Past Chairman of EFC moots an “aggressively competitive” private sector

Suresh Shah

Creating a sustainable environment for businesses to thrive and an equally stimulating working environment which supports the aspirations of the modern day’s workforce is unprecedented. 

In this backdrop, The Employers’ Federation of Ceylon (EFC) will unfold its eighth edition of the annual symposium on the theme ‘An Agenda for Change’ on 8 November at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel, creating a platform for the employers, employees and also policy makers to deliberate on how best ‘change’ could be championed. 

Professionals representing a broad spectrum of sectors will share their expertise on three key areas of ‘Social Dialogue and Building Trust’, ‘Sustainable Enterprises’ and ‘Shifting Paradigms of the Workplace’. The dialogue will be facilitated though panel discussions and case studies.

The immediate Past Chairman of the EFC, Suresh Shah who will be delivering the keynote address at the upcoming Symposium remarks that the Sri Lankan private sector is compelled to become more competitive and productive in the wake of the ever evolving world of business. This “aggressive and intense competition” as the senior corporate leader further avers, should transcend national boundaries, driving the country to be a global player.  

“In a setting where technologies are driving change at an unprecedented pace, the urgency for the Sri Lankan private sector to be competitive and productive and be in tune with such change cannot be understated,” observes Shah. 

This competitive landscape calls for a shift in traditional skills, he adds. The workforce of tomorrow must be adept at soft skills in addition to the more traditional technical skills, observes the EFC’s past Chairman. “We are moving into an era where the need will be for a ‘breadth of skills’ as against ‘specialisation’ that we see today,” reflects the senior professional who urges the private sector to forge a culture where diverse skills of its workforce can be honed. 

The senior professional also remarks that the private sector is the ‘engine of growth’ and calls for an export-centric economy to take shape. If Sri Lanka is to climb the ladder of prosperity, our ability to compete on the global stage is a pre-requisite, says Shah. 

“So far, our private sector has prospered largely on a platform of protection. In tomorrow’s world, we need to compete on a platform of competitiveness, productivity and innovation. Are we ready to make the change? Or more appropriately, what must we do to make the change and shift platforms? I understand, the deliberations at the upcoming EFC Symposium will address this very fundamental challenge that we face as a nation. In this context, this year’s theme of the symposium – ‘An Agenda for Change’ – is timely,” notes the senior corporate leader.