Fiona Beck Joins Business Development Board
Fiona Beck, a telecommunication and technology expert who has served as a director for several global enterprises on the island and overseas, has joined the Board of the Bermuda Business Development Agency [BDA].
New Zealander Beck, a 15-year resident of the island, is an experienced non-executive director and currently serves on the boards of several telecommunication and technology companies in Bermuda, Cayman Islands and Mauritius. She is Deputy Chair of KeyTech and Chair for the telecommunication group of the America’s Cup Bermuda Ltd—delivering key telecom requirements for the 2017 regatta.
New BDA Director Fiona Beck
Ms Beck has extensive links into the Bermuda telecommunication network and the global submarine fibre-optic industry. As a BDA Board member, she will act as a liaison for the telecommunication and technology industry.
“I am delighted Fiona has agreed to join our Board as she brings a very different experience than most of our other current Board members who are primarily from a financial services specialism,” said BDA Board Chair Caroline Foulger.
“Fiona’s career has been focused on technology and telecommunication and we believe these areas may hold good potential for Bermuda in the medium term as a diversifier for our economy. With her involvement in the America’s Cup, she also brings an important synergy between the two operations over the key next two years.”
Ms Beck is the past president and CEO of Southern Cross Cable Network, a multi-national telecommunication company providing internet connectivity from Australia and New Zealand to the West Coast of the US. She is also past president of Sub Optic, the international not-for-profit organisation that acts as industry body for the global submarine cable industry.
New BDA Board member Fiona Beck [right] with Board Chair Caroline Foulger
A chartered accountant, she holds a Bachelor of Management Studies [Hons] from the University of Waikato, New Zealand, and has considerable expertise in identifying strategic solutions, telecommunication and technology development.
“I am delighted to have been invited to join the BDA Board—it’s an exciting opportunity to help Bermuda develop as a base for fintech, ICT and technology,” said Ms Beck.
“The island is strategically very well positioned to be the Atlantic hub for submarine cable corridors, allowing cable systems to capitalise on Bermuda’s unique location, infrastructure and commercial benefits.”
Beck noted cutting-edge areas of potential economic development include cloud computing, data centres, fintech, information management, application development and R&D—all sectors in which global tech companies are rapidly investing.
“These companies need stable jurisdictions to locate in that also have an outstanding commercial value proposition, and Bermuda fits that bill,” she added. “Among its many other advantages, Bermuda offers a wealth of talent in fintech, ICT and technology.
“We can tap into that talent to diversify the international business sector and capture this new generation of thinking, while providing opportunities for Bermudians to grow in the IT and STEM [science, technology, engineering and maths] space.”
Ms Beck also chairs the Bermuda arts and culture group, the Chewstick Foundation, and in her spare time is a keen deep-sea fishing aficionado who serves as secretary of the Bermuda Angler Club. She holds two world records, both for Almaco jack—one a 37-pounder caught on 12-pound test line, the other 27 pounds on 16-pound test.
“I got both records here in Bermuda on Challenger Bank,” she said. “I am a very keen angler from my childhood days, and it’s another reason I enjoy living in Bermuda so much.”
