Colt Technology Services sees impressive female leadership

Colt Technology Services employs impressive women to its leadership team.

Meet some of the company's female executives.

Meet Chief Executive Officer, Keri Gilder

Keri Gilder is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Colt Technology Services.

Appointed to the role in May 2020, Keri is responsible for executing Colt’s strategy which centres around transforming the way the world works through the power of connectivity.

Before becoming CEO, Keri was Colt’s Chief Commercial Officer (CCO), leading global teams across sales, presales and marketing, as well as working closely with the wider organisation to ensure Colt delivered for its customers.

Before joining Colt, Keri held several leadership roles at Ciena but was most recently its Vice President and General Manager EMEA, responsible for guiding Ciena’s EMEA service provider and enterprise customers, as well as partners.

Keri is passionate about promoting Inclusion and Diversity to ensure Colt is a business where everyone feels they can bring their true selves to work. In addition, Keri brings this passion to the wider industry as the Chair of the TM Forum’s Diversity & Inclusion Council and President of the Global Telecom Women's Network.

Prior to Ciena, Keri worked in multiple roles for Lucent Technologies, and she has also worked for Hughes Aircraft as a Network Engineer.

Keri has a Bachelor of Business Administration degree with an emphasis in Management Information Systems (MIS) from New Mexico State University.

Keri lives in London with her husband and two children, and is based at Colt’s head office in London.

Meet Executive Vice President, Strategy & Transformation, Jaya Deshmukh

Jaya Deshmukh is Executive Vice President (EVP) – Strategy and Transformation, reporting directly to Colt Technology Services Chief Executive Officer, Keri Gilder.

In this newly created role, Jaya is responsible for managing and driving Colt’s strategic roadmap and relationships, all while striving to elevate the organisation’s overall purpose and vision. Jaya joined Colt from Google Cloud, where most recently she held the position of Head of Strategy – EMEA, heading up the creation and curation of Google Cloud’s EMEA strategy.

She has also held roles at Microsoft, PwC and Cognizant, where she was responsible for implementing digital solutions and accelerating cloud consumption to drive customer success. Jaya is based in London, UK, with her two daughters.

Meet General Counsel & Company Secretary, Caroline Griffin Pain

Caroline Griffin Pain is General Counsel and Company Secretary, at Colt and reports directly to Colt Technology Services CEO Keri Gilder.

As General Counsel, Caroline holds global responsibility for the Legal and Regulatory teams, the Company Secretariat and the Country Manager organisation.

Caroline is also responsible for Colt's ESG strategy, including sustainability and diversity & inclusion. Dedicated to building a more diverse workplace, Caroline is a mentor and Diversity sponsor, championing inclusivity.

She is also Chairman of the Corporate Compliance Committee, dealing with Whistleblowing and Ethics and is responsible for implementing and monitoring Colt’s anti-bribery programme. Caroline oversees corporate governance at Colt and acts as Secretary to the Board, Audit Committee and Remuneration Committee.

Caroline previously held senior roles at the Reuters joint venture, Radianz, and Rea Brothers Group plc. She qualified as a solicitor in 1990.

Meet Chief People Officer, Catherine Leaver

Catherine Leaver joined Colt as Chief People Officer in 2022, and also chairs the company’s Inclusion and Diversity Council.

A seasoned telecoms industry executive, Catherine is highly experienced in working across international workforces and in building strong teams, delivering change and driving results, whilst making sure the wellbeing of the organisation remains a top priority. She joined Colt from Telefónica Group, where she was HR Director and a member of the Executive Team at Telefónica UK - O2.

Based at Colt’s London headquarters, Catherine reports to Colt Technology Service's CEO Keri Gilder and works closely with the other members of the company’s Executive Leadership Team.

Outside of the office, Catherine is passionate about nature and the natural world. She is a big believer in rewilding and nature restoration and the impact that large-scale, long-term ecosystem restoration projects can have on how people live alongside the natural environment.

Catherine holds a Master’s Degree in Business and HR from Aston Business School.