On May 23rd, the Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Cayman (LC) group had the opportunity to discuss topics relating to Cayman Islands tourism with some of Cayman’s leaders in both the public and private sectors. Invited speakers for the evening were Jackie Doak, COO and Director, Dart Realty (Cayman) Ltd., Harry Lalli, CITA President and Business person, Shomari Scott, Acting Director of Tourism, DOT, and Gene Thompson, Director Thompson Development Ltd.

This seminar was coordinated by LC class members David Bailey of RBC Wealth Management and Jenni Huys of Dart Management Services Ltd. These members were mentored by past LC graduate, Jane van der Bol, who is also currently Executive Director of the Cayman Islands Tourism Association (CITA).

The main objective of this seminar was to provide an overview of the tourism sector of the Cayman Islands economy demonstrating the importance of this sector and the challenges and opportunities this sector faces. Whilst CITA shared ideas as they relate to the role of the private sector in offering an enhanced product,  the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism provided information on the public sector approach as well as the impacts of social media. Dart shared their ideas on developing the tourism product and CITA disclosed opportunities in medical tourism and how it may affect the Islands.

“Thanks for the opportunity to participate in the Leadership Cayman program with the future business leaders of the Cayman Islands. I found the experience stimulating and was very impressed by the level of thought and focus of your group. This group has taken the time to be involved with the Leadership Cayman program and by that commitment shows their determination to be future leaders of our country”. Gene Thompson – Director Thompson Development Ltd.

Jenni Huys, one of the organisers of this seminar, had this to say “I am honoured to be a part of the 2012 Leadership Cayman program and to be able to interact with such high caliber leaders in the Cayman Islands tourism industry. Jackie, Harry, Shomari and Gene have provided me with a broad understanding of the major challenges and opportunities impacting tourism in the Cayman Islands all within a three-hour seminar. The Leadership Cayman programme continues to enhance my sense of belonging to the Cayman community and has provided me with a network of leaders both within government and the private sector.”

Jane van der Bol, mentor and planning committee member added “As a 2011 Leadership Cayman participant, it was an honour for me to be a planning committee representative for this year’s Stayover and Cruise Tourism seminar. It is always inspiring to sit the same room with leaders like Shomari Scott, Harry Lalli, Jackie Doak and Gene Thompson, all leaders in our country and our industry. The knowledge and experience shared by such a dynamic group of people is both encouraging and exciting as Cayman grows its tourism product.”

As part of the programme, the group had scheduled a cruise ship tour on board Carnival Cruise Lines but unfortunately due to the inclement weather, the tour had to be cancelled. That same day however, the Ritz-Carlton provided a ‘back of house’ tour of the facilities with an introduction by Mark Langevin, General Manager of the resort. This tour included visiting the Residences on the seventh floor and a review of the kitchens and explanation of operations from the Head Chef.

Seminar sponsors included the Westin Casuarina Resort & Spa, Cayman Luxury Charters, RBC Wealth Management and the Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman.

Leadership Cayman (LC) is a dynamic, intensive, interactive, six-month experience designed to promote and enhance community leadership through an in-depth introduction to social, economic, business and political issues in the Cayman Islands. LC class members interact with diverse, high-level community leaders and decision-makers by organising and attending a series of seminars and retreats in fields ranging from business, government, education, media, social services, criminal justice, diversity, the arts, finance and more. Through these interactions, members learn about their personal leadership styles, nourish their community spirit and gain invaluable understanding of how our community works.

For more information on how you may become part of the next graduating class for 2013, email [email protected]