Carina Wessels is a distinguished legal and governance leader whose career reflects resilience, adaptability, and a deep commitment to responsible business practices. With a strong foundation in law and an evolving expertise in corporate governance, sustainability, and compliance, she has built a reputation as a forward-thinking professional who balances legal precision with strategic leadership.

Currently serving in a senior leadership position at Alexforbes, Carina plays a central role in overseeing governance, legal affairs, compliance, and sustainability initiatives. Her work is driven by a clear purpose to strengthen ethical business practices while creating long-term value for both organizations and society.

Her professional journey has been anything but linear. After completing her legal studies, Carina initially stepped outside traditional legal practice by working in cost recovery software sales for law firms. During this period, she gained valuable insight into the challenges within the legal profession and the career dissatisfaction many lawyers experienced. This realization encouraged her to explore different career paths before ultimately returning to her true calling in law.

She briefly worked in client services at a healthcare institution, but her passion for legal and corporate affairs soon drew her back. She began her legal career in labour law before gradually expanding into corporate governance, commercial law, and risk management. Over time, her portfolio grew to include Human Resources, Finance, Business Improvement, Project Management, Corporate Secretariat, Executive Leadership, and Sustainability.

Carina spent nine years at De Beers, followed by a year at Investec, where she further strengthened her legal and governance expertise. At the age of 33, she achieved a major career milestone by securing her first executive role at Exxaro in 2011. This position also led her to pursue a second master’s degree in Extractive Industry Law in Africa, further deepening her understanding of legal frameworks within resource-intensive industries.

Today, at Alexforbes, Carina continues to drive meaningful change through responsible governance, ethical compliance, and innovative sustainability strategies, reinforcing her position as a visionary leader in her field.

Insights from Carina Wessels

Who is Carina beyond her professional role?

Carina describes herself as deeply passionate about making a meaningful difference in both her personal and professional life. She strives to leave every interaction, environment, and project better than she found it.

Her commitment to positive impact extends beyond the workplace through her involvement in charitable initiatives such as the Change a Life Cycle Tour. This annual event brings together business leaders from South Africa and abroad to raise funds for crime prevention and youth development programs. Since its inception in 2008, the initiative has contributed more than R80 million to projects aimed at building safer and more sustainable communities.

The cycling tour also reflects her personal love for fitness, philanthropy, and family time. Alongside her husband Sas, she enjoys traveling with their eleven-year-old daughter Nicci, embracing new cultures and experiences together.

What has contributed to her success?

Carina attributes much of her professional achievement to her strong work ethic and commitment to excellence. She believes that consistent effort, reliability, and perseverance are essential to long-term success.

She also places great value on integrity, honesty, and trust in all relationships. For her, leadership is not about titles, but about responsibility, accountability, and respect.

What differentiates Alexforbes in the financial services sector?

Founded in 1935, Alexforbes is a diversified financial services organization offering employee benefits, retirement planning, healthcare consulting, investment management, and sustainability advisory services.

What distinguishes the company is its integrated advisory approach, combining deep industry knowledge with personalized client solutions. By prioritizing long-term financial security and ethical investment strategies, Alexforbes has built strong trust with both corporate and individual clients.

The organization is guided by a purpose-driven mission to provide insight, deliver meaningful advice, and create lasting impact in people’s lives.

Do organizations depend more on individuals or teams?

While individual leadership can be influential, Carina firmly believes that sustainable business success relies on collaboration rather than personal heroics.

She emphasizes that strong teams, aligned goals, and shared responsibility are far more effective in driving long-term growth and stability.

What are her key responsibilities and sources of fulfillment?

Carina holds executive responsibility for governance, legal compliance, and sustainability at Alexforbes. Among these, she finds the greatest fulfillment in her sustainability work.

She leads initiatives that shape environmental, social, and governance practices both within the company and across its client base. Given the significant influence that pension and retirement funds have on the broader economy, she sees her role as both a privilege and a responsibility.

She highlights research indicating that shifting retirement investments toward sustainable portfolios can significantly reduce carbon impact, even more than individual lifestyle changes such as avoiding air travel or adopting renewable energy.

For Carina, contributing to a more resilient and sustainable African business landscape is both a professional mission and a personal commitment.

Advice for emerging leaders

Carina encourages aspiring leaders to reflect deeply on their motivations and leadership style before stepping into positions of authority.

She advises learning from respected leaders through mentorship, reading, and observation while also recognizing lessons from poor leadership examples.

Above all, she stresses that leadership is a responsibility, not a privilege, and must be grounded in authenticity, empathy, and humility.