GRAND CAYMAN (GIS) – Over a hundred supervisors and managers have completed a leadership programme delivered by City & Guilds of London through the Civil Service College (CSC).

The programme which ended in September, and is an integral part of the Civil Service’s  Five-Year Strategic Plan, culminated in a recognition event on Thursday (21 November 2019), where a total of 115 managers received their certificates for the ILM Level 3 award in Leadership and Management.

In instigating the plan, the Civil Service has set an ambitious target of ensuring every manager and leader within the service can develop these skills and be assessed against this international standard. This training is provided as part of the CSC’s Leadership Academy.

Speaking at the awards event, His Excellency the Acting Governor, Franz Manderson said: “Being a World-Class Civil Service depends upon us hiring, promoting and continuously training world-class employees. Investing in those who provide leadership and management is a key step in our overall strategic plan to develop our employees.”

The leadership development target is that anyone who supervises at least one person, will complete the ILM Level 3 Award. Since the launch of the Five-year Strategic Plan, this is the first cohort comprised exclusively of supervisors and managers to graduate from the course.

“I recognise that this has been an intensive programme of study but I am confident that it will help us to deliver outstanding services to the people of the Cayman Islands,” said Mr. Manderson.  He added, “Through this programme, we are making sure that those who are entrusted to lead and manage our most precious resource, namely our employees, have the necessary skills and the progressive mind set to do so. The programme also gives them access to other leaders, so that they can encourage each other on their leadership journey.”

Also present at the ceremony was the Portfolio of the Civil Service (PoCS) Chief Officer, Mrs. Gloria McField-Nixon. PoCS manages the Civil Service College (CSC), which is an approved centre for delivering the ILM City & Guilds programme. The ILM modules have been selected to align with the goals contained within the 5-Year Strategic Plan.

One of the awardees, Corrections Officer Austin Williams, said: “[The ILM] assessment process ensured that we understood the theory and that the skills learnt can be effectively applied in the workplace.”

“It has already made quite a difference in how I am now able to engage and strategise when leading and managing colleagues and prison employees. It took a lot of commitment to take it on, on top of my regular work duties, but I’m glad I did and can definitely recommend it to others,” Mr. Williams concluded.