Gilbert Hill, Chief Strategy Officer, Pool
Gilbert is a privacy technologist, entrepreneur and currently Chief Strategy Officer at Pool Data, building an ecosystem for data unions. As a board member, he advises brands, agencies, and crypto projects on data strategy and is a Senior Tutor at the Institute of Data Marketing.
After a career in Finance, as MD of a London digital agency, he grew fascinated by the relationship between data, digital marketing and regulation, founding one of the first software products in the PrivTech sector.
Exiting this business by selling to OneTrust, Gilbert led the deal, migration of legacy clients, team and technology while building new operations across Europe. He then led Tapmydata, a VC-funded startup building crypto wallets for people to own and share their data. Voluntarily, Gilbert chairs the Responsible Marketing Committee of the DMA and contributes to the debate around Data Privacy via the press, international events and media.
What is your favourite social media platform, and why?
Though it can be infuriating and divisive, Twitter keeps its spot in my heart as the closest platform to what happens in real social situations. I still get excited to read, reach out and connect with some of the greatest living exponents in my areas of passion. Twitter spaces are also a great evolution and something I'd like to spend more time on.
Tell us about you and your current role or area of interest.
Control of our data is probably the biggest challenge of the mature digital world, and the battle lines are being drawn. Pool Data is building the infrastructure, payment rails and governance for people to join data unions and collectively bargain for their data rights and value.
My role as Chief Strategy Officer is to create a regulatory, business and cultural environment where these can flourish and unlock their potential benefits not just for Pool but society in general. This is part of a bigger movement led by Europe but picking up pace across different areas of the world, including Asia, the UK and the US.
What do you like about your career or area of focus?
I am the last generation to grow up with one foot still in the analogue, and it's been amazing to be part of the movement to embrace new technology, adapt to it and be an agent of positive change as it matures.
What is the best advice you have ever received?
Other people's opinion of you is none of your business.
What inspires you, motivates you, or helps you to move forward?
Meeting people whose talent, skill and command of their passion, be that technology, academic or musical, constantly inspires me. I love to be the student in such conversations!
What are you proud of in your life so far?
I am most proud of raising my family, being an important part of their life, and trying to do my best, one day at a time. But, professionally, I'm most proud when I see those who started their careers with me flourish and excel beyond what I could teach them.
What is your preferred way to meet new people/network?
Linkedin and Twitter.
What skills or qualities do you feel have helped you?
My enthusiasm and sense of humour, in often challenging situations.
What do you wish you had known when you started out?
It's a long game - look after yourself and embrace learning as a constant friend.
Who do you most admire in business, academic or creative circles and why?
Sir Tim Berners-Lee was the original 'founder' of all the platforms we use right now and is still as sharp, thoughtful and relevant today in the context of Web3 as he was at the start.
Outside of your professional/work area, what hobbies or interests do you have or what other areas of your life are of real importance to you?
I love to play music with my classic rock band Ton50 and enjoy blogging and the local history of Southeast London.
Has the pandemic had a positive or a negative effect on you and/or your business, and how have you managed it?
It has changed work forever and allowed me to be more productive and active internationally while staying home! The downside is an always-on mindset, and it's important to make time to separate real life from work life.
Do you have a mentor, or have you ever mentored anyone?
No official mentor, but one manager in my banking days was always generous and nurturing, which inspired me. I have mentored students, which I find immensely rewarding and informative.
What advice would you have for someone looking to get into the same area of work or interests?
It's still a small, early space, and people are friendly and collaborative. So, reach out and ignore silos, but do your research before you connect.
What do you feel is the most common reason for people failing or giving up?
Fear of the unknown.
Is there a phrase, quote or a saying that you really like?
"Be here now."
What companies, brands, or institutions do you like or do you think are getting it right?
It may be an unpopular choice, but Microsoft keeps relevant and at the centre of our digital lives as consumers, in business and socially via their ownership of Linkedin.
How do you define success, and what lessons have you learned so far that you could share with our audience/readership?
Success is being paid enough to do the work you'd do for free anyway and talking with intelligent, passionate people daily. These people are everywhere, but not necessarily in the places you'd look first...