Geurts’ job at impact-oriented private equity firm Amethis is to find, select and invest in the most promising African businesses and support the growth of these companies over a period of four to seven years. As a private equity manager, her team raises funds from 300+ predominantly European asset managers, and invest these funds into companies across the African continent.
Growing African markets
Working with company boards, entrepreneurs and management teams, Geurts helps to build out the businesses to the next level, from creating more jobs, improving health and safety, executing climate efficiency plans, and boosting the quality of products and services for customers. “Bringing funds into these underserved regions and help businesses in Mozambique, Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia and other African markets grow sustainably is a fantastic reason to get out of bed every day!” she says.
Geurts grew up in a small town in the Netherlands, has now lived in Kenya for nearly 10 years, and worked and travelled across African and European countries. She works in three languages – English, French and Dutch on a daily basis, and her colleagues represent 14 nationalities. The RSM alumna represents the CEMS values in many ways.
An unusual path
“Marieke Geurts focuses her career on development and impact rather than only financial growth and is constantly raising the bar in excellence and high standards of performance while doing so. She combines true global citizenship with a huge impact on society through her leading role in ESG and impact investment in East Africa. Her investments have contributed to the creation of hundreds of jobs and her work has grown the skills and potential of local talent wherever she goes,” states the CEMS alliance.
“CEMSies are a wonderful group of talented and ambitious people and each alumnus chooses their own path in the world, and makes their impact in their own unique way, so it’s an honour to be selected for the award from among this group this year,” says Geurts. “I guess the path I’ve taken after my time at McKinsey & Company is an unusual one and therefore caught attention. I’m very happy in my career to date and it is nice to be recognised for that.”
CEMS Master in International Management
The CEMS MIM is a joint master programme offered by a global alliance of leading business schools, corporate partnersand NGOs that together offer one of the top ranked master programmes in management globally. RSM’s MSc International Management / CEMS for future global leaders provides students with a deep theoretical and practical understanding of economic, social, and environmental opportunities and challenges faced by companies operating in international and culturally diverse contexts, and teaches students how to operate effectively in them. www.rsm.nl/cems
