Radio Cayman Interview – 25 August 2026. From left: Kathy Miller, Host, Radio Cayman; Deajra Tulloch, Programme Participant and Operations Officer, Cayman Enterprise City; Shanann Thompson, Programme Participant and Software Developer, Rhetus International SEZC; Michael McNair, Industry Partner and Head of Professional Services, Kirk IT; and Charlie Kirkconnell, CEO, Cayman Enterprise City and Chairman, Enterprise Cayman.
Enterprise Cayman has launched a workforce development programme that will combine paid workplace placements with targeted training and professional certifications to help Caymanians develop skills sought by local employers.
The new FutureFocus Pathways initiative will work with participating businesses to identify roles and skills they need, then match suitable Caymanian candidates with four- to six-month paid workplace placements. Participants will also receive technical and professional skills training and opportunities to earn industry-recognised credentials.
Enterprise Cayman said the programme is intended to respond directly to employer demand rather than offer a fixed catalogue of training courses. Current pathways can support development in areas including project management, computer support, network systems administration, cloud infrastructure and programming. Employers will help define roles, technical requirements and workplace learning outcomes, while Enterprise Cayman will handle candidate outreach, matching, preparation and ongoing support.
“As Cayman’s economy expands into increasingly specialised industries, workforce development must be grounded in where the opportunities actually are,” said Charlie Kirkconnell, CEO of Cayman Enterprise City and chairman of Enterprise Cayman. He said the programme would use employers’ needs to determine the combination of workplace experience, technical training and credentials offered to participants.
Enterprise Cayman cited Cayman Enterprise City’s latest independent Socio-Economic Impact Assessment, which found that the number of Caymanians and permanent residents employed by Special Economic Zone companies increased from 68 in 2020 to 172 in 2025. According to the assessment, 61% of those employees were working in professional and leadership roles. Enterprise Cayman also said 57% of opportunities advertised on its Jobs Portal in 2025 were in occupations identified by the World Economic Forum as areas of employment growth, including software engineering, compliance management and systems analysis.
Among the first participating employers are IT support provider Kirk IT and contract research organisation Rhetus International SEZC. Rhetus has enrolled recent graduate Shanann Thompson in the programme for structured workplace experience and professional development. Enterprise Cayman said it is also working with training and certification providers including Dion Training and CompTIA.
Alyssa Manderson, programme manager at Enterprise Cayman, said the initiative is intended to provide benefits beyond an immediate job offer. “We want participants to finish with demonstrable skills, recognised credentials, meaningful workplace experience and a clearer understanding of what employers expect,” she said.
FutureFocus Pathways builds on Enterprise Cayman’s existing workforce programmes. The organisation said it has placed 177 interns since 2012 and invested more than US$1 million in skills development, entrepreneurship and career advancement programmes. Caymanians interested in participating and employers seeking to develop a pathway can obtain further information from Enterprise Cayman.
