- Noel Thompson Leroy Reid, general manager of Jamaica Digiport International in Montego Bay.
Avia Ustanny, Staff Reporter
HERE is a man who gets a kick from the smell of paint ... and giving praises to God.
It has never been his style to leave things that need to be done to others be it as simple as painting the walls at home, or as esoteric as serving his Maker. And he enjoys doing all of them, too.
Living in Westgate Hills area of Montego Bay with young sons Jevaughn and Jordan and wife Leonie, 34-year-old Leroy Reid does not leave homemaking to his wife alone.
At work, the challenge is many times more complex, but the attitude is the same. There is no passing the buck.
Reid is the general manager of Jamaica Digiport International Limited (JDI), the company which provides advanced voice and data communication services to the IT (Information Technology) industries in the Jamaica free zones.
He is adamant that IT is the way to go for those seeking a fulfilling career. His success is not a mere 'flash in the plan', but one that can be duplicated many times over by the dedicated among the young.
Reid's JDI connection was made in 1988 when he was seconded from the Telephone Company of Jamaica in 1988 to the new Jamaica Digiport then established as a joint venture between AT&T and Cable and Wireless. The technological expertise needed for the start-up, including his, was recruited from the then ToJ.
JDI was to benefit from the outsourcing of data entry, telemarketing and reservations jobs from the United States to Jamaica. Low employment rates abroad and the relative cheapness of labour and infrastructure here, has made this possible.
It has been a success story. Major clients of JDI now include Apple Vacations the second largest vacation tour operator in the United States, National Processing Corporation/ MRS Jamaica the largest data entry operation in the Caribbean and Jamaica's own Air Jamaica and Air Jamaica Reservation Services.
"We have been very successful in the 12-year history. In excess of 15,000 jobs have been provided. We continue to market our services successfully to the North American markets.
"Our level of service is on par internationally. Our voice services are as low as US 7 cents. The JDI will provide this directly from the Nortel D100-200 switch at a fraction of the usual cost. This is a catalyst for growth in the economy," he said.
A significant capital expenditure, made in 1999 for modernising the JDI network (US $4.5 million or J$189 million) left them "poised to introduce a new call service called Centrex and to expand services in other areas".
"It is a rather exciting job," Reid said, noting that the activities of JDI have contributed to the growth of the Jamaican economy.
He is excited for more reasons than one. The expanding informatics sector provides hope for the young people, a group in which he demonstrates a particular interest.
At church at Faith Temple in Montego Bay, he is youth pastor and directly responsible for 13 to 35-year-olds. He keeps them informed on career choices and relationship issues, among others and develops programmes to impact on their values and attitudes.
"Too many (young people) compromise because of socio-economic background. (But) not because one is poor does one have to be involved in drugs or crime. If one is really prepared to work hard, to set goals and to put in place plans, dreams can become a reality," he said..
That philosophy has worked for him.
"Every young person must make a determined effort to come into the information age," Reid said. "The Internet has been and continues to revolutionise the way in which we conduct our affairs. You must become computer literate as a matter of urgency if you wish to survive in a global economy.
The IT expansion, for him, represents a, "a wonderful time, a window of opportunity."
His career has permitted him to draw on various disciplines. The graduate of Cornwall College possesses a first degree in management and design of telecommunication systems (winner of the Blundell Prize for the major project); as well as an MBA from Nova South Eastern University. He has done numerous management training courses with AT&T.
Meanwhile, job satisfaction comes from a feeling of having fulfilled his Christian purpose.
"I work as unto God, not as unto man. Material rewards are important, but my motivation for excellence is not there. I see what I do as a service to God, foremost and by extension - service to humanity," he said.
