SLID and Matale District Chamber conducts program for SMEs

Participants at the workshop for Women Entrepreneurs

 From left: MDCCIA CEO S. Sashikaran, MDCCIA Director Operations Ravi Punchihewa, SLID CEO Chamindā de Silva, MDCCIA President K.N. Mahendra, Women in Management Founder/Chairperson Dr. Sulochana Segera and Green Lanka Trading CEO Saman Rasaputhra

• “If management is about running business, governance is about seeing that it is run properly.All companies need governing as well as managing.” – Professor Bob Tricker 
  
   

Small businesses in emerging markets generally rely heavily on a few talented people—most often the founders who dominate the decision-making process. The command-control system is common, strategic and operational decisions occur informally and there are very few written policies. If such companies are well governed with sound corporate governance principles in place, they will usually outperform other companies and be able to access different forms of financing more easily to help further growth.  

Chamindā de Silva explaining the importnace of governance in SMEs – however small

As part of its initiative started over five years ago to strengthen SMEs throughout the island and promote good governance, the Sri Lanka Institute of Directors (SLID) partnered with the Matale District Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture (MDCCIA) to conduct a program recently, at no cost to the participants, on ‘Conducting Business Responsibly: Improving Business Efficiency and Productivity’. The program was well-attended with over 50 entrepreneurs in the district.

This was the first time that the SLID included a separate session for women entrepreneurs, which dealt with building self-confidence and a support network, balancing business and family life, and dealing with limited access to funding. The program was enriched by the facilitator of this session Dr. Sulochana Segera, a well-known social entrepreneur who is the founder and Chairperson of Women in Management, an organisation dedicated to uniting Sri Lankan women entrepreneurs. She challenged their way of thinking and doing business and her practical advice was well received by the participants interested in learning more on how to build and manage their businesses.  

These participants were joined by their male counterparts for the second session which explored the need for corporate governance in SMEs and how it could secure and grow their businesses. MDCCIA President K. N. Mahendra welcomed all the participants, gave a brief introduction to the work that the Chamber had recently embarked on and thanked the SLID for partnering with them on this program. SLID Chief Executive Officer Chaminda de Silva delivered the session on the business case for corporate governance in small companies and whether SMEs need a board of directors and the role of the boards in small companies. Green Lanka Trading Ltd. Chief Executive Officer and former KPMG Partner Saman Rasaputhra, a long associate of this program, conducted the session on financial plans, monitoring the financial health of a small company and raising capital. There were many questions from the participants, and though the facilitators could not respond in-depth as this was an awareness program, they requested the Chamber to conduct follow-up workshops. 

“We are thankful to the Matale Chamber for organising the event and for the quality of participants invited to attend. I believe that we were successful in our program where we have raised awareness on how governance in their business – however small– can help them manage and grow it,” said the SLID CEO. 

SLID plans to continue its efforts spreading the message throughout the island this year as well.