Kerry Underhill

Senior Vice President Corporate Communications, Royal Ahold

 

You were born in New Zealand, but have spent the majority of your career working all over the world. Thus, you are essentially a border crosser in the best sense of the notion. Would you still proudly call yourself a Kiwi or would you tend to say that you are more cosmopolitan at this point?

No, I still consider myself a Kiwi. As they say: “you can take the boy out of New Zealand, but you can’t take New Zealand out of the boy.”  New Zealand is where I was born and brought up and formed the foundation of my life. Although I have lived abroad longer than I have lived in New Zealand, I still see myself as a New Zealander.

Kerry Underhill

Kerry Underhill is senior vice president of corporate communciations at Royal Ahold, an international group of supermarkets based in the United States and Europe. Prior to his appointment at Royal Ahold, he was Managing Director at Deutsche Bank A.G. in London. He has also held positions in executive communication with UBS AG and the Swiss Bank Corporation as well as PR consultancy. Prior to his employment in the financial services industry, Underhill worked as a journalist in New Zealand, the Middle East and the United Kingdom. He is a regular public speaker on communication trends.