Today is a very important day. At the outset let me thank immensely Chaminda Molligoda – the founder of Sterling Holdings a principal investor, in our business, for giving us this building. This premises is excellent, said PMF Chairman Chandula Abeywickrema.
“If we look at the challenges faced by our country, especially since Sri Lanka faced the Covid-19 pandemic and the economic crisis that followed that epidemic, in the past two or three years, not only every individual, but every profit-making organisation had to face great responsibilities and challenges. Typically an entity like us, especially a financial institution, went bankrupt.
Also, Any business entity and any entrepreneur does business on the basis of ensuring profit. But we have observed in the last three years, it was not a challenge about profit or loss but iIt had been a challenge of sustainability, a challenge of progress, a challenge of creativity, a challenge of unity. In the face of those challenges, sometimes we saw that public institutions and private institutions had to experience various setbacks. We have seen many problems and issues in Sri Lankan economy, to move that economy forward. Even though this is a small nation, the entire population felt the pressure of the economy.
That is why I said that the challenges here were not about profits. It had been a challenge to our existence, a challenge to our progress, a challenge to our creativity, and a challenge to our unity, a challenge to act with one mind. Therefore, when we were laying some foundations, we had to face such problems. I think it is a blessing in a very different way. In these last two or three years, we have been able to understand how our organisation should continue to exist, how the progress of the organization should continue, and how we should face the challenges of the creativity of the organisation and the unity of all of them. When a business is taken as a public or private business, its members are now considered to be the owners of the general business. In these last two, three years, we have been able to understand how our organisation should continue to exist, how the progress of the organisation should continue, and how we should face the challenges of innovation the creativity of the organization and the unity of all of them. Investors are usually considered to be the owners, of a public or private business,but I do not like the word “The Owner” – instead of calling them owners,. I prefer calling them – Stakeholders. There are several partners in a stakeholder group.
The investors, the employees, which consists of the management team who lead thetakinge this company’s operation forward, the contributing customers, the society at large and in this case people of Narahenpita, as well as the environment of this area are the main stakeholders. If this environment is not taken care of, the environment will be very harsh for our survival, like a desert without trees. Therefore, the environment is a great stakeholder. Also, the customers of this company are stakeholders for the existence of this Company. And the employees as stakeholders provide the support that those customers need.
The Board of Directors, the investing Company and the investment team are the stakeholders who are there to provide strength to the staff. Then here these five groups should move towards progress with a certain unity, with one mind, with a certain philosophy. Otherwise, what happens is that sometimes in the business world, the stakeholder-ownership of employees is sacrificed for the survival of the investor. Customer-stakeholder is sacrificed for the benefit of the employees. Society’s stakeholdership is sacrificed for the benefit of customers. Stakeholdership of the environment is sacrificed for the benefit of the society. The result of sacrificing by each of these stakeholders single interest only the end result is making everyone a loser. Therefore, we will gain ground, make progress, ensure sustainability, enable creativity process only, if we have one philosophy, one heart, one mind, and one hope to get the value of that investment in an organisation that has these stakeholder interests. And that’s how life and co-existence comes to our organization.
In laying that foundation, we wanted to strengthen the structure in such a way that this structure is sustainable. The important element in our stakeholder group is our employees. We have created a mechanism in the organisation, all the PMF employees work under one vision and under one flag for greater benefit and good of all stakeholders. This key mechanism has been integrated into PMF business strategy and the structure. We gave that mechanism power, strength, guidance and philosophy. It is with such great expectation that I wish all the stakeholders including the managers here, the best of luck for all the opportunitiesy to stand strong, as we have participated in the process of giving you a good foundation in a major juncture for your future advancement,” he said.