Singer Sri Lanka recently displayed that the company has a large number of employees with outstanding performing skills when ‘Singer Got Talent’ Season 3 was held at Bishops College Auditorium to an enthusiastic in-house audience cheering their team-mates. It was a clear demonstration of how Singer encourages its personnel to enjoy a healthy work-life balance and follow their dreams. Employees representing Singer Group participated in the dazzling event.
This was the third time that the employees at all Singer business units were able to showcase their talents that ranged from singing and dancing to playing various instruments. Some of the participants joined hands with other employees to perform duets or group items while some performed solo. The exciting event not only recognized the gifted employees, it provided an opportunity to boost employee engagement and reiterate that indeed, Singer Sri Lanka is ‘a great place to work.’ The Company has been recognized by the Great Place to Work Institute as a top 20 workplace for three consecutive years. Singer strives to create an ambience where employees enjoy their workplace. Recreational and cultural activities held regularly include sports, corporate social responsibility programmes and religious activities that contribute to creating a happy and committed team driving best customer experiences.
Singer Group CEO Asoka Pieris commented “We take great pride in encouraging our employees to reach their full potential by creating an environment that motivates them to develop and demonstrate their individual talents and capabilities.”
Months of preparation culminated in the Grand Finale of Season 3 when the winners were announced. Umanga Jayaweera in the Administration Department won the Solo Singing Category. Sharing her thoughts, she expressed that this was the first time she has participated in a competition, singing solo, although she loved music and was passionate about singing. “Events like these help us to relax and manage stress within a busy work environment” she added.
The Solo Dancing Category was clinched by Sathya Garusinghe in HR who joined the company recently and explained why it meant a lot for her to win. “I’m grateful to my colleagues who encouraged me to participate and even helped to manage the added workload” she said appreciatively. “Contests like this gives us opportunities to uncover our hidden talents” she said.
The Singing Duet winners were Upul Fernando and Dilanka Nishadi from the Singer Factory. For both, it was the first time they had the opportunity of performing a duet on stage and were overjoyed to secure the first place. “The workshops we were able to attend gave us valuable guidance making our performance truly professional” commented Dilanka. There were other important benefits. “The bunch of friends we made from within the different companies in the Singer Group is our best reward outside the award” added Upul.
Chanaka Prabath who played the accordion won the Instrument Category. He had started playing the accordion only six months ago and this indeed was a tremendous achievement. An individual with many talents, he is also a member from Institutional Sales who won in the Singing Group category. Others in the group included Sumudu Maduranga, Nimesh Perera and Kaveen Fernando. It was the first time that the group competed together as a team although each of them have been a proficient singer from younger days. “We somehow knew we would click if we form a team” said Kaveen. The team was most appreciative of the technical guidance on singing they received from their trainer, Palinda Udawel Arachchi.
The ‘C-Sharp’ band from Regnis Factory added lively colour to the event. The group of ten members was formed in 2015 in time for Singer Got Talent Season 1 when they first performed in front of a large audience and have been performing at all the subsequent Seasons. The spokesperson for the band, expressing C-Sharp’s dream to perform under different categories said “Our ambition is to excel as a band, both within and outside Singer Sri Lanka.”