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APGP cohort 2020 with HEINEKEN Lanka Managing Director Dusty Alahakoon and Director - Human Resources Thilanka Silva
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Heineken’s ‘Asia Pacific Graduate Program’ is the world acclaimed beverage company’s innovative talent program that engages and inspires potential recruits across the Asia Pacific region. Launched in 2017, this unique initiative demonstrates the diversified opportunities available to candidates regionally across the business.
Heineken seeks to employ professionals with a thirst for knowledge and a spirit for adventure. Coupled with curiosity of mind and a broad skill set; these professionals embody the company’s core values and culture and what sets it apart from its competitors.
For the third consecutive year since its launch, Heineken Lanka has successfully recruited Sri Lankan graduates into the ‘Asia Pacific Graduate Program’. A two-year training platform, the program consists of four assignments, each of which are six months in duration.
The assignments allocated to graduates comprise cross-functional exposure, including two international assignments within the Asia Pacific region. Providing candidates firsthand experience to Heineken’s best practices to expand their knowledge and skillset. The multi-cultural exposure intrinsic to the international assignments also helps in assessing graduate levels of agility, making the program the only one of its kind in Sri Lanka.
This year, the Asia Pacific Graduate Program garnered over 10,000 applications regionally with approximately 800 applications from Sri Lanka. Graduates from the top 300 universities in the world as per latest university rankings are eligible to apply. After a series of interviews and assessments including a regional assessment center held in Singapore, two candidates from Sri Lanka were on-boarded for the 2020 cohort.
Commenting on the company’s graduate program, Heineken Lanka Ltd. Managing Director Dusty Alahakoon said, “This program is one of our many unique initiatives to infuse Sri Lankan talent into the regional talent pool. We are committed to providing global standard training and development opportunities for our employees, equipping them with the necessary skillset and multi-level exposure to broaden capabilities necessary in an ever-evolving business context. We are confident that this will create a new breed of professionals for Sri Lanka, ready to take on strategic positions to face the international arena and propel growth for the country.”
Despite the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Heineken is committed to ensure graduates receive the same level of exposure from the program with international assignments scheduled post travel and safety clearance globally.
Over the past three years, Heineken Lanka has recruited 10 graduates through this program. Upon successful completion, the Asia Pacific Graduates take on managerial roles within Heineken and are groomed for management team positions. The next round of recruitments will take place in 2021 for placements in 2022.
