ComBank wins ‘World Class Award’ for global performance excellence from Asia Pacific Quality Organisation

Commercial Bank Managing Director/CEO Sanath Manatunge delivers the acceptance speech at the virtual presentation ceremony of the Global Performance Excellence Awards

The Commercial Bank of Ceylon has been recognised as a role model with a Global Performance Excellence Award (GPEA) for achieving significant milestones in business excellence.

Sri Lanka’s benchmark private sector bank was one of eight of the winning organisations adjudged a ‘World Class’ winner of the Global Performance Excellence Award for 2022 presented by the New Zealand based Asia Pacific Quality Organisation (APQO).

The ‘World Class’ award was presented to Commercial Bank as a result of a submission made about the Bank’s commitment to facilitate business excellence based on the Baldrige Excellence Framework for the National Quality Award (SLNQA) presented by the Sri Lanka Standards Institution (SLSI) which was recommended by the Sri Lanka Standards Institution for the Asia Pacific Quality Organisation competition.

The Global Performance Excellence Award was presented for validated management best practices, quality systems, standards, procedures and processes that are proven leading local, regional and international practices for quality advancement, business success and sustainability to support national, regional and Asia Pacific economic development, growth and success. 

The awards aim to promote the adoption of proven or new approaches and strategies and best-in-class practices in various aspects of operational performance such as deployment of 4th Industrial revolution enabling technologies, automation and data technologies, smart manufacturing, service 4.0, digital transformation, data analytics, development of smart talents, etc., which are driving forces for companies or organisations to stay competitive in the ever-evolving economy.

Commercial Bank also won the APQO International Best Practice (AIBP) Gold Award for managing the system accesses given to Bank employees.

Commenting on this latest achievement, Commercial Bank Managing Director and CEO Sanath Manatunge said: “We believe that quality, be it in service, process or product, must never be compromised even in the most challenging times. 

“In fact, when external factors impact on some aspects of performance, adherence to quality becomes an important differentiator. Becoming the first and only Sri Lankan bank to win a Global Performance Excellence Award in the World Class category demonstrates that this credo has been adopted at every level within the Commercial Bank family.”

The Global Performance Excellence Awards program is the only formal international recognition of performance or business excellence. The awards are intended to promote awareness in performance excellence as an increasingly important tool in competitiveness towards global business success and sustainability. 

The Asia Pacific Quality Organisation was formally established in 1985 and is represented by National Quality Organisations in Asia and Pacific Rim countries including the American Society for Quality.

 It is a non-profit organisation formed to be a primary mover for quality and continuous improvement for goods and services and quality of life in the Asia 

Pacific Region.