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Monday, 21 March 2016 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
SriLankan Airlines partnered the University of Colombo and the University of Sri Jayawardenepura to strengthen and sharpen the skills of its future leaders through programs that were specially designed for the national carrier.
Pradeepa Kekulawala, Head of Human Resources at SriLankan Airlines, said: “Global air transport is one of the most keenly competitive industries, and many of the Asian and Middle Eastern airlines that SriLankan Airlines is in direct competition with are widely recognised as being among the finest. It is therefore crucial that we continuously strengthen our managers and leaders of the future in order to make our airline as competitive as possible.”
One program, conducted by the Postgraduate Institute of Management (PIM) of the University of Sri Jayawardenepura, saw 22 members of the airline’s specially selected ‘Succession Pool’ of Managers and Executives undergoing training over a six-week period from 16 January-27 February.
Another program was carried out by the University of Colombo for a wider pool of 37 managers and executives who had consistently been ranked as the best in appraisals over the last two years.
Human Resource Development and Business Partnering Senior Manager Buddhika Manage added: “We are indeed highly appreciative of the University of Colombo and University of Sri Jayawardenepura for joining together with us to strengthen the future of the national carrier. SriLankan Airlines has enjoyed very strong relationships with both these universities and we often collaborate in assisting each other’s developmental efforts.”
The High Performers Development Programme by the Management Faculty of the University of Colombo was customised in order to improve modern skills and soft skills which are vital in order to steer the organisation to the next level of growth. Its participants had been identified by the airline’s management to shoulder expanded job responsibilities and career growth, and needed to be up to date with current market trends.
The program was conducted by an experienced team of lecturers and facilitators drawn from the university’s faculty.
The customised Management Development Programme by PIM focused on management, leadership knowledge and skills development. These participants had been identified for their potential and performance through consistency and the critical nature of their positions to be trained and developed in order to shoulder expanded job responsibilities and higher managerial positions within the organisation.
The facilitators were reputed management consultants and trainers Dr. Ajantha Dharmasiri, Dr. Travis Perera, Ravi Edirisinghe and Dr. Trevor Mendis. The eight modules covered included Personal Excellence, Managing People, Team Dynamics, Financial Essentials, Strategic Management, Best Practices in Management, Decision Making and Problem Solving and Creativity and Innovation.
Graduation ceremonies for the two programs were held on 2 March at the Senate Hall of College House at the University of Colombo and on 27 February at the Postgraduate Institute of Management of the University of Sri Jayawardenepura in Borella.
