Back to School, Back to Business...

Back to School, Back to Business | Rob Gibbs 

At the end of 2021, I made the difficult decision to leave the company I had called home for 23 years. I had built an amazing bank of experiences; three successful business turnarounds, the creation of a stronger business culture, driving positive change across 21 countries… I grew up there, I got married there, I had children there and I became the leader I am today through the experiences I had. 

It was an amazing adventure and I had the pleasure of working alongside the most incredible group of talented colleagues, brokers/intermediaries and suppliers – people who supported me along the way, and many of whom became great friends. 

So naturally, it was tough to leave in April. It was hard to walk away from a place that helped form me into the person I am today, but also absolutely the right thing given the person I am today. I received the most amazing gift from my friends at RSA, documenting 23 years of memories and well wishes.  

 I felt truly lucky, I loved the business, but I have no doubt it was the right decision to leave, as the business moved forward under new ownership. However, I will be honest and say that, as with the end of any long-term relationship, the adjustment has been hard. 

Pressing pause 

Of course, I have a great network of friends, and an amazing family, but the reality was that my world, which had consisted of 1,300 people in my care and thousands more in my network; then quickly dropped to less than 30… I moved from making strategic business decisions worth millions of pounds to doing the school run, the big shop and becoming a regular at the local gym (hats off to those who juggle work and all of this!).   

And do you know what? I actually quite liked it, for a short time….until the itchy-feet feeling set in! 

 I have always been a person who thrives in an environment surrounded by challenges and diverse people, but that was gone. Equally, after the “why did you walk-away ?” questions dried up, they were quickly replaced by the “haven’t you landed anywhere yet?” conversations, and that was just my Mum! 

 BUT, pausing and resetting was always the plan when I decided to leave.  

 During my pause and reset I wanted to mentor as many people as I could across different backgrounds, and also to REALLY work out what I would love to do next. 

 Giving back 

 The mentoring came is the guise of being a Young Enterprise (YE) mentor. Those of you who already mentor on this programme will know that you have the privilege of supporting A-level business students to create, run and pitch a successful business to a panel of experts. You will also know that it doesn’t matter how successful you used to be, you are in the classroom challenging yourself and your teams to be the best they can in running their business, whilst juggling team dynamics and their full-time studies and exams.  

 I loved it. It kept me on my toes and reminded me of some of the skills I had forgotten I had, and importantly it reminded me of how wrong I was 30 years ago when I used to believe that success was linked to private schooling and family wealth. To be clear, I had neither and I thought it was a disadvantage at the time…. And, unfortunately, so did some of my mentees in 2022.  

 Luckily, I have learnt that being a decent human that is inquisitive and collaborative, works hard and treats people with respect, counts for so much more.  

 And so, I didn’t allow my YE mentees to give up at the first hurdle, we put our war paint on, we rolled up our sleeves and we worked hard. And the teams did amazingly well…. 

 They won the first awards in the history of the school for Teamwork, their presentations, innovative marketing campaigns, and importantly the Best Young Enterprise business in Shropshire!!….I was beaming and I hope my mentees reflect on how far they have come in a short space of time, especially as they head off to university. 

 I also started to mentor some new people at the start of their careers, and continued to mentor others who are now starting new roles outside of the insurance industry, as they pivot into new opportunities and emerging businesses. Again, I couldn’t be prouder of their progress. Very much as I do as a leader, as a mentor I see the success of my role being those around me achieving their personal ambitions.  

 A great reset 

As part of my pause and reset, I travelled…. Because to me, travel is an amazing and privileged opportunity to take you outside of your everyday and look at the world (and yourself) differently. And not something I have always had the time to do with work and career commitments… I have been lucky enough to spend time in London, Los Angeles, Ibiza, New York, Liverpool, and Hawaii over the past few months. All of which has reminded me how much there is to see around the world and how important it is to spend time with my loved ones, making amazing memories. 

 And so, onto what’s next…  

There is no big announcement here, but I have never been clearer that the next chapter of my story must be about creating a legacy.  

 I want to work with a team of industry experts to create something special and unique in the insurance market. An entrepreneurial business that creates bespoke propositions, whilst maintaining personal relationships. A business that values the development of its people, the servicing of its clients and the transformation of our industry.  

…And I’m pretty confident that this happen quite soon! 

 So, why am I telling you this….?   

Well, as hard as it was to walk away, and though it was lonely at times, I wouldn’t change the decision. I am lucky to have had the time, space and opportunity to step back, to pause, and for the first time in a long time, be clear on what I love and what I want to do (plus I learnt a lot along the way). 

For those I have kept in touch with, thanks for keeping me sane, and for those who I owe a beer, lunch or dinner to, then I will see you very soon….refreshed and raring to get back in the market I love! 

 Happy Back to school (business) season.