Jean-Francois Sonson
Jean-Francois Sonson is a Saint Lucian financial services, project management, risk management and compliance professional and consultant, who currently resides in Canada. His early career commenced as an educator, working in the Teaching Service of Saint Lucia, first as a primary school teacher, then subsequently as a secondary school teacher, until he left to pursue a career in financial services, lasting more than thirty years.
His financial services career commenced at the first Saint Lucia Development Bank (SLDB) as Loans Supervisor, then Senior Recoveries Officer and subsequently, Manager Loans Administration until the SLDB was merged with a commercial bank (National Commercial Bank of Saint Lucia) to form the East Caribbean Financial Holding Company – parent company of Bank of Saint Lucia (BOSL). He served as Project Manager for the merger integration process and upon the successful completion of the merger, led a small team to establish the Investment Banking Department and Full-Service Brokerage at the Bank of Saint Lucia, the first securities brokerage on the island, and the second in the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union, operating in the Eastern Caribbean Securities Market (ECSM). As Principal, he led it to become the leading securities brokerage operation throughout Eastern Caribbean, raising funds for several governments in the ECCU, and serving as the Principal Broker for the first IPO in the ECSM. He also served as the first Chairman of the Intermediary Working Group assisting in developing the ECSM.
Since moving to Canada in 2004, he has worked on several assignments at many of the leading financial institutions including: TD Canada Trust, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), Mackenzie Financial Corporation, and CIBC. He also served as a Consultant with Promontory Financial Group, a subsidiary of IBM, providing risk management and compliance services to other financial institutions in the areas of regulatory risk management and compliance, specifically AML-ATF. He has worked in the capacities of Analyst, Team Lead and Manager in areas of investments, credit, service delivery, risk management, and compliance. He has also worked with a leading American Consulting Group, serving as consultant/ Advisor – Broker-Dealer Skills Development Specialist in the establishment of the Erbil Stock Exchange (ESX) in Erbil, Kurdistan, and also returned on a short stint at the East Caribbean Securities Exchange (ECSE) as Manager of Registry, Investor and Issuer Services.
In 2008, as a result of the gap created in the financial system in Saint Lucia, post the dissolution of the SLDB and the need for financing to support the struggling economic sectors, particularly SMEs and underserved prospective home owners and students requiring financial support to pursue higher education, he returned to Saint Lucia to operationalize the new Saint Lucia Development Bank (SLDB), which he led for over four years as Managing Director, introducing a range of new products and laying the foundation for the growth of the SLDB.
During his earlier years, he was a consummate activist with interest and engagement in the labour, youth, cultural and political movements in Saint Lucia, advocating on a range of issues which he deemed critical to the development of the nation. He served the Saint Lucia Teachers’ Union throughout his teaching career, leading as president for more six years, until he resigned from the Teaching Service to pursue his banking career. He has served as a Director of the National Insurance Corporation in Saint Lucia (NIC), the National Insurance Property Development Company (subsidiary of the NIC), Director and Chairman of Radio Saint Lucia; and as a member of the Teaching Service Commission of Saint Lucia. He is an avid Toastmaster and has assisted in coordinating leadership development and public speaking programmes for young people in the Ajax/Pickering community, where he now resides and in the wider Durham Region of Ontario, serving as a judge in several competitions organized for the Air Cadets in the Durham Region. He has also worked with the Saint Lucian community in Toronto, serving as a Trustee of the Saint Lucia Toronto Association (SLTA) and as a member of Saint Lucia Aid Action Group (STAAG.)
Jean Francois is a graduate of the Saint Lucia Teachers’ College, now integrated into the Sir Arthur Lewis Community College, where he obtained the University of the West Indies Certificate in Teacher Education; a graduate from the University of the Virgin Islands in St. Thomas USVI, where he obtained the Bachelors of Arts Degree in Business Administration with a Finance concentration, graduating summa cum laude; and Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, where he graduated with a Master’s Degree in Management Studies, also with a concentration in Finance and was a recipient of a Canadian – Commonwealth Fellowship. He has also participated in several professional training programmes: banking in small states, capital markets, the securities industry, pension and investments, equity financing and venture capital, supervisory and regulatory issues in the financial service industry, anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financing, corporate governance, project management and financing, sustainable development and financing, with various industry certifications and designations.
He maintains a keen interest in financial sector development; organizational development and institutional strengthening, AML-ATF regulatory, supervisory and compliance issues; sustainable and inclusive social and economic development; cultural and educational issues; entrepreneurship development, particularly youth entrepreneurship and MSME financing in developing countries. He also maintains a keen interest in International Finance and Politics. Throughout his numerous roles, his passion for working with disadvantaged and young people, providing opportunities, teaching, mentoring, and coaching has never waned.
Victor Poyotte
Victor Poyotte is the Owner, and Lead Consultant for Poyotte’s Management Consultancy Services Inc in Saint Lucia and an associate of JFS and Associates Inc.
Victor Poyotte is a former Senior Human Resource Manager at the East Caribbean Financial Holdings (ECFH), and a former senior public administrator in the Saint Lucia public service, a former Executive Director of the Caribbean Electric Utility Services Corporation (CARILEC), a former Executive Director of the Caribbean Water and Sewerage Association (CAWASA), and a former Regional Director of the Eastern Caribbean Economic Management Program (ECEMP), which was funded by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).
Victor has been providing management consultancy services throughout the Caribbean region from Belize in the North to Suriname in the South. He has over forty (40) years of regional experience providing management consulting services in the areas of policy analysis and development, project management, human resource management, training needs assessment, management training, strategic and operational planning, management auditing, organizational reviews, institutional analysis and strengthening, job evaluation and compensation.
He enjoys and sees much value in collaborating with associates and partners with specialized expertise from across the Caribbean and internationally on different assignments.
JFS & Associates Inc is pleased to have Victor and his Company to be an associate and to partner with us as we seek to bring the best Team to work with you and solve your business problems to meet your goals.
Romeo Mitchell
Romeo Mitchell is the principal of BOLD-AI, a company specializing in Project, Program and Portfolio Management Consulting, Training and Mentoring related to all aspects of projects and programs. He is of Saint Lucian origin, a dual Saint Lucia and Canadian citizen, and an associate of JFS and Associates Inc.
With over 25 years of experience managing projects and programs across multiple industries, he has a strong focus and passion for aligning project objectives to business goals, emulating and using best practices, as he understands the critical importance of program and project management in business success. He has successfully delivered several projects involving complex technologies, multiple solution providers, businesses and technology clients.
Romeo’s versality is reflected in the types of engagements he has successfully undertaken, accross several industries including Telecom, Manufacturing, Nuclear, Banking, Travel, Construction, and the Retail Sectors. He has set-up and run Program Management Offices (PMOs) for large enterprises.
Romeo is originally from Saint Lucia and has served as the President of the Southern Ontario Chapter of PMI, the Vice President of the Ontario Institute of Quantity Surveyors, Board Member of the Milton Chamber of Commerce, President of the Rotary Club of Milton and is currently the Assistant Governor of Rotary District 7080. He has published several papers and co-authored “Managing Project Recovery, From Ratholes to Rainbows”. He has also presented at national and internal seminars and symposiums, including NASA 2009, 2010 and 2012 PM Challenge.
He holds a Master of Science Degree in Project Management from Brunel University/ Henley Management College, England, a Graduate certificate in Operations Management and Operations Research Techniques, and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Quantity Surveying (Cost engineering) from the University of Westminster, England. Romeo also holds several professional designations including PMP Certified, Prince2 Certified/Instructor, PQS, and ITIL4 Foundation Certified. He is also a Paul Harris Fellow with Rotary International.
JFS & Associates Inc is pleased to have Romeo and his Company to be an associate and to partner with us, as we seek to bring the best Team to work with you and solve your business problems to meet your goals.
Antoine Aurelis
Antoine is a trained dispute resolution and construction professional, with over 25-years of international experience in construction procurement, contract administration, and alternative dispute resolution. Having worked extensively throughout the United Kingdom, North America, and the Caribbean, he is a recognized provider of commercial management expertise during the pre-contract, delivery, and post-completion phases of complex projects in the public and private sectors.
Antoine is a Saint Lucian national currently residing in Canada and works as the Principal of ADR Solutions and an associate of JFS and Associates Inc. While in Saint Lucia, Antoine worked as a Quantity Surveyor with the Housing and Urban Development Corporation, predecessor to the National Housing Corporation. Antoine worked as Project Manager on several St. Lucia Rural Enterprise Project (SLREP) projects and also worked as Procurement Consultant with the Poverty Reduction Fund (PRF), these projects were financed by the CDB andWorld Bank. Antoine was the Quantity Surveyor on the Sulphur Spring’s Development Project in Soufriere.
Antoine currently provides consultancy services in Procurement, Costs, Contract Management, Commercial Management, Claims Management, Dispute Resolution, Fairness Advisory Services, and Training to clients across social and civil infrastructure, industrial, commercial, institutional, residential, and retail sectors.
Antoine provides advisory services on projects across Canada with respect to project cost predictability, identification of the factors contributing to cost growth during estimating and budgeting stages, and identifies measures to ameliorate the inherent adverse effects of these occurrences.
Antoine’s practice also focuses on the provision of early cost and procurement advice to public sector agencies, owners, and developers to safeguard their interests. In this regard, he supports construction companies, insurers, lawyers, and financiers of projects to identify sources of potential disputes and efficiently resolve disputes when they arise. He is recognized for providing written and oral expert evidence during litigation and arbitration in the areas of costs, quantum, and scheduling.
Antoine is a trained arbitrator and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators with expertise in the areas of Alternative Dispute Resolution, Claims Management, Procurement, Contracts, Cost and Delay Claims, Schedule Analysis, Independent Certification, and Quantum with respect to Civil & Social infrastructure, Commercial Developments, Residential Developments, and AFP/P3/PPP projects.
Antoine is an Assessor and Counselor with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and currently serves as a director on the board of the Canadian Institute of Quantity Surveyors. He also serves as the board liaison on the Prompt Payment Task Force, formulated to provide professional leadership as prompt payment legislation is introduced to various Canadian jurisdictions.
JFS & Associates Inc is pleased to have Antoine as an associate and to partner with us as we seek to bring the best team to work with you and solve your business problems to meet your goals.
As the Managing Director of Construction Solutions Limited (CSL), Antoine provided professional quantity surveying services to several private sector clients including commercial and project management support to contractors involved in the residential and commercial sectors. Antoine also supported the banking and insurance sectors with respect to property valuations, interim construction valuations and reinstatement cost assessments for various purposes.