SLID Entrepreneurs’ Forum ‘Daring to be Different’ on 7 November

Monday, 4 November 2013 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

“Entrepreneurship is living a few years of your life like most people won’t so you can spend the rest of your life like most people can’t.” Over the years, entrepreneurship has been defined in many ways. They are considered the ‘risk takers’ and the ‘game changers’ striving to carve their own niche amongst the already settled.

It has also been said that genius itself is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. Attention shown in this aspect has risen over the years with the Global Entrepreneurs Week being organised now on a grand scale annually. Successful entrepreneurs have one thing in common; they dare to be different. Taking the above into account The Sri Lanka Institute of Directors (SLID) has organised its inaugural Entrepreneurs’ Forum on 7 November 2013 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. (registrations and refreshments from 4:30 p.m.) at the Union Ballroom 1 of the Hilton Colombo Residencies. Titled, ‘Daring to be Different’, the session will take the form of a panel discussion featuring some of Sri Lanka’s well known entrepreneurs who have abided by that very same motto and have ‘Dared to be Different.’ The panellists Adding versatility and experience to its overall structure, the panel brings together some of Sri Lanka’s successful entrepreneurs in the likes of ODEL PLC Founder/CEO Otara Gunewardene, Kapruka.com Founder/CEO Dulith Herath, Softlogic Holdings PLC Chairman/MD Ashok Pathirage and Expolanka Group Director/CEO Hanif Yusoof. A biology graduate from Ohio, Otara Gunewardene’s love for fashion and lifestyle led her to a brief career in modelling before her entrepreneurial instincts kicked in. In 1989 when she started selling surplus export clothing and hair care products to family and friends from the boot of her trusty blue station wagon. Within a year, the fledgling business blossomed into what was soon to become Sri Lanka’s leading fashion brand; ODEL. She is the recipient of the Entrepreneur of the Year award by the Federation of Chambers and Commerce and Industry of Sri Lanka in 2001 as well as the Best Female Entrepreneur Award at the seventh US Stevie Awards for Women in Business held in New York in 2010. Chairman of Softlogic Group and accomplished business leader Ashok Pathirage started with just 12 employees 23 years ago but today manages a multibillion turnover across various economic growth sectors. His role as the MD/Chairman of Asiri Group has led the healthcare sector to become a world class healthcare provider in Sri Lanka. He also serves on the boards of Softlogic Capital Ltd., Softlogic Finance PLC, Asian Alliance Insurance PLC, National Development Bank PLC, NDB Capital Holdings PLC as well as many other group companies that operate in Leisure, retail, automobile and ICT sectors. Expolanka Group Executive Director and CEO Hanif Yusoof has in addition to being one of its founding members, has also been a cornerstone in building and expanding the freight and logistics sectors of the company. His entrepreneurial nature has led him to be well admired and he was recently the recipient of the ‘Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Special Achievement Award’ by Enterprise Asia. His other achievements include being awarded for ‘Global Commerce Excellence’ in the light of contributions to the Sri Lankan economy by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka in 2012 and receiving the “‘The Outstanding Young Persons - TOYP Award” in 1998. Founder and CEO of Sri Lanka’s largest e-commerce organization Kapruka.com, Dulith Herath is the youngest on the panel with just over 10 years at the helm of the company. Kapruka.com which was founded in 2002 is at present Sri Lanka’s largest online e-commerce organisation with a work force of over 150 employees to date. He received the Gold award by the Chamber of Commerce for Sri Lankan Entrepreneur of the year 2010 as well as the Young Entrepreneur award of 2013 at the Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Awards. Focus The panel discussion will be moderated by none other than Nisthar Cassim, a very senior journalist and the Editor of the Daily Financial Times. The panellists will primarily focus on their experiences gathered over the years in their respective fields whilst paying closer attention towards the ups and downs of the life of a successful entrepreneur. It would be an ideal opportunity for those new to the field, to garner valuable information and insights which will no doubt encourage and inspire them to reach the heights within the business world. The panel will also be opened to the participants during its Q&A session which will follow the discussion. The Sri Lanka Institute of Directors was set up as a forum to serve the corporate and professional development needs of company directors in private and public sector organisations and is the authoritative focal point on boardroom governance in Sri Lanka. It has a diverse membership of 550 professionals and directors from blue chips, quoted and unquoted private companies, family businesses and entrepreneurial ventures. Sampath Bank PLC will sponsor the Forum whilst SLID is joined by Bates Strategic Alliance as the Creative Partner, YES FM, Legends FM and MTV Sports as the Electronic Media Partners and Daily FT and Daily Mirror are the Print Media Partners. More information on the forum can be obtained from the Institute’s website www.slid.lk as well as by emailing [email protected] or by calling 2301646/8.