Any event that directly benefits more than 600 students and several hundred more people looking for employment or a change or career has got to be worth doing. The Careers, Education, Training & Jobs Expo held its 13th Expo this year on 4 February at the Family Life Centre. There was a superb lineup of some of the best respected local businesses, educational institutions and government departments. Each booth was packed full of information on the particular business/organisation as well as available jobs, scholarship information, training opportunities and general background on each. SteppingStones Recruitment gave away an iPad and KPMG had free movie passes for winning attendees!

The exhibiting sponsors provided a wealth of information on entering their particular business or industry. There were also plenty of giveaways for people attending including bags, pens, water bottles, key chains, and towels. The booths were manned by employees of each business/organisation who did an excellent job of welcoming everyone to the Expo. The Chamber is pleased to have received many compliments on how well presented and informative each exhibitor was.

The event was opened on Friday morning by Education Minister Rolston Anglin and Chamber President Elect David Kirkaldy. Mr. Kirkaldy talked about the need to change our mindset regarding education:

“Education is no longer just about going to school and then on to college or university. Education is a way of life and a state of mind. We need to think of education as something we continue through our life - not just as a stepping stone to a career. With technology advancing at its current rate many of the skills we learnt whilst at school or university will soon be surpassed by new practices and information. If we don’t continue to retrain we will struggle as a society to fill the necessary positions available to us that will sustain our economy and our way of life.” Mr. Kirkaldy stressed that the Chamber will continue to champion the benefits of education, training and career advancement.

Anglin agreed with the sentiment expressed by Mr. Kirkaldy and remarked that, “The public and private sectors have to coordinate their efforts to help get young people into work or in training and further education.” He also commented that there was a need to ensure that the government was not using public money for programmes that could be better delivered by the private sector and that organisations were not doubling up on efforts creating confusion for job seekers and young people looking for scholarships and training opportunities. With the unemployment rate among Caymanians at 10 per cent, he said he hoped that forthcoming legislation and changes in the ministry would bear fruit before the next Careers Expo in 2012.

Friday morning from 10am – 2pm was set aside especially for visiting students. This gave exhibitors the time to focus on their particular needs and spend time with the young people as they answered their questions and explained the best ways to enter the job market, and the scholarship and training opportunities available to them. This was a very successful exercise in educating young people about the various career paths open to them.

In addition to the many exhibiting businesses free workshops were provided on How to Develop a Dynamic Art Portfolio, Professional Image, First day at Work, Resume Writing, Interview Techniques, Workplace Skills and Career Change. The sponsors and facilitators for the workshops were SteppingStones, Catherine Tyson and Savannah College of Art and Design. These were held throughout the day and were well attended by all age groups and abilities.

The Chamber of Commerce has a Jobs section on its website where members can advertise openings for free. It also offers an extensive range of courses at its Professional Development & Training Centre throughout the year. Students can also benefit from the Chamber’s Mentoring Cayman programme and the Junior Achievement Programme. The Chamber is also launching the new www.showmethemoney.ky website, which will replace the Chamber’s previous Financial Assistance, Training & Scholarship Guide that was last compiled in 2008. It has over 60 registered scholarships, which will be promoted through this online guide.

All businesses, government departments or educational institutions that provide any type of scholarship, training or educational assistance will be represented on this website making it the most comprehensive resource for students in the Cayman Islands.

Major Sponsors of the event were:
SteppingStones, CML Offshore Recruitment and Massive, Equipment, Rental & Sales. PwC sponsored the reception.

Exhibiting sponsors who were offering scholarships:
PwC, The University
of Tampa, KMPG, Maples & Calder, Johnson & Wales University, Rotary Club of Grand Cayman Central, Insurance Managers Association of Cayman, Cayman Islands Society of Human Resources Professionals, Cayman Pharmacy Group and Cayman Islands Department of Tourism.

Exhibiting sponsors who were offering training:
Island Companies Ltd. (exclusively for Caymanians free training as a goldsmith/jeweller, a professional jewellery sales person or someone specialising in graphic art/merchandising), Walkers (secretarial training programme) and the Chamber of Commerce (professional development & training centre).

Exhibiting sponsors who were offering education:
University College of the Cayman Islands, International College of the Cayman Islands, University of Tampa, Savannah College of Art & Design, University of the West Indies and Johnson and Wales University.

Exhibiting sponsors who were offering jobs:
Walkers, Cayman Contractors Association, Island Companies, SteppingStones, CML Recruitment Ltd., The Ritz-Carlton Grand Cayman, Portfolio of the Civil Service and Cayman Pharmacy Group.