Young Entrepreneurs at the University of Kelaniya
The Department of Commerce and Financial Management (DCFM) is considered as the pioneer in Commerce and Management Education at the University of Kelaniya. The department constantly initiates novel ideas and consistently strives to position their unique value proposition lucratively in each academic as well as in professional dealings. Allowing students to educate in diverse area of studies, the department has introduced four degree programmes and it serves to the fields of Commerce, Financial Management, Business Technology and Entrepreneurship.
Bachelor of Commerce (Special) Degree in Entrepreneurship is one of the highlighting and growing study streams at the department. Despite the fact, we as the entrepreneurship team believe the degree stream requires initiatives focusing students’ personality and career development. DCFM initiated the Bachelor of Commerce (Special) Degree in Entrepreneurship in year 2009 with the objective of fostering an Entrepreneurial Culture through promoting new venture creation and rejuvenating existing ventures in Sri Lanka. In order to revitalize student capabilities in entrepreneurship and to stimulate entrepreneurial thinking, the department recently launched the Young Entrepreneurs Association (YEA). The YEA is a student centered establishment and operates under the objectives of empowering young minds to become entrepreneurs, promoting corporate entrepreneurial insights among students and educating how to promote and lead revenue-generating business enterprises.
As the first initiative of the YEA, entrepreneurship students of the DCFM organized the ‘Entrepreneurship Day 2013’ on 1st of November at the Faculty auditorium in the University. Basically, the Entrepreneurship day was intended to establish rapports with external Entrepreneurs and to enhance student thinking on Entrepreneurship.
Dr. D.M. Semasinghe, Dean of the Faculty of Commerce and Management Studies, Dr C. Pathirawasam, head of the Department of Commerce and Financial Management, heads of the other departments of the faculty and all lecturers of the DCFM were participated and they highly valued the activity planned by the YEA.
The first resource person of the event was Mr.Lal Keerthi Gunawardhana, the Chairman of The Lucky Lanka Group of Companies. He stressed the value of entrepreneurship to a country like Sri Lanka. He revealed the motivation required to be an entrepreneur. Also, he stated facts pertaining to his life and he stated the capabilities that a typical student needs to develop in order to become a successful entrepreneur. Finally he claimed, ‘vision without action is daydreaming and action without vision is a nightmare’. He offered an inspiration toward entrepreneurship.
As a female entrepreneur Mrs. Chandhani Bandara, the Chairman of Chandani Bandara Salon (Pvt.) Ltd and Forever Skin Natural (Pvt.) Ltd, contributed her thoughts in Entrepreneurship. Her inspiration was totally devoted to her life experiences of becoming an entrepreneur. Specially, she addressed the barriers that a female entrepreneur would face and she stated how those barriers can be mitigated by means of a proper determination toward the achievement of a goal.
Finally, Mr. Jayantha Fernando, a Coach and a Consultant of Thought Perfect (Pvt.) Ltd conducted a workshop on the ‘Inner Game of an Entrepreneur’. As the title suggests, he addressed how inner soul and vision be successfully executed to become an entrepreneur. Apart from the contributions made by the entrepreneurs, the YEA awarded the Best Young Entrepreneur Award 2013. The award was given for the best student business simulation execution of six months period time.
Finally we are keen on emphasizing the fact that, we as the entrepreneurship team at DCFM believe that in the contemporary field of Commerce and Financial Management, stereotyped knowledge is no longer a valid one. We state it ‘stereotyped’ that is, in general, a student pursuing commerce in his/her advanced level thinks, being an accountant or a finance manager is the sole and the ultimate goal that they would achieve in their life. Given this we state accounting and finance are not the sole study areas a student can pursue in the future. Moreover, we signify that, areas like, Entrepreneurship, Value Based Marketing, Business Technology, Green Accounting, Personal Management and Human Resources Accounting, etc are the growing study areas of Commerce and Management. Thus we should build students by broadening their knowledge in order to face future challengers.
As the first initiative of the YEA, entrepreneurship students of the DCFM organized the ‘Entrepreneurship Day 2013’ on 1st of November at the Faculty auditorium in
the University.