Memories with my JKH family!

By Sachini Abeywickrema

I was very privileged to join Leisure Inbound in 2013 and currently I am an Executive in Vendor Management & Procurement Department. I am also an internal auditor and a member of New Product Development team for both Walkers Tours Limited and Whittall Boustead Travel Limited. I am very proud of my capability to manage a work life balance and also the active engagement in my studies despite the weight of many responsibilities.   I believe that the friendly work environment and the support from my team at Walkers and my colleagues in the John Keells Group enable me to manage them very well.

Apart from my daily work routine I enjoy participating in most of the company events, such as sports (especially badminton) tournaments, quiz competitions etc. All these events help me to meet new friends and they also provide me a sense of unity to work together towards achieving our Group’s values: Excellence, Innovation, Integrity, Trust and Caring.  Another of my favourite activity at John Keells is participating in the Year End carols. This helps me bring out and improve my vocal talent and I am grateful to the organizers. These events also create beautiful memories which, I am sure, will last a life time.

Whilst I participate in ‘Corporate’ events I also look forward to the CSR initiatives which are organized by John Keells Foundation (JKF), which is the CSR arm of the John Keells Group. In my personal opinion, these initiatives have and will continue to help the needy in the society and have brought a smile to many faces.  I have been an active ‘Volunteer’ in these CSR initiatives during my tenure at John Keells and I am very happy to give back to the society in the best possible manner.  I have volunteered in Project WAVE which works against violence through education and I am proud to be able to join hands in creating awareness on eliminating violence against women. I have also been an active volunteer in many Eye Camps where the young and old are given their sight back, Grade 5 scholarship student seminars and in initiatives under the neighborhood schools development project.

I have also volunteered in activities of the Sri Lankan Art Gallery website, which is an initiative of JKF to offer Sri Lankan budding artists a platform to sell their work and develop a global clientele. JKF does not forget to appreciate the staff volunteers which also encourages the staff to volunteer more to empower the nation for a better tomorrow. I have received a Gold certificate and a V-SPARC (an internal employee appreciation method) in 2015 and a Gold certificate in 2014 for my volunteering effort. Looking back at these, they make me proud of who I am today: being in a position to give back to the society which is an opportunity that many do not get.

JKH is simply an amazing place for an enthusiastic individual to start their career and develop their own life while contributing to the society. I believe that the best is yet to come in my life at John Keells whilst being an active member of the JKH family.