As far as employee recognition events go the rubric is rather simple — good food, open bar, some sort of entertainment and lusty applause for your team members. However, leave it to Sagicor to shun anything staid and embrace a theme that would get attendees excited. On March 12 Sagicor Group Jamaica Limited transported its team and their guests to Broadway. The magnitude of the event required almost all the event spaces at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel. Almost.

The event began with the black carpet (because red is so overdone) hosted by Jamaica Observer Senior Associate Editor Lifestyle & Social Content Novia McDonald-Whyte. Sagicor could easily be described as the most fashionable financial institution, and most of the corporate awards attendees took the “Live on Broadway” theme seriously. There were so many amazing outfits that even Mission Catwalk judges would have had a difficult time choosing “best dressed”. After walking the black carpet guests headed to the Gardens where a cocktail and hors d’oeuvre pavillion was erected. The Ensemble orchestra entertained as guests chatted, noshed on tasty bites and sipped cocktails.

After cocktails, guests filed into the Grand Jamaican suite that was transformed into a chic theatre by notable event designer Ann-Marie Wyss. The gold and black colour theme was evocative of a European opera house and the event production was worthy of Broadway. The evening was punctuated by a number of theatrical performances that at some points had the audience singing along. Performing on stage were — Immaculate Conception High Schoool Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Steven Woodham; the Ashe Company; BEAM Theatre Arts Company; Michael Sean Harris; Jamaica Junior Theatre Company (the junior arm of the Jamaica Musical Theatre Company) and the Samantha Strachan Ensemble. Save for the symphony orchestra that played the National Anthem, each performer performed an excerpt, song or dance number from well-known Broadway musicals.

Sagicor is comprised of five arms — employee benefits, group treasury & asset management, investments, retail banking, and individual insurance. There were so many people, divisions and teams to honour this year that it took over three hours to hand out all the awards and enjoy the tastes of Broadway. Emcee Dahlia Harris kept the mood light and between her quips, the performances and the video montages of branches and team members performing scenes from their favourite musicals, the proceedings moved to a steady beat.

In his address, Sagicor Group Jamaica Limited President and CEO Christopher Zacca attributed the company’s successes during the past fiscal year to the dedication and grit of the company’s teams. Fun fact: Sagicor has one of the highest employee retention rates in the industry. Zacca also noted that Sagicor is a market leader and “number one financial brand in Jamaica”; the insurance arm settled over 72,000 cases in 2018, the Sigma corporate run was the largest one to date, and the bank is “bringing sexy back to banking”.

Celebrations continued, post-awards ceremony, with a formidable spread courtesy of the Jamaica Pegasus hotel culinary team and an after-party deejayed by Narity. It was the ultimate bash! Sagicor invests in and rewards its team members; the culture of valuing success and environment in which to grow and develop illustrates why not only is it a great place to work, but also why so many thrive there.