Wednesday, March 10, 2010Life in Business After Politics

An Interview with Lloyd Black

There are many people in life who never accomplish what they set out to do. Many spend years trying to “find themselves”, aiming to discover paths that are best suited for their personalities, or work unfulfilling jobs while clenching hopes of one day becoming successful at making it big, making it rich, or making it famous.

A choice for many lies behind the ivory walls of coveted universities and cool lecture halls. Others skip the collegiate route for attractive opportunities in the military or trade, and then there are the dreamers who never awaken from their safety net of sleep.

Lloyd Black, however, isn’t scratching his head for clarity. As a son of East End, Tortola and the former Minister of Education, Culture and Sports he bypassed the blockade of confusion to achieve his goals at an early age, and now at 48-years-old, claims an impressive cache of titles to include pilot, banker, politician, and nowadays businessman.

As a teenager he received an academic scholarship through the United Nations that led him to Trinidad where in 1978 he became the youngest in his class to graduate from pilot school. Three years later he embarked on a pilot career for the defunct Air BVI where he flew a 50-seat turbo prop plane on the Caribbean route between the Dominican Republic and St. Vincent. He later obtained his M.B.A. in Barbados from the University of the West Indies Cave Hill and redirected his image from that of a finance man and public servant to that of a businessman. For the man whose days once involved navigating airspace, counting money, and attending legislative meetings, the self-proclaimed entrepreneur’s days currently consist of phone calls, and appointments with his own prospective clients. He’s enjoying his post as an executive and likes the notion of helping people with their challenges and business. “To know I can help you make your business more successful is gratifying. There is satisfaction in helping people realize their dreams.”
Business BVI sits down with a former Minister in Government as he re-enters the business arena: an interview with Lloyd Black:

BBVI A move from business to politics is a natural fit for many. How has your transition been from politics to business?
LB “I wouldn’t consider it a transition. I worked in the private sector before politics; in banking. So having entered politics for eight years and then back into the private sector, it’s an area that I’m familiar and comfortable with even though I’m now working on a different side of the private sector. Before I worked as an employee, now I’m working as a business owner.”

BBVI The public sector and private sector each pose their own set of challenges. Explain the challenges you faced as a minister and those as a business owner?
LB “In the private sector, the decisions you make tend to be your own and you have to see them through. Not to say that in the public sector the decisions you make are not your own also, but generally in the public sector, decisions are made on a consensus basis. At the end of the day, its how many people can you get to agree with you to drive a process forward? It’s no one person that can make a decision and get it to go the way you want it to go in the public sector. That is primarily the main difference between the way business is conducted in the private sector and the way it’s conducted in the public sector. That in itself can present many challenges. One, being in the private sector we could be more responsive to changes and opportunities as they present themselves. While in the public sector you might have a very good opportunity, but then you have to present the case to those that work around you to get everyone on board, and if everyone is not on board at the same time you might miss an opportunity.
You always hear the saying things take so long in government and it’s primarily for that reason. Yes, as a minister you’re a key decision maker, but not all the decisions you make will be acted upon with the same sense of urgency or dedication as if you were in the private sector.”

BBVI In how many businesses would you say you’re involved?
LB “Two. One is a business consulting and training organization, Greystone Solutions. It’s something I became interested in after completing my MBA since leaving office. I figured with my ten years in banking, and in more ways than one, giving advice to businesses on how they should fund their operations and manage certain aspects of it – I figured well here it is – I now have some more tools that I can put in my arsenal, and instead of seeking opportunities like going back to the bank or working for a larger company, why not work for myself and do something that I’m already familiar with.”

BBVI Many people have complained about the lack of customer service found amongst public and private companies within the Territory. How would Greystone address these issues? What would be some of your immediate solutions?
LB “From the outset it is important to have a clear understanding of the organization’s focus and vision. Without this information there is little an organization can do to improve customer service. The more informed and the more an employee can participate in an organization’s visioning process, the more likely you are to see good, to excellent customer service within that organization.”

BBVI You’ve partnered with a larger firm in the U.S. In what capacity do they serve Greystone and how does it benefit your company?
LB “Greystone has a licence agreement with 360 Solutions to use their products which are industry leading, well researched, and proven among small and medium sized businesses worldwide. This practice is normal for independent consultants like myself. The relationship ensures that I have access to the latest trends and research, as well as access to the latest strategies and solutions to assist my clients. The relationship also provides me with access to over 300 independent consultants worldwide with whom I can rely on for support or assistance.”

BBVI Within Greystone’s high performance model, which program has proven to be the most highly sought and why?
LB “It is still early to report on this, as one of my main areas of focus with clients who may have a specific training request is to ensure that the appropriate groundwork is laid before that specific training initiative is undertaken. This usually involves programmes like the Trust Factor Series, Positive Impact and Emotional Intelligence Series which are each eight modules, and they provide an excellent intro into more specific training modules like developing high performance teams.
This strategy has proven effective and is working well so far for the clients who have adopted this approach.”

BBVI Looking at the economy and its current state, how has it been for you as a business owner, especially in this line of work?
LB “Opportunities are there, and there are clients that would like to engage you but, it’s a question as to what are their immediate priorities? It’s always a challenge to tell someone: ‘Your ship is sinking. I can show you how to stop the ship from sinking, but, would that advice at this very moment be more important, or doing something else that can be beneficial to the company?’”

BBVI What do you foresee as a need, business-wise in the BVI within the next 5-10 years?
LB “I think a lot of businesses need direction, strategy and planning. We’ve had a lot of business persons who’ve managed to be successful for one reason or the other, but when you sit down and discuss with them – have you thought of what particular strategy, or have you understood how you’ve got to where you are today? – A lot of them cannot with great detail, tell you this is what they pursued and it worked. I see myself as someone who can bring that focus to many businesses.”

BBVI Describe the parameters, if any, that you’ve had to face as a business owner in the Territory?
LB “Business opportunities, I find in the BVI, are abundant. It’s amazing. The biggest obstacle for most persons getting into business is a trade license. I think that is the longest process anyone would have to face, but I think once you get beyond that, I mean, the sky’s the limit. There’s virtually nothing to prevent you from having a successful business operation. Like I said, there are so many opportunities out there.”
BBVI Why is it such a challenge to get a trade license for so many people?
LB “That’s a mystery… I’ve always been of the view, even when in government, that especially for Virgin Islanders, the trade license process should merely be an administrative formality.”

BBVI What made you launch your business and how many employees do you have?
LB “About a year ago and just myself, for now.”

BBVI How many clients do you have?
LB “So far about five. Two are ongoing relationships over the past year.”

BBVI Where would you like to see your business within the next five to ten years?
LB “That’s a very interesting question. Of course my intention is to work smarter and not harder. One of the benefits of having your own business is that you can decide how far you want it to go and at the end of the day, how much you want to earn. If you want to earn two million a year, obviously it means working long hours; and if that is not something that you see as part of what you want to have for yourself in the future, then you have to consciously make a decision. You want to ensure you have a solid client base and that you’re getting paid and not just working hard. Earn a decent income and live a decent life.”

BBVI Describe your personal persona and how it differs from your political persona.
LB “I consider myself the most easygoing, get along, friendly kind of person. Politically, I would have to say, I’m a take charge kind of person. I crave excellence. I detest mediocrity, and as long as I’m going to put my name to it, it has to be done well.”

BBVI Do you have any interest in returning to politics?
LB “When I entered politics, I always said to people, I’m a strong believer in term limits. I don’t think persons should be there for any extended period of time. Generations change. People change. And leaders of the day should always be more or less in tune with the developments or changes that are taking place in the country at the time. Two, maybe three terms; that should be the limit for anyone seeking higher office, and then give someone else an opportunity.”

BBVI If you did enter politics again, in what capacity would you run?
LB “It’s very hard to say at this stage. It’s really difficult to say at this stage. I guess I’ll have to be guided by my advisers at that time; whether to run as a district candidate or run on an at large ticket or something.”

BBVI Since your departure, have there been any changes in your district? What were you expecting and/or hoping to see change that has not yet taken place?
LB “If it’s meant to be a critique of the current representative, it wouldn’t necessarily be fair for me to comment in the sense that I really don’t know what their plans were and even today what they are. Having said that, I haven’t really seen any changes”

BBVI What would you like to see change?
LB “A lot of what I would like to see change is more from a social perspective more so than physical, because I think that is where the greatest need for leadership is required. To me there’s a slow degradation of social values and tolerance, and understanding. There’s a serious conflict that exists in a lot of communities when we look at the various ethnicities. There’s sort of a polarization that exists and to me if we don’t try and focus on those little differences it’s going to continue to pull our community down. To me the BVI is a very small community, ripe for opportunity, and we need to focus on things like nation building. BVIslanders as a group cannot focus on nation building by themselves, because we only represent about 45 percent of the community and 45 percent of our community does not make a nation. So it’s from that perspective I think our leaders need to focus on and try and bridge some of those gaps, and deal with some of those challenge. It’s an area that if we continue to ignore it, it’s going to be like an ugly monster in the years to come.”

BBVI During your post what was your primary concern?
LB “Well my responsibility then was the Ministry of Education and my primary concerns were to point our education system in a direction that it can be well respected throughout the region, and to the point where it is well regarded internationally.”

Lloyd Black has done a lot in his short life span. We’ll just have to wait and see if this is just another detour or his final destination.

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