<p>From studying law to running a company, thirty-three year old Patricia Bacchus is a force with which to be reckoned. This University of Guyana alumna and current Chair of GO-Invest has earned numerous accolades, including UG’s Pro-Chancellor’s Medal for the Best Graduating Law Student and the Government of Guyana Prize for the Most Outstanding Law Graduate from the Hugh Wooding Law School. But Ms. Bacchus is more than the sum of her accomplishments. The UG Renaissance recently spoke with Ms. Bacchus on her journey.</p>

<p>UG Renaissance (UGR): Where were you born and where did you grow up?</p>

<p>Patricia Bacchus (PB): I was born in Berbice and grew up in New Amsterdam, Berbice. I attended nursery, primary and secondary schools in New Amsterdam, and left after completing my CSECs, when I was 16 years old, to attend President’s College 6th Form class to complete my ‘A’ Levels.</p>

<p>UGR: Tell us a bit about your family, particularly your parents. What work did your parents do and how did they affect your upbringing?</p>

<p>PB: My mother, Gertrude Lawrence, is an extremely kind and charitable person. She is a devout Catholic, and so I grew up spending a lot of time participating in Church related activities, such as assisting in the Church Convent’s Children and Senior Citizen’s Home, accompanying my grandfather on outreach programmes to the Mental Institution and Good Samaritan Home, and to the New Amsterdam Post Office where we would rescue abandoned animals and find homes for them.</p>

<p>My Dad, Murseline Bacchus, is an attorney- at-law and, I should add, a rather good one! His practice is based in Berbice, though he has been traveling to Georgetown for matters for as long as I can remember. He is extremely disciplined and very meticulous, with such deep passion for the Law that he still goes to his office on Sundays to read new books.</p>

<p>UGR: Despite having a degree in Law, you opted to head into business. What prompted this career change?</p>

<p>PB: Opportunity was what really prompted the career change. I was not very keen on practising Law and did my specialist clinic in Human Rights at Law School, with the intention of perhaps gaining employment in the field of Human Rights Policy and Enforcement. When I completed my final exams at Hugh Wooding Law School in Trinidad in 2006, I returned to Guyana to await the publication of grades and graduation. During this period, I was approached by Caribbean Container Inc. to do a short term consultancy aimed at averting foreclosure, with responsibility for the legal aspects of the exercise. The consultancy was successfully completed in December 2006, and I was thereafter offered and accepted full time employment by Caribbean Container Inc. as their Legal Officer and Company Secretary.</p>

<p>UGR: From Law to business, what were the reactions of those around you, particularly the reactions of your parents?</p>

<p>PB: My parents were quite happy that I had received an offer even before graduating. At the time, they both thought it would have been short-term. My father was always desirous of me joining his practice, but soon realised that I had very little interest in courtroom advocacy. Notwithstanding the natural disappointment, my parents thankfully did not exert any pressure on me regarding my career choice, and have remained very supportive of my work. They were quite pleased when in 2006, again before my graduation, I was offered (and very willingly accepted) part-time employment by the then Head of Department of Law at the University of Guyana, Professor Aubrey Bishop O.R., C.C.H. (now deceased), who was one of my lecturers when I read for the LLB.</p>

<p>UGR:Has your age and/or gender ever positively or negatively impacted your job? If so, how?</p>

<p>PB: I am oftentimes asked about the impact of my gender and age on my work, and my response has always been that perhaps I am oblivious to any covert acts of bias as I have never recognised any, or maybe I am simply one of the lucky ones to be working in an environment where those factors have never been to my detriment. The former CEO of Caribbean Container Inc., Ronald Webster, was a man of merit, and so his mentorship was based on an analysis of my professional and personal qualities. My appointment as Chairperson of the Board of CCI was made by a Board of Directors constituted by older men, which substantiates the merit based culture of the organisation.</p>

<p>UGR: What are some values that you choose to implement in the administration of not only CCI but your life?</p>

<p>PB: Fairness is perhaps at the top of the list in terms of values I implement both personally and professionally. Fairness in deliberations, in dealing with people – stakeholders, customers and employees, friends and family – and in decision- making. It is critically important to me that decisions taken pass the fairness test and can be easily substantiated.</p>

<p>Honesty is also very important to me; I believe in open and transparent relations. For me, peace of mind is critical to performance and overall happiness, and to maintain this I never want to feel the need to look over my shoulder.</p>

<p>I also believe in, and try my very best to emulate, continuous improvement so that, whatever I do, I can do it well. I view life as a continuous learning exercise, and always strive to be better tomorrow than I am today. This principle permeates every aspect of my personal and professional life, and is an important aspect of our organisational culture at CCI.</p>

<p>UGR: You initially had an interest in practising Human Rights Law. How has this interest tied into your work with CCI?</p>

<p>PB: My interest in Human Rights Law stemmed from my desire to protect and promote the interest of people. This is a critical element of my management approach at CCI, where emphasis is placed on the fair treatment of people. This ideology permeates all actions of stakeholders, including shareholders, customers, suppliers, community residents, and employees. Where the latter is concerned, we have been able to put in place contributory private medical insurance and pension plan participation, as well as company provided life insurance and personal accident insurance. We administer a performance based, fair and transparent annual salary review process and also provide profit/ gain sharing participation for all employees. These measures underpin the critical importance of our Human Resources to the overall performance of the Company</p>

<p>Our restructuring since 2007 and our quest for continuous improvement have enabled bottom line growth where shareholders are now receiving dividends after over 20 years.</p>

<p>We have a solid and meaningful corporate social responsibility programme, whereby we provide support, especially to schools within proximity of CCI’s premises, in a number of tangible ways.</p>

<p>I can say without hesitation that my interest in Human Rights is being adequately catered to at CCI.</p>

<p>UGR: What advice would you give to a University of Guyana student, regardless of his/her major?</p>

<p>PB: I would have to say to strive for excellence. And, when I say excellence, I mean it subjectively. Do your very best, do not short change yourself, realise your innate potential. Personal excellence should not be a competition; you should not have to compare your grades with others, but you should always ensure that you work assiduously at whatever opportunities you’re provided, so that you feel contentment in knowing that you’ve tried your hardest and done your very best.</p>

<p>UGR: What’s next for Patricia Bacchus?</p>

<p>PB: Patricia Bacchus is not a fan of rigid long-term planning; I believe that planning too rigidly deprives us of recognising novel opportunities. So, I can only say that I hope to do better tomorrow than I did today. I will strive to ensure that CCI’s performance continues to improve, that GO-Invest (the Board of which I currently Chair) continues to evolve into a fair, reliable and trusted service provider for Investors, and that I continue to be motivated so that my efforts in all endeavours can grow from strength to strength.</p>
