Narayan AmmachchiPatrick Casserly, a trailblazer of Jamaica’s business process outsourcing (BPO) industry, passed away recently at the age of 58 after a prolonged battle with cancer, leaving the industry and wider business community in mourning.
Casserly was one of the early pioneers of the BPO sector in Jamaica. He founded eServices Group International in the Montego Bay Free Zone with just 35 employees.
Over the next decade, he expanded the company to a workforce of 4,500, before selling it to Affiliated Computer Services (ACS) for a reported US$85 million.
Until early this year, Casserly served as CEO of Whiteshirt LLC, a mortgage lender in Jamaica.
His professional journey began in 1997 as a data entry operator at an insurance company. Just three years later, he launched his own BPO firm.
Reflecting on those formative years, Casserly once shared with local media, “Eventually, prospective outsourcing companies realized that Jamaica was the third-largest English-speaking country in the western hemisphere, with English as its first language.”
Under his leadership, eServices saw rapid growth, reaching 1,500 employees within three years. At its peak, the company generated an annual revenue of US$80 million.
This expansion was supported by American venture capital investors and a group of Jamaican colleagues.
He later served on the board of JAMPRO and was appointed ICT Ambassador by the Jamaican Government. He also held the position of president of the Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce.
The news of his passing has deeply impacted the Jamaican business landscape. Wayne Sinclair, president of the Global Services Association of Jamaica (GSAJ), acknowledged Casserly’s foundational role in the BPO sector, stating that he “paved the way for this industry” and was instrumental in its growth.
Gloria Henry, a representative of the Port Authority of Jamaica, lauded his visionary leadership and the enduring legacy he left on Jamaica’s BPO industry.
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