"I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up."
As a child, Katy Davies was certain she knew exactly what her future looked like. “I was 100% going to be a vet. I loved animals. I was going to be a vet, and that was it.” Then she started studying science for her GCSEs. “I realised it’s really incredibly hard work, and science did not come naturally to me.”
Work experience at a local veterinary practice confirmed something else. Looking after animals wasn’t always as she’d imagined. “Sometimes being a vet is not the fluffy end of enjoying being with animals.” So, for the first time, Katy had to rethink her plans. She chose the subjects she genuinely enjoyed, history and politics, and decided to worry about the career later.
Years on, she’s now the Managing Director of a manufacturing company. Did she ever imagine that at 14? “Absolutely not. I’d have laughed if you’d suggested it.”
Following what interested her
Katy studied history at the University of Cambridge because it was the subject that challenged her the most. She loved exploring different periods, weighing up evidence and building arguments. More than anything, she learned how to make sense of huge amounts of information.
“You probably had twenty books to read every week. In reality, you weren’t going to read all twenty. You learned to speed read, pull out the important information and understand the bigger picture.”
It’s a skill she still uses every day. People sometimes question what you can do with a humanities degree, but Katy sees it differently. History didn’t train her for one specific job. It taught her how to think.
When graduation arrived, though, she still didn’t know what career she wanted. “I really didn’t know what I wanted to do at all.” She knew she wanted work that would stretch her, involve interesting people and make a difference. She also knew one thing she didn’t want.
London.
“I’m a country bumpkin. I like visiting London, but I also like coming away.” That helped narrow the search.
Finding people, she wanted to work with
Katy came across Deloitte’s Cambridge office almost by chance. Their Food and Agriculture team caught her attention because of her rural background, but it was the people she met that convinced her to apply. “I could see myself working with these people. They were great.” The graduate programme wasn’t what she’d expected.
Instead of spending every day buried in spreadsheets, she found herself working with different businesses, solving different problems and building friendships that have lasted more than twenty years. “If I’ve got a work question or find myself in a bit of a bind, we’ve still all got each other’s backs.”
Looking back, those relationships are one of the things she values most from her time there.
Being brave enough to leave
Katy spent nine years at Deloitte. She enjoyed the variety, but eventually she realised she was becoming comfortable. When the chance came to spend six weeks working with a client in industry, she decided to take it. Those six weeks became ten months.
“Within about two weeks, I said, ‘I’m just not going back.’ Industry was a breath of fresh air.” That experience gave her the confidence to try something different. Soon afterwards, she joined Marshall Group in Cambridge.
Her job title was Internal Audit Manager, but the role was far broader than it sounded. One week she might be reviewing engineering projects. The next she was helping with leadership conferences or supporting teams across different parts of the business. “It was almost like being a consultant across the whole group.”
Every new project introduced her to different people and different challenges. Without realising it, she was building the relationships that would shape the rest of her career.
Learning that leadership starts with people
One phone call changed everything. Marshall had acquired a business in North Wales, and things weren’t going to plan. Financial systems weren’t working properly. Teams were under pressure. The integration had become difficult. Katy was asked to spend a short time helping. She ended up staying for almost a year.
“It was an absolute mess.” But she loved it.
The job wasn’t just about fixing systems. It was about supporting people through change. “It was a great lesson in leadership. You had to roll up your sleeves and get stuck in with the team.”
Back in Cambridge, she became Finance Director for Marshall’s military aircraft business, overseeing a £275 million division. On paper, it looked like the next logical step. Instead, it helped her realise something important. “Accountancy is okay, but numbers don’t excite me in the way they excite some people.”
She wasn’t happiest sitting behind reports. She was happiest working alongside people.
Stepping out from behind the calculator
Katy moved into operational transformation, helping teams improve the way they worked. She spent more time on the shop floor than in the finance office, working with engineers and production teams to solve problems, remove unnecessary processes and improve performance. “Please don’t put me back in an office with a calculator.”
Watching people grow became more rewarding than producing spreadsheets. “People unlock those numbers.”
She discovered that businesses succeed because of the people inside them, not because of the reports they produce. That changed how she thought about leadership.
Finding somewhere that values you
After almost ten years at Marshall, Katy was offered the chance to become Managing Director of a manufacturing company. She accepted the role during the first week of the COVID-19 lockdown. It was a huge decision. Leaving colleagues she loved wasn’t easy. “Part of my soul probably got trapped in Marshall.”
But she also knew she wanted to build something herself. Looking back, she’s realised there isn’t one perfect career path. Every role taught her something. Even the jobs that weren’t quite right helped her understand what mattered most. The biggest lesson wasn’t about choosing the right career. It was about choosing the right environment.
“If you’re in an organisation where you feel like you have to change yourself to fit in, that’s not cool.” Instead, she encourages people to find workplaces that value them for who they are. “Find somewhere that values your contribution, your values and your way of doing things.”
Advice for young people
If Katy could speak to her 15-year-old self, she wouldn’t tell her exactly what career to choose. She’d tell her not to worry about having all the answers. “There’s so much pressure to make one decision and think that’s your career for life.” She doesn’t believe that’s how careers work.
Every experience teaches you something, even if it’s simply helping you discover what you don’t enjoy. Her advice is to stay open to opportunities, spend time in different workplaces and meet people doing different jobs. “Just get curious and stay curious.”
Because if someone had told the teenager who wanted to be a vet that she’d one day be leading a manufacturing business, she would never have believed them. And that’s exactly the point.
Careers rarely follow the plan you make when you’re fifteen.