CIBC Caribbean ploughing US$30m into Jamaica operation
Published:Sunday | May 26, 2024 | 12:06 AM
CIBC Caribbean will close its Bahamas call centre and relocate the one in Jamaica to Kingston amid plans to reshape all its call centre operations into a “digital branch”.
The banking group also reported on Friday that it will be deploying another US$25 million ($3.86 billion) of capital through its Jamaican operation, additional to the US$5 million already injected in January.
“This capital injection will help to support our efforts to help our clients make their ambitions become reality by supporting their plans for the future,” CIBC Caribbean CEO Mark St Hill said in a company release.
The bank is on a drive to grow its business in Jamaica, generally, as well as in the digital realm. The local bank has ramped up its activities on social media and is advertising more amid a regional rebranding that has brought an end to the FirstCaribbean name in favour of a more pristine alignment with the identity of the group’s Canadian parent company.
Alongside its market positioning, the local bank has also increased its community engagement, which includes outreach to schools to “promote cybersecurity awareness, financial literacy, and a general understanding of how banking and finance works,” said CIBC Jamaica Managing Director Nigel Holness.
Currently, CIBC Caribbean operates call centres in The Bahamas, Barbados, and Montego Bay, Jamaica.
“... We are converting our call centres into true contact centres. In essence, we are reimagining our call centres into a digital branch,” stated Hill in a separate press release announcing the change.
Amid the changes, the bank intends to retain its full-time staff but will also facilitate retirement or transition to other departments.
“The current call centre in Barbados remains,” said Esan Peters, CIBC Caribbean’s chief information officer whose remit includes call centres. “The plan makes it necessary to close the bank’s contact centre in The Bahamas and relocate the contact centre currently located in Montego Bay, Jamaica to the Kingston area.”
CIBC Caribbean, formerly CIBC FirstCaribbean International Bank, is headquartered in Barbados. The regional bank is owned by the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, otherwise referred to as CIBC Group.
The regional operation spans 12 markets with a workforce of around 2,700, and assets estimated at US$13 billion. Its Jamaican bank holds $14.5 billion in capital or 5.0 per cent of the $290 billion in capital spread across all commercial banks.
The new call centre facility in Kingston, Jamaica, will create new job opportunities for some of its employees, the bank said.
A reorganisation does not always have to result in “displaced and unhappy employees,” it stated. Its human resources officer, Janine Billy, held meetings with staff, unions, and others, aimed at finding the “best” solutions for each employee.
“In Jamaica, for example, we will consider employees who wish to exercise their option to move to Kingston, and we are facilitating introductions to other call centres in the Montego Bay area for those who don’t,” Billy said.
The changes are due to take effect in June.