PIM and PIMA recap achievements, unveil new value propositions and plans

From left: ExCo Member Dr. Anil Jasinghe, PIM/Patron PIMA Director Dr. Kelum Gamage, President Ramesh Dassanayake, ExCo Member Dimantha Seneviratne and Vice President Shantha Katipearchchi

The Postgraduate Institute of Management (PIM) and Postgraduate Institute of Management Alumni (PIMA) last week announced strong collaboration between the two stalwart professional bodies of Sri Lanka towards a nationally significant purpose.

PIM is Sri Lanka’s premier professional education body offering post graduate degree programmes in the field of management, which has garnered the respect among both academics and professionals as one of the most rigorous, focused and  empowering post graduate programmes in the country. PIMA is the member body of all PIM graduates, representing a strong base of over 6,000 professionals serving in the country’s private as well as state sector.

PIMA President Ramesh Dassanayake in his opening remarks, set out the twin objectives of the press conference, namely to highlight the incredible value and potential the PIMA possesses and the need to collaborate with the Government of Sri Lanka in leveraging the collective knowledge and skills the PIMA possesses towards driving the nation’s revival from the current crisis towards prosperity.

He expressed his firm belief in PIMA’s capacity to create a significant impact on the economic and social landscape of our country via such partnerships with the Government of Sri Lanka.

“We aim to communicate these objectives to our esteemed members, the Government, and the wider public. By raising awareness about our untapped potential, we seek to inspire our alumni to actively engage with the association, take advantage of the networking opportunities, and contribute to our shared vision of mutual success,” he further said.

New course in professional management education

PIMA Executive Council member and NDB Director/ CEO Dimantha Seneviratne said that PIM has chartered a new course in professional management education in Sri Lanka by offering dynamic, contemporary and pragmatic contents exceeding the traditional realm of management.

Over the 30 years of its yeoman service to the professional management realm of the country, PIM has evolved and reinvented itself to stay relevant in the ever changing operating landscape. This has happened in both its curriculum and the calibre of PIM’s faculty of lecturers, thereby offering one of the sharpest and most apt qualifications to professionals. The quality, course contents, vigorous assessments, and thought-provoking group discussions have remained integral in the overall student experience at PIM over the 30 years, yet augmented to meet the escalated proficiencies of today’s VUCA world demand from business leaders. The stature of PIM is reflected in the profiles of the PIMA members who demonstrate not just managerial skills, but the agility to respond to rapidly developing contexts, empathy towards connected stakeholders and the ability to see the big picture. This is the very reason why over 350 top positions in the Sri Lankan corporate and state sector are held by PIMA members, a classic example being half of the CEO positions of the top 10 banks in Sri Lanka being held by MBA holders produced by PIM.

Hallmark qualities of PIM Masters holders

The collective contribution the PIMA members have made across varied sectors in the economy, may it be banking, manufacturing or agriculture, in shaping nimble organisations, driving results and shaping talent has been instrumental in the country’s economic growth journey.

“We are inspired by our own strengths and at this pivotal moment in the future of our country, we remain committed to further our efforts, by offering our expertise to the country’s revival,” Seneviratne added.

The true spirit of professionalism, intellectual capabilities in driving organisations and versatility of the PIMA members in adapting to any industry or sector have been the hallmark qualities of PIM Masters holders, which differentiate us from the numerous other professional qualifications on offer.  The industry when recruiting new talent has seen a marked difference between PIM MBA holders from several other MBA programmes that have mushroomed in the recent past.  The strength of PIM and PIMA and its wide acceptability are demonstrated in the year on year increase of enrolments, with significant interest shown by the relatively younger professionals in the country, Seneviratne explained.

The collective intellect, prowess and insights of PIMA are mammoth. The amalgamation of many exposures and experiences of our members spread across a large number of sectors in both Sri Lanka and across the globe bring to table an unmatched resource that can be deployed in propelling Sri Lanka towards economic revival and prosperity.

“We would like to make an open invitation to the state and corporate sector in reaching out to us for any form of support and contribution from us in shaping the strategic policies or in any one of its significant initiatives. We strongly believe that a professional body with the intellectual strength of PIMA can be catalysts in Sri Lanka’s growth journey. We continue to offer specifically curated management qualification programmers such as Managerial Development Programs which largely enhance the competencies of staff at managerial positions and we extend a warm invitation to the private and public sector of the country to join us by enrolling your staff members to such programmes. We also remain open for effective collaborations in curating customised contents in our programmes to support you in elevating the profiles of most valued asset - employees,” Seneviratne emphasised.

Largest student population among postgraduate institutes

PIM Director Dr. Senaka Kelum Gamage stressed that the PIM is one of the eleven postgraduate institutes in the university system of Sri Lanka and it has the largest student population among postgraduate institutes, and it is the only self-financing higher learning institution in the university system of the country.

The PIM is a semi-autonomous body affiliated with the University of Sri Jayewardenepura. Its objectives are to promote advanced education and professionalism in management in Sri Lanka through the provision of postgraduate instruction, training, research, and development in the various branches of management and administrative studies.

Today, it serves the national interests of professional management education and training, providing challenging opportunities for learning and skills development to thousands of senior-level managers and administrators.

Being the pioneer of advanced management education in Sri Lanka, the PIM provides leadership to those in the business of innovating and disseminating management know-how and those in search of higher learning alternatives.

Fresh attempts have been made to improve the quality and relevance of the Doctoral, MBA, and MPA programmes as well as other academic and professional development programmes conducted by the Institute from 2021.

To stay ahead of the competition while delivering value to the student, programme curricula have been improved in keeping with the emerging trends, and new areas of knowledge, and aligning to the Sri Lanka Qualification Framework (SLQF).

PIM’s flagship MBA programme is now offered in six international destinations (UAE, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, Bangladesh, and Bahrain), and plans are underway to include Maldives and China during next year.

PIM is also in the process of getting double accreditation from two international accreditation bodies the Association of Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) and the South Asian System of Quality Assurance (SAQS). PIM also has ISO 9001:2015 certification for all our academic programs.

Environment Ministry Secretary Anil Jasinghe, another distinguished PIM alumni, spoke of how the state sector has benefited through programmes conducted by PIM and how PIMA can further the approach via collaboration within the state sector.