Full Name: Elisabeth Moreno

Position: VP and MD of HP Africa

Main Activity of the Company: HP is a multinational information and technology company involved in the development of a wide variety of hardware components and software, as well as the provision of related services

Date and Place of Birth: September 20, 1970, Cape Verde

Education: Master’s degree in law and a European executive MBA

First Job: Entrepreneur in the building industry

Career History Prior to Current Position: I have held multiple leadership positions at Orange, Dell and Lenovo

Size of First Pay Packet: $1 500

First Job with Present Group: MD for Africa

Number of People under Your Leadership: 150

Management Style: Servant leadership

Personal Best Achievement: Launching the first Cape Verdean Week in Paris, in 2006

Professional Best Achievement: I was born in Cape Verde, a small archipelago in sub-Saharan Africa, and am the first daughter of illiterate parents. I moved to Europe when I was six. My best professional achievement is managing one of the best technology companies in the world on the continent where my ancestors were born

Person Who Has Had the Biggest Influence on Your Life: An old, wise man who told me, when I was seven, that, being a young black girl in a foreign country, the way to survive and thrive was to study and work hard

Person Who Has Had the Biggest Influence on Your Career: My mentor when I was at Dell – 15 years ago

Person You Would Most Like to Meet: Barrack Obama

Businessperson Who Has Impressed You Most: Elon Musk for his ability to dream big

Philosophy of Life: Shoot for the moon – if you miss, you will land among the stars

Biggest Ever Opportunity: My MD role in Africa – I believe the time is right for the African continent to leverage the Fourth Industrial Revolution by harnessing its digital potential to facilitate inclusive growth, efficiency and productivity growth across all sectors of the economy

Biggest Ever Disappointment: That Africa remains the poorest continent in the world, despite its huge natural resources endowment

Hope for the Future: By 2050, Africa will have the youngest active population on earth. If we manage to educate, train and support our youth properly, we will not only eradicate poverty but also reduce immigration and bring back our talented people from the diaspora, thus creating ideal conditions for the wellbeing of our people

Favourite Reading: Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, by Yuval Noah Harari; The Top Five Regrets of the Dying, by Bronnie Ware; I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou; The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini; Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, by Max Tegmark; Un Monde meilleur: et si l’Intelligence Artificielle Humanisait Notre Monde? by Hervé Cuillandre; L’Ere Numérique, un nouvel âge de l’Humanité, by Gilles Babinet

Favourite TV Programme: African TV programmes, for two reasons – they are more about success stories and inspiring activities, and they are also fun and entertaining

Favourite Food/Drink: Cachupa refogado, a traditional Cape Verde dish

Favourite Music: Jazz, rhythm and blues

Favourite Sport: Yoga

Favourite Website: Linkedin

Hobbies: reading, cinema, music, conferences

Car: BMW