PERSONALITY PROFILE
Caren Thompson - She's Gotthe Power!
As the late afternoon sun filtered throughthe partially opened blinds of the tastefully decorated groundfloor office, the recessed lights dimmed, almost imperceptiblyto the visitor.
But to Caren Thompson, Corporate Communications Manager at CaribbeanUtilities Company (CUC), that mere flicker was a signal that somethingin the company's machinery of power delivery and service had gonewrong.
To her eagle eyes trained on CUC's image, and ears tuned to thepulse of the company's operations, the flash of dimming lightswas a cue, a call to action for the image-maker and image preserverof Grand Cayman's light and power company.
Immediately, Caren was on the phone to Engineering, which forthwithwas in radio contact. In what seemed like seconds later, the problemwas identified - a power outage in West Bay - and instantaneouslythe response mechanism kicked in.
Caren's own response included a quick decisionthen and there that she would be in office up to 6:30 p.m. - tobe on hand to disseminate any information necessary to the public.
Caren Thompson is one of several women with responsibility forcorporate communications in some of Grand Cayman's largest andmost strategic businesses and Government departments, includingCUC, Cable and Wireless, the George Town Hospital, Bank of Butterfield,Deloitte & Touche, Fosters Food Fair, Esso, Texaco, UncleBills, CNB, CIBC, ScotiaBank, and a host of other entities inthe public and private sectors.
Chic, articulate and competent, she has,over ten years, fashioned CUC's public image into an arguablypeerless one among the island's major business players.
Those who have worked with her, or haveseen up close CUC's communication's machinery at work, attestto her flexibility, openness and commitment in putting a friendlyface to the monopoly utility company.
Yet monopoly is a word that Caren says sheeschews from her vocabulary and from the corporate culture atCUC, "because that breeds complacency." She has optedinstead to operate as if the company had to compete for its customer'spatronage and trust
"We are changing the public's perception of a monopoly,"Caren says in explaining CUC's responsiveness to the public andher own role as corporate communications manager. "Customerservice is our number one priority. We don't sell electricity.We sell service."
It is why, Caren says, she has insistedon a culture of transparency both within CUC and in its dealingwith the public. Whenever the opportunity arises, she says, thecompany takes the opportunity to be proactive in getting informationto the media, and by extension, the public.
"We have worked really hard at developing relationships withthe media, and getting them to see us from the perspective ofbeing concerned with the community," she says.
It is a strategy that has reaped dividendsin the general positive public image that the company has today.The extent of its public acceptance is sometimes, even mildlysurprising to the keeper of that image.
Last Thursday (August 17), a lightning strikeresulted in an island-wide blackout for some three and a halfhours. Nearly 1500 calls were received within the period, withjust under 600 directly answered in the customer service department.Yet, next morning, according to Ms. Thompson, it was businessas usual - and very little public reaction to the outage.
"I think because it happened in February1998 and people remembered how efficient we were in re-energizingthe island," she says, in explaining the positive outcome.Back then it took approximately three and a half hours for powerto be restored, much the same as it did in last week's incident.
Credit, Caren says, must go "the dedicatedstaff that CUC is privileged to have," while acknowledgingthat without them "my job would not be as easy as it is."
She expressed pride that there is a "publicperception that we are committed to providing a reliable supplyof electricity."
"I think I have found my niche," she says of her roleat CUC. "I enjoy serving the community, and that's reallywhat it boils down to."
Not bad, for someone who fell into the rolealmost by accident and who began with no formal training in mediaand communication. Her career began with a two-year stint in lawand she served at the law offices of Truman Bodden and Companyand enrolled for at the island's law school, indulging a feistinessand outspokenness that many said would serve her well in the legalprofession. But it was not to be. A recurring eye condition, aggravatedby the heavy reading law required, forced her to abandon thatfirst love.
She joined CUC on August 20, 1990, switching from a budding careeras Social Secretary in the Governor's Office. She certainly wasnot looking for a new role, she recalls, having decided "tobe a civil servant for a little while longer."
But someone with whom she had worked on a committee recommendedher to a CUC Vice President, when the company was then on thehunt for a public relations officer. Reluctantly, Caren recalls,she attended an interview, and even more hesitantly accepted thejob offer.
She knew she had "no clue what it wasgoing to take," yet armed with a two-year degree in BusinessManagement from Prospect Hall College, Florida, and won over bythe President and Vice President's confidence in her and by thepromise of the opportunity for growth in the role, she took thejob at CUC.
Over time, CUC's corporate communications developed around thepersonality of Caren, a personality she admits is persistent andhas been seen by some as pushy and aggressive. But, she says,"I see myself as having a responsibility to this companyand sometimes have to be a little firm to get things done."
For a long while, she was the face in the company's televisioncommercials and the voice in its radio messages. But CUC's imagebuilding today is reposed in a three-person department and inother officers - vice presidents and talent within the company-- who have been co-opted to polish the image.
All statements to the press are howeverprepared and monitored by the department, which is staffed bycorporate communications officers Karen Edie - writing, administrationand Neil Murray - graphic design.
Ms. Edie, who joined the department a yearago, fresh out of college, handles writing, coordinating communicationscampaigns and the administration of the department along withCaren. Mr. Murray is the department's graphic designer and productioncoordinator.
"Working with her is very challenging,"Ms. Edie says of Caren, with whom she interned for three summers,while in college. "She gives me autonomy, and pushes me torealize my own potential."
Mr. Murray acknowledges that to people who don't know her, Carenmay appear pushy and aggressive. But, he says, "She getsthe job done. She keeps the engine running and the departmentfits together like a puzzle. All three of us work well together."
Caren success in getting the job done hasbeen a process of overcoming resistance to her methods and buildingacceptance of the importance of corporate communications to theefficient operations of the company.
She admits that in the beginning there was "a small percentageof men who didn't always see eye to eye" with her on "cateringto the media."
That has changed in the last 10 years, shesays. "I think I have managed to win them over." Thatshe has gained the understanding of senior staff "that shehas a job to do," has been due in part to the attention paidto communicating to employees, as well as the media. "Whateveris being shared with the media, goes to employees first,"she says.
Caren Thompson's strategy for CUC's imagebuilding is reflected in what is said, as much as what the companydoes. While CUC supports a number of charities and community outreachactivities, these are carefully selected, she says, in keepingwith the company's focus on a difference in the lives of youth.
Such projects include After School Programmes and summer campsand being mentors and role models to children across communities.In 1998, employees formed a Community Involvement Team, in aneffort to be active in community outreach. A CUC Kids Fund hasbeen established to help needy children and a programme is shortlyto be established whereby employees can contribute to their favoritecharities.
Yet, even with a budget of approximately$500,000.00, an efficient department and greater public and staffacceptance of her role as image builder, Ms. Thompson admits thatkeeping it all together "can be a burden at times,"but a challenge that can be overcome with a woman's perspective."The company's image is fragile. Women are more nurturingof that image. Men tend to have a less emotional perspective onlife."
Her nurturing of the image underlines astrategy to stay relevant in the face of the dynamics of utilitycompanies. Recognizing the challenge and promise of new technology,Ma. Thompson says CUC is focused on preparing its staff to keepup.
The company will soon install a number of computer kiosks at itsNorth Sound Road head office, to give employees ready access tothe technology. In addition employees will have eight hours ofcomputer training "in the area that would benefit them most,"she says.
Her own strategy for further job enrichmentand for staying ahead includes upgrading her computer skills,exploring e-commerce possibilities with CUC and taking advantageof employee exchange opportunities, with Fortis, Canada, whichbecame a 20 percent shareholder in CUC last April.
Such an exchange could involve a three-monthplacement with Fortis-affiliated utility companies in Canada orBelize. "I'm prepared for two things. I can either learnfrom them, or I can teach them something," she reasons. Eitherway, it's way to make her job more exciting, Caren says.
Her nurturing and nourishment for her roleare founded on a relentless search "to improve our standards."She participates in a number of overseas training courses, suchas customer service and writing workshops.
A member of the International Association of Business Communicators(IABC), she attended the association's international conferencein Vancouver in June 24-29. She is a member of the board of IABC'sOrganising Committee for Canada Conference 2001, to be held inOcho Rios, Jamaica, October 13-16, 2001.
In addition, she aims to recruit Cayman communicators for therecently formed Caribbean chapter of IABC.
When not directly focused on CUC's publicrelations, Caren, revels in "playing counselor" to herseveral friends who often seek her out as a "sounding board"for their problems. She is a member of the Cayman Islands RoadSafety Advisory Council, which she served as assistant secretaryfor two years. She was also a member of the George Town Committeefor Helping Our Youth Achieve Success.
Whether at CUC or making her mark in thewider community, Caren Thompson presents an image of a woman withthe power to succeed and win public acceptance.