J Wray & Nephew, a subsidiary of Italy-based beverage company Gruppo Campari, on Friday started implementation of The Campari Way of People Management, the latest in three leadership development programmes at the spirit manufacturer.

The programme, which was launched at its Dominica Drive corporate office in New Kingston two Thursdays ago, intends to empower employees holding executive and managerial positions within the company’s hierarchy. It will run until March 8 next year.

“Our aim is to develop them into leaders who inspire through action and through the embodiment of the company’s values,” said Director of Human Resource Venton Brown, who described the programme as the dawn of a new era in people development at J Wray & Nephew.

He explained that The Campari way of People Management was first introduced in Italy in 2011 and was delivered by the global consulting group Red Thread, the same group that will deliver the programme here. It’s a means to ensuring that the programme content remains consistent and in line with the group of company’s values, he said.

“This emphasises the value of the Jamaican talent bench to Gruppo Campari,” added Brown.

The other two leadership programmes at the spirits manufacturer, which produces the signature Wray & Nephew White Overproof, Appleton, Coruba and Sangster’s brands, are Foundation leadership skills and transformational leadership.

Special guest at the launch Dr Horace Chang lauded J Wray & Nephew for “continuous support in building Jamaica through investments and employee empowerment”, and encouraged Managing Director Jean-Phillipe Beyer to continue investing in Jamaica’s beverage sector through parent company Gruppo Campari, so that they remain the nation’s premier manufacturer and distributor of spirits.

“I want to commend J Wray & Nephew for this initiative because investing in your employees is the first step in creating and maintaining sustainability. This is a signal methodology for making a positive contribution to the country’s economy with your investment, leadership training and development.”

Special guest speaker and CEO of the Private Sector Organization of Jamaica Dennis Chung had similar views.

“Too many times leaders don’t think about those who are placed under their guidance, so with this initiative put in place to empower the employees of J Wray & Nephew, I must commend the organisation for this brilliant programme,” he said.

For his part, Beyer highlighted the importance of building strong lifestyle brands and people with passion, an initiative which forms an integral part of J Wray & Nephew’s intra-organisational mission statement.

“People and brands are the two main pillars of our business here at Gruppo Campari. We all know that people’s behaviour and motivation, as well technical skills are key conditions for success. Gruppo Campari recognises the importance of attracting and retaining talent, as well as training our employees at all levels of the organisation because it makes good business sense,” he said.

“Simply put, we realise that improving performance management means improving productivity, and increased productivity means higher salaries, more investments and ultimately economic growth for Jamaica,” Beyer added.

Sanjay Bowla, a graduate of the pilot run of the leadership programme, described it as an interactive experience based on the four Campari Way Pillars — to Enable, to Envision, to Energise and To Empower.

“Our sessions usually lasted eight hours and ran from 8:00 in the morning until 4:00 or 5:00 in the afternoon. It was extremely interactive and it wasn’t just a session where the trainers would show you what you should be doing, but they also required participants to demonstrate it in real-life scenarios. That made it easier for us to apply it in our everyday business life; this was a fundamental factor which made it different from all the leadership programmes I’ve been on. It was more interactive and involved a lot more role play. My trainers were specialists in the field who were from the Gruppo Campari headquarters in Italy, and they did a great job coaching us and even went as far as hosting online sessions with us to ensure that we were applying the skills appropriately,” he revealed.

Upon completion of the programme in March, Beyer’s vision is for the parrticipating Camparistas — as all employees of Gruppo Campari are called — to be “equipped to meet the multicultural and managerial challenges which are inherent in a rapidly changing global company like ours”.

“We are so confident about the quality of this leadership training that we are convinced that it will be used as a feather in the cap of any employee and a great addition to any CV,” he added.

Over 100 Wray & Nephew employees are expected to participate in the programme over the next two years.