The Deputy Governor has named Economic and Statistics Office (ESO) Senior Statistician, Mr. Selburn Christian, Cayman Islands Government’s Employee of the Month for January 2013.

Mr. Christian, who heads ESO’s System of National Accounts (SNA) unit, distinguished himself by scoring a perfect grade of “excellent” in all the selection criteria that determine which civil servant will receive the honour each month.

His superiors laud his performance, including his recent leadership of the busy, pioneering SNA unit. They note that he has outdone himself in his efforts to improve the unit’s protocols that ensure comprehensive data collection.

Described as “extremely efficient”, Mr. Christian consistently works extra hours without overtime pay. In 2012, he logged extra working hours for 36 out of 52 weeks.

Deputy Governor Hon. Franz Manderson, Cert. Hon. JP, says Mr Christian exemplifies the kind of trained and industrious civil servant who is a credit to the public sector. “His exceptional proficiency, high calibre of work, and above all, his exemplary professionalism have earned him this recognition,” the Deputy Governor says.

He notes thatMr. Selburn’s superlative work ethic also extends to playing a role in capacity building and succession planning. Since August 2012, he has been providing training to a Caymanian ESO staff member with no previous experience in SNA work, who has since become an active member of the survey team.

Deputy Financial Secretary and Chief Officer for Public Finance, Mrs. Sonia McLaughlin, Cert. Hon., JP, who selected Mr. Christian as the Chief Officer’s Employee of the Month for January 2013, commends him for a job done well. “Mr. Christian’s achievements and efforts are worthy of emulation,” the Chief Officer comments.

Praising his drive and commitment to the job, ESO Director Maria Zingapan says: “He consistently, diligently and robustly carries out the ESO’s mission, which is to support evidence-based decision making by providing accurate, timely and user-friendly information that is relevant to local needs and compliant with international standards.”

The director also notes that Mr. Christian works uncompromisingly to meet statutory deadlines, and to achieve international standards of production with regards to the economic estimates contained in the SNA.

In addition, he is highly self-motivated and resourceful, qualities that are amply demonstrated in the efficient collection methodology that he developed for the government sector. Instead of requiring the various departments and ministries to fill in separate SNA survey forms, he learned how to download the necessary data directly from the government IRIS system and processed these into SNA statistics.

His creative approach resulted in a more efficient process for the SNA unit but also for the government units that otherwise would have to submit the lengthy survey forms on a regular basis.

Commenting on the honour, Mr. Christian said, “I am elated, appreciative and humbled to have received this award. It is always a good feeling to be recognised for your contributions as it augments the motivation and drive to keep fighting. I always try to give of my best as that is who I am, so to be acknowledged for being “Most Professionally Excellent” is indeed an honour for me.  As a national accounts statistician, the job can get overwhelming at times, so it rewarding to know that you are appreciated and celebrated for what you do and how you do it. As we say in Jamaica, encouragement sweetens labour.

“I want to give thanks to our Lord and Saviour for blessing me with this opportunity to serve. I thank my Director for nominating me and the other members of the Economics and Statistics Office family for their continued support.”

The Deputy Governor makes his choice for Employee of the Month from among those named by their respective Chief Officers as top employees for that month. 

Photo caption: Photo by Bina Mani

Deputy Governor Hon. Franz Manderson, Cert. Hon., JP, (second from right) presents the Employee of the Month award for January 2013 to Economics and Statistics Office Senior Statistician, Mr. Selburn Christian. Also seen are Financial Secretary, Mr. Kenneth Jefferson, JP (left) and Deputy Financial Secretary and Chief Officer, Mrs. Sonia McLaughlin, Cert. Hon., JP.