Becoming Company of the Year (JA Europe)

Executive director of Junior Achievement Jamaica Callia Smith-Harriott (left) smiles proudly as Vice-Chairman and CEO of Pan Jamaica Group Jeffrey Hall congratulates little leader and CEO for the day Johanna Kennedy from St Patrick’s Primary School during the presentation of certificates. 

TEN budding leaders from St Patrick’s Primary School in St Andrew traded their school uniforms for professional attire to be hosted at the Pan Jamaica Group corporate office for the ‘Little Leaders – From BizTown to the Boardroom’ event.

This is an immersive experience that turned the Pan Jamaica top floor into an executive classroom. The visit served as a capstone event for the students after months of learning at the Junior Achievement Jamaica (JA) BizTown, where they assumed mock roles as business leaders in a simulated mini city.

During the Pan Jamaica visit, students were assigned executive roles for the day as the chief executive officer (CEO), chief financial officer (CFO), other senior management posts, and given authority to weigh options and cast votes with the support of mentors from the group, CB Facey Foundation, and Junior Achievement Jamaica.

The visit began with a guided office tour followed by a structured debrief of their JA BizTown training. The students then stepped into a mock boardroom conference, where they deliberated on key business decisions and participated in a voting session on real-world business situations.

The highlight of the day was a session for the students to directly interact with Pan Jamaica Group Vice-Chairman and CEO Jeffrey Hall as an invited guest to their mock board meeting.

There they led a lively question and answer session with Hall on topics ranging from his morning routine to the business choices that keep large companies competitive.

Following the session, Hall praised the little leaders. “These students are brilliant. Their insights into complex areas like our logistics operations and insurance were truly remarkable.”

Reflecting on his career, Hall said, “It is important to give young people a seat at the table so they begin to see themselves in positions of authority and responsibility. I was once given a seat at the table early on in life, and it is now my duty to invite others to join me, no matter the age.”

Under Hall’s guidance, the students were challenged to respond to customer complaint scenarios using the business acumen developed in the JA BizTown programme.

They debated various approaches and outlined solutions for issues like managing a chronically late employee, appeasing a dissatisfied customer, and an appropriate reward for a hard-working team member.

For grade 5 student and CEO for the day, Johanna Kennedy, the visit was transformative.

“From the moment I walked into Pan Jamaica, everything felt bigger, bigger rooms, bigger voices, and even bigger dreams,” said Kennedy.

“The boardroom table seemed to stretch forever, and the chairs were so tall that when I sat in one, my legs floated above the floor. That day left me with more than memories — it gave me a spark. A quiet belief that even though I’m small, my dreams didn’t have to be,” added Kennedy.

Pan Jamaica Group, through the CB Facey Foundation, provides an annual grant to support the Junior Achievement Jamaica’s JA BizTown initiative.

The Little Leaders experience was designed as an interactive enrichment activity to build on the students’ JA BizTown learnings, where they were taught to operate a business, manage a checking account, and exercise their civic duties with the ultimate goal of enhancing financial literacy and work readiness, building confidence, and promoting teamwork skills.