S U N D AY S U N S P E C I A L | M AY 2 9 , 2 0 11 | 1 3
1 2 | S U N D AY S U N S P E C I A L | M AY 2 9 , 2 0 11
RBC ROYAL BANK has always been service oriented, and seeks, at all times, to build strong relationships with clients. In addition, says Martica Rocheford, manager of RBC’s main branch at Broad Street, RBC embraces each customer, with a view to understanding and meeting their needs. She also describes RBC as an excellent employer, and takes note of the bank’s commitment to helping employees develop their careers and personal lives. “RBC is an excellent employer, not only from the perspective of their clients. As employees we can translate what we learn in banking to our everyday lives. “The bank operates with proper structure, systems and standards, and over the years, we have developed and enhanced our overall way of relating to staff and clients. We have also enhanced our way of doing business while still maintaining the personal touch with our clients,” Rocheford discloses. A banker for over 37 years, Rocheford has held several posts since joining RBC in 1974. She has worked as a foreign exchange collections and deposits clerk L/C officer; customer care officer; assistant manager, Customer Service; manager, Customer Service and
MARTICA ROCHEFORD.
(RC)
Operations; and manager, Private Banking. She previously juggled the posts of manager, of the main branch, with that of manager, Private Banking. Rocheford manages a sales team that looks after all lending services – including mortgages and personal loans. She is also responsible for the Currency Services team which provides currency services to all RBC branches, and for the main branch’s customer care services. Educated at Alexandra School and the Barbados Community College, Rocheford believes that technology has had a major impact since her entry into banking. “As we progressed technology became more encompassing, and there have been many enhancements to technology over the years. This, however, has not lessened our work load or resulted in decreased employment. New technology still needs to be managed and assessed by individuals.
THE UNIVERSITY OF THE WEST INDIES CAVE HILL CAMPUS
Congratulations
100th
Anniversary
RBC and UWI Partners in the Arts
IN JUNE 1970, a young man walked into RBC Royal Bank in Dominica to embark on a career in banking. Forty-one years later, Adrien Jones is still a member of the RBC family, and holds the post of branch manager at RBC Royal Bank (Barbados) Limited, Sunset Crest. His first post was that of a clerk in the Foreign Exchange Department where he stayed for six months, before being promoted to a teller. He remained with the Dominica branch until July 1978, when he moved to Barbados to assume the post of teller. Jones has worked in most of the bank’s departments and at all the branches, with the exception of the St Lawrence branch. In 2003, he was appointed branch manager at Sunset Crest. Jones supervises and coaches a team of
BRANCH MANAGEMENT TEAM. Standing (from left): Wendy Downes (RBC); Simone Lambert (RBTT); Sherrol Green (RBC); Debbie Jones-Wilson (RBTT): Jennifer Clarke (RBC); Allison Lynch, (senior relief officer); Peggy Gittens (RBC); and Pamela King (RBC). SEATED: Vice President, Personal Banking Keith Balcon (left), and Adrien Jones (RBC). Picture by Rawle Culbard
BRANCH MANAGER of RBC Royal Bank, Chelston Park, Peggy Gittens, has been a faithful employee of RBC for the past 34 years. She was appointed to her current post in 2008, and manages a team of 17; seven of whom report directly to her. When Gittens entered banking in 1974, it was her intention to spend a year in this field, complete studies in interior decorating, and fulfil her dream of becoming an interior decorator. However, her love for banking grew. Gittens has held numerous posts over the years at various branches and units. These include: Teller at RBC’s Hincks and Niles Streets branch; machine operator in the Data Processing Centre; deposits clerk at RBC’s main branch; customer service officer, at RBC’s Black Rock branch; assistant manager, Card Centre; branch manager (St Lawrence and Sunset Crest branches); and account manager in the Personal Lending and Commercial Lending units. As branch manager, Gittens, who was educated at St Michael’s and Combermere Schools, oversees the branch’s entire operations: guides, coaches, leads and sees after the training of all staff. She holds a BSc in financial services from Nipissing University in Canada, and has also completed studies at the Institute of Canadian Bankers.
AFTER getting her feet wet for a short while in the teaching profession, Pamela King turned to banking as a career choice, and has never regretted this move. King joined RBC Royal Bank 32 years ago as a teller at the bank’s main office in Bridgetown, and has worked her way up the ladder over the years. She has held the posts of teller trainer; realisation officer in the Risk Department, and lending officer. Prior to taking her up her current position of manager at RBC’s Hastings, Christ Church branch in March, last year, she held the designation of manager, personal financial service at RBC’s University branch. A graduate of St Leonard’s Girls’ School and the Canadian Institute of Bankers, King manages a team of 18, and is supported by Paul Edwards, client care manager.
AS A TEENAGER figures and finances fascinated Sherrol Green; yet a career in banking was far from her thoughts. Today, she holds the post of branch manager at RBC Royal Bank (Barbados Limited) St Lawrence Gap. Green’s introduction to banking over 29 years ago was as a teller at RBC’s main branch in Bridgetown. Since then, she has worked at RBC’s Speightstown and Sunset Crest branches. She has been a loans teller, loans clerk, senior customer service representative, personal financial services officer and a statistical clerk in the Audit Department. Green joined the St Lawrence branch three years ago as manager, Personal Financial Services, in charge of the St Lawrence
She is responsible for the day-to-day operations at the branch, including all financial and operational services. Like most of her colleagues, King appreciates new banking technology. She notes: “The introduction to new information technology stands out when I think of banking today when compared to the banking industry years ago. We’ve come a long way, particularly with the introduction of Automated Banking Machines (ATM’s), which have made banking easier and faster for our clients. “We also have a more knowledgeable client, who is more aware of our products,” she adds. A subject matter expert in personal lending, King assists with the training of young lenders at RBC Royal Bank and RBTT.
Gap Lending Centre. She was elevated to her current post in May, last year. Among her responsibilities, she manages a team of nine; performs sales duties as they relate to securing mortgages; consumer loans and credit cards. She also makes marketing visits to various business houses and coaches staff. Recognising and rewarding staff are also high on Green’s agenda. She has embraced new technology in banking, believes that it has sped up the process of doing business significantly, while placing key information within arm’s reach. Green is a graduate of Alexandra School, the Institute of Canadian Bankers, and the Barbados Community College.
THERE IS nothing that Jennifer Clarke delights in more, than ensuring that all clients of RBC Royal Bank are happy with the service they receive each time they visit RBC Royal Bank (Barbdos) Limited, University Drive. As manager of this branch, Clarke oversees its entire operations. This former Ellerslie Secondary School student entered banking 17 years ago as a sorter (working nights only) sorting vouchers, withdrawal and deposit slips, at RBC’s main
HEADING THE TEAM of ten at the RBC Royal Bank (Barbados) Limited’s Speightstown branch is Wendy Downes. Downes holds the post of branch manager, and has worked with RBC for the past 34 years. On joining RBC Royal Bank, she was first located at the main office in Bridgetown, where she worked in the Audit Department. In 2007, she joined the Speightstown branch as manager, Personal Financial Services. Prior to this, she worked as a senior relief officer and personal banker, and was previously attached to Hastings and Chelston Park branches. Downes gains much satisfaction from coaching her team as part of her bid to ensure they reach their various targets. She also gets involved in lending – whether it’s for personal loans, VISA Cards or mortgages. In short, she helps to sell the bank’s services. Educated at Queen’s College, Downes is quick to admit that she entered banking by chance. “I entered banking at a time when it was seen as the career of choice, upon leaving school. Today, I am happy where I am and have made some great friends and colleagues through the years,” she states.
12, and is the senior loans officer at the branch. Educated in Dominica and the Barbados Institute of Management and Productivity, (BIMAP), Jones says the most significant change in banking over the years – apart from the up to date technology, is the fierce competition which is taking place right now. “This has changed the complexion of banking in Barbados. We have to do things differently to achieve results. “Banks now put more effort in training its staff in customer service and sales, and managers no longer sit in their offices waiting for the client to come through the doors. We have to go out to get the business. We have to be in constant contact with our clients to update them about our new products and services, and be knowledgeable about their needs,” he says.
branch, Bridgetown. Prior to her promotion to the post of branch manager just over a year ago, she worked in the bank’s Central Checking Unit as a file clerk. She was also a loans administration clerk, loans officer and relief loans officer. Clarke, who always possessed dreams of being a banker, seeks to put the customer first, at all times. She holds an associate degree in banking from the Institute of Canadian Bankers.