This episode of The Soul Centre Podcast was made in partnership with Scotts House Media & The Dilly Club in Nassau Bahamas. 🌟 Join Rowena Poitier-Sutherland as she sits down with Vaughn Roberts, Senior VP of Government Affairs and Special Projects, a believer in community, and a man with a journey worth hearing. In this episode they discuss: - Origin Story: Vaughn shares insights into his upbringing in Nassau, growing up in a household led by his mother, and the community support that shaped his path. - Navigating Adversity: Discover Vaughn's journey through family challenges and the lessons learned from his mother's resilience and leadership. - Mentorship & Community Impact: Learn about Vaughn's involvement with Roots of Change and Atlantis, and the importance of giving back to the community for a brighter future. - Career Success & Path to Leadership: Gain valuable insights into Vaughn's professional journey, from pursuing education to deliberate career choices and impactful leadership roles. - Passion for Community: Explore Vaughn's commitment to community development and the legacy he aims to leave for future generations. Hosted on Simplecast. See simplecast.com for more information.
This episode of The Soul Centre Podcast was made in partnership with Scotts House Media & The Dilly Club in Nassau Bahamas.
🌟 Join Rowena Poitier-Sutherland as she sits down with Vaughn Roberts, Senior VP of Government Affairs and Special Projects, a believer in community, and a man with a journey worth hearing.
In this episode they discuss:
- Origin Story:
- Navigating Adversity:
- Mentorship & Community Impact:
- Career Success & Path to Leadership:
- Passion for Community:
Hosted on Simplecast. See simplecast.com for more information.
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Tune in for an inspiring conversation about resilience, leadership, and the power of community! #SoulCentrePodcast #VaughnRoberts #CommunityImpact #LeadershipJourney
>> Rowena Poitier: You're tuned in to the Soul Center Podcast. This is more than a podcast. This is
a journey, a space where you listen to you. So join us on this journey. Today's guests, we have
Vaugn Roberts. We're so honored to have him. Mr. Roberts is the Senior Vice President of
Government Affairs and Special Projects. And he's also a person who believes in community. And
so we're going to hear a little bit about that and his journey. Welcome, Vaugn.
>> Vaugn Roberts: Good to be here.
>> Rowena: Yese. So I'm going to dive right in. I want to hear your origin story. I had the privilege
of listening to you give a speech the other day, and you told...you told us a lot of things that I didn't
know about your past and sort of where you come from. And your, your brought up seeing your
background. So I'd love for you to share with people about that.
>> Vaugn: Yeah, sure,. I grew up right here in Nassau. I'm one of eight kids, number seven of eight.
The first part of my childhood was in sort of a normal family structure. My parents were both
married, and both in the household. My mom, my parents got married really, really young. I think
my mother was 16 when she got married, not unusual for that generation of Bahamian woman.
But also not unusual for them to have as many kids as here.
>> Rowena: And some people have fourteen.
>> Vaugn: Yeah, so so my dad was the breadwinner. And then at some point, early on, my parents
got divorced. And so then my mom became sort of head of household for us, and largely the
breadwinner. And I think, what I saw in her in terms of just how she managed the household and
how we survived, really spoke to the times, then, which is, you know, you had this extended
community of people that supported and sustained families in a way that I'm not sure it exists
today. So if you think about it, transitioning almost immediately because of a separation in
marriage from from being a housewife...
>> Rowena: right,
>> Vaugn: ...to then having to support a household of eight kids, you know.
>> Rowena: So were all of you, were they all boys? What was the...
>> Vaugn: Yeah, so there are six boys and two girls. And there's basically like, two, like three
groupings. There's three of them that the older ones, they're sort of year after each other, there's a
break. And then there's my two sisters. And then there's a break, and then there's a three last, boys.
So by the time, you know, I was 10 years old, my oldest brother was 20 years old, and probably was
was already out to work, right? Because then you finish high school, you went to work.
>> Rowena: Yeah.
>> Vaugn: So that was also helpful to sustaining our family in the sense that, you know, as...as my
siblings sort of graduated, they went to work. My brother went to work for BEC as an apprentice,
my second brother went to work on the defence force as a Marine, and then all of a sudden, you
know, this is how you...this is what your life kind of kind of is, and how it how it, how it evolves.
But...but...but what was important, as I reflect on that time, was just a strength that my mother
brought...
>> Rowena: I was gonna ask you about that.
>> Vaugn: ...to the home right. And to the and to the household it is interesting is I was having a
conversation with her the other day and she was like, she was almost patting myself on the back
that none of her kids hadn't went astray. And she also said that she never remarried because she
was smart enough to know that anybody who wanted to marry her with eight kids really wasn't
gonna, maybe our future, our situation may not have been better as a result of that. So she was like,
I never entertained any proposals to marry anybody.
>> Rowena: But it sounds like she had them.
>> Vaugn: Yeah, she definitely had themn. Right? But it just meant for, for us a very close kind of
upbringing. And really, with with a woman at the head...
>> Rowena: Yeah.
>> Vaugn: ...of the household.
>> Rowena: And this is so interesting to me, because this series is about boys, young men and
mentorship and relationship and being in different circumstances in the home. And you come
from, you know, you, you experienced separated parents, divorce. You experienced a single parent
household of a female and I wonder, what advice would you give to boys experiencing these types
of things?
>> Vaugn: Yeah, I mean it, look, it's really made me appreciate females and the power of females in
relationships and in a broader way in the community. But I think I think the important thing would
be, you know, you kind of have to honor your parents. But you also have to keep in mind that
they're really interested in setting you up for a better future. So every action that they take -
conscious or subconsciously - is really meant to kind of like, make you a better person, no, make
you have a better future. And I think that's a responsibility to parents. When it when you get to a
single household situation, it's even more pronounced right, because you have just one person
bearing that responsibility. But my mom was very clever in the sense that she just made sure that
we were involved in the right kinds of activities. And she made sure that we did things together as
a family and an extended family. And, and she just tapped into the support system that she had, in a
very, in reflecting back on it now demonstrating significant leadership right for...for somebody in
that situation. And you know, there were moments when we were, we were punished for doing
something wrong. Be certain there was certainly arguments, and we all at points thought that she
was this crazy woman. But really, she was just navigating us to a place that that gave us the future
that we have today.
>> Rowena: Sounds like a strong woman. And I'm so happy that you're part of this mentorship
program. So just a little bit of context for our listeners and our viewers. There's an organization
called Roots of Change, of which I am honored to be a part of, founded by Melissa Alan Menard,
and Roots of Change is about sustainable programs for youth, for children and for women. And so
Vaughn Roberts is one of our mentors. And Atlantis came on board as the title sponsor for this
amazing three year program that pours into young men in the Bahamas, and then outputs, you
know, data and analysis that can be helpful in...in guiding these young men to be successful
individuals and citizens, productive citizens. So thank you for being a part of the change that you
wish to see. And I would love for you to tell us about why you chose to get involved with this
program and why Atlantis chose to be involved with this program.
>> Vaugn: Yeah, sure,. I mean, I think that, for me, growing up, and then even becoming in my
professional life, has been so much support for me, with organizations with programs such as
Mirror Mirror. And I've also been in part of, sort of like when I worked in the US Big Brothers, Big,
Big Brothers, Big Sisters, which is another sort of mentorship program. I think it's...it's important
for adults, professionals, particularly to give back in this way. And, and the impact is far reaching,
right, the impact that you have on kids on children, just giving them this exposure is important.
And I think it's also posited back into you, the individual, in terms of your own professional growth
and development. And so it's sort of like you win while you're even doing service. And I think
that's important. For Atlantis, it was it, you know, we saw it as an important opportunity to come
out of the gate in the first instance, and support a new kind of innovative undertaking. You know,
we do a lot, a lot of community work that we do at Atlanta, and some community support that we
give is really to organizations that have been around forever, like the Red Cross and the Cancer
Society and all those things. And two years ago, since I joined at nine as we took a very deliberative
approach to like starting to invest in new ideas, ah, very early. And so this was just the project that
we saw this year as something we would want to invest in as a startup, and to lend the franchise
and support of Atlantis behind something that could become big and impactful.
>> Rowena: Thank you for taking a chance. And I mean, if this is an examp...if this isn't an example
of doing it for the culture, I don't know what it is. You all are taking a bold step, and really
indirectly investing in our community, in our boys. And to me, that's significant. That's not a small
thing. That's huge! So I want to congratulate you all on doing that.
>> Vaugn: Yeah, thank you, we're happy to be a part of the journey. Obviously, you know, with an
organization of 7,000 employees, it's very likely that some of these, some of these boys will end up
working for Atlantis at some point in the future. So it's it's a full cycle thing. But there's just a
broader kind of thinking, an investment around this community that we take, as Atlantis.
>> Rowena: That's fantastic. And jumping back to your personal life. I'm wondering what would
you say are some of your most celebrated successes, and how can people, other boys, achieve that?
>> Vaugn: Yeah, I think...so in high school, I always got good grades. The opportunity to go to
college really wasn't as clear, right. So most people at the time were going to COB, which was a two
year college. So that was sort of a natural step for me. And for a lot of people who performed well
academically, they sort of like go beyond high school. But then transitioning from COB to college in
the US was a bigger step and required like finances.
>> Rowena: The way, you were in Illinois, right?
>> Vaugn: Well, I started I did my undergrad at FIU, Florida International University of Miami, but
you you know, you're going as an international student, you need all this money, you need to
demonstrate that you have all this support. So part of it was scholarship, but part of it for being the
first in my family was a big step too right to, to, to make. I didn't think about this at the time, but as
I refer...as I've have had conversations with my extended family over time, they...a lot of people who
have gone in my family have gone to college after me. Say, really, I will tell me that I was really the
role model or the impetus. And I paved the way, I showed them how to do it. So that was when in
reflecting back on it now was a big, big, big success for me. The other thing that I take an enormous
amount of pride and the accomplishment and achievement in was the time that I spent working
for Baha Mar, which was, you know, a period of I had lived in the US for a long time. And then in
2006, I came back to work with the initial developer Baha Mar on Baha Mar. And so, you know, the
thing that brought me back was this idea that was big enough, and felt like it was World Class
enough, and that it had significant impact for the Bahamas. So those were the things I considered
when I decided to come back but the experience of being there and creating what we recreated in
terms of the physical elements of Baha Mar, like the construction itself in the buildings and the
campus was significant. But, but, but more importantly, sort of a culture of the organization that
we created while we were there. And a part of that really was we were able to - a lot of it through
my effort - attract a number of Bahamians who lived outside like younger Bahamians who were
finishing up college...
>> Rowena: Bringing them back
>> Vaugn: ...bringing them back home to this culture of, you know, a lot of hard work. New, new
ideas are appreciated. There's really no hierarchy. I mean, Sarkis would interact with everybody at
the time who was working for us in a very personal way. And so it was we really created this, this
exciting work culture that would become a part of the service culture, for Baha Mar once it opened.
And, you know, that was just significant. It was just significant to work through that, work through
how do we get Bahamians to approach work in a new kind of way? How do we create a culture
where Bahamians who study abroad can come home and find a place and find a progressive, a
rewarding kind of work environment right out of the gate. And all those things were very
important to positioning Baha Mar. And I think a lot of those things they've carried through in the
operation of it since it's been open.
>> Rowena: Fantastic So you've come a long way, come from humble beginnings, and now you're
the VP at Atlantis. So what's the secret sauce? How...what do you do? How do I as a young lady, as a
young boy, dare to dream of that? How do you go about that? What is that path?
>> Vaugn: Yeah, you know, I it's different for everybody. But I can tell you that what has worked for
me really well is...is education, right? Like I, in deciding to be an accountant, I set myself on a path
that I needed to go to college and I needed to sit the CPA exam which required that I needed to go
to grad school at the time for a year. And in every step along the way, I was really conscious about
upgrading the environment that I was in. Hands down, College of the Bahamas was an awesome
academic experience. When I went to FIU, you know, FIU in Florida had probably the strongest
accounting program at the time. And then I went from FIU to the University of Illinois that
arguably had the...it had the first accounting program in the US, and the most respected accounting
program. And then, you know, I worked for a while and then I ended up doing a master's, an MBA
at the University of Chicago, which is one of the top five business schools in the country. So I was
deliberate and intentional about putting myself in environments where there was the top
performers were there, right, so you put...because that's where you're going to grow. And it
created, what it did over time was just created opportunities for me to work with, like World Class
firms in the US. And that experience, those experiences just positioned me to, to think about and
even be recruited for the opportunity to come back to the Bahamas and work for Baha Mar. And so
it really is kind of being intentional about education, and getting all of the credentials that you can,
and putting yourself in experiences that develop and stretch you and always trying to upgrade the
setting that you're in, right, the setting that you're working in, the setting that you're studying in,
always making sure that you're you're working with the best and brightest. And that's that's
worked for me. I mean, it's...it's...It's helped me kind of be able to kind of vacillate between working
in the Bahamas and working back in the US. I'm at Atlantis today, because it was an interesting
opportunity that presented itself, but I was working in the US before I came to Atlantis. So, you
know, it's just very important to, to be in these kinds of environments where it's the right kind of
opportunity for you, there's growth, potential, and there's the right kind of learning that can
happen for you as well. Because even though I'm a senior vice pres...I mean, I learn every day in the
environment I'm work again, from the people who I work around, and that's helped to broaden my
skill set and hopefully, kind of make me even more attractive for future opportunities as well.
>> Rowena: So what drives you as a person?
>> Vaugn: You know, it's, it's a, when it comes to my professional life, it really...it really was what I
saw in my household, which is my mother got up every day, every day, and opened up the house,
prepared the meal for the family, went to work, came back from work. prepared dinner, it was it's
just a very clear kind of work ethic right, and a very clear pattern of kind of your day, that just
stuck with me. And so, like, I don't do much...working is just thankfully, kind of, like second nature
to me. And, you know, in the course of my study and working, I kinda like working, whether it's like
problem solving issues and problem solving thingsg. Right? So yeah, it's just, it's just, that's, that's
what it's been. And it's just, everyday you get up and you go at it.
>> Rowena: Yeahn. So what is that thing that wakes you up besides work? Or maybe it connects to
work, but that, that essence? tlantis
>> Vaugn: Yeah, so I mean, so, you know, over time, and just with exposure, you know, both here
and abroad, you know, it's really caused me to have a big interest in, in community Right? And, and
more than self, it's, for me, it's kind of like, this community, and particularly as you start to get
older as well, you start to think about what legacy is going to be, and like, how, how are you really
assessing your success and your impact. And for me, it's really been focused in on like, the people
that I'm impacting. And it in some ways, it's not always, it doesn't always have to be like, direct
impact. Like, like, what I found, even when I was at Baha Mar was just my presence there in the
role I was in was impacting people who I didn't even know in the organization. And I think some of
that is a play here at Atlantis too, like when I show up here as a senior vice president and and not
necessarily stuffy, or just just it now. Yeah, I think...I think...I think for the housekeeper for the
young housekeeper, or whatever, it just, it just says something about the possibilities for their own
lives Right? So, so I don't...I don't...I don't take that lightly. It's an important part of what I value as
my success and my impact. But communities are important.
>> Rowena: Yeah, I can tell and you're very accessible, like you said, and you've used the word
several times, the words several times now - community, culture. So these are things that I think
are at your core and very important, and it's being reflected in your job at Atlantis. So why
Atlantis? What is so special about that?
>> Vaugn: Yeah, you know, for me, what really drew me here was, you know, it's a huge
organization. And I think having a good appreciation for the Bahamian economy and the future of
the Bahamas, tourism is where we're at. And that's not going to change tomorrow. In fact, there's
countries all over the world trying to do tourism more and better. So when I thought about it, you
know, a large organization like Atlantis here in the Bahamas, it's been around for 25 years, it just
felt like a good brand that's in some parts of the world more known than the Bahamas itself.
>> Rowena: Wow!
>> Vaugn: The Atlantis brand is very, very global in terms of how many people know it, and the
brand equity that's with it. So it was just an opportunity to come in to an established organization
that obviously needs some retooling, and perhaps even some some further investment. And in the
face of the competition, which I happened to know really well.
>> Rowena: That's just convenient!
>> Vaugn: Yeah, it just...it just felt like an interesting opportunity to be able to make impactu.
Right? And you know, so much of it is not just about the work that we're doing today, but it's how
we're positioning Atlantis for the future. And then obviously in the process using that platform to
create opportunities for Bahamians well into the futurea. Right? I also felt that it was important to
be here in the Bahamas to demonstrate that, you know, Bahamians could ascend the ranks of
tourism. And that even people who have a background that's not traditional hospitality. So I don't, I
didn't start as a housekeeper. I was worked for an accounting firm, did investment banking, did all
these things. And here I am at Atlantis Right? So I'm not, I'm not a hotel operator, per se. But I also
thought it was important for...for somebody like me to plant my feet in the sector that's so
important here at the Bahamas, and to then create a voice that that is a voice of opportunity for
people coming behind me.
>> Rowena: Wowe! That's empowering! Well, thank you for your service and the great work you
do, and we're so happy to be here at Atlantis Paradise Island. We appreciate your support. Now I
have the really hard question that stumps a lot of people Ready?
>> Vaugn: Yeah.
>> Rowena: What are your top three songs on your playlist currently?
>> Vaugn: Oh my God, yeah. So I've been I've been listening to a lot of Burner Boy recently. I saw
him in concert at Coachella this year.
>> Rowena: Nice!
>> Vaugn: I see him again at, I'm going to South Africa in a few weeks and we'll see him in concert
there. You know, I...Dissoles - I can tell you the artists.
>> Rowena: Okay. Tell me the artists, that's fine.
>> Vaugn: So that I've been listening a lot to...a lot of John Legend's music. And then I've just
recently started to listen a lot to Exuma, the Obeah Man's music.
>> Rowena: Oh, yeah!
>> Vaugn: Yeah, and it's...it's, you know, a friend of mine sent me that link to that special that was
done on him. And how, how big he was as a musician outside of the Bahamas. You know, a lot of
people don't even know...
>> Rowena: Yeah.
>> Vaugn: ...and so I'm, I was taking the time to go through his old library of music just recently.
>> Rowena: That's interesting. I've been doing the same recently. And I'm fascinated with, you
know, Obeah and the whole concept of that. You know, I'm calling myself a Cat Island woman now,
although not originally from Cat Island. But our culture is just so textured and interesting. And it's
reflected in the music. So...
>> Vaugn: yeah...
>> Rowena: Yeah, I enjoy that music.
>> Vaugn: And then also, like, it's just interesting to see how the Bahamian diaspora has kind of
spread across the world in ways, sometimes in very interesting ways that we don't, know here in
the Bahamast. Right? So more of those stories need to be told, so that people can see the
potential...
>> Rowena: Yeah,
>> Vaugn: ...on the opportunities that are out there.
>> Rowena: Yeah. And thank you for being a part of wanting to tell those stories and, and telling
those stories now at Atlantis. I think that's such a unique and cool introduction and I like the
direction. So last, but certainly not least, I would like you to look at that camera. And I'd like you to
give a message to the boys of the Bahamas. What do you want them to know? What's the best
advice you can give them?
>> Vaugn: Yeah, I mean, I think the best advice really is that, you know, the community needs boys
to become great men. You know, we ca...we our future is is not as bright without you standing up as
great men. And that can mean a lot of different things. But what it does mean is you showing up in
the circumstance that you're in, being present, seizing the opportunities, and taking care of your
community, taking care of your people, your tribe, because that's what men do. And we need...we
need...we need every one of you to stand up as...as men, for us to have the biggest opportunity for
the future of the Bahamas.
>> Rowena: Vaugn, thank you for journeying with me.
>> Vaugn: Thank you.
>> Rowena: And thank you for journeying with us. Hopefully you got centered.