WOMEN, in recent years, have been making significant strides in the business world, founding innovative companies, introducing revolutionary ideas and building a path to workforce equity.
In Guyana, one of those women is Kerensa Gravesande-Bart, also known as “Kerri”, the founder and Chief Executive Officer of the only ISO 9001-2015 and Trace Certified stand-alone Recruitment Firm in Guyana, Strategic Recruitment Solutions Inc (SRSGY).

As the company’s originating founder, Kerri serves as Chair of the Board of Directors with executive responsibilities for the company’s overall operation, business development, and financial management. Her role also extends to risk management, contract negotiations, human resources, and the oversight of all corporate and employee policies and benefits.
She is also co-creator and part-owner of Symmetry Brokerage and Logistics.

Kerri is also Co-Creator/President of the first Women’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Guyana launched in November 2019. In 2018, Kerri was awarded the first “Women in Business Award” by the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry Guyana in recognition of women who possess vision, innovation, entrepreneurial drive, leadership, individuality and tenacity with the ultimate goal of being a consistent role model for other women in business.

Through her many years of experience in the world of business and knowledge of the oil and gas sector, Kerri has provided jobs for over 200 young Guyanese in the oil and gas sector as well as other non-traditional sectors.

“We wanted to ensure that we created a space for our fellow Guyanese to be afforded that opportunity in this revolution that is happening here.”
With the introduction of the oil and gas sector in Guyana, Kerri said, “Our country is going through a transformational stage when you think about it and we were quite excited about helping Guyanese get training, create opportunities for them to be placed and market them more or less and we just never stopped at it.”

So far Strategic Recruitment Solutions has trained 220 people and while COVID-19 had put a damper on business; Gravesande-Bart noted that the company has been able to place over 100 persons in various offshore jobs in the oil and gas sector.

Kerri disclosed that she was hired by a foreign company to “set up” another manpower company in Guyana, which also targetted the emerging oil and gas sector. She managed to do so, and that company was well on its way when she realised that as a Guyanese, if she could do it for a foreign company investing in Guyana, then she could do it herself.
While Kerri is currently one of the many successful women in Guyana’s business arena, she shared that her business field was not necessarily her first choice but it did turn out to be her best choice.

“I always envisioned travelling, so my initial desire was to be a flight attendant. Between the ages of eight and 10, I just knew I wanted to travel. At another time, I wanted to be a lawyer or study International Relations. However, I ended up studying Business Management and fell in love with the HR part of it which I excelled at.”

Kerri has in excess of 17 years of office administration, business development, systems optimisation, and HR experience in the energy industry with an emphasis on training and development.
Kerri has pursued studies in Business Management with Cambridge International University and the Association of Business Executives. She holds Diploma in Business Management with Credits in Communications and Merits in Human Resources, along with professional certification in Leading and Communicating with Emotional Intelligence from Arthur Lok Jack Global School in Business.