Kysha Gibson

“Flexibility within boundaries – and across borders.”

Twenty years ago, if you had told Kysha Gibson – then working at an insurance company in Trinidad and Tobago, and with dreams of an actuarial career – that her future would involve working in twelve different countries, pursuing an MBA in Spain, and becoming an established Telecoms consultant, it would likely have been hard for her to believe. It is clear however that over the course of those wide-ranging and varied experiences, Kysha has developed an impressive openness to possibilities and opportunities that might otherwise seem to be far afield. Even so, one thing that seems to have always been characteristic of Kysha has been a willingness to go the extra mile in pursuit of her goals.

A perfect example of this comes from when she still dreamt of being an actuary; she carved out a space for herself at the only Ivy League school which at the time offered her degree of choice - The Wharton School, where she went on a full scholarship. As often happens though, during her undergraduate studies, Kysha’s goal began to change – and she developed a strong interest in Marketing. This led her to a post-graduation job as a brand marketing and research executive for British American Tobacco (BAT), involving travel across the Caribbean and Central America, and ending up with her living and working in Costa Rica. Prior to the move to Costa Rica, Kysha had no knowledge of Spanish – but by the time she left, she was fluent and moreover, she felt compelled to further expand her horizons.

Advice from her then-line manager led Kysha to the Instituto de Empresa, one of the top business schools in Spain, once more on a scholarship. While there, she sought not only to earn an MBA, but also to see as much of Europe as possible. She soon became enamoured of the continent, and after graduating she joined Deloitte as a consumer products consultant. Not long after, Kysha was internally recruited for a telecoms role where there was need of a Spanish speaker – it was a move which she had never contemplated but which opened up countless possibilities. As a telecoms advisory consultant, Kysha was nominally based in London, but her work was truly international - with engagements that took her to South Africa, the Ukraine, Turkey, Columbia, Chile, Spain, Belgium, Sweden, South Korea, New Zealand, and Australia. Having become firmly enmeshed in the telecoms industry, Kysha moved next to Vodafone UK in a senior strategy and transformation role. The experience she gained there was invaluable – ranging from top secret strategy meetings to operational implementations within their transformation programme.

The most important lesson from that role however was what it taught her about herself – that she liked management consultancy and fully enjoyed developing trusted client relationships while solving thorny business problems. She therefore made a (conscious) move to a medium sized consultancy, eager to take up the entrepreneurial challenge of building their Telecoms, Media and Tech practice from scratch, supported by the rest of the leadership team. However, Kysha is quick to stress that entrepreneurship is not just about the big things – for her, it has to be part of the day-to-day thinking, and can (or rather should) impact everything from weekly pipeline meetings to brainstorming for ways to win a new account. She actively encourages her team to bring ideas, any ideas, to the table and goes by the mantra ‘If you’re not feeling a little bit nervous about what you’re doing, then you’re not pushing the boundaries, you’re not stretching yourself’.

Indeed, for many of us the most challenging aspect of entrepreneurship can be the prospect of failure, which – in some form or other – is all but inevitable. In the world of consulting, that means losing a client, a proposal, a bid – a project or a relationship (or both) that you have personally invested in. Kysha’s advice in this regard is two-fold: learn from it and move on quickly, be resilient and gritty in your self-belief, but flexible enough to adapt going forward. She recounted what she defined as a recent failure, which for her was particularly challenging since it involved a year-long investment and was highly visible both within her firm and the client organisation. Nonetheless, the relationship with the client was actually strengthened since her team’s level of effort and ongoing commitment was positively recognised by the client’s Board, and the takeaways were invaluable.

Kysha also shared advice for organisations seeking to drive innovation through fostering workforce diversity; she reminds that just as we prioritise external diversity, we must also take note of internal diversity, what she describes as ‘diversity of thought’. She cautioned against having the external manifestation of diversity as the sole indicator of a truly diverse workforce, noting that ‘sameness’ can come in forms other than the physical/outwardly apparent. The ability to look beyond – whether it be appearances, boundaries or borders – is typical of Kysha and is a fundamental part of her success story. Had she, for instance, stuck to her plan of staying in Europe for only two (2) years, her life would today be very different. Had she even stuck to marketing (or actuarial science!) rather than shifting her career trajectory to telecoms, much would again be very different. 

How, then, does Kysha maintain her focus on her goals while seemingly ‘going with the flow’? In this regard, she cites the book “Mindset” which speaks to a seeming-oxymoron – i.e. flexibility within boundaries. Kysha explains that there are two aspects to it – firstly, being mentally flexible and open to change, and secondly, maintaining an eye on the ultimate prize. Therefore, Kysha was flexible when she stayed longer than her planned two (2) years in Europe, opening up a range of unforeseen possibilities. However, rather than be tempted to shift from her current goal (or boundary) of earning a coveted promotion, she maintains her focus, deviations from her assumed timeline notwithstanding. She shares that if there is a clear path towards an ultimate goal (‘boundary’), then flexibility is key.

One might wonder what Kysha sees as her ultimate goal – is it becoming Consulting Partner or something more? She reminds us that as modern lifespans continue to extend, so too do the possibilities. She has, for instance, toyed with the idea of returning to the Caribbean to invest in a start-up, or doing the same in Europe – having already identified gaps in both markets. We are certain that whatever the future looks like, Kysha is well-equipped to receive it openly, find success through flexibility, and all the while keep her eye on her chosen prize.

Who is Kysha and how does she practice self-care?

I practice self-care by leaving the office very Tuesday by 4:00pm, at the latest, switch off my mobile until the next day and do me. That may involve a tango class, I’ve been doing tango for the past 5 years, or just doing nothing. This time is important as it’s both smart and necessary to have some down time and also to set the direction for the rest of the team, who should also take some time out.  I practice self-care in other ways, I love to travel and when I’m on holiday I take my emails off the phone. It’s important to disconnect and recharge to give of your best self.

Post career ambitions what does life for you look like?

Perhaps something to do with Trinidad. When I think of home I think colourful, loud, home, family, sunshine, food.  I’ve had many ideas of doing my own thing in Trinidad from opening a franchise like Nandos to starting a digital imitative such as TransferWise, UberEATS, Deliveroo etc.  I’d like to solve the issues related to lot of the cultural nuances we have in Trinidad, for example our excessive use of cash because we’re not comfortable with being a cashless society.  I have thoughts and some plans of the future, post retirement, in Trinidad but I’m enjoying being here in the UK, following my passions and building a life.

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