TheBridge profile: Jessica Gosling

Name: Jessica Gosling

Current city: London

Current job: Senior International Policy Advisor, UK Government

Past job: International Partnerships Manager, UK Research & Innovation

Q. Favorite spot for a coffee meeting? I am such a fan of morning coffee meetings before the day kicks off, and I am spoilt for choice living in London. It really does depend on the area, if I am around where I grew up, Portobello Market, it would have to be Coffee Plant. If I'm heading into the office, Ole & Steen in Haymarket or the Nordic Bakery in Soho has never let me down. I also love my local gem, a fantastic Australian coffee house in Shepherd’s Bush, Proud Mary’s!

Q. Describe how a skill you learned in a previous job helped you in your current job. A skill that has helped me in my current career is the power of tenacity. I think quite differently as I am neurodiverse by three. Granted it is also partially my personality, being in workplaces where I can foster my sense of curiosity and passion to engage, learn and lead has been vital.

Q. Job advice in three words? Find. A. Mentor.

Q. How are you currently bridging the gap between innovation and regulation? The nexus between policy and innovation is something I've been innately curious about, especially being a public policy professional. I earned my stripes in academia and the start-up sector across London and Berlin, and I found it captivating the pace of change. During my time at UK Research and Innovation, I became intrigued with the interplay and importance of engagement with industry and academia. Added to the lens of policy and innovation, I began to explore knowledge exchange mechanisms whilst in this role.

Through observing the interplay between policy, innovation and business in my current role, I finally found the motivation to begin my PhD last year. I became inspired to pursue a PhD exploring the gap between policy and digital under the lens of cultural diplomacy in the context of Mexico, Georgia and South Korea. In this space, I've worked with the British Council to produce a research paper on digital skills, soft power and climate change mitigation in Georgia. Digital skills remain something I'm incredibly passionate about, so I've been fostering knowledge exchange activities throughout the countries I'm focusing on for my PhD.

Q. Best advice you’ve received? Never tether yourself to a role, a job, a manager, a project or a company. Tether yourself to your values and you'll always have a career that you love.

Q. What can innovators learn from policymakers? I would argue policymakers are innovators in their own right. In spaces where no policy exists yet, policymakers need to act in innovative ways to respond to changes rapidly. Out of all the things innovators could learn from policymakers, I would say it would be the robust evaluation methods any policy or project needs to go through before it is approved. The breadth of monitoring and evaluation aspects required in creating public policy is quite incredible.

Q. What can policymakers learn from innovators? I'm currently doing a part-time PhD in international affairs/public policy with a core focus on the digital economy and soft power. Within this and my time in the start-up sector, I've developed strong design thinking skills, where I now teach them to other public officials. In this case, I would say the biggest thing policymakers could learn from innovators, is employing design thinking techniques within processes. By this I mean, taking a fully human-centred approach to innovation, where you anchor all of the policy building processes in understanding customer's needs, rapid prototyping, and generating creative ideas.

Q. Looking back, what advice would you give yourself in the beginning of your career? Try to care less about what people think. if you are interested in something, pursue the interest. Educate yourself in it, immerse yourself within it. You'll never know what you can turn into a career.

I say this as I majored in the Korean language on a fluke. It became a hallmark of my career and set me up for working for over seven years abroad with the United Nations and other organisations.

Q. Favorite under the radar company? I frequently partner with the General Assembly (GA) on pro-bono sessions on soft skills, public speaking and diversity and inclusion workshops. The GA has been supporting professionals in obtaining today's most in-demand skills through accessible programmes, workshops and seminars. I love how accessible it makes tech education.

Q. Favorite app? Pocket! I’ve been enjoying the diversity it brings to my reading list!

Q. Last time you were completely unplugged? I struggle with unwinding and unplugging fully, as I am permanently 'on' due to being neurodiverse by three. The last time I was fully offline and unplugged was picking mangos in my family's home in Costa Rica last year.

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