Sumanan MBA 2021

  Work-Life Balance at John Keells Hotels PLC Introduction John Keells Hotels PLC (JKH) is one of Sri Lanka’s largest hotel chain operators. JKH currently operates 15 Four and Five Star city and resort hotels in Sri Lanka and the Maldives (Financial Times, 2021). JKH which was incorporated in the year 1979 has an employee cadre of approximately 2,530 employees. This report analyses the impact of work-life balance (WLB) on employee performance at JKH. WLB impact on employee performance at JKH WLB is defined by De Seram and Gnanapala as ‘the ability of an employee to meet both organizational and work commitments’ (2019, p.2). Analysing WLB at JKH is critical given its positive association with employee performance, and the importance of employee performance in ensuring high service quality and customer satisfaction, which are essential factors for success and longevity in the tourism and hospitality industry (Jayawardena et al., 2013). Further, ensuring high WLB quality is impo...

  Factors causing labour scarcity in the Sri Lankan apparel industry Introduction The Sri Lankan apparel industry is a labour intensive industry. The labour intensive nature of the industry is evidenced by the 600,000 direct and indirect workers in the industry. One of the biggest threats to the long term sustainability of the industry is labour scarcity. Findings from previous empirical studies reveal a sharp decline in workers, particularly new workers joining the industry after 2003 (Kelegama, 2009). The sharp decline in new workers joining the industry has been compounded by high annual turnover in the industry i.e., annual turnover of 55% (Sandeepanie and Ubayachandra, 2015). The low number of new employees joining the industry coupled with high annual attrition rates has resulted in the apparel industry currently experiencing a 40% labour shortage (Central Bank of Sri Lanka, 2017).   Main causes of labour scarcity in the apparel industry The main causes of labour s...

  Training and development practices impact on productivity of factory floor workers in the Sri Lankan apparel industry Introduction The global apparel industry is a labour intensive industry. Employee productivity in the global apparel industry is of the critical importance due to the intense price based rivalry within the industry and continuous pressure from buyers to improve quality and reduce pricing. High pressure from buyers to reduce cost coupled with intense price based competition in the industry has resulted in significant investment in training and development by apparel manufacturers to reduce costs and wastage and increase productivity levels. This study analyses the impact of training and development on employee productivity in the Sri Lankan apparel industry. Impact of training and development on employee productivity in the Sri Lankan apparel industry Ensuring competitiveness of the Sri Lankan apparel industry is of critical importance due to its significant ...

  Evaluation of leadership style used at PABC Bank to achieve its goals and objectives Introduction PABC Bank is a medium size local commercial bank operating in Sri Lanka. Since its incorporation in 1995, PABC Bank has grown robustly and currently has network of 85 branches and 90 ATM/CDM locations across the country and is staffed by employee cadre of 3,500 (PABC Bank, 2020). This article discusses the influence of leadership in enabling PABC Bank to identify and achieve its goals and objectives. Broad research on leadership has resulted in numerous theories being postulated on it (Northouse, 2004). Despite the numerous theories postulated on leadership there in no universally accepted theory of leadership. Hackman (2002) describes leadership as facilitating teamwork which ensures effective control over human resources, whilst Adair (2006) describes a leader as an individual who is effective at promoting psychological stimuli amongst employees and developing a cohesive and ef...