MBA Kelaniya organizes Residential Workshop

Master of Business Administration (MBA) program of the Faculty of Commerce and Financial Management Studies (FCMS) organised a residential workshop on the 2^nd and 3^rd of July 2022 at Sheraton, Turtle Beach Hotel, Kosgoda. The purpose of this initiative is to expose the learning partners on the prevalent crises situations of the country and leadership. The main agenda element of this residential workshop was a panel discussion - “From hindsight to foresight: The way forward for inclusive development of Sri Lanka”. The objective of the forum was to open a dialogue on the way forward in responding to the current economic crisis in Sri Lanka. The panel included key figures representing the central bank of Sri Lanka and corporate sectors. Dr. P. K. G. Harischandra - Director, Economic Research Department – CBSL, Mr. Nalin Brian Karunaratne - Chief Executive Officer at Ceylon Biscuits Limited, Mr. Hasitha Premaratne - Group Finance Director, Brandix Lanka Ltd, and Mr. Thimal Perera - Chief Executive Officer DFCC Bank PLC contributed various perspectives on the inclusive development of Sri Lanka. The participants proved that they learnt from the panellists’ interaction and discourse.  

The forum was moderated by Dr. Sugeeth Patabendige, Senior lecturer, Faculty of Commerce and Management Studies, University of Kelaniya, and Ms. Sadathana Wickramasinghe (Representing MBA batch 12). The forum was graced by Dr. Narada Fernando, Dean of the Faculty of Commerce and Management Studies, Dr. Ruwani Fernando, the coordinator of the MBA programme, Dr. Srinath Dissanayake, the technical coordinator of the MBA programme, former coordinators; the management committee of the MBA programme, representatives of the academic staff of FCMS and the students of MBA batch 12 and 13.

The next element of the workshop included a leadership development session conducted by Dr. Ranil Sugathadasa, a senior lecturer attached to the Faculty of Engineering, University of Moratuwa and the Founder, TheMotivator (Pvt) Ltd. While engaging with the participants he addressed the importance of motivational mindset. He reinforced the fact that “Mindset is your software which has the major role in your results. Therefore, it is worth to master your mindset aligned to what you want.”

The final day of the residential workshop was devoted to outward bound training conducted by Alensun Drill. The team conducted various outbound training activities with the learning partners. The objectives envisioned by the programme were multifaceted: to develop leadership skills as well as the personalities of team members to successfully face daily challenges; build and enhance team spirit by imparting effective interpersonal communications and conflict handling skills thereby creating a positive workplace atmosphere and removing any self-made barriers to team building. These objectives were achieved through the conducting of various activities related to team building, personality development, intellectual challenges, confidence building activities as well as other exhilarating games and fun activities.