Student Job Shadows CIBC Firstcaribbean Manager
All across the region eager young women filed into the branches and offices of regional bank CIBC Firstcaribbean to “fill” a variety of positions for the day on Friday March 8. The “job shadow” was one of the bank’s key activities across its 16-member regional footprint to mark International Women’s Day observed around the world on that date. It saw scores of female students from secondary and tertiary institutions joining meetings with senior managers and executives or going on the frontlines with retail staff as they got a feel for the various roles performed by the bank’s 3000 employees, seventy per cent of whom are women. At the bank’s New Kingston Headquarters, Annike Dawkins, Senior Credit Manager Corporate, welcomed her “assistant” for the day Sheri-lee Smith, final year Banking student at the University of the West Indies, Mona. Ms. Smith, who is also the Banking League assistant Secretary, shadowed Ms. Dawkins, observing corporate processes and learning about how the bank closes on “big deals”. She was introduced to the three main aspects of corporate investment banking including Business Development (Corporate Services), Risk Management (Credit Services) and Support (Client Services). Ms. Smith was taken through the paces of end to end credit processes including new loans – application processing and underwriting and also met Managing Director, Nigel Holness and Head of Corporate Banking, Douglas Cupidon.