches. From liaising with keynote speakers, managing travel intricacies, to overseeing registration and ensuring venues were perfectly set up, she handled every task with meticulous attention. Her calm and efficient management under pressure allowed academic staff to focus on the intellectual content of these events, secure in the knowledge that the logistics were in capable hands.
Ms Nhleko at a launch in 2023 of Ongoye Tertiary Times, a monthly supplement showcasing University Highlights in the Independent Newspapers titles such as Daily News, The Mercury, etc.
Ms Nhleko also made significant contributions to the institution’s communication and identity. She was actively involved in producing faculty brochures and informational materials, ensuring they were not only accurate but also professionally presented. Her input helped the faculty effectively communicate its value proposition to prospective students and stakeholders.
She is also credited for comprehensively revamping UNIZULU’s corporate identity and brand reputation guidelines, which she promoted across the institution, achieving 100% brand consistency across faculties and departments, “a remarkable feat that significantly strengthened our professional standing and public image.”
Gcina at a Women’s Day celebration event at UNIZULU in 2019.
Finally, Nhleko’s leadership in organising UNIZULU’s open days and targeted promotions contributed to increased attendance of the university’s events, thereby attracting more prospective students, especially to the Faculty of Commerce and bolstering the faculty’s community engagement.
Most recently, she served as Senior Communications Manager at THINK, a United States Agency for International Development (USAID) implementing partner, where she developed and implemented a global communications strategy aligned to public health. USAID had committed substantial resources to programmes that embody the principles of planetary health. Gcina was therefore responsible for leading the project’s communication strategy and ensuring effective visibility of programmatic work at national, provincial, and community levels.
A sharp strategist, manager and programme advocate
The accolades from previous employers speak volumes about the calibre of a professional that USAf has acquired.
“She demonstrated exceptional professionalism, strong strategic thinking, and excellent media engagement skills,” writes the Deputy Chief of Party, Dr Chipo Nyathi, from USAID’s Accelerate Project. “Ms Nhleko organised and facilitated radio interviews, podcasts, television interviews on national platforms, and coverage in local and national print media, to amplify the project’s work, significantly strengthening public awareness and visibility of the programme’s TB response activities.”
She is also credited for representing the USAID-sponsored TB project in the National TB Caucus Forum, where she led USAID’s national advocacy engagements. “Her ability to engage confidently with government stakeholders, partners, and national platforms reflected both credibility and strategic communication leadership,” Dr Nyathi elaborates.
Furthermore, Nhleko led the development and implementation of the Accelerate Project’s social media strategy, ensuring that key programmatic achievements, community stories and policy engagements were consistently highlighted across digital platforms, helping maintain strong project visibility among stakeholders and the broader public.
Beyond her technical skills, the USAID leadership acknowledges Ms Nhleko for being highly dependable, organised, and collaborative. “She worked well with multidisciplinary teams in translating complex technical information into clear and accessible messaging for diverse audiences.”
UNIZULU’s executive leadership has also praised her for exceptional organisational skills, which were most evident during the institution’s high-profile events such as graduation ceremonies. She handled the intricate details of academic processionals and protocol with grace and precision, ensuring that this momentous occasion for students and their families proceeded without a hitch.
Throughout this period, she also demonstrated extraordinary commitment to all faculty’s academic and administrative excellence.
Qualifications and professional accreditation
Gcina qualified with a National Diploma in Public Relations Management and a Bachelor of Technology (BTech) degree in Communication and Public Relations Management from the Durban University of Technology. She also holds a Bachelor of Commerce Honours degree, and recently completed a Master’s of Business Administration in Corporate Communications.
Her professional credentials include a Management Development Programme obtained from Stellenbosch University. Gcina is accredited in public relations through the Public Relations Institute of South Africa (PRISA) — the highest professional board exam recognition for Communications Practitioner — internationally recognised as a licence to operate. It is an achievement she describes as “defining” in her career. She says the 2019 accreditation was “a very gratifying moment, demonstrating a full-circle turn within my field.” The PRISA endorsement emphasises applied knowledge in areas such as strategy development, stakeholder segmentation, and evaluation.
Her USAf outlook
At USAf, Nhleko is responsible for supporting the organisational mandate as the representative body of South Africa’s public universities. Her focus includes positioning and safeguarding the USAf brand, enhancing the higher education sector’s reputation in the broader public, strengthening culture within the USAf Office and supporting organisational messaging and sector-wide communication efforts.
She says her approach to communication centres on aligning messaging with stakeholder needs and ensuring clarity across diverse audiences. “Communication is the only function in an organisation that must predict how every stakeholder will interpret an organisation’s voice before it is even expressed,” she says.
Immediate priorities
She looks forward to strengthening the organisation’s digital communication capability, with a focus on measurable impact. This includes streamlining social media processes and using analytics to assess engagement and effectiveness. “There are volumes of messages shared across platforms, but have we measured the effect? Are they making an impact?” she is curious to find out.
The new Manager perceives the higher education sector as presenting a distinct communication environment, characterised by multiple stakeholders, technical language, and varying expectations. She points to the importance of translating complex institutional information into accessible messaging for broader audiences. This includes ensuring that communication resonates not only within academic spaces but also with families, communities and the broader society.
She describes her leadership approach as collaborative and participatory. “My leadership style is collaborative decisiveness. I believe that my role should be a bridge, not a bottleneck,” she says, emphasising the importance of consultation, stakeholder understanding, and ongoing development within teams.
She also credits mentorship and continuous learning for her career progression. “A mentor will help you to avoid common pitfalls… and provide perspective in high-pressure environments,” she explains.
In her personal time
Beyond her professional life, Ms Nhleko describes herself as family-oriented and grounded in her faith. She is a mother whose personal values are guided by her upbringing and beliefs. In her personal time, she enjoys reading autobiographies and books on other people’s life experiences, particularly stories that reflect resilience and victory over challenges. She also loves travelling, even though her pursuit of that interest was negatively affected by CoViD-19.
“I love hope,” she says, referring to her interest in narratives of perseverance and personal growth. She also values time spent in quiet reflection in nature, particularly near the ocean, which she describes as a space for clarity and calm.
Gcina vacationed in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, in 2020, just before the pandemic-related global lockdown.
Looking ahead, Ms Nhleko has identified the importance of collaboration with Marketing and Communication peers in higher education. This includes exploring opportunities for structured engagement and knowledge-sharing among practitioners across institutions, as well as the potential establishment of a communications community of practice. Such a platform would enable practitioners to share insights, align approaches, and build collective capacity across the sector.
“We have an opportunity to create a platform where we can learn from one another, standardise where it makes sense, and strengthen how we communicate the sector’s work,” she notes.
Her appointment aligns perfectly with USAf’s ongoing efforts to strengthen institutional capacity while supporting collaboration and coordinated advocacy among public universities.
Gcina Nhleko succeeds ‘Mateboho Green, who, this April, completes her 13th year at USAf, and will be hanging up her hat on April 30th to retire.
Thoriso Kolobe is a Digital and Internal Communication Consultant contracted to Universities South Africa
