Meet Esme molefe

When Esmé Molefe founded Prosper and Thrive SA, it wasn’t just the birth of another business — it was the culmination of over two decades of leadership, strategy, and transformation experience across some of South Africa’s most dynamic industries.

After 22 years in corporate environments — spanning banking, financial services, engineering, oil & gas, government, and venture capital — Esmé had seen firsthand how strategy often failed to translate into meaningful action. She had built a reputation as a strategy-to-action specialist, someone who could take complex ideas and turn them into tangible, measurable results. But she also recognised a deeper need: people and businesses were craving not just operational excellence, but personal and professional growth that would allow them to truly thrive.

That realisation became the spark for Prosper and Thrive SA— a leadership development and business growth consultancy designed to ignite excellence in individuals and organisations alike.

Esmé’s journey to this point had been rich and varied. As Chief Operating Officer at Edge Growth, she led transformation initiatives, implemented risk and procurement frameworks, and built high-performing teams from the ground up. At Absa Bank, she launched innovative products like Instant Business and Start-up Store, and as Chief of Staff, she drove strategic alignment across Business Banking. Her earlier roles at Nedbank, BP Southern Africa, and SARS honed her skills in business performance management, strategy execution, and stakeholder engagement at executive levels.

But beyond the corporate achievements, Esmé’s superpower lay in her ability to inspire. A natural firestarter, she had always been passionate about unlocking potential in others — mentoring emerging leaders, coaching professionals, and designing leadership programmes that transformed mindsets. Her founding of StepUp Financial Coaching in 2020 had already proven her ability to build and scale a purpose-driven business. With Prosper and Thrive SA, she wanted to take that impact even further.

At its heart, Prosper and Thrive SA is built on Esmé’s belief that prosperity isn’t just about financial success — it’s about alignment, growth, and purpose. The company helps leaders and teams bridge the gap between vision and execution, combining strategic clarity with human-centred leadership. Through coaching, training, and consulting, Prosper and Thrive SA empowers clients to not only perform better but to be better — more intentional, more resilient, and more fulfilled.

Esmé’s leadership philosophy — shaped by her MBA from Wits Business School, her coaching certification, and her years of executive experience — is simple yet profound: “Excellence is not an act; it’s a mindset.”

With Prosper and Thrive SA, she continues to live that truth — helping others turn their potential into performance, their ideas into impact, and their ambitions into lasting prosperity.