COYLE Sampath Bank Leadership Forum to showcase innovation, diversification and strength

The Chamber of Young Lankan Entrepreneurs ( COYLE) will, for the sixth consecutive year, feature another exciting line-up of entrepreneurs who will share their success stories at its October 17 event.

The three panellists are Ajith Tudawe, Chairman of Ceylon Hospitals PLC ( Durdans Healthcare Group) and senior Director of Tudawe Holdings Ltd; Tushan Wickramasinghe, Chairman/CEO of Capital TRUST Holdings Group of Companies and Dr. M. Rohitha Silva, Chairman and Managing Director at idac (Pvt) Ltd.

“With his astute entrepreneurial skills and risk-taking during the height of the country’s civil war, Mr. Tudawe took his chances to expand and extend healthcare facilities in this country. Today, under his stewardship, Durdans is considered to be one of the leading healthcare providers in the region, pioneering various specialisations,” COYLE said in a media release.

Mr. Wickremasinghe entered the financial services in the early 90s and over two decades has diversified into many areas, including property development, real estate solutions, margin trading, investment advisory, wealth management, IT, education and packaging.

According to Dr. Silva, his prowess in the sports field has given him the leadership skills required to stay ahead of the game. Although his core business has been in providing total air-conditioning solutions, Dr. Silva has seen opportunities in other industries and taken the initiative to diversify.

Together, they will share these stories during another panel discussion moderated by Peter D’Almeida, who is known for his ability to extract vital points of interest during his moderations. D’Almeida himself is a successful entrepreneur with a career spanning nearly three decades in banking, advertising and IT as well as being a renowned actor and director in theatre, films and television dramas.

This year’s keynote address will be given by another industry veteran, Capt. M. G. Kularatne, founder and visionary of Maga Engineering.

As a prelude to this Leadership Forum, COYLE initiated Entrepreneurial Development Workshops to inspire, facilitate and educate entrepreneurs on how to gain traction via social media, account and finance management, leadership skills, etc. To date, two workshops have been conducted in Kandy and Jaffna and led by members of COYLE who shared their personal experiences.

COYLE is an organisation that reflects a new way of thinking as well as a youthful energy that is much needed for a dynamic private sector. It is the only chamber where 116 controlling shareholders or chairmen sit and advocate together and its membership contributes over Rs.600 billion per annum to the economy of Sri Lanka.