Day in the Life: Caryn Solomon, head of organisational development
0615 Although I love sleeping, I usually wake up early. Whether I'm in London or South Africa, 6.15 to 6.30 is the norm.
If I'm in London I stay at my home in the West End. In Johannesburg I stay in a hotel. I always stay in the same one and always the in the same room; they know me well and it's like my second home.
0700 I drive to the office in London. If my husband, Allen, is around we drive in together. He also works at Investec as a member of the executive team.
The drive takes no more than 25 minutes; roads are quiet at this time of the morning. This is one of my favourite times of the day.
0730 I arrive in the office, which is invariably empty. People rock in at about 9am in London. I make the most of the peace and quiet to have a little thinking time.
0900 The morning starts in earnest and from now on the day is absorbed with all manner of different engagements with people. As global head of organisational development, my job is to assist in creating conditions that enable extraordinary performance.
I have a global team of 20 people and together we facilitate everything from conflict resolution to strategy discussions. It's an interesting role, and one that puts us in contact with every single division of the business.
Today I'm involved in a meeting that lasts for most of the morning. At Investec's last annual conference in Swaziland, senior managers participated in workshops on the value and culture of the business. Around 100 of them have gathered in London to consider the results.
My role is to give the group feedback and to facilitate the dialogue which follows. Everyone chips in. Investec is a very talkative business. People are intelligent and lively and talk all the time!
1300 I go to the coffee shop downstairs and get a salad bowl, which I bring back to the meeting. I don't always eat lunch. Although I eat healthily, my eating habits are a bit erratic.
1330 I spend the afternoon in a meeting with some of the people in my London team. My role includes coaching the team and helping them to progress. Some of them have been conducting a project on performance management.
They've collected some data and they are looking for feedback and help with interpreting what they have found.
1600 Whenever I'm in the office (I'm often away on 2-3 day offsites) I spend some time with my secretary who is my most important support at work. She helps me with everything, including my personal arrangements. I couldn't do my job without her, and appreciate her enormously.
1800 When I really exercise self-control, I leave the office around 6pm. Otherwise I can quite easily leave at 9 or 10, especially when Allen's traveling. When he's around, he puts the brakes on me!
1900 Most evenings I'm on the phone with at least one of our four children. Three are at university and one is finishing A levels. Despite my work demands, they are my first priority and I am very involved in their lives.
We talk about their day, their work, their problems, their excitements. I start pining if I don't speak to them.
2000 If my husband's in town, we often go out to dinner at a nearby restaurant, or go and see a film. I'm passionate about films and I love going to see alternative or art films. But if I've had a busy day, I'll settle for something light like James Bond.
2300 I go to bed. If my husband's away I can easily stay awake until 1am or 2am reading. I'm a compulsive reader and believe that everyone should have at least one novel going at a time. It's food for the soul.
