CIBC FirstCaribbean fêted its top performers from across the region in a glittering ceremony at Sandals Royal Barbados with the bank’s Chief Executive Officer Mark St. Hill stressing that reward and recognition is a “fundamental element of who we are as a company”.
Hailing the ten FirstStars Awardees as “truly examples of the best of the best”, St. Hill told those gathered for the Illumination Ceremony and Cocktail reception on Saturday March 25, the bank’s first in-person awards event since 2018, that the winners, from Barbados, The Bahamas, Cayman Islands and St Maarten, exemplified excellence from all areas of the bank.
“Our awardees therefore have been chosen because they demonstrate our behaviours of agility, collaboration, ownership, and integrity. By adopting these behaviours in their daily life at work, they have set the tone for helping to make our clients’ ambitions a reality, by delivering a superior banking experience in a digital world, St Hill said.
He thanked all of the bank’s “heroes” who are on the job, “often well into the night, striving to give our clients the best possible digital banking experience, and making their ambitions a reality”. St. Hill noted that while it is always difficult to select the ten FirstStars winners, throughout the year over 150 staffers were presented with Highflyer Quarterly Awards and more than 500 received On-the-Spot awards, an immediate award for great work from management or fellow employees.
The bank’s Chief Administrative Officer Neil Brennan in his welcome remarks noted that recognition was extremely important for organisations since it served as a great motivator, reinforced behaviours and values which defined the organisation, fostered greater team spirit and collaboration, and built trust.
“So appreciation is not just a buzzword in our bank; it is a firm commitment to our team members that when we see them working hard for our clients, we will stop and we will acknowledge it. Our goal is to make our bank a wonderful place with which to do business, and an absolutely great place to work,” he said.
Brennan noted that “CIBC FirstCaribbean’s recognition scheme is seen across the region as best practice, and we have been supporting other organizations in building out their own unique recognition programmes.”
The FirstStars winners who were inducted in the bank’s Hall of Fame were from Barbados, Adrian Gomes, Relationship Manager, Platinum Banking, Christopher McFarlane, Senior Manager, Sales and Business Development, Berlinda Sutton, Manager Insurance and Operations, Iyisha Gibson, Manager, Compliance Testing and Training, Risk Management, and Christopher Carter, Manager/Project Head, HR Shared Services, Human Resources; Bahamas, Latoya Curry, Private Banker, Wealth Management and Jason Knowles, Senior Officer, Implementation, Cash Management, Merchant Services, Corporate Investments.
FirstStars winners from Cayman Islands were Shaquille Smith, Credit Manager, Corporate and Investment Banking and Alero Abrams, Relationship Manager, Platinum Banking, and Frederica Green-Brazier, Customer Service Officer, Retail and Business Banking from St Maarten.
Christopher McFarlane’s star shone extra brightly on the night as he received the prestigious CEO’s Award of Distinction for his tireless and strategic leadership and innovation on the XG teams responsible for the development and roll-out of the bank’s online lending app The Loan Store which offers, credit cards, auto and consumer loans “from hello to funded in under 10 minutes”.
The FirstStars and their partners were hosted at Sandals Royal during their time in Barbados, they also toured the bank’s Regional Head Office in Warrens where they received a red-carpet welcome. They also toured the Chickmont Group of Companies, which includes Chickmont Foods and Sea Breeze Hotel as well as engaged in a number of recreational activities across the island ahead of the awards ceremony.