Softlogic Life launches ‘4Her,’ a long-term initiative to empower and embolden women in Sri Lanka

From left: Softlogic Life Alternate Channe Senior Manager Lakmini Ramanayake, Dialog Finance Chairperson and Group Chief Digital Services Officer Renuka Fernando and Softlogic Life Vice President – Marketing Kavi Rajapaksha 

Asserting their commitment to enhancing the quality of life of all Sri Lankans, the country’s fastest growing life insurer, Softlogic Life kickstarted their powerful new 4Her platform in commemoration of International Women’s Day 2021. 

The first of its kind in the country, the 4Her platform consists of a number of unique and revolutionary initiatives to create an opportunity-rich, safe and highly supportive business environment for women in Sri Lanka, enabling them to better contribute to and gain equally from workplaces, communities and country.

Lead by a dynamic team of Softlogic Life’s most senior female leaders and aspiring female leaders, the 4Her platform commenced on 8 March 2021 with a vibrant and engaging virtual coffee chat with Renuka Fernando, Group Chief Digital Services Officer and Chairperson Dialog Finance PLC. This marks the first of a monthly practice of lively discussions which enables female employees to interact with and learn from successful female leaders in Sri Lanka.

Inspired by passionate women who persevere towards their dreams everyday, putting in the long hours, unfailing effort and love to succeed not only for them but as well as for those they nurture, the 4Her initiative is geared to support the dreams and aspirations of the female workforce as a long-term, ongoing practice, in a manner that will have the most impact. 

The 4Her platform comprises of concerted initiatives crafted by taking into account four primary spheres of development; work-life balance, entrepreneurship, education and leadership. All initiatives are aimed at creating the most ideal, growth-oriented work setting that allows female staff members or entrepreneurs to thrive in their careers while better managing their multiple roles in work or home.

The most revolutionary of these is the granting of 100 days of maternity leave, which is a significant increase from the normal 84 days, along with offering the additional option of three more months to allow new mothers to work from home while adjusting to their new and complex parental roles. Added to this, the company has arranged invaluable pre and post mental wellness virtual lessons for moms-to-be in collaboration with leading private healthcare provider Asiri Hospitals. 

In terms of education, leadership and skill development, Softlogic Life will be launching a female leadership specific model across the entire company’s operations. Under this, a group of five high flyers from the branch female staff will be groomed with high value mentorship opportunities to kick start their journeys to becoming successful sales personnel at the fore of the company. Mandatory training will also conducted, in partnership with the Softlogic Life training center, while monthly e-flyers circulated to further enrich staffers.

The theme of International Women’s Day 2021 is ‘Women in Leadership: Achieving an Equal Future in a COVID-19 World,’ which aims to celebrate the contributions by women and girls worldwide in combating the COVID-19 pandemic and shaping a more equal future. The country’s already-low female labour force participation of approximately 35% is expected to worsen due to the ongoing pandemic. 

Softlogic Life’s Vice President – Marketing Kavindra Rajapaksha says the motivation behind this unique initiative was borne out of a strong desire to change this predicament, starting from breaking down barriers and better support female staff to thrive within the company and begin to create a more supportive business landscape for women in the country. 

“The pandemic shed a spotlight on many of the issues that were plaguing working women for a long time. As a brand that inspires people to live fully and embrace their passions, we crafted the 4Her platform to set a course towards creating a more supportive culture for our female staff and all women across Sri Lanka. A path that is highly conducive to balanced growth in both their professional and personal lives. As an equal opportunity employer, we believe that it is our duty to help lead and ignite this change, both within our company and outside in our country, in challenging norms and fighting for progress,” she stated.

“There has never been a more important moment in time to put together our resources and commitment behind resolving some of the biggest issues holding back female staff and entrepreneurs from achieving their best. We intend to further invest in the 4Her platform as it evolves into an even more powerful initiative able to progress society and its practices to better benefit our female workforce,” Rajapaksha stated further. 

In order to ignite change outside the company, Softlogic Life has taken the bold lead in helping to uplift external female entrepreneurs associated with the company by providing them with access to high value resources and funding through their partnership with EO Sri Lanka. Furthermore, Softlogic Life aims to introduce a unique, highly-beneficial female Specific life insurance Product to better support female lives in Sri Lanka.

Marked annually on 8 March, International Women’s Day is a global celebration of the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity as groups come together to celebrate women’s achievements and rally for women’s equality. 

Some members behind 4Her platform