“In the digital era, success hinges on efficiently addressing security risks,” says Lucille Britz, Security Head for SEA Markets and Group CTIO Business Manager (Act) at MTN Group. She believes cybersecurity is not treated as a checklist or a siloed function, but rather as a diligent discipline ingrained into the organization’s operating code.
Under her leadership, MTN employs Layers of Protection with Defense-in-Depth, where each mechanism contributes to a broader safety net. If one layer is compromised, others remain active to contain and deflect threats. A strict trust protocol reinforces this, requiring that every access request be verified, regardless of its source, an approach grounded in Trustlessness, also known as Zero Trust Security. Access rights are limited by design, minimizing exposure and the risk of internal misuse, in alignment with the Principle of Least Privilege.
Lucille explains that security decisions are informed by contextual awareness. Since not all assets carry the same level of sensitivity, protections are calibrated to actual risk levels. This practice reflects Risk-Based Security, a targeted technique that ensures investments align with operational priorities and evolving threats. MTN’s authentication infrastructure leverages advanced identity frameworks that validate users and devices based on role, context, and behavior. Encrypted credentials control access, delivering visibility and precision over how people and systems interact. Preparing for the post-quantum era, MTN is already integrating cryptographic models to defend against emerging computational threats. Automation plays a central role in this transition, governing access, detecting vulnerabilities, and accelerating response through real-time oversight.
Lucille emphasizes that this fusion of principle and execution enables MTN not only to protect its digital environment but also to drive innovation and transformation. It’s a clear demonstration of Openness to Innovation. Security, in her view, is not just a defense mechanism but an operational foundation that powers progress.
Lucille’s leadership philosophy is as intentional as her technical strategy. She fosters accountability across all levels, ensuring that both individuals and teams take ownership of their actions and outcomes. Courageous Decision-Making, she believes, is integral to navigating high-stakes environments. By practicing Ego Management and encouraging shared contributions, she builds trust and team cohesion. It’s a true reflection of the adage that “Great Leaders stand in front when there is blame and behind when there is praise.” Her role extends beyond controls to drive a shared vision and lead with visionary leadership, aligning people around purpose and progress.
Guided by Giants: The Mentors Who Crafted Her Leadership
Behind Lucille’s clarity of purpose and meticulousness in execution stands a circle of mentors whose influence. At the heart of that circle is Mazen Mroué, MTN’s CEO of Digital Infrastructure and Group CTIO, whose example taught her how to lead complex transformation with both vision and operational precision. From Yolanda Cuba, MTN’s Group Vice President for Southern & East Africa, she drew inspiration on how to lead with clarity and impact, especially in fast-moving, high-stakes environments. Paul Norman, MTN’s Group CHRO, impressed upon her the long-term power of culture and how people strategy can unlock enterprise resilience. Mapule Mzimba, COO at Discovery Bank, demonstrated what it means to build scalable systems that are both intuitive and effective.
Nkosinathi Solomon, a strategic advisor, board chair, and CEO, challenged her to think holistically, from engineering-level design to boardroom-level influence. In a work environment where communication and collaboration are paramount, honesty stands out as a principle that distinguishes transformative leaders. It’s a non-negotiable element that infuses their leadership with authenticity and fosters a culture that employees believe in and rally behind.
Malik Melamu is an experienced Chief Executive Officer with 15 years at the helm of major organizations who has built a distinguished career in the banking and telecommunications industries, earning recognition for his strategic vision, business transformation expertise, and ability to lead diverse, cross-cultural teams. Multilingual and an exceptional communicator, Malik thrives in multicultural environments, bridging business and cultural divides with ease. His focus on growing leaders and transforming businesses underscores his enduring impact on Africa’s corporate landscape.
Similarly, from cybersecurity academic and coach Justin Williams, she gained perspective on the importance of investing in future talent and making mentorship part of the leadership mandate. In a work environment where communication and collaboration are paramount, honesty stands out as a principle that distinguishes transformative leaders. It’s a non-negotiable element that infuses their leadership with authenticity and fosters a culture that employees believe in and rally behind.
Antonios (Tony) Christodoulou is the Founder of Cyber Dexterity and a seasoned technology leader with an extensive track record in global business transformation. For a decade, he served as Chief Information Officer for the EMEA region (Middle East, Europe, and Africa) at American Tower Corporation, a Global Fortune 500 company. During his tenure, Tony was based across South Africa, Germany, and Amsterdam, driving innovation, operational efficiency, and strategic IT initiatives across diverse markets. In addition to his entrepreneurial role, he serves as a Non-Executive Director and Adjunct Faculty member at the Gordon Institute of Business Science, where he imparts his expertise in leadership, technology strategy, and digital transformation.
Leigh Thomas, Founder and Regional Director at The Alliances, has pioneered a unique platform that creates a single point of contact for triaging any requirement from community members. Through this initiative, the broader community is engaged to collectively explore solutions, drawing on shared experiences and insights. Since 2016, Leigh’s leadership has fostered collaborative environments where industry leaders convene in settings free from commercial bias, ensuring discussions remain focused on value, innovation, and relevance.
Jandré van Tonder is a highly skilled Senior Manager in Regulatory Operations with extensive expertise spanning technical, IT, and banking sectors. With hands-on experience in project and implementation management, he specializes in evaluating and integrating hardware and software products to create cohesive technical ecosystems. Jandré excels at identifying potential risks, proposing alternative solutions, and ensuring seamless coexistence between existing systems and new applications. His strategic approach to disaster recovery, resilience, backup, and batch processing ensures the continuity and high availability of critical systems. Proficient in the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC), he combines technical precision with business acumen to deliver robust, future-ready operational frameworks.
Building a Culture Where Security Belongs to Everyone
Named among ‘Africa’s Top 10 Visionary Business Leaders Transforming 2025,’ Lucille knows that a secure organization is as much about people as it is about protocols. The Living with Security campaign, launched in 2024, marked a cultural realignment, redefining security as a shared responsibility rather than a technical domain. She observes that in a digitally transforming enterprise, risks must be viewed through a strategic business prism. Participation at all levels is a must to build organizational resilience.
With a growing remote and distributed workforce, MTN’s risk exposure has broadened, often not due to malice, but human oversight. The campaign addressed this by raising awareness, promoting behavioral change, and fostering accountability. A key element was the Human Firewall journey, which repositioned employees as frontline defenders. Lucille highlights that the company took concrete steps to integrate security into operational workflows through training, communication, and leadership visibility. “Making security everyone’s responsibility was an amazing experience,” she says with immense satisfaction.
To her, a resilient security culture requires redefining cybersecurity as a business imperative. It must be embedded in the company’s thought process, actions, and evolution. This mindset, she asserts, is what ensures MTN’s long-term strength and safeguards the broader ecosystem it touches.
Leading Through Clarity, Connection, and Change
At MTN, Lucille concentrates on connecting ambition with outcomes, supervising teams with purpose while staying grounded in human connection. Her style has evolved from one of openness, humility, and a resolve to act decisively when it matters. She doesn’t believe in leading from the top down. Instead, she nurtures an environment where collaboration prospers and the strongest ideas prevail. Lucille considers ego to be the enemy of progress. She builds alignment by listening widely.
One of her guiding values is personal responsibility. While she holds herself to a high standard, she expects the same in return. Rather than issuing commands, she fosters a sense of mutual accountability that sustains performance across regions and functions. “Leadership is about inspiring collective ownership, not just setting expectations,” she adds.
Her days are an assortment of problem-solving and perspective-building. She engages early when challenges arise, supports cross-functional coordination, and helps teams maintain momentum through evolving conditions. Change is part of the job, and she knows it requires steady engagement, not just plans on paper.
Staying Grounded in the Flow of Work
A healthy work-life balance doesn’t just prevent burnout. Instead, it sharpens decision-making, strengthens leadership presence, and supports the kind of consistency every team needs. Lucille has honed her approach over time, believing that adaptability is the thread that holds it all together. In high-pressure roles, primarily within cybersecurity and technology, staying flexible has helped her lead effectively while maintaining a strong connection. This mindset, developed in previous leadership positions, is one she continues to rely on at MTN.
Her workdays rarely look the same. Some involve strategy and long-term planning. Others are focused on team coordination or responding to fast-moving issues. Lucille moves fluidly between conversations and decisions, keeping the broader business context in view while ensuring daily execution stays on track.
She stays close to delivery, not just at the finish line, but throughout the process. Identifying roadblocks early, embracing and spearheading change initiatives, and supporting teams across regions are all integral to the process. Lucille considers leadership a balance between vision and follow-through, helping others see the bigger picture while ensuring that small details don’t get lost.
What sustains that cadence, she says, is maintaining enough space in her day to stay responsive. She doesn’t chase perfect balance, but prioritizes flexibility to meet each day as it comes. That, in her view, is what helps leaders to be both grounded and practical at work and beyond. As George Lorimer wisely quoted, “You’ve got to get up every morning with determination if you’re going to go to bed with satisfaction.” This sentiment perfectly captures the push needed to tackle the dynamic world of cybersecurity while maintaining personal equilibrium.
When Precision Slips: A Lesson in Composure and Correction
Even in security, where precision is everything, mistakes happen. Lucille Britz knows this well. After all, as Albert Einstein observed, “The only sure way to avoid making mistakes is to have no new ideas.” She recalls a moment from her time as Change Head that called for both speed and judgment. Just days before the launch of a major product, a serious pricing error was discovered in the promotional materials. It had been overlooked by a new team member and slipped through final reviews.
The pressure was immediate, but panic wasn’t the answer. Lucille addressed the issue directly, choosing a quiet conversation over a public reaction. Her focus was on understanding what went wrong and rectifying the problem promptly. Together, they corrected the pricing and pushed out the revised materials in time to keep the launch on track.
The team not only met its sales goals but also came out stronger. The incident prompted the introduction of a peer-review step into their workflow that continues to improve accuracy and collaboration to this day. Lucille sees it as one of those defining moments. Not because of the error, but because of what followed. Steady leadership isn’t about never getting it wrong. It’s about what you build in the process of making it right.
Most Proud Achievement: Small Teams, Lasting Impact
When asked about the feats that stand out most, Lucille points to something foundational. Over the past decade, she has played a central role in establishing MTN’s security capability from the ground up. It wasn’t built overnight, and it wasn’t built by large teams with unlimited resources.
She reflects on the early days, when the work was carried out by a few hands with a clear purpose. The teams were small, but the outcomes were significant. Together, they laid the groundwork for what would become a resilient and scalable security function aligned with MTN’s broader business transformation.
Lucille shares that what makes her proud is not just the technical strength of the systems in place, but the culture that grew with them. A value system where security became everyone’s concern, not just a function in the background. It is, in essence, an embodiment of the resonant truth that “The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched – they must be felt with the heart.” This fundamental reorientation, a shift in collective mindset, undeniably stands out as her most cherished legacy.
Securing the Future for the Next Generation
Lucille regards secure, inclusive digital infrastructure as a public good. For her, telecom and cybersecurity leaders across Africa bear a responsibility to build platforms that empower people, not just profit margins. That means investing in durable foundations, such as data centers, digital ID systems, and open-access networks that scale with the continent’s evolving needs.
She notes that Digital Public Infrastructure forms the backbone of a thriving digital society. Without it, users must navigate fragmented systems. With it, individuals and businesses gain seamless access to opportunity, services, and economic participation.
Lucille advocates for a forward-facing security mindset that goes beyond compliance and anticipates emerging threats. Technologies like biometric authentication, machine learning, and zero-trust models not only shield systems; when implemented strategically, they promote trust and drive digital confidence.
Her focus lies in building adaptive capacity across both technology and leadership. This includes tailored software, continuous maintenance, and responsive support systems that evolve in response to emerging threats. She sees strategic outsourcing as a smart way to scale without sacrificing integrity. “I would like to leave behind a legacy of cybersecurity resilience in the industry,” she says. One that equips the next generation with the tools, trust, and a strong foundation to support their ambitions.
Advice for the Next Generation of Tech Leaders
When seasoned leaders offer guidance to the next wave, it’s rarely a generic list. It’s a reflection of part personal journey, part pattern recognition, and part vision for what’s possible. Lucille is no exception. Her advice is shaped by years of walking the terrain herself, by watching others rise, struggle, and adapt, and by a clear understanding of what Africa’s digital future demands from its leaders.
To aspiring tech and security professionals, her first counsel is to keep learning, especially in areas where demand continues to grow. In her view, the strongest leaders are those who combine deep technical knowledge with the agility to grow with their environment. One area she emphasizes is DevOps, not just as a technical specialty, but as a mindset that encompasses both technical and non-technical aspects. “Proficiency in DevSecOps is key,” she notes.
Understanding how to streamline workflows using containerization, automation, and scalable deployment platforms like Docker, Kubernetes, and CI/CD pipelines is, in her words, “crucial.” Lucille further underlines the value of tools like Terraform, Jenkins, and GitHub Actions, which enable infrastructure as code and seamless integration between development and operations.
She also highlights the rise of mobile-first development. Across Africa, smartphones serve as the gateway to education, commerce, and healthcare. She stresses, “There is a growing demand for skilled individuals who can build, debug, and launch web and mobile applications.” Whether in Android, iOS, or frameworks like Flutter or React Native, proficiency in mobile development is now essential.
Cloud fluency is another area she sees as indispensable. “The shift of African businesses towards cloud infrastructure like AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud presents significant opportunities,” she remarks. Certifications or training in these platforms are “incredibly valuable in the job market,” but so is the ability to manage live environments such as servers, storage, and secure configurations, with real-world insight.
Looking ahead, Lucille believes that AI, big data, and intelligent automation will define how future-ready organizations operate. She refers to Coursera’s research, which highlights a “substantial gap in cloud expertise” across Africa, offering high-growth potential for professionals who can integrate these technologies into their core business operations.
Beneath all the tools and emerging platforms, she circles back to one timeless principle: adaptability. Tools will evolve, but leaders who can simplify, respond, and build with intention will define Africa’s digital future.