Carina Bauer
CEO, IMEX Group
Having experienced the industry as a child on my father’s coattails, I finally entered full-time around 2002–and as a fully-fledged adult. I’ve always believed in knowing your trade and as a result have worked on most areas of the IMEX business–a good grounding for the role of CEO (also known as the ‘jack of all trades’). I’m not sure how much I make use of my degree–PPE (philosophy, politics, and economics) from Oxford University–in my day-to-day work, but can safely say that my university experience and the contacts I made changed my life (not least because I met my future husband there). My previous role running a chain of coffee shops (also a family firm) has come into good use: I can often be found reverting to the role of head barista making coffees for guests in the IMEX office.