SLASSCOM People Summit concludes on a high note

Held virtually from 19-21 January, the People Summit 2021 Global Virtual Conference organised by the HR Forum of Sri Lanka Association for Software Services Companies (SLASSCOM) was a resounding success that brought together over 15 international speakers and gathered over 400 plus participants from a range of  countries.

“The annual flagship event of the HR Forum has always been one of SLASSCOM’s principal events,” says SLASSCOM Chairman Channa Manoharan, “and this year, taking the conference virtually meant that we were able to target a vast collection of people from different backgrounds together with a pool of internationally renowned speakers all gathering around the main theme of ‘Building Resilience in your Workforce in the New Norm.’”

“This year’s conference really proved the power of virtual communications to engage in meaningful discussions around a very vital topic – resilience,” shared SLASSCOM Vice Chair and Dialog Chief Customer Officer Sandra De Zoysa. 

The conference included many gripping matters targeting individuals and business leaders interested in building resilience, such as strategic agility, leading with resilience, stress and resilience, strength based resilience and using humour to be resilient, among others that were presented by a host of global experts in the field.

Welcoming participants at the start of the conference, SLASSCOM Director, HR Forum Board Representative and 99x Chief Operating Officer Shehani Seneviratne highlighted the importance of resilience and adaptability and how they were considered to be a critical skills for today’s organisations and individuals.

The conference kicked off with Resilience Institute Founder Dr. Sven Hansen on ‘Building A Resilient Organisation: Leaders Role’ who highlighted the importance of inculcating resilience with the organisation’s strategy. 

Speaking on the next topic on the agenda ‘Strategic Agility: Aligning culture with the strategy to build more resilient organisations,’ Workplace Culture Advisor and regular Forbes contributor Dawn Metcalfe noted: Culture is inevitable. Yet, how often do we actually spend time in managing our organisational culture? Building a culture that supports what you’re trying to achieve is about making sure your employees understand and buy into the culture once hired.”

Resilience Leadership Chief Resilience Officer and Nike former Head of Leadership Development Dr. Taryn Marie adding her insights outlined how we can allow challenge to enhance us, rather than diminish us. She discussed the importance of resilience in this particular moment of human evolution, and shared strategies for developing this skill set.

“We have spoken of effectiveness for over 15 years, and now resilience needs to be the next conversation,” added Oxford Leadership Partner Lasse Wrennmark as he shared some thought-provoking tips on ‘How Purpose Helps You To Become More Resilient,’ whilst Gamma Pizzakraft Chairman and Managing Director Amar Raj presented an impressive case study on how Pizza Hut had navigated their company for further success during these times of uncertainty. 

The three-day conference also held two panel discussions: ‘Leading with resilience in a volatile world’ moderated by Daily FT Editor-in-Chief Nisthar Cassim with panellists SLASSCOM Chairman Channa Manoharan, IFS EVP and COO Ranil Rajapakse, Virtusa CIO Madhu Rathnayake and hSenid Founder Dinesh Saparamadu and on the second day ‘Resilience Learnings from Sri Lankan Companies’ with LOLC Group Chief Human Resources Officer Pradeep Uluwaduge, Dialog Chief Customer Officer Sandra De Zoysa, NDB Vice President Group HR Lasantha Dasanayaka and Brandix Group Chief People Officer Ishan Danthanarayana. 

The conference also witnessed a real-time yoga session by RYT 500 teacher – Certified Yoga Alliance and Functional Range Conditioning (FRC) Movement Specialist Aaron Wickramasekara, which was well received by all participants. 

Summarising the conference’s proceedings and key learnings on the final day, SLASSCOM General Council Member Sampath Jayasundara and People Summit Chair Nuwan Dishan highlighted the need for individuals and organisations to invest in building resilience taking the tips and advice from the summit’s speakers who are true advocates of resilience in their work and life. 

The summit was organised by the HR Forum of SLASSCOM, and was hosted in tandem with Corporate Sponsor Dialog Enterprise, Main Sponsor Pearson, Silver Sponsors Exetel and 99x, Bronze Sponsor hSenid Biz, Education Partner Informatics Institute of Technology, Media Partner Daily FT and Event Partners AT Link, ACCA and Mint HRM.