Global Excellence and Professionalism
Wanderlust started at an early age for Carole Wainaina; her father was an agricultural officer and the family moved wherever his job would take them. Unknowingly, a seed was planted in the young girl who learnt that home was wherever you made it. What mattered most was the relationships you had, the experiences you built. For Carole, it meant that she attended three schools before she passed her CPE at Lena Moi Primary in Nakuru, proceeding to Loreto, Limuru.
The transition to a national school was harsh. From being the top of her class in primary, Carole was now competing amongst the best of the best from around the country, and making it into even the top half of her class was difficult. Eager to prove herself, Carole poured her heart into it and was selected with two other students, from Kenya High and Kangundo High respectively, to represent Kenya at an international children’s conference in London at the end of the year. It would be the first step in representing her country in myriad ways.
The trip was eye-opening. In one sense, it brought to life all the books that she used to avidly read that would talk about Big Ben and red double-decker buses. On the other hand, it opened her eyes to another aspect of the world. Being in a foreign country was thrilling and enlightening – the world beyond the Rift Valley, Limuru, Kenya was open to anyone and it was a lesson that she kept close to her heart throughout her high school years.
From the cold of Limuru, Carole went on to pursue her A-Levels at Kenya High in Nairobi and she studied hard. During the holidays she interacted with a young Australian student her parents were hosting for a year. Unknown to her parents, the holiday interactions led to Carole applying for tertiary studies in Australia where she was accepted at the University of Queensland for a degree in business. It was a bold move, but she was eager to spread her wings. She cajoled her father into supporting her further studies by raising the fees from the sale of his beloved Friesian cows.
After three years, she returned home with a degree focused on Marketing and HR. She joined PricewaterhouseCoopers as a Consultant, cutting her teeth in the uncompromising world of consulting for top companies international and local companies. While at PWC, she met her husband, a fellow consultant; motherhood followed, a few years later. A tough pregnancy led her to leaving her fulltime job at PWC, but Carole was always open to the occasional independent consulting project which eventually led her to her next employer – Coca Cola. Here she took on the role of HR Director first for North Africa, then the entire continent. Her position meant a move to London, the place where her wanderlust was first cemented. But as always, Carole found her way back home after a few years “huko ulaya” before being asked to serve as the Chief of Staff to the Chairman and President of the world’s most well-known brand – Coca Cola in Atlanta, USA. It was a heady moment for the little girl from Lena Moi primary, but once she jumped into, being the first African invited to that level. The prestigious position led to more roles within the well-known brand and, after two more countries under her belt, it was time to move on.
Carole’s next port of call was Amsterdam where she steered the HR for the energy giant Phillips before being invited by the Ban Ki Moon to take on the role of Assistant Secretary General with the United Nations, responsible for Human Resources in New York. In 2014, Carole was the highest ranked Kenyan in the UN system, no easy feat, as she maneuvered responsibility for thousands of UN staffers across the globe. As a Kenyan, it was an exciting opportunity to serve, to play her part in contributing to peacemaking, development and progress across the globe, using her unique background of corporate professionalism and African heart. The opportunity to serve in public entities led Carole to new heights, a little closer to home. She is now the Chief Operating Officer of the Africa50 Infrastructure Fund in Casabalanca, using all her talents, networks and learnings to land and infuse innovation and investment that builds opportunity and structures across Africa.
While the world enticed her beyond our borders once upon a time, Carole is a true ambassador of the excellence and professionalism that is found in our Kenyan spirit.
#KeDiaspora #PaukwaPeople
