Businesses must invest in Bahamians, strategist says

Wed, Aug 10th 2011, 09:58 AM

Local businesses are falling short of the 5 percent standard spend for training and development - a crucial factor that is contributing to unemployment, according to a veteran human resources strategist.  Michelle Patterson, currently a director of the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employer's Confederation (BCCEC), told Guardian Business that companies failing to invest in their workers are only paying "lip-service" to developing Bahamian human capital.

Importing skilled employees, or outsourcing work that require highly skilled individuals, is often more costly than making the local investment, she said.  "Financially it's much more advantageous, effective and efficient to hire as many Bahamians as you can in these jobs," Patterson said.

"The return on investment for hiring and developing Bahamians is huge, but the question is are you willing to sacrifice the short-term pain for the long-term gain?"  The "pain" in the short term comes in because most businesses perceive training as a cost as opposed to an investment, according to Patterson.  The returns on training and development are "soft"- meaning, in many cases, it is difficult to attach a dollar value to the benefits to the company.

The practice of outsourcing may be more common in The Bahamas than many believe.
Colina Insurance Limited recently announced that most insurance companies in The Bahamas are outsourcing their actuarial and underwriting functions to North American head offices.
Colina has distanced itself from that trend, announcing international qualifications recently attained by two of its employees - Leah Major, who earned the Associate of the Society of Actuaries designation, and Todney Marsh, who gained the Associate of the Academy of Life Underwriters designation.

There are many Bahamians now who are well qualified and still without work, according to Patterson.  Al Jarrett, a retired senior banker, agrees with that sentiment.  Jarrett, who has held many top-level banking and other senior positions in the country,  said out-sourcing is not the only problem. Many highly qualified Bahamians were also abroad and would not return to The Bahamas because of a lack of suitable jobs and deficient opportunities for international training and exposure.

Patterson shared a similar view, saying many qualified Bahamians preferred to test the rough employment seas in the US than to brave them here.  Jarrett laid the blame squarely at the feet the government and specifically its immigration policy - calling their recent efforts to carve-out and secure high-level employment and training opportunities for Bahamians "laxed".
"People are sitting on jobs here that they've been in for over ten years, while Bahamians have grown-up who are able to do those jobs and want to do them," Jarrett said.

He suggested more innovative approaches need to be implemented to provide avenues for upward mobility to the many Bahamians stuck in mid-level management positions.  However, the $25 million national job and skills training initiative, designed to prepare Bahamians for entry into the labor market or enhance their existing skills, is a good start, he said.  Some 3,000 of the 38,000 unemployed persons in the country  will benefit directly from the job and skills training initiative.

But Jarrett says more benefit may have come from applying those training resources differently.  "Imagine what that $25 million could have done if it was applied at the top," Jarrett said.  In the hotel and financial services sectors, he believes the thinking needs to move towards ensuring that international businesses with operations in The Bahamas must incorporate Bahamians into their international operations to give them invaluable global exposure and training.  He suggested some form of subsidization from the government could be offered to sweeten the deal for participating corporate citizens.

Patterson also championed the value of building exchange programs for Bahamians to get critical international exposure.  She said international businesses may need some convincing, however, as some may not want to take Bahamians into their international operations for whatever reason.

"You have to be prepared to say to head office: 'hey, if you're going to operate in The Bahamas that's a part of the deal'," Patterson said. They are conditions that need to be set-up at the outset of the relationship, Patterson added, saying it would be hard to introduce such rules "down the road".

To have its greatest impact on unemployment, Patterson said enhanced training and development must be geared toward equipping the labor force to fill existing and future skill gaps.  She said a comprehensive national survey is needed. Although it would be costly, it would be critical to ascertaining where training efforts need to be focused.

Jarrett: Bankers need international exposure to fill top jobs Bahamians are not being properly trained as international bankers - a situation retired senior banker Al Jarrett said is detrimental to both the sector and its workers.  Industry's professionals may get training opportunities in Trinidad or Barbados, where some commercial banks now have regional headquarters, but Jarrett said that is really "third-tie"' training compared to the international exposure Bahamians once had.  The current training will only create local bankers, he said, but competition at the international level requires a higher level of expertise.

"If you have a banker with global experience, it increases your possibility of being a global player, not just a domestic player," Jarrett said.  During the 60s and 70s, Jarrett said he could choose where he trained, and he was able to receive international exposure in Canada, Switzerland and the US.   Jarrett has held top positions and the Royal Bank of Canada and the Finance Corporation of The Bahamas, and he is a former chairman of the Bank of The Bahamas.

He said Bahamians could occupy all commercial banking positions in the country, but sadly,  that is still not happening today -- citing a leading local commercial bank as an example.  Jarrett used the Bank of The Bahamas as an example of what commercial banks could look like, with Bahamians at the top throughout the organization.   Policy should require multi-national financial institutions to allow for Bahamians to get top-level training in the home domicile of the financial institution, according to Jarrett.  He said those trained Bahamians could eventually be rotated into local senior positions as they became available.

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