SLID Elects Council for 2020/2021 Corporate Governance Through the Looking Glass Should Boards Change The Way They Work? - VOLUME 20 ISSUE 02

Page created by Jonathan Curtis
 
CONTINUE READING
SLID Elects Council for 2020/2021 Corporate Governance Through the Looking Glass Should Boards Change The Way They Work? - VOLUME 20 ISSUE 02
VOLUME 20 ISSUE 02

                          SLID Elects Council for
                                      2020/2021
                          Corporate Governance
                      Through the Looking Glass
                                 Should Boards
                     Change The Way They Work?
SLID Elects Council for 2020/2021 Corporate Governance Through the Looking Glass Should Boards Change The Way They Work? - VOLUME 20 ISSUE 02
02
SLID Elects Council for 2020/2021 Corporate Governance Through the Looking Glass Should Boards Change The Way They Work? - VOLUME 20 ISSUE 02
Contents
                            02    SLID Elects Council for
                                  2020/2021

                            03    Newly Elected Council

                            04    Corporate Governance Through
                                  the Looking Glass

                            06    SHOULD BOARDS CHANGE THE
                                  WAY THEY WORK ?

                            08    Capex Over tough times
                                  Challenges for Financial sector

                            10    Secretariat NEWS

                            11    Board Leadership Training
                                  Intake-10 STRATEGIC
                                  LEADERSHIP

                            12    SLID signs MOU with ACCA

                            15    BlueScope Lysaght Lanka (Pvt)
                                  Ltd

                            18    New Members

EDITOR : Mr. A. R. Rasiah
CEO    : Ms. Radika Obeyesekere

SLID OFFICE
Room 166 & 167
Cinnamon Grand Colombo
No. 77, Galle Road,                                                 Articles and comments therein are
                                                                    views of the author concerned and does not
Colombo 03                                                          represent view of SLID
SLID Elects Council for 2020/2021 Corporate Governance Through the Looking Glass Should Boards Change The Way They Work? - VOLUME 20 ISSUE 02
The     8th     Annual      Membership
 Meeting of The Sri Lanka Institute
 of Directors (SLID) was held on 29th
 July 2020, ushering in the Council for
 2020/2021. SLID, one of Sri Lanka’s
 premier organizations for business
 leaders is at the forefront of Corporate
 Governance, bringing together over
 950 members. Mr. Rasakantha Rasiah
 was re-elected for a second term as
 Chairman of the Institute. Mr. Rasiah
 currently serves as Chairman for Hela
 Clothing Group.

 Mr. Rasiah thanked the members for
 their confidence reposed in him by
 re-electing him as Chairman and also
 for their prudence in the selection of
 the same Council as this would mean
 continuity in the functioning of the
 Institute. He made special reference
 to the fact that the Institute has made
 significant advancement from its
 humble beginnings under the aegis
 of The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce
 and expressed his gratitude to those                 SLID Elects Council for
 members who have been associated
 with the Institute since inception.
 He also acknowledged the unfailing
 support by Mr. Faizal Salieh, Senior
                                                                                    2020/2021
 vice-chairman and Ms. Aroshi
 Nanayakkara, Vice Chairperson given
 during the year under review.              plan for a regional network of the Institute and conducting of an International
                                            Directors program with due emphasis on the Covid-19 pandemic.
 The Chairman appraised the members
 that SLID’s renowned programs              Mr. Fabrice Cavallin, Managing Director of Nestle (Lanka) PLC was the Chief
 initiated for the professional training    Guest at the event. Mr. Cavallin who overlooks Sri Lankan and Male operations
 of directors were very well received       of Nestle PLC , shared some of his personal experiences on navigating through
 with senior directors and managing         challenging business environments. He explained how the company took
 directors of multinational companies       advantage of the covid-19 “work from home situation”. He also stressed on the
 being amongst the enthusiastic             importance of empowering staff, making employees responsible and come up
 participants. He further outlined a        with suggestions for improvement.

02
SLID Elects Council for 2020/2021 Corporate Governance Through the Looking Glass Should Boards Change The Way They Work? - VOLUME 20 ISSUE 02
Newly Elected Council

      Mr. A. R. Rasiah              Ms. Nadija Tambiah
      Chairman                      Head of Legal Secretarial & CSR/Ex VP
      Hela Clothing (Pvt) Ltd       John Keells Holdings PLC

      Mr. Faizal Salieh             Ms. Aruni Rajakarier
      Director                      Director
      Cargills Bank PLC             SheConsults (Pvt) Ltd

      Mr. Preethi Jayawardena       Mr. Ravi Abeysuriya
      Chairman                      Group Director
      Cal Exports Lanka (Pvt) Ltd   Condor Group of Companies

      Ms. Aroshi Nanayakkara        Mr. Vish Govindasamy
      CEO                           Group Managing Director
      Global Consulting Company     Sunshine Holdings PLC

      Mr. Dinesh Weerakkody         Mr. Dilshan Rodrigo
      Chairman                      Director/COO
      Hatton National Bank PLC      Hatton National Bank PLC

      Mr. Prakash Schaffter
      Chairman
      Janashakthi Insurance PLC

                                                                            03
SLID Elects Council for 2020/2021 Corporate Governance Through the Looking Glass Should Boards Change The Way They Work? - VOLUME 20 ISSUE 02
Corporate Governance Through the
 Looking Glass
 By Rachael Johnson, Global Head             different stakeholders’ interests. Directors must consider the impact on the
 of Risk Management and Corporate            company’s reputation and long-term business objectives. For, at some point
 Governance, at ACCA Professional            in time, the board may well have to prove due consideration of the decisions it
 Insights                                    makes today.

 More than six months on since the           Let’s consider the garments industry, one of the highest contributors to Sri
 World Health Organisation (WHO)             Lanka’s export revenues. Sri Lankan garment companies secured a significant
 learned about a novel coronavirus           niche in the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) supply chain early in the
 outbreak in Wuhan, China, one thing         pandemic, having won around US$500 million in orders. Lingerie manufacturer
 certain is that Covid-19 continues to       MAS Holdings was particularly quick to innovate its experience in textiles by
 fast-forward many existing long-term        moving straight into PPE production for frontline health workers. Building on its
 trends, and the rising importance of        trademark slogan, “Change is Courage” it transformed itself into a multi-national
 sound corporate governance is no            manufacturer of medical and infection control apparel for caregivers, notably
 exception.                                  with the use of some reusable materials. Whilst this is undoubtedly turning the
                                             dial in the right direction – indeed, very positive news for employees and their
                                             families, as well as for meeting urgent societal needs – pressing environmental
 In July, OECD’s Corporate Governance
                                             questions still linger in the wider garment industry about waste, consumption
 Committee released a draft of
                                             habits and the much-needed shift to environmentally-friendly productive
 their upcoming white paper for
                                             systems.
 consultation. The ‘Business at OECD’
 draft, Improving Business Resilience
                                             The second pillar of the OECD’s draft paper focuses on “going concern” of
 Through     Corporate    Governance,
                                             solvency. If a company goes out of business, the impacts on employees, capital
 asks the question: Were we really
                                             providers, customers and suppliers are inevitably detrimental to all stakeholders.
 prepared for this pandemic if we look
                                             As some of the hardest lessons from Covid-19 relate to unexpected disruptions
 back at ourselves from the corporate
                                             to supply and value chains, the board needs to align the company’s business
 governance standpoint?
                                             strategy with a clearly defined enterprise risk management framework to ensure
                                             operational resilience. Even those companies that had a business continuity
 Stories will differ around the world        plan have realised how ineffective they were in reacting to the unique nature of
 and across sectors, but the ultimate        the Covid-19 crisis and its aftershocks. Crisis management needs to be 24/7,
 answer in ACCA’s view is that the global    and quality reporting and communication with stakeholders and shareholders
 pandemic has proved how integral            as to how the company is managing risk is vital.
 corporate governance is to building
 back better and leading the way to a        The Professional Insights team at ACCA have taken on an extra focus on
 greener, more prosperous economy for        emerging risks, for example, those stemming from the rapid leaps in digital
 the future. “It is important to note that   transformations companies have made during the lockdowns or are still trying
 we do not need to reinvent the wheel.       to do as economies re-open. Whilst on the bright side companies managed to
 We should seize this opportunity to         shift swiftly to virtual AGMs, serious questions over data privacy, lack of skills
 create a more resilient and sustainable     and appropriate training, as well as the increasing probability of cyberattacks
 economy by incorporating lessons            are rising fast. Protectionism, growing geopolitical uncertainties and how these
 learned from the pandemic into our          issues affect trade are also extremely important risks that boards cannot ignore.
 corporate governance framework,” the
 Committee emphasised.                       In upcoming months, we will be working on virtual roundtables with partner
                                             organisations, such as the Sri Lanka Institute of Directors, to help MESA
 The draft focuses on three main             members address this increasingly interconnected risk landscape. In the
 pillars of corporate governance             meantime, a recent paper authored by our Head of Business Insights, Narayanan
 post Covid-19. The first, Broadening        Vaidyanatham, Meaningful Work for the Digital Professional: Roadmap Beyond
 perspectives of Board’s responsibility      the Pandemic provides a sound, in-depth analysis of how digital transformation
 and fiduciary duty, is a call for boards    can help businesses build a sustainable future.
 to broaden their thinking of corporate
 accountability and purpose. In              The last pillar in the OECD draft paper is about Policy instruments to support
 this respect, the OECD Corporate            governance and sustainability. In recent months, the OECD’s Committee has
 Governance Committee stressed how           discussed its concern about whether virtual AGMs ensure shareholder rights
 boards need to take on more active          and how directors need to maintain constant dialogue with investors (equity and
 and inclusive views to help meet            credit) during times of disruption. The OECD’s overall policy recommendations
 the tougher challenges of managing          home in on how important it is that investors, businesses and stakeholders
04
SLID Elects Council for 2020/2021 Corporate Governance Through the Looking Glass Should Boards Change The Way They Work? - VOLUME 20 ISSUE 02
work together to build a more sustainable economy. “Unchecked, global               to halve over this decade. Yet there
environmental emergencies, such as climate change and biodiversity loss,            are already signs that emissions are
could cause social and economic damages far larger than those caused by             rebounding as the economy restarts,
Covid-19,” the OECD stated.                                                         a pattern that has been seen after
                                                                                    past recessions.” In his presentation,
In a comprehensive list of policy recommendations, Building Back Better: A          Gore stressed how vital a sustainable
Sustainable, Resilient Recovery after COVID-19 it explains that government          approach to economic policy is in
recovery policies need to trigger investment and behavioural changes that will      developing countries with worsening
reduce the likelihood of future shocks and increase society’s resilience to them.   extreme weather. A report last year by
ACCA agrees this is essential in countries like Sri Lanka that are particularly     another one of my colleagues, Jimmy
vulnerable to climate-related natural disasters, such as floods and droughts.       Greer, on social and environmental
Investors and consumer behavioural changes continue to drive sustainability         value creation is worth reading as
                                                                                    well.
Responsible and sustainable investing using environment, social and
                                                                                    According to Vivid Economics,
governance (ESG) considerations was already mainstream before Covid-19
                                                                                    stimulus money considered to be
erupted, and such fund managers continue to outperform traditional assets.
                                                                                    environmentally impactful include
From 2010 to the start of 2020, the MSCI Emerging Markets ESG Leaders
                                                                                    those targeting Agriculture, Industry,
Index, which tracks companies with high performance in ESG metrics relative
                                                                                    Energy, Transport and Waste, given
to their peers, outshone the broader MSCI Emerging Markets Index with 6.98%
                                                                                    their historical record of being directly
annualised gross returns versus 3.73%.
                                                                                    tied to environmental and natural
                                                                                    outcomes. Furthermore, it is critical
The pandemic has only accelerated investors’ desire for private companies           that funding in response to the
with a focus on long-term structural change too, and they will be hunting for       COVID crisis helps without risking
small to medium companies that commit to ESG principles. The best ESG               future public health, job security,
investors in this space are those that engage with their portfolio companies,       fiscal stability and environmental
helping them learn about governance best practices and guiding them when it         sustainability.
comes sustainable strategies and solutions that lead to better impacts on the
planet and, consequently, better bottom lines. Companies that save money by
                                                                                    Local partnerships are also going
reducing waste and utilising raw materials and less packaging are the ones able
                                                                                    to be key to getting on the right
to raise capital and grow.
                                                                                    road to recovery, and boards could
                                                                                    do more to forge such mutually
Generation Investment Management, set up by former US Vice-President Al             beneficial agreements in this regard.
Gore in 2004, released its annual Sustainability Trends Report in July 2020         For example, Dialog Axiata, one of
which showed how Covid-19 has underscored the need for more impactful               Sri Lanka’s largest mobile network
stimulus money to influence company directors, their investors and consumers.       operator, has been making strides at
“While carbon emissions are set to fall in 2020 due to COVID-19, they still need    developing automation tools for the
                                                                                    agricultural sector by collaborating
Build back better mind-set for boards                                               with local universities and SMEs.

                                                                                    It has worked with the University of
                                                                                    Moratuwa’s Mobile Communications
                                                                                    Research            Laboratory        to
                                                                                    collaboratively design and develop
                                                                                    the hardware components needed.
                                                                                    Dialog also worked with the University
                                                                                    of Ruhuna’s Faculty of Agriculture
                                                                                    on employing their data models into
                                                                                    its Internet of Things (IoT) platform.
                                                                                    In addition, Dialog has formed a
                                                                                    partnership with Plant Beat, a local
                                                                                    SME focused on protected agriculture,
                                                                                    to help manage solution deployment
                                                                                    and customer support. This includes
                                                                                    training and upskilling Plant Beat
                                                                                    staff. It is now focused on establishing
                                                                                    more distribution partners to bring its
                                                                                    solution to market. Such partnerships
                                                                                    have allowed Dialog to develop
                                                                                    sensors and control systems 10 times
                                                                                    cheaper than European alternatives,
                                                                                    while at the same customising its
                                                                                    smart farm technology to Sri Lankan
                                                                                    environmental conditions.

                                                                                                                           05
SLID Elects Council for 2020/2021 Corporate Governance Through the Looking Glass Should Boards Change The Way They Work? - VOLUME 20 ISSUE 02
SHOULD
  BOARDS
  CHANGE THE
  WAY THEY
  WORK?
 Companies and their Boards are under intense scrutiny from shareholders,
 regulators, employees and other stakeholders. In times of uncertainty,
 the roles and responsibilities of a Director are even more demanding and
 Boards are required to go beyond the basic oversight function in order to
 be effective. The Sri Lanka Institute of Directors (SLID) hosted a webinar
 titled “Should Boards Change the Way they Work?” which discussed the
 Board experiences of a panel of independent non-executive directors
 (INEDs) representing a few of the worst hit sectors in the recent months.

 Moderating the session, Manil Jayesinghe – Partner, EY and President of
 the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka, highlighted the key
 trends which have emerged and made major impacts on businesses in
 recent times. From overall disruption in business to permanent changes       Mr. Manil Jayesinghe
 in society to company structures and geo-political links to impacts on
 supply chains, the c-19 pandemic has provided an extra-ordinary, never-
 seen before, backdrop to doing business. He stated that the response to
 these challenges lie in a company’s agility and its ability to respond on
 the run.

 Expressing her experience on the broad spectrum of challenges facing
 the hospitality and tourism sector, Kamini Reddy, representing a family
 owned group of companies located in the Pacific Islands and an INED of
 Jetwing Symphony PLC, stated that as an INED, her focus was on cash
 flows and the survival of companies with the high overhead costs to be
 managed. She went onto state that making decisions which affected
 people’s livelihoods was one of the biggest challenges for her personally,
 where large numbers of people were made redundant as a result of the
 closing of borders during the pandemic. Reddy also commented that            Ms. Kamini Reddy
 sourcing of health and safety equipment and training of staff were a few

06
SLID Elects Council for 2020/2021 Corporate Governance Through the Looking Glass Should Boards Change The Way They Work? - VOLUME 20 ISSUE 02
of the measures which had to be adopted within a short period
of time.

The apparel sector being one of the worst hit sectors, continues
to see weak order books, with second waves of the pandemic
affecting Sri Lanka’s major export markets. Commenting on
business dependency and the uncertainty around not knowing
which of your customers would fall off the cliff, Harin De Silva
Wijeyeratne an INED and Audit Committee Chairman of MAS
Holdings PLC, stated that liquidity was the real crisis and of
paramount concern for directors on the Boards of apparel
companies. He also spoke of the proactive measures and strict
controls taken to contain the spread of the virus, whilst ensuring
the physical and mental well-being of employees. “More regular
communication, with management playing the major role
in ensuring compliance across the entire company” is how
Wijeratne summarized the role of INEDs in the companies              Mr. Harin De
represented by him. He also commented that supporting the
mental health of employees was critical to creating a safe
                                                                     Silva Wijeyeratne
physical environment, and had featured on the Board’s agenda.

Elaborating further on the issue of mental health, Reddy was
of the view that focusing on it was extremely important during
the readjustment phase with clear and frequent communication
on the company’s response plans, from social distancing to
wearing personal protective equipment (PPE), as well as details
about the workforce and financial stability.

The post c-19 business environment requires a new way
of thinking about risk and transformation. It requires risk
management to be more dynamic. At the Board level, this
translates to adopting a future-fit risk approach that is more
attuned to external business trends and one that allows
                                                                     Mr. D. Soosaipillai
management to focus on identifying and capitalizing on risks
that enhance trust and enables innovation and value creation.
Soosaipillai, an INED on a number of banking and financial
institutions, was of the view that while Boards were thrown into
the deep-end overnight, from cybersecurity threats to a volatile
geopolitical landscape and pandemics, the situation had put
pressure on Boards to build risk resilience and create long-term
value for their companies. He stated that it was important for
Boards to address the top risks associated with the protection
of information assets instead of leaving the CIOs to act in
isolation.

Companies today must embrace technological innovations
to survive and transform and Board members must clearly
acknowledge this. While this provides strategic opportunities
for companies, it also introduces new cyber and data privacy
vulnerabilities, creating an increasingly complex cybersecurity
landscape. Cyber security is not a regular discussion item on
Board agendas which gives rise to an urgent need for oversight
of this existential threat.

The current crisis sheds light on the vital importance of a
diverse Board. A Board with a breadth of experience, relevant
industry and functional expertise, and a range of ages, genders,
and backgrounds would enable an organization to assess
challenges from a variety of perspectives. Boards should seize
this moment to step up their game and provide critically needed
guidance to their organizations.
                                                                                           07
SLID Elects Council for 2020/2021 Corporate Governance Through the Looking Glass Should Boards Change The Way They Work? - VOLUME 20 ISSUE 02
Eshan Fernando is the Business Manager at Gestetner of Ceylon PLC with over 8
     years’ experience in the field of Marketing and Sales. He holds a BBA double major in
     Management & Marketing and presently reading for an MBA in General Administration.

 Capex over tough times
 Challenges for Financial sector
 Post Covid Responses                        New opportunities will definitely require new investments. As an immediate
                                             response Termination of Capex is understandable. However, it is likely that in
 The most common among the post              most businesses this will lead to shutting themselves to new opportunities in
 Covid precautionary measures by             the market.
 businesses is the suspension of
 Capex. Due to this the response is          Those businesses that are courageous to remain open minded in terms of
 understandable given the sudden             capex would have and continue to instinctively seek new opportunities. As
 and unexpected nature of the current        stated previously those who seek opportunities do encounter them. The power
 pandemic. Decision makers are facing        of a positive mindset summed up in Lord Buddha’s quote: “Mind is everything.
 a difficult task in the midst of not just   What you think you become”
 a crisis but one that is aggravated due
 to its uncertainty particularly in terms    Funding Challenges to Capex
 of timelines.
                                             Open mindedness to capex is all well and good. However, funding Capex is
 Responses among the large and               a challenge in the current climate of uncertainties in the market. But it is not
 small businesses ranged from the            unsurmountable.
 riskiest of all being to do nothing to      Understandably for most businesses Banks are the primary source of funding
 the other extreme of hyped up anxiety.      for capex. However, Banks have their own challenges at times like now. Non-
 The outcomes of the former are easy         performing loans and ever-increasing regulatory requirements compel them to
 to comprehend but the latter were           escalate their criteria for evaluating funding requests. Therefore, businesses
 mostly uncoordinated moves ending           with strong fundamentals are unlikely to be constrained in seeking funding from
 up targeting the wrong problems.            Banks.
 Fortunately, most businesses upheld         Banks themselves have their own challenges. Besides the higher risk profile
 calmness with well thought-out              under the prevailing situation they have stipulations on capital adequacy that
 responses. Staff related decisions          they need to comply with. This is an added pressure on their own capex
 were the most difficult of all. While       decisions.
 many adopted the simplistic approach
 of measures such as benching                Banking is presently in an evolving phase. Many technological changes are
 there were a minority that adopted          directed towards the Banking sector. Adaptation to these trends are imperative
 more meaningful approaches. Most            to maintain their competitiveness.
 outstanding of the latter were those
                                             Therefore, funding for capex including essential capex as in the case of Banks
 that viewed its manpower not just
                                             is a challenge. Challenges provoke innovation. One of these innovations is
 as a cost but beyond. For example,
                                             for equipment suppliers to depart from conventional methods of selling and
 consensus based and voluntary
                                             structure their offerings to OpEx equivalents.
 sacrifices of earnings by employees
 that cumulatively were sufficient to        Such OpEx offerings can also include the aspects of operation and maintenance
 avoid benching or retrenchments.            of the equipment. Thus, there is scope for the OpEx offerings to be an
                                             outsourcing option i.e. outsourcing the ownership, operation and maintenance
 Post Covid Challenges                       of the equipment. This has twofold benefits. Savings of much needed cash and
                                             maintaining “key” Bank ratios within acceptable limits and leave the handling of
 Luckily, many businesses have               capital expenditure items to experts which in turn may help contain own staff.
 weathered the stormy period over            It may also be possible that experts by the very fact of being specialists may
 the past 06 months. They are now            build synergies and hence offer at very competitive and attractive prices. There
 entering the next phase. A minority         may be times that Banks may themselves fund the operator thereby creating
 of these are equipped with the belief       business opportunities and at times banks themselves can be the clients of
 that there are always hidden but            such operators too, thereby guaranteeing recoveries of such loan facility.
 significant opportunities nestled
 during such crises. This requires the       Therefore, to overcome all challenge at the current stage Opex offerings
 scarce business attribute of positive       and solutions will be the key to success when taking new opportunities into
 mindset.                                    consideration.

08
Secretariat
                                              NEWS
                                                                07               01
                                         E
                                      TE
                                                                               PR and Communications
                                             Director Search                   Developing communications
                                             Get an opportunity to apply       strategies that will drive
                                 IT

                                             for INED Board Positions.         knowledge and understanding
                                M

                                             Create your resume and get        of SLID’s services amongst its

                                                                                                                           RE
                              M

                                             an opportunity to be              members and non-members
                           CO

                                             selected through CV

                                                                                                                             BR
                                             searches

                                                                                                                               AN
                       OGY

                                                                                                                           02

                                                                                                                                 DIN
             ND TECHNOL

                                                                                                                Member Benefits
                                                                                                                Re-vamping SLID’s

                                                                                                                                    G AND PUBLICITY
                 Tech for Corporates
                                                                                                                benefits to keep our
                 Board awareness on

                                                       SLID
                                                                                                                members
                 technology through
                                                                                                                continuously engaged
                 webinars, seminars
                 and workshops

             06
                                                    COMMITTEES
          N A

                                                                                                              Sponsorships
         O

                                                                                                             Our events will not be
                    05
      ATI

                                                                                                            possible without the
                           Digital platform for SLID                                                      support of our
                                                                                                                                                    C

                                                                                                         generous sponsors.
     V

                            Creating a better
                                                                                                                                                     OM

                                                                                                       Partner with SLID for
    O

                            experience for SLID
                                                                                                     Platinum, Gold and
  N

                             members through a
                                                                                                                                                        M

                                                                                                    Silver sponsorship
IN

                               digital experience
                                                                                                   packages
                                                                                                                                                         IT
                                                                                                                                                            T

                                                                 Policy Development
                                                                                                          03
                                                                                                                                                             E

                                                                 Identifying and defining the
                                                                                                                       E
                                                                 problems or issues that
                                                                 necessitate the development
                                                                 of a SLID policy
                                                                                           04

10
Board
Leadership
Training
Intake-10
STRATEGIC    SLID resumed its Board Leadership Training Program taking

LEADERSHIP
             into account applicable health and safety measures. The
             Session on “Strategic Leadership” was held in September
             2020 at The Ivy Room of the Cinnamon Grand, Colombo.

                                                                    11
SLID signs MOU with ACCA
 SLID (The Sri Lanka Institute of Directors) and ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) signed a formal
 partnership agreement (MoU) signalling a new level of cooperation between the professional body and SLID, Sri Lanka’s
 premiere membership organization on Corporate Governance. Both organizations share the common goal of advancing
 and driving their Corporate Governance agenda between their members.

                                                                 “We are delighted to partner ACCA
                                                                 as our goals are complementary.
                                                                 We propagate Corporate
                                                                 Governance and train directors and
                                                                 “would be” directors while ACCA
                                                                 train school leavers and graduates in
                                                                 professional accountancy, which is a
                                                                 stepping-stone to board positions.”
                                                                 A.R. Rasiah
                                                                 Chairman – SLID

                                                                                SLID is pleased to announce the
                                                                                appointment of Sarah Hedwige as
                                                                                Business Development Manager. She
                                                                                holds a Bachelors in Business from
                                                                                the RMIT University in Australia and
                                                                                a Diploma in Management from the
                                             Sarah joins                        Raffles Institute in Singapore. Her work
                                                                                experience includes a number of roles

                                             SLID !
                                                                                in the areas of sales, management and
                                                                                administration.

                                                                                Sarah takes over from Ms. Mala Herath
                                                                                who served as Operations Manager of
                                                                                the Secretariat. We thank Mala for her
                                                                                invaluable contribution made over a
                                                                                period of 5 years and wish her well in
                                                                                all her future endeavours.

       WE ARE MOVING!
       The SLID secretariat will be relocated to Room 166 & 167 of The Cinnamon Grand
       Colombo. Please update your records with our new address. We will be commencing
       business at our new location on 19th October 2020.

12
13
BlueScope Lysaght Lanka (Pvt) Ltd
BlueScope Lysaght Lanka was established in Sri Lanka           buildings, airports, sports stadiums and other public
back in 1994. The company is a fully owned subsidiary of       buildings as well as commercial and residential buildings.
Tata BlueScope Steel Ltd which is an equal joint venture
between Tata Steel and BlueScope Steel in the field of         BlueScope Lysaght is awarded by GREENSL® LABELLING
coated steel. LYSAGHT products are of the highest quality      SYSTEM certificate of Green Building Council of Sri Lanka.
as their parent company Tata BlueScope Steels maintains        It has been certified that LYSAGHT® range of products
high standards in the area of Safety, Health and Environment   manufactured with COLORBOND® XRW Steel have
and has been certified by Underwriters Laboratory Inc. for     met with all requirements to endorse as the very first
ISO 9001: 2008 as well as by M/s. UL MSS India for the ISO     GREENSL® Labelled roofing Product in Sri Lanka. Now
14001 & OHSAS 18001 certifications.                            we at BlueScope offer green certified, eco-friendly roofing
                                                               solutions with a variety of green design features such as
                                                               lead free roofing sheets enabling rain water harvesting,
                                                               higher solar reflectance index values, reduced peak roof
                                                               temperature up to 6° C and reduced annual cooling energy
                                                               by 15% in compliance with THERMATECHTM Technology.

                                                               BlueScope Lysaght is world’s premier roofing solution
                                                               provider that is dedicated to manufacture, supply and
                                                               installation of top quality and intensive processed steel
                                                               building products with a legacy of more than 150 years
                                                               worldwide and more than 25 years in Sri Lanka.

                                                               Amid intense competition in the construction industry,
                                                               LYSAGHT® is synonyms with producing high quality
                                                               steel building components along with other advantages
                                                               such as LYSAGHT® products are backed by research and
                                                               development in world class laboratories, enhanced thermal
                                                               performance against any weather conditions, superior
                                                               aesthetics, longer durability, lowered ambient temperature,
                                                               eco-friendly product features.

The Brand LYSAGHT first came into origin when the
potential in corrugated iron sheeting was discovered and
experimented on by John Lysaght back in 1857. He did
this under the trademark “Orb” which later transitioned
into the future as LYSAGHT. Since its inception Lysaght
products have been pioneers in shaping the world; from
iconic corrugated roofs to large commercial and industrial
projects.

The LYSAGHT ® range of premium building products are
manufactured from high quality steel products such as
COLORBOND® steel and ZINCALUME® steel. Although
located in Sri Lanka Lysaght has the complete backing
and unrelenting support of its parent company BlueScope
which, being Australia’s largest Steel Maker guarantees
nothing but the best in terms quality and customer
satisfaction. Made from 100% Australian steel, Lysaght
products are extensively performance-tested, come with a
BlueScope warranty, and offers customers confidence and
peace of mind.

For over a decade, LYSAGHT ® roofing, walling, structural
purlin and decking systems have been extensively used by
thousands of construction projects throughout Sri Lanka.
These include projects such as power stations, industrial

                                                                                                                        15
17
New Members

         Ms. Elisha Mayanka Gomes                   Mr. Hari Dharshan Sathiamoorthy
         Director                                   Joint Managing Director
         Westgate International (Pvt) Ltd           Built Element Limited

         Mr. Gayan Bandara Rathnayake               Mr. Sathiamoorthy Sivamohan
         Director                                   Managing Director
         Sathuta Builders (Pvt) Ltd                 Mascons (Pvt) Limited

         Mr. Lahiru Jayasinghe                      Mr. Sisira Kumara Kehelgamuwa
         Chief Operating Officer                    Director – Branch Operations
         St. Anthony’s Industries Group (Pvt) Ltd   Certis Lanka Courier Services (Pvt) Ltd

         Mr. Thanushka Jayasundera                  Ms. Chathika Ranawana
         Chief Financial Officer                    Director – General Managress
         Janashakthi Insurance PLC                  Certis Lanka Home Nursing & Swift Care

         Ms. Charmine Ruvini Kariyawasan            Mr. Ranjith Marcus Perera
         Director Corporate Affairs                 Managing Director
         Perera & Sons Bakers (Pvt) Ltd             R M Perera (Pvt) Ltd

         Ms. Aruni Siriwardene                      Mr. Karupudayan Thevkanth
         Director/Co-Founder                        Director
         Advik Consulting (Pvt) Ltd                 R M Perera (Pvt) Ltd

         Mr. Anura de Alwis                         Ms. Sonali Perera Thevkanth
         Board Director                             Director
         Slasscom                                   R M Perera (Pvt) Ltd

         Mr. Aruni Siriwardene
         Joint Managing Director
         Built Element Limited

18
19
20
MOST AWARDED PACKAGING COMPANY
You can also read