Entries now open for CNCI’s ‘Achiever Awards 2017’

From left: CNCI Secretary General Abeyratne Muthugala, Achiever Awards Steering Committee Chairman and CNCI Deputy Chairman Raja Hewabowala, Ceylinco General Insurance Managing Director Patrick Alwis, Independent Television Network Sales Head Gayani Punchihewa, CNCI Chairman Tissa Seneviratne, Industry and Commerce Ministry Secretary Chinthaka S. Lokuhetti, Central Environmental  Authority Director General Himal Muthukudaarachchi, Bank of Ceylon DGM Retail Banking Range 2 C. Amarasinghe, Litro Gas Lanka Chairman Shalila Munasinghe and Achiever Judging Chairman Pradeep Kahawalage after unveiling the trophy
Pic by Waruna Wanniarchchi

By Zahara Zuhair
Entries are now open for the ‘Achiever Awards 2017’ for Industrial Excellence competition, which is to take place on August 17, 2017, organised by the Ceylon National Chamber of Industries (CNCI), the premier industry chamber in the country.
All industrial entrepreneurs of Extra Large, Large, Medium, Small and Micro categories in the provincial and national levels are welcomed to participate. Applications will close on May 19, 2017.
The Achiever Awards have been designed by the CNCI to promote industrial growth in the country by recognizing and rewarding those industrialists in the manufacturing and service sectors, who have excelled in their businesses in the areas of quality standards, productivity, corporate plan, research and development, employee benefits, labour relations, etc. while assuring concerns over the social and environmental obligations and to encourage these industries to reach further heights in their spheres of operation.
Addressing the gathering at the launch ceremony, CNCI Chairman Tissa Seneviratne said that they are certainly proud to mention that the CNCI Achiever Awards competition has been able to produce a number of industrialists to the country, who have become highly reputed and leading businessmen in Sri Lanka today. 
There are also companies that initially contested under the Small and Medium categories but now in the Large and Extra Large categories. These are, of course, the success stories behind the Achiever Awards event organised by the CNCI, he said.
The chief guest, Industry and Commerce Ministry Secretary Chinthaka S. Lokuhetti, said that there are tremendous opportunities for innovative and creative entrepreneurs after the end of three decades of war and the advancement of science and technology. 
In such aspect, the recognition of this calibre is important to encourage for their growth and innovations, he stressed. 
As the micro level entrepreneur of today could be a giant business in a few years, he further stressed that the chamber has a great role to play.
Achiever Awards Steering Committee Chairman and CNCI Deputy Chairman Raja Hewabowala said that being Managing Director of Nippon Paints Lanka (Pvt.) Limited, his company has experienced the value of participating in this competition and they had bagged the Crystal Award in a few years back after winning the Gold award for three consecutive years. 
He said that they are the number one paint manufacturer in the country today. 
He further mentioned that updating the processes according to the Achiever Awards selection criteria mattered immensely to reach the company’s growth and its operational success. 
Link Natural Products (Pvt.) Ltd, last year’s Gold award winner, sharing its experience said that the competition was a good opportunity for it to evaluate and develop itself to be ahead in the highly competitive business arena.
“By joining this it was a good opportunity to understand what is required for the market, to get guidelines to understand the market, to broaden our performance in the industry and also it gave us a proper chance to channel ourselves,” they said.
It was noted that applications for the CNCI Achiever Awards are subjected to a stringent evaluation procedure, initially by an external audit firm, then an internal panel of judges consisting Chartered Accountants and Engineers and finally the external panel of judges headed by University of Moratuwa Vice Chancellor Professor Ananda Jayawardena.
Further, it was noted that applications printed in all three languages will be available for prospective applicants at the CNCI and also can be downloaded from the website: www.cnci.lk.