CRISY LAURENT is big on family. The first of ten siblings (six boys, four girls), she grew up in St Lucia surrounded by cousins, with a noisy childhood filled with love, fun and laughter.
Up to age ten, she lived in a small fishing village called Laborie, where her house was a two-minute walk away from the beach.
“My fondest memories are fun-filled days playing cricket and football on the sand. We made bats from coconut husks and used almonds as the ball. I grew up in a large extended family on both my mother’s (Jane Laurent) side and father’s (Phillip Daniel) side.
“My grandparents on both sides were farmers so we spent a lot of time outdoors, helping with harvesting fruit, feeding the animals and assisting wherever necessary. Everyone had assigned chores and I remember the strong values of hard work, getting my hands dirty, persistence and patience being instilled in me from a very young age.”
Life changed significantly when her mother moved to the city in search of a better life.
“We lived in a tough neighborhood and maintaining a large family on a small budget came with challenges,” she told EASY magazine as she rearranged the office we had borrowed to do the interview and photoshoot.
Crisy has been in Barbados officially for two months now, settling in. She will be here for a while, she surmised. She is now the president and chief executive officer of Scotia Insurance Caribbean Limited and Scotia Insurance Eastern Caribbean Limited. These are start-up life insurance companies with a footprint across 12 countries in the English speaking Caribbean region including Turks and Caicos Islands, Belize, Barbados, Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands, St Lucia, Antigua, Anguilla, Dominica, Grenada, St Vincent and St Kitts and Nevis.
Crisy and her team are charged with leading the direction, expansion and development of the companies.
Crisy started out as a teller at age 19 in 1999, at Scotiabank in St Lucia. Tragedy struck just months after starting that job – her mum suffered a stroke which left her paralysed on her left side. At that time her youngest brother was only a few months old, four of the other siblings were below age ten and the remaining four teenagers. The months that followed would prove to be the roughest period of her life.
“I had been raised to be my brother’s keeper, so taking on the role of the primary breadwinner and sole caretaker seemed like the natural thing to do. I worked two jobs, the bank during the day and as a debt collecting call agent at nights. A year and a half later, my mother passed away and the role became a full-time one.”
Crisy’s dreams of attending university were put aside, temporarily. For the next seven years she raised her siblings, and they became her primary focus.
“The amazing thing is that I maintained a seemingly normal life. I maintained an above average record as an employee, I was on the national volleyball team, I was an active member of Kiwanis and I had a very social group of friends. With the help of family we pulled it off.”
The chance to complete her studies would come in 2005, when a colleague mentioned that Scotiabank had an education assistance programme for full-time studies in a foreign country.
The criterion was steep and it was a very competitive process.
“I decided that if there was a chance I would give it all that I had. I spent the next year and a half, relentlessly pursuing the opportunity, I got a lot of noes and a quite a bit of ‘it had never been done before’. I think in the end they were sick of me asking. I didn’t mind at all,” she said, chuckling at the memory of what seemed like hundreds of emails and telephone calls to people in unknown parts.
In 2006 her application was approved.
“I remember the absolute feeling of euphoria to this day. I spent the next three years in Jamaica pursuing a banking and finance degree, and an aggressive leadership development programme.”
It wasn’t all books for Crisy who calls herself a tomboy and being “competitive” and whose favourite pastime is playing dominoes.
“It was really really fun. My goal was get an honours degree, while playing hard.
“Sports played a huge role in my development, building discipline, teamwork, fairness and a competitive spirit. I played netball and table tennis at the high school level, but volleyball was my real passion and making the national team at the junior and senior levels is one of my proudest achievements.”
Fast forward to 17 years later, and her siblings are all grown up now and Crisy is based in Barbados, missing family “but they are only 30 minutes away by air, so I visit very regularly. Family is a very important staple in my life, so I ensure that I am very present.”
Q: Did you know you always wanted to do something in banking or did you have a different career path in mind?
A: I actually wanted to be an attorney until about age ten. When we moved to the city (Castries) my new passion was becoming a social worker. I wanted to help change the circumstances of children from underprivileged communities.
Q:Tell us about your schooling and your degrees.
A: I am a very proud ex-convent girl (St Joseph’s Convent). I went to Sir Arthur Lewis Community College where I completed my A levels. I attended the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus in Jamaica and attained a BSc (honours) in banking and finance. I am also in the final stages of completing an MBA with the Australian Institute of Business. I am a certified project management professional, a certified anti-money laundering specialist and hold the associate life management institute designation from LOMA.
Q: How are you making them work for you?
A: My learning at every level continues to drive my development. Knowledge is a powerful thing and having a solid educational background is always an asset, I am focused on the application of that knowledge and adding value wherever possible. I must confess that my biggest learnings have come from my life experiences along the way – the successes, the failures and navigating the challenges. The values instilled by my parents and grandmother continue to be my driving force. I am an avid reader of leadership books and articles and a huge supporter of leadership mentoring. I believe in continuous learning and the pursuit of knowledge both personally and professionally will continue to be a key focus of my life and career.
Q: What have been your roles at Scotiabank?
A: I have had a number of diverse roles, across multiple departments within the bank. I started as a teller and moved on to a lending officer’s role. In my next role, I was responsible for managing a portfolio of the bank’s highest value retail customers. While at university, I completed internship roles in the corporate and commercial department and as a trainee branch manager. I moved on to the compliance team as an assistant manager and later spearheaded the formation of the regional anti-money laundering unit as the manager. We were responsible for nine countries including seven Eastern Caribbean countries, St Maarten and Barbados. I went on to become the senior manager business support for the then start-up insurance company – Scotia Insurance Caribbean Limited, with responsibilities across 16 countries. My last role before taking up these new responsibilities was general manager of Scotia Insurance Eastern Caribbean Limited I was based in St Lucia with overall responsibility for seven Eastern Caribbean islands.
Q: What are the most important lessons you have learned since starting your journey?
A: Wow . . . . good question. One, embracing that there is often a non-linear path to success, learning to stay open and take opportunities as they come. Two, I am a firm believer that human capital is the most important asset of any company – people make it happen. Three, the value of family, good friends and maintaining a healthy work/life balance.
Q: What are the ups and downs of the businesses?
A: The internal and external environment of businesses today is constantly changing. One of the biggest drivers of this change is the rapid rate of technological advancements, which are continuously reshaping the way we do business, the way we communicate and the expectations from our customers. There are tremendous opportunities to leverage the dynamic environment in which we operate, with a keen focus on improving the customer experience and remaining close to our customer base.
Q: As a woman boss do you see yourself being treated any differently?
A: This is an exciting time for women and leadership roles. We are increasingly seeing the proverbial glass ceiling being shattered by trailblazing women all over the world and the solid records of strong leadership that are left behind. Strong figures, like Angela Merkel, Oprah Winfrey, Sheryl Sandberg, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, Portia Simpson-Miller, are a few examples of female powerhouses which have emerged over last decade. As we speak, Hillary Clinton is campaigning to be the first female president of the United States. Our present environment is one that encourages leadership based on knowledge, skills and capabilities and less on gender.
Q: In the same vein do you act any differently as a female boss?
A: I have no doubt that my background and experiences have shaped my leadership style more than any other variable. I believe that some of the most important traits of a good leader are self-awareness, the ability to overcome obstacles, taking risks and learning from failures, and a strong focus on people. These are the major drivers of my approach and the areas I continue to develop in my everyday interactions.
Q: Can women have it all? Share your take on this.
A: This has a lot to do with our definition of success; I believe that having it all is making a decision about what is important to you and working to realise it.
The pressure that comes with maintaining a family, being a “good parent” and having a demanding career cannot be understated, while in the past this was a challenge faced primarily by women, I believe that it is increasingly becoming reality for both working mothers and fathers. I am a huge advocate for a healthy work/life balance for both men and women.
Q: What do you think has been a key factor in your success?
A: God, family and a strong work ethic are by far the key factors thus far. The journey has only just begun; there is a long way to go. Scotiabank has played a tremendous role in facilitating my development as a leader. I have also benefited significantly from mentoring from some outstanding leaders, both male and female.
Q: How do you blend your work and life to achieve the life you desire?
A: This is definitely a work in progress. It gets tricky sometimes; I am constantly reminding myself of how important it is to maintain a healthy balance, take one day at a time and really revel in every moment.
Q: Do you put pressure on yourself in terms of work?
A: A healthy amount of pressure is good and allows me and my team to remain challenged and focused. I am careful to manage excessive pressure as it is detrimental both mentally and physically. Healthy, happy employees are far more productive.
Q: Is there anything you would do differently?
A: I am a firm believer every experience, good or bad ultimately is meant to teach me something. I often reflect on my experiences, I try to learn from them and focus on always moving forward.
Q: What motivates you?
A: My family and a strong desire to recognise my true potential and that of the people around me.
Q: Are you where you want to be in your field?
A: Right now, I am exactly where I want to be, I am excited about this new role and working with my new team.
Q: What is your biggest personal challenge?
A: Not having my mother around. My mother passed away when I was 20, I am amazed at how much I miss her every day. Everything reminds me of her.
Q: What is your biggest life challenge?
A: Life is a series of challenges, which are often opportunities in disguise. At every stage, it looks like you have faced the biggest challenge yet, and then the next one comes along. A positive mindset, grateful spirit and resilience are my three key ingredients in navigating life challenges.
Q: When you look to the future what do you see?
A: I would love to increase my level of community involvement specifically with youth development initiatives. I am looking forward to continued successes in my personal and professional life.
Q: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve received?
A: Early on in high school I was failing math miserably. My then principal called me to her office one day and asked why? I had a million excuses, my parents did not have money for math lessons, the demands of being the first of ten children did not leave time for studying, I did not like math . . . I had a hectic schedule playing sports . . . and I went on and on . . . . She smiled and said ‘see the bigger picture, focus on what you have, instead of what you don’t have to succeed’.
In that one interaction, I learned the power of gratitude, perspective, resilience and a positive mindset. To this day whenever I am faced with a challenge or opportunity her words resonate.
