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What It’s Like Working for Meghan and Harry

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Updated on July 7, 2021

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Catherine St-Laurent, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s former chief of staff, is speaking out about her time working for the pair.

She formerly worked with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation before joining the Archewell Foundation in early 2020. St-Laurent told The Cut that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex had “potential to be very influential.”

“It was an incredible experience,” the communications adviser, 40, added. “They are incredibly talented and creative leaders. I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to do that, to be able to be with them on their journey. The time that I spent with them was incredibly fulfilling.”

Catherine has not only worked as their chief of staff, but she also became a senior adviser to the couple’s Archewell Foundation in April. “I think they have the potential to be very influential leaders in the social-impact space,” she told the publication. “I look forward to continuing to be a part of that.”

St-Laurent previously complimented Harry and Meghan in a message posted on LinkedIn in March, when she revealed her new job.

“It’s been a privilege working closely with The Duke and Duchess of Sussex helping to establish Archewell Foundation in its first year,” she wrote. “Their commitment to compassion and wellbeing has been the undercurrent of all our activities both within the organization as well as with impactful projects of the foundation on the ground. I am deeply proud of what we’ve accomplished together and I’m honored to remain on as an advisor.”

Catherine’s comments on working for the couple come just a few months after Buckingham Palace began an inquiry into allegations of mistreatment leveled against Meghan by former royal employees.

Historian Robert Lacey said in an updated edition of his book Battle of Brothers: The Inside Story of a Troubled Family that tensions between Prince William and Prince Harry deteriorated in October 2018 when William heard that a top palace official was making accusations of Meghan harassing workers.

When challenged by Prince William, Prince Harry reportedly became enraged since his brother believed workers more than his family, according to Lacey. The book says the event prompted Prince William to separate his royal household from that of the Sussexes.

Jason Knauf, their former communications secretary, filed the bullying complaint in October 2018. Markle reportedly pushed two personal aides out of the household and damaged the confidence of a third.

St-Laurent was named the couple’s chief of staff in March 2020, after Meghan and Harry stepped down from their senior royal positions and moved to California. Eleven months later, she left the role.

But continues to serve as a senior adviser for the organization and, in April of this year, she co-founded a social-impact consulting company with business partner Rebecca Goldman.