Where Knowledge Becomes Wisdom

Kas was brought in, to Stand-Up Duracell as a Berkshire Hathaway Brand when it was acquired from P&G. She worked with the Duracell C-Suite and the Global Finance Organization to stand up the new global company as well as establishing the various business processes. She led the Business Intelligence scoping, development, training and analytics process as well as set-up the Global Learning and Development Function. She ran various end-to-end continuous improvement initiatives to drive waster deduction and simplify manufacturing and business processes establishing the various train-the-trainer programs. Her ability to coach leaders and mentor emerging leaders helped Duracell deliver both company and employee objectives. Kas was a valuable resource for the Finance and Treasury team including being an interim treasurer for a short while.

Kas was well respected by colleagues throughout the Aon organization. As one of the highest ranked females in Aon at the time, her work, determination, organizational skills and knowledge of accounting and finance was well regarded. She gained the respect of a variety of executives as well as in subsidiary organizations. The fact that Kas was trusted with such enormous responsibility lends credibility to her competence to manage financial analysis and reporting in a large complex organization.

We are excited to have Dr. Kasthuri as a Phi Theta Kappa Certified Leadership Instructor! Her energy and passion for facilitating leadership development are true assets. Her level of experience in business and in research makes leadership dialogues rich with practical examples and intellectual rigor.

I had the pleasure of working with Kas when she was assigned responsibility for developing, managing and presenting the strategy around one of Career Education Corporation’s biggest risks – Admissions Effectiveness. Kas led her team to create the company’s first Standard Operating Plan for the University Group. This was a massive undertaking, and the resulting finished product addressed all risks and provided the underlying document for managing the admissions process across the division. Kas is a motivated, dedicated, intelligent senior leader that would be an asset for any company.

Dr. Henry has been a great coach at such troubling times for me when it comes to being a leader. As a woman of color in a leadership position, Dr. Henry understood my concerns and listened attentively. Her approach to working with individuals was not a “one-size fits all” approach. She meets you where you are at and guides you to where you want to go. She coaches through storytelling and sharing her lived experiences to help you draw your own conclusions. I am a better leader because of her stories and listening ears.

When I first met Dr. Kasthuri I knew I was meeting someone who would fundamentally change the world for the better in any possible way she could. She is an inspiration on her accomplishments in her professional life, working for some of the largest businesses in the world, but her accomplishments as an individual who impacts those around her with her energy and compassion are far greater and frankly more impressive in today's world of business. I consider myself fortunate to know such a person as Dr. Kasthuri, who has taught me so much about life.

Dr. Kasthuri Henry is one of the most influential women I have met and worked with in the business world. Her sense of ethics is impeccable, and she always has a message of inspiration and innovation. I describe her as “a sword made of tempered steel, sheathed in velvet…” She is calm, intelligent, insightful, and yet wraps it all up in a great sense of humor! Her personal story of having grown up in Sri Lanka in the middle of the civil war is remarkable. She has a weekly broadcast on Saturday mornings (7:00 a.m. Pacific – worth getting up for!) that is always loaded with inspiration, and is a great way to start the weekend.

Kasthuri was a business partner who was chosen to speak at C-level round table forums sponsored by Robert Half International. I was introduced to her to invite her to participate as a speaker at a round table to discuss important issues such as succession planning and the impact of soon to be retiring baby boomers. As the CFO of Aon RIsk Services, I was highly impressed with her ability to set the tone and pace to create a culture of respect and hard work among all the people she encountered at Aon. Kasthuri lives the adage “do the right thing” within the parameters of business and community. Community for Kasthuri is global and not centralized- she helps when she can and in ways that matter. Her peers, those she supervises, and her mentors/supervisors are duly touched by the contributions she makes to the organizations she supports. As her career has progressed from Aon, I continue to look to Kasthuri as a compass to move towards excellence in leadership and progress to bring about positive change.

Kas is a very talented and dynamic person to know. She took the lead in helping Essbase design for Financial Planning & Analysis Group. Good Team Player and strong leader.