Professor Hannelie Nel is a global academic, professional engineer, and executive leader with over 25 years cross-sector experience in engineering, academia and industry. Her expertise lies in Engineering Management, Digital Transformation, Quality and Risk Management, and Project Leadership across complex environments including oil & gas, manufacturing, utilities, construction, and the chemical sector.
She currently serves as Associate Professor in Engineering Management at the University of Pretoria’s Graduate School of Technology Management – the leading institution in this field in Africa. She holds a Doctorate in Engineering Management, an MSc in Industrial Engineering, and a BEng in Chemical Engineering. To date she has supervised 6 Doctorates and 70 Master’s students in Engineering Management and collectively published over 100 journal articles, conference proceedings, books, and book chapters. Her work in engineering has received several international and local awards and recognition, with the most recent being two global IEOM Lifetime Awards for contribution to society and engineering in 2022 and 2023 in Melbourne and Sydney, Australia, respectively. Her academic journey includes leadership roles at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, where she coordinated the online Master of Engineering Management programme, and at the University of Johannesburg, where she served as Associate Professor, Vice-Dean and Head of Department.
Her current research focuses on digital transformation, emerging technologies and the future of engineering management. She is particularly interested in how artificial intelligence, digitalisation and data-driven decision-making can strengthen organisational capability, project performance, quality management, risk governance, sustainability and engineering education.
Previously, she held senior roles in engineering consulting and industry, including as Regional Quality, Risk and HSE Manager for Worley Middle East, for the UAE, Oman and North Africa. She is also the Founder and Director of Tennelli, a boutique engineering consulting firm. As a committed mentor and international voice for equity and excellence in engineering, she holds memberships in several global institutions, including the International Women’s Forum (IWF), Southern African Institute for Industrial Engineering, the American Society for Engineering Management (ASEM), IEEE Temscon, Industrial Engineers Australia, and the Australasian Association for Engineering Education (AAEE). These affiliations reflect her commitment to diversity, cross-cultural leadership, and systemic inclusion in engineering worldwide. She has published two books to date, namely Leadership and Agency by Women Engineers in South Africa, and The Development of Women and Young Professionals in STEM Careers, with Dr Michelle Kruger as primary author; and she is finalising a book titled Celebrating Women Engineers in the UAE as co-author.
Professor Nel enjoys leading and working in multi-cultural Teams and celebrates diversity and inclusion in engineering. She is passionate about retaining women in STEM, strengthening technical leadership and creating inclusive spaces where diverse engineers can thrive. Her commitment to postgraduate engineering education and the advancement of women in engineering leadership is a lifelong passion. Across her work, she values excellence, integrity, collaboration and human-centred leadership, and remains committed to developing Engineering Leaders who can shape a more innovative, inclusive and digitally enabled future.