Parenthood Global sets stage for family-friendly workplaces in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka marked a significant milestone in the evolution of inclusive employment practices with the successful hosting of Parent-Inclusive Workplaces Summit 2025. The national-level event brought together senior corporate leaders, human resource professionals, policymakers, well-being practitioners and members of the parenthood community to examine how workplaces can better support working parents while strengthening organisational performance.

The summit was organised and hosted by Parenthood Global in partnership with Great Place to Work Sri Lanka. The full-day programme positioned parent inclusion as a strategic workforce priority rather than a discretionary benefit, emphasising its role in driving employee engagement, retention and long-term business sustainability.

Parent-Inclusive Workplaces Summit 2025 served as a high-level platform for knowledge sharing and action-oriented discussion, focusing on the practical challenges faced by working parents across multiple industries. Through expert panel discussions, leadership conversations and evidence-based insights, participants explored how organisations can design policies, workplace cultures and leadership practices that enable employees to successfully manage both professional and caregiving responsibilities.

Key focus areas included embedding diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging principles within parental policies, creating sustainable work cultures for sandwich-generation employees who care for both children and ageing parents and the role of inclusive leadership in shaping supportive organisational environments. 

One of the major highlights of the summit was the official launch of the Corporate Circle Lifestyle Portal, a digital platform developed by Parenthood Global to support working parents and family-friendly organisations. The portal is designed to create a connected ecosystem that extends support beyond the workplace.

The platform offers exclusive lifestyle benefits, access to well-being initiatives, corporate inclusion stories, best-practice showcases, curated experiences and parent-focused support programmes. 

A key feature of the summit was the presentation of Parent-Inclusive Workplace Awards 2025, which recognised organisations demonstrating outstanding commitment to supporting working parents. Award recipients were selected through a structured and data-driven evaluation process based on organisational surveys, supporting evidence and impact analysis covering the period from October 1, 2024 to September 30, 2025.

The award winners were: Best CEO and Leadership Initiatives for Working Parents – Dialog Business Services (Pvt.) Ltd, Best HR Policies Empowering Working Parents – HNB General Insurance Ltd, Best Workplace Culture for Parents – Dijital Team, Best Wellbeing Initiative for Working Parents – HNB Assurance PLC, Most Innovative Initiative Supporting Working Parents – Allianz Insurance Lanka Ltd and Parent-Inclusive Workplace of the Year 2025 – JXG (Janashakthi Group).

The speakers included: Hemas Holdings PLC Chief People and Corporate Affairs Officer Ravi Jayasekera, Dialog Axiata PLC Group Chief Customer Officer and Dialog Business Services Managing Director Sandra De Zoysa, Omega Line Ltd Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director Felix Fernando, Capital Maharaja Group Chief Talent Officer and Maharaja Institute of Management Chief Executive Officer Chethana Liyanage, Hilton Colombo Area General Manager Manesh Fernando, Prism Global Solutions (Pvt.) Ltd Founder and Director Chandi H. Dharmaratne, NDB Bank PLC Vice President Human Resources Lasantha Dasanayaka, Allianz Insurance Lanka Ltd Head of Sales Learning Academy Charitha Bandara, International Transport Federation International Wellbeing Consultant and Mind Heals (Pvt.) Ltd Counselling Psychologist Rasini Bandara and Women Empowered Global Founder and Chief Executive Officer Senela Jayasuriya.