Monthly Archives: May 2023

Despite becoming a young father by age 21, Luigi Allen was adamant that he would overcome the “burdens” of fatherhood at a young age to pursue the career of his dreams.

With the support of his family and friends, the now Customer Success Account Manager at Microsoft, and former JN Scholar, enrolled in the Northern Caribbean University (NCU) in the year 2000, where he pursued a bachelor’s degree in Information Science.

“While in college I realised I had to discover myself and my place in this world, identify who I wanted to be and what legacy I wanted to leave behind,” he informed.

Mr Allen said his life took a positive turn after “giving his life to Christ” while in his first year of university and he became deliberate about maintaining good grades. He credits his parents with support, but singled out his stepmother, who, he said, encouraged him to apply for scholarships.

While in his second year he was awarded a scholarship by the JN Foundation. He said he did so well that year when the scholarship was first awarded, that the following year it was renewed.

“As a scholarship recipient, I felt a variety of emotions. First, I felt immense gratitude for the recognition and financial support I had received. I was thankful and appreciative of the opportunity to pursue my educational goals without the burden of financial constraints,” he said.

Mr Allen shared that receiving the scholarship brought him joy, as it signified that his hard work and dedication were being acknowledged and rewarded.

“I felt excited and proud, knowing that my efforts had paid off and that I had been chosen for this honour,” he added.

Mr Allen credits his tertiary education with setting him on a path to success. Twenty years since graduating from NCU, he now lives in the US, and is married with two more children and has a successful career at Microsoft – where his classmates at NCU had predicted his journey would take him.

“It took 10 years after being in the United States to land my dream job. I had applied to Microsoft many times, and I was not selected but it was only after I got my Project Management certification that I became visible to Microsoft,” he said, adding that it took 20 interviews before he finally landed the job.

Now in his eighth year at Microsoft, Mr Allen describes his journey as “amazing,” noting the fulfilment he gets from advising well-established companies.

“I’m now in a conference room as a trusted advisor to well-known companies and before I only had a glimpse of these companies on television. But to be in a space like this and in such a capacity- for me that is mind-blowing,” he mused.

He also has advice for young men and young women. He is encouraging them to embark on a journey of self-discovery, similar to the journey he took on as a young man to find himself.  

“I think self-discovery is an important thing and the earlier and sooner we can figure out who we are and what we want to leave as a legacy, this would be good. Along the way you have to be disciplined, and surround yourself with people who are like-minded,” he advised.

Rose Miller, manager, Strategic Empowerment Programmes at the JN Foundation says a financially literate person can more easily detect when they are being scammed and so ward off financial danger.

Mrs Miller made the comment while addressing a financial empowerment lunch and learn session organised by the JN Foundation in collaboration with JN Member companies, JN Fund Managers Limited and JN Life Insurance Company Limited. The session was delivered to members of staff of The Jamaica National Group.

“Financial education is vital because when you are financially smart you understand how to manage your money. You are not likely to fall prey to scams and fraud because you can see and smell it a mile off,” she pointed out.

She also noted that due to a high level of awareness, a financially literate person can spot a financial opportunity early and because they are armed with the knowledge, can make financially smart decisions.

“You can analyse the situation and make good choices. You are also able to manage your debt. It is very easy to get into debt and if you don’t understand what you are doing and don’t know the basics, you are at a serious disadvantage,” she warned.

According to the Financial Literacy Around the World Report, published in 2019, which was undertaken by Standard & Poor’s with representatives from the World Bank, regarding simple financial literacy, only 33 per cent of Jamaicans surveyed indicated that they had knowledge of basic financial principles.

Mrs Miller lamented that the data show that too many Jamaicans have a low level of financial literacy.

“We advocate for financial literacy, 33 per cent of our people being financially literate is just too low and ignorance has a very high price. So, what would I suggest? We all should get on board,” she recommended.

The JN Foundation Manager for Strategic Empowerment Programmes suggested that to increase literacy, persons should take responsibility for their own financial education by seeking out information to improve understanding of basic financial concepts: the internet is a great resource, listening to financial programmes and attending financial literacy sessions are all ways to increase an individual’s financial IQ.

She said having garnered this information, persons are encouraged to practice what has been learnt and then share the knowledge with family and friends.

“If we are going to make this country better, we need to help each other on this journey, share what you learn and encourage action.  One very good reason for this is because we are still in a ‘village’ and everything my neighbour does, affects me and so I encourage you to share the knowledge,” she stated.

The lunch and learn session was held on April 27 to close out Financial Literacy Month. The theme of the session was ‘Securing the Financial Future You and Your Family Deserve. What You Can and Should do Now’. Other members of the panel were Delories Jones, senior vice president of Sales and Marketing, JN Fund Managers Ltd. and Hugh Reid, general manager, JN Life Insurance Co. Ltd.