SYNERGY - Juneteenth 2022

Kamal Latham

Story By: Heather Lustig-Curran

After two years of Covid, the war in Ukraine, and political divisiveness, hope can feel like an unfulfillable dream. For Kamal Latham, co-founder and CEO of GBM Global Solutions, hope and optimism are driving forces to empower people to create a “better tomorrow.”

When growing up in New York City, Kamal’s mother Pamela Edwards taught him about love’s self-sacrificial nature and urged him to never forget John 3:16. Later in life, Kamal realized the importance of the verse’s two verbs, “love” and “give.” He learned that God’s giving-love is to be reflected back to God and to all people. This lesson became Kamal’s guiding principle and a key to his optimism. “Life is about love, about being hopeful,” Kamal said.

After graduating from high school, Kamal attended Temple University and earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree, majoring in political science and history with a minor in East Asian studies. During his undergraduate years, he spent time in Tokyo, Japan and traveled to Beijing, China, citing those experiences as what gave him a more global perspective.

Following his time at Temple, Kamal worked on Wall Street as a financial analyst for the investment bank Salomon Brothers. When the company merged with Smith Barney, Kamal met “the love of [his] life,” his future wife Jonnel. In 1998, Kamal went to Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government and earned his Master’s Degree in Public Policy. By the end of 2001, Kamal had joined the diplomatic service and married Jonnel. Two months after their wedding, he moved to the US Consulate General in Shenyang, at the border of China and North Korea.

Working as a visa officer, Kamal interviewed people searching for their “better tomorrow.” One of his most poignant experiences was when a North Korean defector broke through security to enter the American compound.. Sitting with the man overnight, Kamal described how the man kept staring at the American flag.

The man, gazing at the stars, asked what they meant to which Kamal replied, “‘Well, it means freedom.’” In those hours with the North Korean man, Kamal reflected on the man’s dangerous journey, how he “breached security” to gain entrance to the American consulate. Kamal thought about how the man had originally lived in a country that opposed freedom and oppressed human rights.

“And that was when I really understood the value of freedom and just how important it was for our country to be a nation that stood for freedom,” Kamal said.

Following his diplomatic services in China and France, Kamal and Jonnel launched Diplomatic Treatment, “a business negotiating trade deals in between Chinese and US businesses.” The Lathams’ work created new jobs, generated revenue, and developed new opportunities for people. However, Kamal found himself unfulfilled until a conversation with God changed his life.

“[God called me] to inspire people to have hope for a better tomorrow,” Kamal said. “And then He showed me that I was most fulfilled when I was in the position to inspire people to have hope for a better tomorrow. Whether that was done professionally as training people to be leaders or helping to create economic opportunity because I was able to negotiate a deal that opened up doors for businesses to expand and thereby hire more people or generate more revenue or resources..”