The Sri Lankan Embassy in Washington recently took the lead in organizing the SLASSCOM Global Referral Programme (GRP) to promote IT-BPM products and services in the US market.
The recently held webinar was attended by over 40 senior IT professionals drawn from across the US identified through the Embassy’s engagement in the Overseas Sri Lankans (OSL) network, enabled a high level of engagement on issues ranging from policies to encourage IT-BPM sector growth, available skills and capacity, Internet and office infrastructure, and specifically the GRP. Post webinar, several of the participants have engaged with SLASSCOM, and has already resulted in two potentially immediate business opportunities for Sri Lankan IT companies.
Launching the Global Referral Program initiative in the US, Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to the USA Ravinatha Aryasinha observed, that despite the ICT/BPM sector being the 4th largest export earner of the country, the overall US share of this success story was limited. As Sri Lanka endeavours to increase this export revenue to US$ 5 billion by 2025, it was vital that the many IT professionals who have migrated to the US contribute significantly to advances in the field, and be further encouraged and facilitated to directly advise and support Sri Lanka’s drive to get business from US clients. He also urged OSLs to invest in the industry in Sri Lanka and to help develop the necessary backward linkages for the industry to thrive, as done in other countries in the region. The webinar organization and follow-ups in the US was ably supported by Minister of Commerce Sumedha Ponnamperuma.
“The Global Referral Programme is a platform launched to facilitate the development of connections between individuals and businesses across the world with IT-BPM companies in Sri Lanka,” explains SLASSCOM Chairman Channa Manoharan, adding that building mutually beneficial connections through Sri Lankan business leaders and professionals living overseas will bring about more opportunities for Sri Lankan IT-BPM companies and help accelerate the sector’s export growth.
Joint Vice Chairman of SLASSCOM Ashique Ali who pitched the theme ‘Hidden Gem’ showcased the industry brand Island of Ingenuity and its niche capabilities, uniqueness of its talent pool, and sector growth initiatives. He said “the Island of Ingenuity positions Sri Lanka as a destination to setup Captive Innovation Centers, a gateway to fast growing South Asian markets leveraging the country’s geographical location and living environment, and a creator of disruptive IP through Products and Platforms. The US is the largest and one of the key markets for Sri Lankan IT-BPM sector and several US majors have successful captive operations or are partnering with Sri Lankan IT-BPM companies.”
SLASCOM having always been a forerunner in establishing new connections for Sri Lankan IT-BPM companies to reach global markets, is now accelerating momentum through the GRP to increase exports of IT products, services and solutions. Elaborating on the GRP, Wajira Wanigasekara, Work Stream Lead for External Engagement of the Global Trade & Investment forum of SLASSCOM said “if a Sri Lankan in the US has a lead for a project, an investor, or an investment, the GRP will connect them directly to a list of companies whose core offering matches the available opportunity. SLASSCOM will act as the facilitator to guide the process from the time a referrer gets a lead, by providing profiles of referral companies and if necessary helping them to selects the most suitable company.”
SLASSCOM is the national chamber for the knowledge and innovation industry in Sri Lanka and has over 240 member companies accounting for 90% of the IT-BPM industry export revenue, with the potential to become the #1 export revenue earner for the country. SLASSCOM is supported by their Corporate Sponsor Dialog.