Culture Strategist, Leadership Advisor
Founder of Unshamed
Rufsana Begum is a leadership and culture strategist with over 18 years’ experience across charity, public, corporate and international development sectors. She helps organisations replace performative professionalism with courageous, integrity-led leadership.
From London to Lagos and Dhaka to Dubai, she has worked across 45 countries, leading large-scale culture transformation, gender equity strategy and organisational change at board and executive level – turning inclusion from intention into measurable impact.
She is the founder of the UNSHAMED Leadership model a framework that challenges fear-based leadership, names avoidance and builds cultures rooted in clarity, accountability and radical visibility.
What I do
Coaching women to lead without apology and helping organisations build cultures brave enough to let them.
I’ve spent my career doing two things: building unshamed cultures inside organisations, and coaching women to lead with the authority they already have.
Who I work with
Women in leadership
Ready to lead with visibility, confidence and authority — on their own terms.
Executive leaders
Navigating change, transitions and culture challenges.
Boards & trustees
Seeking independent advisory on leadership, governance and culture.
Mission-driven organisations
Strengthening leadership capability and inclusive practice.
How I work
My work draws on executive leadership experience and international development expertise across Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Europe.
“Most organisations say they value culture. Unshamed cultures prove it, by telling the truth, challenging what isn’t working, and empowering people at every level to lead with honesty, accountability and courage.”
— Rufsana Begum
Previous Experience
I collaborate with charities, corporates, NGOs, and governments across 45 countries. Partners include International Organisation, Non profit organisations, private sector and government bodies. Local or global, every project shares one goal, real inclusion, lasting impact.
- Unicef
- NHS England
- RSPCA
- Women’s Aid
- Laudes Foundation
- The World Bank
- RNLI
- African Union
- Camfed
- European Union
- BT
- Mott Macdonald
- University of Wolverhampton
- CIDT – Centre for International Development and Training
The old leadership playbook was written for stability, hierarchy and control. This era demands courage, curiosity and humanity. The old ways aren’t failing because leaders are weak. They’re failing because the world has changed.
About me
Having worked in more than 45 countries, I’ve learned that cultural intelligence is key to building trust, it’s what helps me connect with communities, partners, and global stakeholders in authentic and impactful ways.
As a former Executive Director who has worked with boards, trustees and senior leaders across the globe, and has delivered Cultural Transformation and Leadership programmes across cultures and geographies, I bring personal, professional & global insight into how leadership operates within complex systems and cultures, helping me connect with communities, partners and global stakeholders in authentic and impactful ways.
My key achievements:
Designed and delivered gender equality, leadership and peacebuilding programmes across 45+ countries
Leading Women in Leadership Programme across the globe
Developing inclusive and talent management strategies for public sector bodies
Designed and developed innovative community engagement strategies across 45+ countries
Designed National Country Policies and strategies on Gender and Social Inclusion
Designing and delivering large scale, restructures transformations and ways of working programmes
Tackling Violence against women and girls across the globe
Founder of the UNSHAME Network a global movement to promote gender equity
Leading major organisation-wide EDI and anti racism strategies for Charites across the UK
Directed complex people, culture and transformation initiatives across global organisations, managing multi-million-pound programmes and driving sustainable change across 45 countries