Our Person of the Month for June 2019 is the British-Ghanaian international business leader and SIA-Africa's partner, Lucy Quist.
Born in London, UK, Lucy Quist is an accomplished female leader who began her career as an electrical and electronic engineer before stepping into telecommunications in 2008. In 2018, she founded Quist Blue Diamond, a company based in Accra, Ghana, that leverages technology, engineering and data science to transform business models. Its vision is to "create the Africa where everyone prospers." Quist held various positions in telecommunications at Millicom International Cellular, Vodafone, and Airtel Ghana where she served as CEO and became the first Ghanaian woman to lead a multinational telecom company.
Within her time at Airtel Ghana, Quist led “Evolve With STEM," a CSR initiative that encourages the younger generation of Africa to participate in STEM, especially girls. Quist believes that young people should be convinced to pursue and take ownership of change, being bold about the change they want.
That is how Lucy Quist came with the idea of “The Bold New Normal,” which advocates for Africans to take initiative towards African prosperity. In 2017, Quist began The Bold New Normal Tour, during which she discussed several topics in business, entrepreneurship and STEM. In April 2019, Lucy Quist launched her book The Bold New Normal, which highlights her education and professional experience in Ghana and other countries while challenging the old narrative of Africa, redefining its reality and promise.
Lucy Quist graduated from University of East London with a first-class honors degree in Electrical and Electronics degree and with an MBA from INSEAD, France. Among the numerous awards Lucy Quist has received, she has been named the 58th Most Influential Person in Ghana in 2016 and the top 50 Women Corporate Leaders in Ghana. She has recently been appointed as a managing director at Morgan Stanley UK, and prior to that appointment she she was a senior member of the FIFA sanctioned Ghana Football Association Normalization Committee.
The following is a link to her TED "A bold new normal":
