Elder Robert Gay

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Nov 22, 2022

Elder Robert Gay, an Emeritus General Authority Seventy, shares his extensive background in private equity and humanitarian work. He reflects on the impact of his father's career, emphasizing integrity amid adversity. The discussion delves into balancing personal aspirations with professional opportunities and highlights the importance of leveraging one's influence for positive community change. With enriching stories from Ghana, Elder Gay underscores the transformative power of service and the need for humility in church leadership, encouraging listeners to find fulfillment beyond societal expectations.

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ANECDOTE

Hughes and Family Struggles

Robert Gay's father worked for Howard Hughes, rising from driver to CEO.
His refusal to leave Hughes despite moral concerns about the casino business led to family struggles, teaching Robert valuable lessons about following inner guidance and self-forgiveness.

ANECDOTE

Path to Business

Despite his father's business background, Robert initially resisted a business career, pursuing other interests.
A spiritual prompting led him to a doctorate program at Harvard, changing his path.

INSIGHT

Balance in Life

True balance is not about rigidly allocating time, but about aligning with God's timing.
Recognize your current season and strive to do the right things within it.

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Elder Robert C. Gay is an emeritus General Authority Seventy of the Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As a General Authority he helped develop and implement the
Church’s global self-reliance initiative and served as the Chairman of Self-Reliance Services and
the Perpetual Education Fund Committee. He also served as a member of the Presideny of the
Seventy, as the President of the Asia North Area and as a member of the worldwide Missionary
Executive Council and the Board of Trustees for The Church Education System. Additionally, he
has served as a full-time missionary in Spain and as mission president for the countries of
Ghana, Sierra Leone, and Liberia.

Professionally, Elder Gay has dedicated most of his service to private equity management. He is
currently Chairman of Kensington Capital Holdings which has investments throughout Asia,
Europe, and the United States. He is the co-founder and past CEO of Huntsman Gay Global
Capital, past CEO of Bain Capital Europe and Chairman of the Management Committee for Bain
Capital Worldwide. Previously Elder Gay also worked in investment banking and as an
international management consultant for McKinsey & Company in the United States and the
UK.

Elder Gay along with his wife, Lynette, have co-founded and served as a director on multiple
global humanitarian organizations which have focused on building schools, medical clinics,
microenterprises, clean water boreholes, latrines, and rescuing at risk persons including those
trapped in modern slavery and illiteracy. Lynette directs their NGO, Engage Now Africa, and the
Ensign Global College in Ghana which they founded. Together they endowed the Ballard Center
for Social Impact at Brigham Young University and recently announced a new global partnership
and Center for Business, Health and Prosperity between the University of Utah and their Ensign
Global College.

Elder Gay earned a PhD in business economics from Harvard University where he also taught
economics and international finance. He is the recipient of the Utahan of the Year Award, the
United States Presidential Service Award and the Martin Luther King Center Special Recognition
Service Award for Non-Violent Social Change.

Robert Christopher Gay was born in Los Angeles, California, on September 1, 1951. He married
Lynette Nielsen in April 1974. They are the parents of seven children and twenty-two
grandchildren.