CA Sri Lanka supports 24th Interact District Assembly
Chief Executive Officer of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka ( CA Sri Lanka) Mr. Aruna Alwis recently highlighted the importance of maintaining professionalism if professionals were to survive in today’s highly competitive and complex business world.
Mr. Alwis who was the guest speaker at the 24th Interact District Assembly in Colombo, in his speech maintained that while education and gaining enhanced theoretical knowledge are important aspects in a student’s journey to be a professional, one also needs to be professionally matured when dealing with matters relating to work.
“There is no point in being a CEO, if you do not know how to conduct yourself with respect and talk respectfully to your subordinates,” he emphasized, while adding that one cannot be a professional overnight just because he or she gains a professional qualification.
According to the CEO of CA Sri Lanka, being courteous, respectful, punctual, reliable and dependable, are all areas that reflects in a good professional.
“Having an MBA necessarily does not make you a good professional either. There is no point if you are the world’s best geniusif you don’t know how to talk to or treat others. If you don’t respect your colleagues, no one else will respect you, and eventually no one will interact with you and you will be sidelined,” Mr. Alwis warned.
He however noted that recognized professional bodies impart these important skills at the very early stages of learning to their future professionals, and continue to help them develop these skills which are not only important in a person’s professional life but also personal life.
Mr. Alwis noted that when a stu- dent is part of a recognized professional body be it local or international, they also gain the opportunity to interact with their counterparts, which is also an important medium that teaches them how to conduct themselves with others, thereby giving them the edge at being a better professional.
“Being a professional does not end as soon as you obtain a professional qualification, it may even take years to nurture your professional skills, but once you do, achieving all round success could be just a cake walk,” Mr. Alwis said.
CA Sri Lanka is the national accounting body in the country with over 4400 chartered accountants as members, of which over 36 percent hold top corporate positions including those of chairman, managing director, chief executive officer, and chief financial officer among other high profile positions in leading organisations in the country.
CA Sri Lankaalso boasts of being one of the largest tertiary education providers in the country with a mammoth student base of over 44,000 who are studying the institute’s benchmark professional qualification in chartered accountancy.