Pele Energy Group's Melissa Wilkinson is redefining female leadership

Melissa Wilkinson is redefining what female leadership looks like in Africa's renewable energy sector.

As chief people officer at Pele Energy Group, Wilkinson has gone from scholarship recipient to C-suite executive, now championing a movement where women's leadership becomes expected, not exceptional.

In celebration of Women's Month, she touches on empowerment, gender equality and what she'd tell herself as a little girl.

What inspired you to pursue an energy career?

Growing up in a township in the East Rand of Johannesburg, I was inspired by the gap I saw between those with access to opportunity and those left in the dark, both literally and figuratively.

Energy is not just about infrastructure; it is about people and how they form the backbone of sustainable development. Without reliable, clean energy, communities cannot access quality healthcare, education, or jobs.

I realised early on that if I wanted to be part of real, long-term transformation in South Africa and across the continent, energy was the place to start. I knew that as a woman of colour, my presence could challenge the norms and push the sector toward equity and inclusion as part of its sustainability agenda.

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As a woman, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced in your career, and how did you overcome them?

The biggest challenge was navigating spaces that were not built with people like me in mind: male-dominated boardrooms, technical teams where sometimes I was the only woman and being questioned twice as much for half the credit.

I overcame this through resilience, yes, but also through strategy. I built credibility by aligning my voice with value: understanding policy, energy economics and most importantly, people, so that when I spoke, I brought substance.

I also aligned myself with networks focused on inclusive development and used data and storytelling to shift perceptions. I have learned that it’s not enough to just show up; you have to reshape the space while you’re in it.

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What do you think is the secret to being a great leader?

Great leadership is about clarity, courage, and compassion, but it’s also about strategy. A great leader knows how to align purpose with systems change.

For me, that means every decision I make, whether it's project influence, team culture, or policy advocacy, must align with long-term, sustainable impact. I lead with empathy, but I am also very intentional about inclusion and building resilience into the work.

I believe that being real about what's working and what's not - that's part of it. People follow leaders who are transparent and who challenge the norm without losing their humanity.

How do you work to empower other women?

Empowerment for me is not charity; it is strategy. We need more women across every part of the energy value chain because gender inclusion is linked directly to innovation, performance, and sustainability.

I mentor emerging talent, especially women, and I advocate for inclusive and equitable representation in leadership. But I also push for systems change: gender-responsive budgeting, measurable targets for gender transformation at all occupational levels, and workplace policies that work for women, not against them.

Empowering women is not a soft issue; it is an economic and climate resilience imperative.

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What initiatives or projects are you most proud of, and why were they successful?

I am most proud of my work leading a public-private partnership that created access to tertiary education funding for over 40 underprivileged youth pursuing energy-related qualifications.

These were high-potential learners-top academic achievers-who fall into what we call the ‘missing middle’: not poor enough to qualify for traditional government aid, but without the means to self-fund their studies.

This project is close to my heart because I know what it means to have potential but face financial barriers that could stop your journey before it even begins.

By building strategic partnerships with government entities and academia, we were able to design a bursary funding model that is both scalable and sustainable and aligned with national skills development strategies and South Africa’s Just Energy Transition ambitions.

What makes this project successful is that it is not charity; it is an investment. We are not just funding degrees, we are building the future workforce for a cleaner, more inclusive energy sector.

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Many of the young people who come through the programme will become engineers, climate analysts, project managers and community energy advocates.

This work affirms for me that equity and excellence are not mutually exclusive and that if we are serious about a sustainable future, we must start by unlocking the potential of those who have been historically excluded from it.

What advice would you give to other women aspiring to succeed in energy?

Know the system, then learn how to shift it. Understand the policy landscape, the financing flows, the global development agenda and then carve out your unique voice.

Don’t shrink yourself to fit into the room; redesign the room. Build alliances, especially with other women, and back each other unapologetically.

The energy sector needs more women who are technically sharp, politically astute, and emotionally intelligent. Be bold, be grounded, and most importantly, be strategic.

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How can we accelerate action for gender equality in South Africa?

We need to hardwire gender into every part of the development agenda: energy, climate, infrastructure, and finance. That means enforcing gender quotas where necessary, designing for inclusion from the start, and investing in care work and skills pipelines for women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics).

It’s about shifting power structurally. We also need men in leadership to move from performative allyship to real accountability.

Gender equality is not a siloed issue; it’s a lever for national development and economic transformation. If we are serious about a just and sustainable future, then women must be at the centre.

Finally, if you could meet yourself as a little girl, what would you tell her?

I’d say: “They might not see you at first. But keep going. One day, your presence in the room will mean other little girls get to dream bigger.

“You are going to build things that last: systems, opportunities, new ways of leading. Your voice is not too loud.

“Your dreams are not too big. And one day, you’ll look back and realise that your truth was always your power.”