Professor Funke Abimbola MBE | Partner, Korn Ferry

Professor Funke Abimbola is a London-based Partner at Korn Ferry, a global organisational consultancy. She focuses on delivering diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) solutions to clients across the EMEA region.

Her professional experience spans over 20 years with a first career as a corporate lawyer in the UK and subsequent careers in C-suite leadership roles within global pharmaceutical companies alongside providing DEI expertise. Immediately prior to joining Korn Ferry, she ran her own DEI consultancy during the pandemic, developing an impressive global client list over a 2-year period including several FTSE and NASDAQ-listed companies.

Funke’s expertise and leadership encompasses a wide range of sectors ranging from biotech, pharmaceuticals, healthcare & life sciences, technology, not-for-profit and manufacturing to professional services, education, financial services, retail and media.

She believes in integrating DEI into all aspects of leadership. The impact of her leadership and DEI work has been recognised by the UK’s Prime Minister and the Financial Times. She was awarded an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) in the Queen’s 2017 birthday honours list for services to diversity and young people.

The University of Hertfordshire and the University of Kent have both awarded her honorary doctorates to recognise the impact of her leadership and her alma mater, Newcastle University, appointed her as Professor of Practice for her DEI efforts, impact and contributions.

She is a non-executive board director of a fully listed company within the premium beverages sector and a member of the Audit and Risk Committee. She is also a regular commentator on BBC TV and radio.

A Nigerian-born naturalised Brit, Funke has dual Nigerian and British citizenship. She speaks Yoruba (a Nigerian language) fluently.

Funke holds a law degree from Newcastle University and is dual-qualified to practise law in both England & Wales (solicitor) and Nigeria (barrister and solicitor).

She is a Member of the Law Society of England and Wales, a Member of the Nigerian Bar Association and holds qualifications from INSEAD Business School, Wharton Business School, Oxford University, Cambridge University and Yale University.

She is the proud mother of a 20-year-old son who is a future software engineer studying Computer Science at university. Together, they host a podcast series called The Power of Privilege and Allyship podcast, showcasing exceptional role models who have used their privilege to maximise the impact of their allyship to transform lives. Now approaching its fifth season, the podcast has amassed a global following across over 1,100 cities, all 7 continents and 80 countries, interviewing over 100 inspiring leaders. Ranked and listed on all major podcast platforms including Apple, Spotify and Google, the podcast now also has almost 9,000 downloads and an estimated 60,000+ listens.