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Countries in Africa have undergone an unprecedented transformation that has shaped the continent as they move ahead from the clutches of colonialism. The evolution of leadership and how organisations function optimally has given rise to the review of leadership approaches and practices, revolutionising its position in the global markets. With the recent spate of global suffering from the pandemic, the formal and traditional work structures are becoming transient. At the same time, the economic consequences of the Russo-Ukrainian crisis have catastrophic effects globally.

The research was conducted via a systematic review of scientific sources from various academic websites. Eligibility criteria were defined with the agreement of pertinent themes and concepts.

By evaluating and analysing characteristics and success indicators from the blend of leadership competencies ascertained from Afrocentric principles in response to African associated problems, Africa can cement its leadership concepts without following the global north principles. These philosophies are resilient enough to contend with a range of VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity) complexities, including the impact of the recent global pandemic of immeasurable proportions and the prospect of war as the Russo-Ukrainian conflict intensifies.

Within the African environment, there is a greater focus on the human element in shared values, holistic well-being, cooperation and experience. The global community band together to deal with these complexities. This is a typical example of global connectedness with positive and negative connotations.

As a result of diminishing numbers of women in executive leadership portfolios, the study sought to glean underlying reasons in the light of supportive legislation in South Africa supporting gender development in the workplace. A qualitative study was conducted within a South African business context to explore the notions and perceptions that fracture gendered leadership. The lived experience narratives were analyzed into themes, with a systematic review of existing scientific academic literature. The study was dominated by two concepts, as the paradox of black girl magic and the queen bee syndrome among black women in leadership were reported by the different narratives. The contradictions that each of these concepts represents provides the structural inequities experienced by black women in business. Of prominence in the findings was the alignment of women to the boys’ network, irrespective of whether in a leadership role or not. The study is underpinned primarily by the theory of intersectionality which contextualizes the intersections of race and gender aligned to the structural inequities and the social constructions of reality. This will be intensified by Bordieu's theory of masculine domination which exposes the underlying enigmas of the unholy alliance with the boys’ network. A clear distinction is analyzed with the exploration of black girl magic which alludes to the positive attributes that black women can bring into leadership roles, but their success and manner of leading is mangled with the negative aspects of the queen bee syndrome which entrench further subjugation of women.