AHRP at 25: Bringing HR to the corporate forefront

As Sri Lanka looks ahead, the importance of human capability cannot be overstated. Economic recovery and growth will not be achieved only through capital, infrastructure or technology. They will be achieved through people who can think differently, lead responsibly, adapt quickly and perform with purpose. Organisations that invest in their people will be better placed to innovate, compete and endure. Nations that invest in human capability will be better positioned to grow inclusively and sustainably

As the Association of Human Resource Professionals Sri Lanka marks its 25th anniversary, it is an important moment not only to celebrate an institutional milestone, but also to recognise the journey of a profession that has steadily moved from the margins of administration to the centre of business, leadership and national development.

When AHRP was established in 2000, Human Resources in Sri Lanka was still evolving as a professional discipline. In many organisations, HR was seen largely through the lens of personnel administration, compliance, recruitment and industrial relations. While these functions remain important, the last 25 years have shown that the true value of HR lies far beyond process and policy. It lies in shaping capability, culture, leadership, performance and organisational resilience.

AHRP has played a meaningful role in this shift.

A professional platform for HR practitioners

Over the years, the Association has helped create a professional platform for HR practitioners across industries to learn, connect, debate and elevate standards. Through knowledge forums, conferences, HR think tanks, awards, professional development programs and industry collaborations, AHRP has contributed to strengthening the way organisations think about people and performance.

One of AHRP’s most significant contributions has been its role in positioning HR as a strategic business function. The modern HR leader is no longer expected to merely respond to business decisions. Today, HR must help shape those decisions. It must understand business models, productivity, technology, governance, labour market shifts, employee expectations and the future of work. This is the mindset AHRP has consistently advocated.

The Association’s work has also helped bring global HR practices into the Sri Lankan corporate landscape. Its collaboration with SHRM, the world’s largest HR professional body, has given Sri Lankan HR professionals greater access to international standards, modern practices and a broader global outlook. Similarly, the National HR Awards, conducted with international guidelines, has encouraged organisations to benchmark their people’s practices and recognise HR excellence as a boardroom priority.

Human capital development on the national agenda

AHRP was also among the early voices to place human capital development on the national agenda. The Human Capital Summit in 2016, themed around creating a future-ready workforce, was a timely and forward-looking intervention at a time when conversations on capability development, skills transformation and the future of work were still emerging. The summit brought together policymakers, business leaders, development agencies and HR professionals to examine how Sri Lanka could prepare its workforce for a changing economy.

Importantly, the outcomes and actionable recommendations from that process were shared with relevant stakeholders and were enriched by the perspectives of institutions such as IFC, ADB, ILO and the National Human Resource Development Council. This demonstrated that HR was not only an internal organisational function, but also a critical contributor to national competitiveness.

That journey continued through subsequent initiatives, including the 2024 Human Capital Summit, the HR Think Tank series, university partnerships, the Elevate You program for young HR professionals, capability development frameworks and learning visits such as the Big Bus Tours, where HR practitioners were exposed to best practices in benchmark organisations. These initiatives helped create wider knowledge dissemination across the HR community and supported the emergence of a more capable, confident and future-focused profession.

As Sri Lanka looks ahead, the importance of human capability cannot be overstated. Economic recovery and growth will not be achieved only through capital, infrastructure or technology. They will be achieved through people who can think differently, lead responsibly, adapt quickly and perform with purpose. Organisations that invest in their people will be better placed to innovate, compete and endure. Nations that invest in human capability will be better positioned to grow inclusively and sustainably.

This is where institutions such as AHRP matter. They create continuity in professional standards. They bring communities of practice together. They connect business, academia, public policy and global expertise. They help ensure that HR does not remain confined to operational execution, but continues to influence how organisations build talent, leadership, productivity and culture.

At 25, AHRP marks this milestone not with nostalgia, but with intent. The colours may be new, the context may have changed, and the challenges may be more complex, but the conviction remains the same. AHRP must continue to shape the future of work and organisations in Sri Lanka.

Next phase of HR

The next phase will require HR to lead with greater courage and relevance. Artificial intelligence, demographic changes, employee well-being, skills shortages, productivity pressures, industrial relations, flexible work, ethical leadership and inclusive workplaces are no longer future topics. They are current realities. HR can no longer react to change. It must lead.

The future of HR lies in bringing business, technology and people together with courage, conviction and purpose. That is the role AHRP must continue to play for Sri Lanka.

As AHRP celebrates 25 years, it is also an invitation to the wider corporate community to recognise that people capability is not a soft agenda. It is an economic agenda. It is a leadership agenda. It is a national agenda.

For the HR profession in Sri Lanka, this is not merely a celebration of the past 25 years. It is a renewed commitment to the next 25.

(The author is the President of the Association of Human Resource Professionals Sri Lanka. He is a senior HR professional and Attorney-at-Law with cross-sector experience in human resource leadership, industrial relations, capability development and organisational transformation. As President of AHRP, he is currently leading the Association during its 25th anniversary milestone, with a focus on advancing the HR profession and strengthening human capability development in Sri Lanka)