Now hiring: New CEO, Chief Commercial Officer for SriLankan

SriLankan Airlines is looking for a fulltime Chief Executive Officer and Chief Commercial Officer, either nationals or non-nationals, with proven track records.

The National Carrier last week advertised the vacancy, which felt vacant following the resignation of Kapila Chandrasena, after taking up duties in August 2011. 

Board Director Rakhitha Jayawardena, an airline industry specialist, is overseeing the National Carrier in the interim period. SriLankan has given 14 days for interested persons to apply for the two key posts.

Prospective CEO candidates, among other things, should have a vision and leadership skills to provide strategic direction to the airline. 

Qualifications required include a Bachelor’s Degree and a Masters/MBA from a recognised university or an equivalent professional qualification; a minimum of 10-15 years of experience in a business leadership role in the international commercial aviation sector and extensive experience with a recognised international airline with in-depth knowledge of commercial, flight operations, engineering and maintenance.

The Chief Commercial Officer is a key post in the senior management of the National Carrier to manage its commercial division and report to the CEO.  The Commercial Division comprises worldwide sales, revenue optimisation and pricing, network planning, loyalty and alliances, distribution and industry affairs and corporate communication.

The selected candidate will be responsible for achieving the airline’s annual budgeted revenue targets, developing and implementing an effective marketing and network strategy to stay ahead of the competition, and provide the inspiration and leadership qualifies to motivate the Commercial team.

The National Carrier is looking for an ideal candidate with a Bachelor’s degree from a recognised university or an equivalent professional qualification, a minimum of 10-15 years of experience in the capacity of a senior commercial or marketing manager in the international airline industry and a proven track record in managing a global workforce to achieve revenue targets and established deadlines. 

Chandrasena resigned whilst a four-member Board of Inquiry was engaged in probing any abuse of power by the Chairman and the Board as well as violations of rules and regulations in National Carrier SriLankan Airlines between 2006 and 2014. 

The Board of Inquiry in a detailed report among other things observed blatant abuse of power by former Chairman Nishantha Wickremesinghe and former CEO Chandrasena. Their introduction to SLA on an executive level appeared to have been clearly orchestrated for a collateral purpose.

It also observed that the appointment of Chandrasena as CEO was questionable on many grounds, especially since Chandrasena’s only airline experience was a short stint at Mihin Lanka, while his apparent qualifications and experience was in telecommunications. Furthermore, his appointment as CEO was void of any competitive interview process, further advancing the questionability and suitability of his appointment. 

A qualified professional, Chandrasena holds a Bachelor of Engineering from the University of Chicago and Master in Business Administration from the University of Melbourne. He was also CEO of Mobitel once.