Change is the only constant it’s said, and 2011 has turned out to be the year living up to this analogy, the old guard is making way for the new.

This phenomenon is across the board, from who is leading Jamaica, with Mr. Andrew Holness taking over as the country’s youngest prime minister, to the top CEOs of corporate Jamaica in the 21st century.

Ten of the top 20 CEOs belong to the Baby Boomers or the Gen X, groomed to lead traditional companies transitioning into the new century.  Of these top honchos four succeeded their parents; these include Christopher Levy, Jeffrey Hall, Stephen Facey and Keith Duncan.

The others were handpicked and carefully groomed for the top spot.

As corporate Jamaica is leading this change of guard, it should be pondered that apart from Anya Schnoor, Businessuite top CEO for 2008 no female made to the top 20 list, which makes us to ponder if the Jamaican corporate psyche is yet to warm up to make way for women to lead. Food for thought…

As the world economies are looking for a tangible way out of crises and yet another possibility of financial meltdown across US and the EU looming on our heads, it is time that Jamaican companies take a step towards innovating and work towards powering the proverbial  BRAND JAMAICA.

It is time for the young blood to assume leadership roles, not forgetting the core values and principles that have been laid out by the hard work and vision of the generation before. Technology will constantly evolve but experience is indispensible, and there is a lot to be learnt as the companies move forward. As Steve Jobs said “Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower”. Let’s innovate and lead.

In the coming months we will examine the movement of these companies and also looking into if Jamaica is prepared to have women in leadership roles – the age of the glass ceiling is passé and as companies exhibit far-reaching reforms, this phenomenon is going to catch up sooner. BM