As a financial institution, we have sought to not only understand but to deliver on key tenets of what true economic growth entails. That search for insights has revealed that entities such as Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) are inextricably connected to the economic development of any country and should be encouraged and supported in their efforts to build sustainable businesses. Consequently, at the National Commercial Bank Jamaica Limited (NCB), we have and continue to discover, craft and implement strategies geared to fostering growth in this sector.

An important part of our drive for holistic success of SMEs, was the second staging of our hit reality TV series, NCB Capital Quest; which aligns with our business strategy to increase access to financing for our SMEs. Through this televised competition SMEs were provided with practical business and management training and insights to help prepare their business to access various forms of financing, especially equity financing. Of significant note is the fact that this business intervention also provided pertinent developmental and operational solutions that can be applied to support the growth strategies of almost any business. This represents just another example of NCB’s commitment to support the growth of SMEs at the national level.

NCB understands that SMEs have unique business needs that must be addressed and as such has deployed 52 Business Bankers island-wide for this specific purpose. The NCB SME framework, the first service model of its kind in Jamaica reinforces the efforts of our Business Bankers as they provide creative and yet practical funding solutions to Jamaica’s diverse and dynamic SMEs. In conjunction, we created the Nation Builder Awards, which is currently in its ninth year, to highlight and reward SMEs on their astute business performance as well as their contributions to community development. Additionally, in collaboration with HEART Trust/NTA and ActionCoach, we have facilitated capacity building, training and certification of SME business personnel to further strengthen their business and help them achieve their business objectives.

NCB believes that in order to remain relevant to the needs of this sector and to continue the development of sector-specific products and services, as we have done over the past 12 years, our efforts must be guided by SME-specific research. Our most recent involvement in this regard is the sponsorship of the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) research. The GEM report indicated that even though the levels of entrepreneurship vary in Jamaica from year to year, young adults contribute the larger share of entrepreneurial activity. With this in mind we at NCB are focused on how to better serve this emerging business segments that is essentially driven by young entrepreneurs and this was one of the underlining factors behind our decision to introduce in our 2015 Nation Builder Awards programme a “Young Entrepreneur” category. Additionally, NCB stands ready to support the positive trajectory of Jamaica’s Total Entrepreneurial Activities (TEA).

Therefore, as we continue to champion the cause of our SMEs as partners in the effort to fortify brand Jamaica, we will continue to work with this special group of unsung heroes who are re-imagining and reshaping the Jamaican business landscape.

Audrey Tugwell Henry

Senior General Manager, Retail Banking Division