Scotiabank and Baraud took Top Employer honors at the annual Cayman Islands Society of Human Resources Professionals Awards Gala at the Grand Cayman Marriott Beach Resort on Saturday.
It was the third time Scotiabank has received the top award for the large employer category. Recruitment and personnel specialists Baraud earned the top spot for a small/medium-sized business for the first time; the company came in second last year.
The Top Employer awards, now in their sixth year, honor the best places to work in the Cayman Islands. Organizations are encouraged to submit applications, and then their employees are quizzed over what it’s really like to work at the company. Only those organizations that get a high score from the judges – all independent human resources professionals based overseas – earn the right to call themselves a Top Employer.
Five other entities were also named Top Employers in the large organization category. Last year’s winner, the Marriott Beach Resort, came in second for 2015, with KPMG third, dms fourth, Conyers, Dill & Pearman were awarded fifth place and Elian, sixth. In the small/medium organization category, CML Offshore Recruitment was second, BDO came third, the Ministry of Home Affairs was fourth and the National Gallery of the Cayman Islands, fifth. Recipients in both categories received a trophy in addition to the right to call themselves a Top Employer.
This year, the President of the society introduced a new award called CAHRE Awards (CISHRP Awards for Human Resources Excellence) in order to honor companies and individuals in the human resources industry, splitting these awards into five categories. The CAHRE Awards involve formal assessment by independent experts across five priority areas, Learning and Development, Talent Management, Benefits and rewards, HR operational excellence and Responsible Business. The CAHRE Awards promote best HR practices and directly demonstrate how effective HR can contribute to the success of their organisations. It also showcases the remarkable work of our HR professionals on island, demonstrating best practice in improving the quality of work and employee engagement.
The Best Training Program award went to the National Gallery; the Best Community and Corporate Responsibility Initiative went to KPMG; dms was awarded for Best Wellness Program; and Walkers took the top spot for Excellence in Talent Management and Retention. Talent Specialist with dms, Janelle Muttoo, won the HR Young Talent of the Year award and was particularly praised for her leadership skills.
In addition to the excitement of the award presentations, the audience enjoyed an uplifting keynote address from Darrell “Coach D” Andrews, an internationally acclaimed motivational strategist, speaker, accountability coach and author. He presented some items from his soon-to-be-released book, “Teamwork that Makes the Dreamwork (The Power of Organizational Core Values).”
