Premier’s Office Paid CI$42,683 for Communications Coaching at Seven Mile Beach Hotel

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Premier’s Office Paid CI$42,683 for Communications Coaching at Seven Mile Beach Hotel

Analysis · October 9, 2026, 8:18 AM · 11 min read · Ask

Premier André Ebanks MP pictured delivering his New Year's message from the Government Administration Building on 1 January 2026 — Photo: Courtesy of CIG

Editorial Note: The Caymanian Journal (TCJ) is an affiliate of Stingray Media Group. Compass Media, publisher of the Cayman Compass, where Ms Bush is now Publisher, competes with TCJ for readers and advertisers.

The Office of the Premier spent CI$42,683.68 between February and April 2026 on communication coaching by San Francisco firm Decker Communications, records released to The Caymanian Journal (TCJ) under the Freedom of Information Act show.

The records, released on 15 September under reference FOI/119204 in response to a request TCJ's news desk emailed on 17 August under the Freedom of Information Act (2021 Revision), show that the government agreed a US$28,000 statement of work with Decker Communications Inc. for two one-day "Communicate to Influence" workshops held on 2 and 3 February 2026, paid a further US$2,000 for a virtual "custom workshop" on 20 January, reimbursed US$3,145.97 in travel and logistics expenses for the two Decker trainers, whom the firm calls "program leaders", and paid Hotel Indigo Grand Cayman US$18,757.99 for the venue, audio-visual services, meals and three nights' accommodation for the two trainers. The combined total is US$51,903.96, recorded in the government's financial management system as CI$42,683.68.

Decker told TCJ by email on 22 September that "the request came through our open contact form via our website from Pilar Bush". Ms Bush was Chief of Staff in the Office of the Premier from 2025 until 7 September 2026, seven months after the February sessions, when she stepped down to become Publisher of Compass Media, a private-sector media company, from 14 September. Ms Bush did not respond to telephone calls from TCJ. The Office of the Premier was asked on 16 September and again on 5 October whether it considered the engagement to have delivered value for taxpayers' money, and whether more coaching is planned, and has not answered. Presenting the government's 2026-2027 budget statement to Parliament on 6 November 2025, the Premier said: "Our approach focuses on easing pressure on families, improving access to affordable housing, investing in childcare affordability, and building a sustainable path forward – not simply spending for headlines."

Each payment was made from the cost centre of the Office of the Premier. The office is headed by Premier André Ebanks MP, leader of The Caymanian Community Party (TCCP) and Member of Parliament for West Bay South, who was sworn in on 6 May 2025 at the head of the National Coalition for Caymanians (NCFC) government. The statement of work names the first day's participants as "Caucus Members" and leaves the second day's as "Group TBD". The Office of the Premier told TCJ in its decision letter that "not all workshop participants were employees of the OTP or elected officials/members of the National Coalition for Caymanians Government Caucus", but the released records do not identify who else attended, and the office has not answered TCJ's questions on attendance. Premier André Ebanks MP, left, with Pilar Bush, then Chief of Staff in the Office of the Premier, in the Cabinet room on 10 July 2026 What was bought

The statement of work is a two-page letter from Decker addressed to "Samuel", with no surname given, and countersigned on behalf of the Cayman Islands Government by Jason Webster as Acting Cabinet Secretary on 26 January 2026. The government's organisational chart places the Office of the Premier within the Cabinet Office, whose Chief Officer is Cabinet Secretary Samuel Rose, and lists Mr Webster as Deputy Chief Officer for Policy Coordination. The Cabinet Office's official travel return for January 2026 records Mr Rose in Singapore from 15 to 29 January representing the government at the Global Government Summit. The Office of the Premier said in its decision letter that the name of the civil servant who agreed the statement of work had not been redacted.

Under the agreement, Decker undertook to run two "programmatic engagements" with "a maximum number of 8-10 participants each (8 recommended for full coaching experience)", with two of the firm's "program leaders" facilitating each session and one-to-one coaching "included only as group sizes allow". The firm agreed to supply "all video equipment for recording, all engagement materials, in addition to a customized workbook", and reserved "the exclusive copyright and ownership rights" to its materials. The fee was described as "Your investment for this engagement is $28,000", with travel, shipping and incidental expenses to be billed separately at cost.

That works out at US$14,000 for each one-day session, or US$1,400 a head if both sessions were filled to the ten-participant maximum, against a published open-enrolment price for Decker's one-day public course of US$1,300 a participant for a virtual session and US$1,600 in person, according to the firm's website on 9 October 2026. Asked whether the fee was typical, Decker said: "The per-session fee for this engagement reflects a private, custom, in-person program for up to ten participants with two program leaders on-site - a different offering from our open-enrollment course, which is priced per individual seat. Custom private engagements of this kind, with dedicated facilitators and included coaching, are commonly priced in that range, so the fee is consistent with our standard pricing for this type of delivery." The firm confirmed that "attendance at each session was limited to 10 individuals".

The agreement provided that the government "will provide the training room facilities at 133 Elgin Avenue, Grand Cayman", the address of the Government Administration Building, "or alternate location". The sessions were held at Hotel Indigo on Seven Mile Beach. The hotel's invoice for the event, headed "Office of Premier Decker Training", records a banquet charge of US$13,967.85 dated 3 February and a US$360 "F&B Incidental" charge. The Office of the Premier said in its letter that the invoice "includes charges for venue rental, audio/visual services, and food and beverage" and that the US$360 "was for meals for the two Decker Communications Program Leaders".

Two Hotel Indigo folios show the trainers stayed in separate rooms from 1 to 4 February. Each room cost US$2,215.07 for three nights, comprising nightly room charges of between US$458.15 and US$590.75, tourist tax, a service charge and a US$75 nightly resort fee. Both folios were settled by deposit transfer at check-in on 1 February and the payment is recorded against the Office of the Premier on 2 February.

The cancellation terms Decker set out required the government to pay the full US$28,000 fee, plus travel costs, if the engagement was cancelled or rescheduled within 14 days of the start date, 50 per cent between 15 and 21 days out, and 25 per cent between 22 and 30 days out. The letter also stated that, if the government were unable to hold the sessions in person, Decker would deliver them virtually on the same dates.

Decker Communications, founded in 1979 according to its website, describes itself as "a communications coaching, consulting and training firm that develops confident, influential communicators for the world's most admired companies". Decker said it could confirm "we delivered communication skills training for the Cayman Islands Government in January and February 2026", but added: "Consistent with our practice across all client engagements, we don't publicly discuss program content or outcomes, which we treat as confidential to the client relationship."

How the contract was awarded

The released records do not show how Decker was selected.