Rienzie Wijetilleke: Sons’ tribute

Rienzie Wijetilleke

By Harsha, Chamira and 

Kusum Wijetilleke

On Sunday, 10 November, our dear father Rienzie Wijetilleke reaches a milestone birthday, 85 years young!

We write in tribute to his service to Sri Lanka’s financial sector, its economy and communities across the country and to thank him for his commitment and devotion to his family.

Our father is known for his banking career; however, he is respected for his care and contribution toward those less fortunate. This is a brief quote from remarks made to Staff Conference on 3 March 2007: “Although on the surface everything looks fine for most of us in Colombo, the reality is not so… the economic conditions were declining due to incorrect policies… security situation although it seemed full of success stories… the strong possibilities of security eruptions makes all of us lead a life of utter suspense, not knowing what would happen in the next moment, tomorrow or in the short term. In this scenario, I wish to ask all of you a very pertinent question: has this deteriorating situation in any way reduced or diminished your accountability or responsibility towards your institution, boards, clients or for that matter our commitment to the industry and country!”

He is at all times empathetic, to the personal circumstances of the people under his charge but was never willing to allow anybody to minish responsibility.

Despite a 50-year professional career, our father never shirked his own responsibilities as an active parent, always involved in our upbringing. Our mother’s demise a few years ago succumbing to COVID-19, was difficult for us all to process but especially my father: They had been married for 53 years. Our father’s perseverance and resolve continue to inspire us in our own lives and is a testament to his ability to put others ahead of himself.

Our father also applied his same attitude as a corporate leader. Though best known for his time at Hatton National Bank, he was a major influence on various sectors through his leadership positions in numerous companies in the public and private sectors. These included the Director Boards of DFCC Bank, Ceylon Biscuits (Munchee), the Colombo Stock Exchange, Nawaloka Group of Companies, Laksapana Batteries, etc. 

Serving the wider public interest

Our father believed that business must also serve the wider public interest and the national objectives, especially in a country that was still in the early stages of economic development when he took over as CEO of Hatton National Bank in 1987. It was his vision that lead to HNB growing its branch network to all corners of Sri Lanka with a focus on the rural areas that were underdeveloped. He knew that providing these communities banking products was the best way to improve rural Sri Lanka; however, the success of programs like “Gami Pubuduwa” along with his ferules efforts to reinvent HNB as a premiere private paying in Sri Lanka led to the growth of its net assets to around Rs. 30 billion in that late 1980s when he took over as CEO to approximately 300 billion, when he retired as CEO in 2005. He would serve another seven years as the chairman of the Board of Directors. If one were to check where HNB was ranked in the LMD list of Top Corporates in the country at that time he took over the bank, it would strike you how quickly HNB rose up the rankings to compete and even overtake Commercial Bank at many points during his tenure.

When asked in an interview in 2019 about the secret to his success and the longevity in the industry: “…integrity and acceptance by the people while managing relationships, without integrity, you cannot lead; at least not for long people must not nearly trust you; they must believe in your ability and accept your vision.”

One of his most difficult tasks

Managing people was something my father stated was one of his most difficult tasks: “People are brought together because they have a variety of skills that are needed in concert, to carry out a complex activity. But, this grouping of variety inevitably leads to fragmentation of the organisation into blocks of specialised knowledge and activity…resolving this tension is crucial to success in today’s, knowledge-based and collaborative business environment…

How do you ensure that relevant information gets transferred between two parts of an organisation that have different cultures… How do you encourage people and units competing for scarce corporate resources, to work together? How do you see it that the value of a across functional team is more, not less, than the totality of its parts?”

“The answers to such questions are not in corporate plans or through examination of organisation charts, but largely in an understanding of informal social networks and how they emerge. Certainly, organisations are designed to ensure that people interact in ways necessary to get their jobs done. But all kinds of works- related encounters and relationships exist which only partly reflect these purposefully designed structures. Even in the context of formal structures like cross-functional teams, informal relationships play a major role.”

Our father had a unique compassion for the state of our country and the failures of leadership that have allowed an economy once full of potential to stagnate and ultimately collapse. In 2005, in the aftermath of the devastating Asian Tsunami, he perceived post-tsunami relief efforts as an opportunity to unite the country and at a Rotary Club Luncheon he called on the powers that be to seek long-term solutions for the challenges that lie ahead:

“The Finance Ministry has received generous offers from donor agencies, gained deferment of loans and moratoriums and delayed payments for oil imports. These enabled the Ministry to overcome a near impossible situation. However the sad situation here is that the direct victims of the tsunami have been forgotten, with everyone being more concerned with what’s going on in the society pages. Those who were never beggars are now living in tents.” 

Continuing to convert opportunities into crises

“This country will never learn from situations and will continue to convert opportunities into crises – it has happened repeatedly for the last half century.

“Current issues including those concerning the CEB, CPC and even our education system which were subject to public debate have been put on the back-burner. It seems these are no longer necessary. But we as civil society cannot sit back and watch.”

In that same address he made this appeal to the younger generation: “The world is changing fast. We are now entering the closing stages of what experts are calling the fourth industrial revolution. What worked for your parents will not work for you. The internet allows us to… gain a deep understanding of what is happening around the world. Pay very close attention. You are no longer competing with other Sri Lankans, but competing regionally, and soon, Sri Lanka will need to compete globally, if it is to thrive.”

Our father continues to be the tower of strength for us. Wishing you all the very best on your birthday, and thank you for everything, Dad.