An in-house workshop was conducted by Prof. Lakshman Madurasinghe last week in order to improve the quality, standard and the level of output of the administration staff of the Institute of Personnel Management Sri Lanka (IPM). A staff of 15 including IPM Executive Director Janaka Induruwana participated at this workshop aimed at personnel development.

To complete in today’s global markets, IPM needs to develop and support 21st century leadership, ethics and values be proactive and treat our customers exceptionally well. The staff development programme of this nature would further enhance and would provide the extra edge to compete in these turbulent times. The workshop could be considered as a basic integrated holistic effort to utilize the latest research in behavioural sciences covering factors that influence their thinking and behaviour, Prof. Madurasinghe said.

The challenge that IPM faces is how to enlist the hearts and minds of all their employees and also its customers who are students and members. All employees must strive for continuous improvements in quality, reducing costs and process times to meet students and member expectations and keep up with competition, he noted. ‘Doing the job as it was done before is unlikely to be enough. Even though, IPM was founded in 1959 and incorporated in 1976 now we need 21st century thinking and action’, he emphasized adding that this opportunity was an enriching experience for the participants, currently working for IPM to face challenges and make IPM a great place to work.

The human resource has always been a factor of critical importance to the organisation as well as to our nation. With the emergence of the market economy, the need to manage people effectively has become an almost priority to organisations in Sri Lanka, Prof. Madurasinghe said, "With globalization, human activity has provided the competitive edge to business enterprises and to nations such as ours’, he said. For organisations striving to meet competitive challenges in a technologically driven environment, the management of human resource holds the key to future success, he noted.

IPM was set up in Sri Lanka in 1959 by a small group of professionals with the objective of developing the profession of Personnel Management and subsequently the institute was incorporated by an Act of Parliament in 1976.

Whilst catering to needs of the membership specially in regard to the up grading of their knowledge and skills, the institute has conducted a wide range of professional courses which include the prestigious National Diploma in Human Resource Management. It is firmly committed to upgrade management and development.