A large gathering numbering over 140 public and private sector professionals, school principals, teachers and other invitees from towns and cities close to Kurunegala participated at this evening event with much enthusiasm which was followed with cocktails and dinner.
The resource person for the seminar – the renowned and much sought-after management and HR professional Prof. Ajantha Dharmasiri – delivered a lively and informative bi-lingual presentation expanding on the theme: “HRM for Life” that elicited rapt attention by the audience who were well entertained as well, for the duration of the event. Prof. Ajantha Dharmasiri is the Professor in Management, and Director/Chairman of the Board of Management of the Postgraduate Institute of Management, University of Sri Jayewardenepura.
He also serves as an Adjunct Professor at the Price College of Business, University of Oklahoma, USA. He recently won the prestigious IPM Lifetime Gold Award 2014, the highest honor for an HR professional in Sri Lanka.
Delivering the keynote address, Rohitha Amarapala – President, IPM Sri Lanka said that they decided to host the “HRM for Life” evening seminar in Kurunegala in order to benefit the professionals both in the private as well as public sector living in and around the busy town of Kurunegala who seldom had time to travel to Colombo to attend important seminars and be exposed to networking opportunities of this nature.
“This seminar will no doubt help a professional or student in any field of management understand the importance of HR for their daily lives while redefining the perception about HRM as a profession, enhancing awareness on HR Development and its importance, and will help in uplifting HR knowledge” he added.
Addressing the invitees, Dyan Seneviratne-Chief Executive Officer, IPM Sri Lanka shared the compelling factors which made IPM pick Kurunegala as a Regional Centre with its myriad plus-factors, emphasized on the importance of applying Human Resources Management concepts to one’s own life in order to be successful both as a professional as well as an individual.
IPM Sri Lanka keeps pace with the new trends and concepts in HR by engaging continuously with the business community to share experiences, thoughts and insights in order to enrich and enhance the HR profession.
It actively encourages and promotes members’ participation at international conferences and fora to provide relevant exposure, build networks and conduct research into areas of interest to the HR profession in Sri Lanka.
IPM was founded in 1959 and was subsequently incorporated by an Act of Parliament in 1976.
IPM is affiliated to the Asia Pacific Foundation of Human Resources Management and also to the World Federation of People Management Association.
IPM, being a professional institute is also a constituent member of the Organization of Professional Associations [OPA] Sri Lanka.
Currently IPM comprises of over 900 Professional Members who serve in both public and private organizations.