SLIM kicks off Marketing Roks 2014
The initial briefing sessions of ‘SLIM Marketing Roks 2014’, the annual knowledge creation activity which is also a key CSR initiative organized by Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing (SLIM), were carried out with the participation of school students from Colombo, Kandy, Galle and Matara recently.
The sessions were held on 30th October at SLIM Business School Kandy, 31st October at SLIM Home Borella and 1st November 2013 at Samoda Reception Hall Galle. This was the first year that the briefing sessions were taken outside Colombo, with one session in Kandy and the other in Galle being opened to students from Matara as well. Mr. Roshan Fernando – Project Chairman, SLIM Marketing Roks together with Mr. Manoj Samarathunge (Tourism Consultant – Federation of Chamber of Commerce Sri Lanka, ICBI-Overseas , Eco Wave Travels and Visiting lecturer – University of Colombo and Management & Science University) and Mr Amal Nanayakkare (Consultant - Thisara Hotels and Former General Manager for Human Resources and Training Aitken Spence Hotels) conducted all three sessions which were well attended by students from leading schools interested in taking part in SLIM Marketing Roks 2014 and the students were given a comprehensive briefing on the requirements, expectations and objectives of the programme.
SLIM Marketing Roks is an innovative programme launched in 2009 with the intention of educating students in Advanced Level about marketing and unleashing their hidden talents. By participating in the programme, students are exposed to important marketing lessons and have the opportunity to learn how to creatively develop and manage a business entity at an early age. Marketing Roks is a ‘Sri Lankan first’ - a national level community-driven programme carried out by a professional educational institute - and has seen a rapid growth in popularity since its inception.
The ‘Marketing Roks Challenge’, an important part of the programme, offers students an opportunity to experience the reallife situation of presenting a ‘corporate’ solution to a specific case study set by Dr. Suranga De Silva of the University of Colombo. Being intelligent, analytical and creative will give participants the edge over others and prepare the younger generation to face challenges of the corporate world with greater confidence, knowledge and integrity.
“As the national institute of marketing we consider it our responsibility to offer the youth of Sri Lanka an opportunity to pursue a successful career in marketing. This programme was conceptualised four years ago to provide school leavers an indepth orientation on this field. The progress made over the past four editions in this regard gives me great satisfaction and I am confident that the fifth edition will once again be successful in preparing students for their potential careers,” said Mr. Gamika De Silva - President – SLIM.
“This year we have taken this project to the Southern Province and the response at the briefing session in Galle and Kandy was very encouraging. We plan to build on this and provide opportunities to school students from all around the country to take part in Marketing Roks in the next few years” said Mr. Roshan Fernando – Project Chairman – SLIM Marketing Roks.
Mr. Sanath Senanayake – CEO/ Executive Director – SLIM stated, “This year we have made it possible for students from schools in Galle and Matara to be on par with Colombo school students in terms of exposure to marketing. We are confident that this will generate immense interest in marketing among the youth of this region and help them achieve their aspirations of a successful career in the corporate world.”
Due to the high level of interest from schools that were unable to participate in the sessions held so far, SLIM has organised an additional briefing session on 2nd December at SLIM Home, Borella.