In our April 2026 Community Chat, and with members of the Caribbean tech community, Jennifer Potter, a Strategic Advisor based in the British Virgin Islands, and Rojane Rose, a Product Manager based in Jamaica, the panel discusses:  Is Jamaica finally building the rails for digital government — or just digitising bureaucracy? Does digital transformation suffer from a poor return on investment? And International Girls in ICT Day… 15 years later.

 

This episode is also available on SoundCloud, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music.

In the rapidly evolving landscape of 2026, the push for digital maturity has moved beyond simple adoption toward a critical evaluation of impact. As the Caribbean region navigates this shift, several themes have emerged as central to that conversation.

In our latest Community Chat podcast episode, we explore three areas, for which the common theme is impact. It is thus no longer acceptable to strive for ‘digital’. In other words, ‘going digital’ is not the goal. Instead, we ought to consider it foundational infrastructure for equity and the continued growth and development of our societies.

 

Introducing our guests

Jennifer Potter

Jennifer Potter is a strategic advisor based in the British Virgin Islands who advises senior leaders at inflexion points – the moments when what got the organisation here is no longer enough to get it where it needs to go.

With more than twenty years of experience leading organisational transformation in financial services, Jennifer brings a rare combination of strategic clarity and execution reality to every engagement. She is known for asking the questions that surface what’s actually in the way, and for telling the truth about what she finds.

Her work is anchored in a simple but often overlooked conviction: that transformation efforts fall short not because the technology doesn’t work, but because organisations haven’t resolved who they need to become before the investment starts. That gap, between willingness and readiness, is where she operates.

Jennifer is a recognised voice on organisational transformation, governance, and strategic positioning and a Substack contributor on senior leadership dynamics. She holds master’s degrees in Law and Business Administration and a professional designation in Governance, Risk, and Compliance.

Rojane Rose is a young professional with a proven track record in product management and innovation. Possessing a sharp acumen for strategic leadership, Rojane specialises in supervisory management, research, and product development. In his role as Product Owner at Management Control Systems, he adeptly leads software development teams, ensuring seamless alignment with business objectives and robust stakeholder engagement. His skill set extends to product portfolio management, customer experience design, and driving innovation across various organisational domains.

Prior to assuming his current position, Rojane excelled as an Innovation Analyst, where he played a pivotal role in forging strategic partnerships and fostering collaborative growth within the industry. He is recognised for his proficiency in conducting thorough research, formulating innovative product strategies, and guiding cross-functional teams through the human-centred design thinking process.

 

The topics discussed

We kick off the discussion with the topic, Is Jamaica finally building the rails for digital government — or just digitising bureaucracy? Similar to many Caribbean countries. Jamaica is at a crossroads. Although the roll-out of NIDS (National Identification System) and the expansion of the Universal Service Fund’s Wi-Fi sites suggest progress, a deeper question remains: Are we fundamentally redesigning how the state functions, or are we simply putting a digitising existing bureaucracy?

In a similar vein, but considering digital transformation through a wider lens, we noted that a common frustration among both the public and private sectors is the “value gap” of their digital transformation investments. For example, a 2026 PwC study indicated that nearly 89% of operations leaders feel their tech investments have not fully delivered the expected returns. Hence, the question was put squarely to our panellists: “Does digital transformation suffer from a poor return on investment?”,  which allowed us to share our observations as well as why senior managers or executives may be somewhat disillusioned regarding the promises of digital transformation.

Finally, launched by the International Telecommunications Union in 2011, International Girls in ICT Day has reached a significant milestone. Hence, our final topic was International Girls in ICT Day… 15 years later, thereby allowing us to reflect on how girls’ and women’s participation in the ICT space has evolved over the years, but perhaps more importantly, the bigger picture of how technology is evolving and its impact on the future of work.

 

We would love to hear your thoughts!

Do leave us a comment either here beneath this article, or on our Facebook or LinkedIn pages, or via Twitter, @ICTPulse.

Also, if you or a member of your network is interested in joining us for an episode, do get in touch.

Let’s make it happen!

 

Select links

Below are links to some of the organisations and resources that either were mentioned during the episode, or otherwise, might be useful

 

 

Images credit: J Potter; R Rose; User18989612 (Freepik); ITU; Akarapong Chairean (Freepik)

Music credit: The Last Word (Oui Ma Chérie), by Andy Narrell

Podcast editing support: Mayra Bonilla Lopez