Colin Seymour is category planning director of Nutritional Healthcare at GlaxoSmithKline. He works with category planning controller Helen Tomlinson.



Colin on Helen



I have been at GlaxoSmithKline for 15 years now, which is rather scary. Helen's role is to work with the major retailers, supporting their soft drinks promotions and ensuring they have the right range of products and the correct merchandising display. I first met Helen just over a year ago when I interviewed her for the position of category planning controller. We got on immediately. It was more like a conversation than a formal interview and we shared the same ambition to step change the role category planning would play at GSK.

Helen's CV grabbed my attention as her interests included being a member of The Holstein Society, which involves showing prize cattle at agricultural shows. I grilled her on this in the interview and found she had grown up around cows and was from good farming stock.

We get on really well, but outside work we might drive each other crazy. We recently completed an Insights personality profile test and learned that we have biometrically opposite personalities. Helen is energetic, direct and wants everything done today. I think I am slightly calmer.



Helen on Colin



Colin and I have personalities that complement each other. His approach is so structural, rational and generally calm, which is very different from my busy style. But we combine effectively and have the same determination to meet the targets that will deliver category growth.

In the category planning department our objective is to increase the size of the soft drinks category. We provide expertise and work on a consultative basis with major customers such as Lucozade and Ribena.

Colin is intellectual with his fast thought processes and algorithms, but I love learning and I am determined to develop a vision for the future of the soft drinks category and effectively engage our customers.

I felt we connected at the interview. He loved hearing about my work with cows and being a member of The Holstein Society is always a talking point.

One thing I've noticed about Colin is that he always wears blue shirts, although, every now and again, he will put on a pink shirt just to make a point to the rest of us.