FLOW SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS
CONNECTING ACROSS ISLANDS SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MAGAZINE
|1
INTERVIEW: FLOW SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS
CONNECTING ACROSS ISLANDS
2 | SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MAGAZINE
Sustainable Business Magazine speaks to David Lake, General Manager at Flow St. Kitts and Nevis, about fiber-to-the-home, community initiatives, and the company’s transition into a digital future. By Daniel Baksi Part of the Liberty Latin America group of companies, C&W Communications has over 150 years of experience operating throughout the Caribbean and trades in several Caribbean markets under the iconic blue Flow brand. The company has stood consistently at the forefront of innovative technology, and from offering the first telegraphs and payphones has now progressed to modern-day superfast broadband, mobile, fixed-line, and video services. Today, Flow is one of the region’s leading communications and entertainment providers and launched St. Kitts and Nevis’s first LTE network on September 29, 2017. Flow now has 100%
LTE network coverage across the two islands. Flow is also a key partner for the island’s business community, with a range of corporate solutions to support its large enterprise and small to medium businesses on island as well. The company has hosted successful business forums where it showcased the latest technology solutions for its corporate customers. A WORLD CLASS NETWORK Flow’s services are underpinned by over 50,000km of modern sub-sea and terrestrial fiber networks, offering unparalleled connectivity with a blend of iconic consumer, business and network brands. “Flow’s sub-sea network connects the Americas from North to South, and though it currently carries 75% of all traffic in the region, only 10% of its capacity is being used,” says David Lake, General Manager at Flow St. Kitts and Nevis. “This 90% network headroom is great for the Caribbean, especially now as one of the by-products of the COVID-19 pandemic has been an increase in demand for connectivity as more of our customers work from home SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MAGAZINE
|3
I N
I N V E S T I N G Y O U R F U T U R E
The Eastern Caribbean Securities Exchange and its subsidiary, the Eastern Caribbean Central Securities Depository, are licensed by the Eastern Caribbean Securities Regulatory Commission, under the provisions of the Securities Act, to carry out the following principal activities; • • • • • • •
Facilitate the primary issuance and secondary trading of corporate and sovereign securities. Facilitate the clearance and settlement of issues and trades. Provide custodial, registration, transfer agency and paying agency services in respect of listed and non-listed securities. Maintain securities registers. Maintain securities holders’ records. Process Corporate actions. Process Pledge/Charge registrations.
GOLFVIEW CONDOMINIUMS
FOR SALE RESIDENTIAL, OFFICE AND COMMERCIAL UNITS AVAILABLE FOR SALE IN FRIGATE BAY
T: (869) 466-7192 | F: (869) 465-3798 E: info@ecseonline.com | www.ecseonline.com
GOLFVIEW COMMERCIAL BUILDING, ZENWAY BOULVARD • One - two-bedroom condominium apartments on the top floor. • Commercial and office units on the ground floor.
GOLFVIEW ESTATES DEVELOPMENT • Two storey villas with a 3-br apartment on the top floor • 2-br apartment on the ground floor • All residential units are fully furnished. These properties are located in the prime up-market Frigate Bay area, close to the golf course, the Marriott hotel, and walking distance to the beach, grocery stores, restaurants, bars, entertainment, souvenir and duty-free shopping and other amenities.
THE ABOVE PROPERITIES ARE ALSO APPROVED FOR SALE UNDER THE CITIZENSHIP BY INVESTMENT PROGRAM (CBI). PRIME UPMARKET LOCATION
For particulars, please contact anandsamtani22@gmail.com / hugh.pinard@gmail.com
+1 (869) 663-5959 / +1 (954) 478-0101
4 | SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MAGAZINE
INTERVIEW: FLOW SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS
and their children are learning online. Subsequently, we’ve seen a significant increase in network traffic, which fortunately our network was equipped to handle. We monitor traffic on this network across seven regional worldclass data centers, two regional customer service centers, and an international service center in Miami. It’s a very robust network with tons of spare capacity to handle the additional traffic we’re seeing at this time.” Recently, Flow began rolling out its fiberto-the-home (FTTH) network in St. Kitts and Nevis. “We want to upgrade the delivery of our service from a legacy copper-network to a modern fiber network,” explains Mr. Lake. “This will give us the ability to deliver truly high-speed internet to customers across St. Kitts and Nevis, moving from 10Mbps entry level to 100Mbps. Fiber will also improve our quality of service: it is not susceptible to corrosion, which is a huge benefit when you are operating close to the ocean like we do in the Caribbean. Over time, we will rollout this new fiber network across the entire Federation, providing fiber-to-the-home for all customers in both islands. Having access to these higher speeds opens a whole new world of possibilities for our customers. It would give them the capability of truly highspeed data transmission and the ability to operate at a global level, with advanced features and benefits. It will be a massive step-change.” COMMUNITY SUPPORT For Flow, supporting the communities which we serve is a brand promise that the company is committed to, a fact that is ex-
“WE’VE FOCUSED VERY HEAVILY OVER THE YEARS ON EDUCATION – SOMETHING WE VIEW AS AN ESSENTIAL PILLAR FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF OUR SOCIETY.”
emplified through their comprehensive CSR programs. “Our ongoing support for youth in education and sports, coupled with our continued contribution to national cultural events and worthwhile charities, underpins our commitment to connecting communities and transforming lives,” says Mr. Lake. “We’ve focused very heavily over the years on education – something we view as an essential pillar for the advancement of our society. We have put our money where our mouth is, with several education programs that we have run over the years. Our high school sponsorship scholarship program gives 8-10 scholarships per year to students going from primary to secondary school,
lasting for the five years of high school and two further years of college. During this time, we cover everything: all expenses for the student, including fees, books, uniforms – it’s a very comprehensive scholarship and a significant investment for our business. We have been operating this program for the last 33 years, starting in 1988, providing over 250 scholarships to date which represents an investment of over EC$1.2 million over that period. That is a significant contribution. We are extremely proud to follow the progress of our scholarship students, even after they have completed their programs. Many have gone on to be very successful alumni of the program and currently include doctors,
ADMIRAL'S (2008) L I M I T E D
PROUD TO BE ASSOCIATED FLOW ST KITTS & NEVIS CALL: 1-869-667-4545 Email: hbristol@crelle.net
SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MAGAZINE
|5
INTERVIEW: FLOW SAINT KITTS AND NEVIS
“WE’RE COMMITTED TO INNOVATING SO THAT WE EMPOWER OUR CUSTOMERS AND STAKEHOLDERS TO SUCCEED IN THIS CONNECTED WORLD.”
6 | SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MAGAZINE
lawyers, senators and even a Speaker of our National Assembly.” Flow also runs an Academic Excellence Awards program, which recognizes top-performing students in high school for their performance in overseas exams. “We’ve run this program for the past 34 years, and every year we award and celebrate our outstanding students,” says Mr. Lake. “It’s one that we’re extremely proud of – the only one of its kind in the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis. Every year, the students really look forward, and likewise the parents, who get the opportunity to see their children shine on stage. Our support for education is a stellar one – we’re very proud of it.” The company also supports senior citizens through its annual donations of food hampers which the staff have in pre-COVID times personally delivered to the homes for the elderly on the island to celebrate major holidays. GOING VIRTUAL With the arrival of COVID-19, Flow has had to think creatively about how its community work can continue in a way that prioritizes safety but continues to be effective. “Since the start of the pandemic, we’ve seen our students move from in-class, in-person
tutorials to virtual learning from-home,” says Mr. Lake. “We’ve had to adapt. Upon the initial lockdowns last March and April, we partnered with the Ministry for Education and other service providers to procure 1,800 tablets with keyboards for students who did not have access to a device. By doing so, it enabled us to assist those who had to transition very quickly to learning from home. In addition to that, we also provided internet at a significantly reduced rate for those students who were unable to afford it, again contributing to the development of our youth and our society.” As it looks to the future, Flow hopes to continue its focus on digital, deploying the latest technology to deliver a seamless, world-class experience for its customers. “We’re moving towards what we call a ‘zero-touch’ environment, both inside and outside the organization,” explains Mr. Lake. “To do so, we’ll be leveraging our partnership with Big Tech to use AI to create a frictionless customer experience that is consistent and integrated across all of our touchpoints. This will reduce service delivery and repair times, improve efficiency, and, most important, eliminate customer friction. We will use technology to move away from traditional forms and expectations – whether it is the use of paper, or queuing-in-store. We will put that all online in a digital, virtual environment. We believe that will be a key differentiator going forward, and so it represents the most important pillar for us from a sustainability perspective. Especially in this COVID-19 environment, people no longer necessarily want to interact in a face-to-face, physical space. The sooner we can move online, the better. That is what we are investing in. We’re committed to innovating so that we empower our customers and stakeholders to succeed in this connected world.” c SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MAGAZINE
|7
https://discoverflow.co/saint-kitts
SUSTAINABLE
B U S I N E S S
M A G A Z I N E
SBM Media Ltd, The Henderson Business Centre, 51 Ivy Road, Norwich, Norfolk, NR5 8BF, UK T: +44 (0)1603 516519 E:mail: info@sustainablebusinessmagazine.net www.sustainablebusinessmagazine.net
8 | SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MAGAZINE