BizTech

IT companies should be more transparent

Anjana Samarasinghe

Local IT companies need to be more transparent in revealing their financial performance for making growth projections in the industry said Vice President of IFS South Asia Jayantha de Silva.

In the local IT industry it is difficult to measure the real growth in terms of monetary value. Large companies in the industry reveal their financial performance but most of the small companies are reluctant to reveal their performance.

The lack of real numbers in the industry impacts on making projections for the development of the industry he said.

The industry needs to encourage these companies to reveal their income status and there should be a mechanism where incentives could be granted for companies who reveal their financial performance, he said.

Outlining last year’s IT sector performance, de Silva said globally 2008 is perceived to be the best year for the ICT industry.

The ICT sector performed well internationally and locally till the third quarter in 2008. However, there was no major impact on the IT sector with the global economic crisis, he said.

There will be more challenges for the industry this year. However, the industry needs to grab the opportunities created even during the recession period. During the recession period businesses focused on reducing their costs. IT could play a vital role in reducing operational costs.

In the international arena Sri Lanka needs to compete with other countries. The industry needs to come together in one voice to promote Sri Lanka for its IT and BPO services in the international market, de Silva said.

Despite the current economic condition IFS Sri Lanka recorded remarkable growth last year and we are targeting the same kind of growth this year too, he said.

SAARC - BASL ICT Law Conference from Jan 28-30

The Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Committee of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka has organised the “SAARC-BASL ICT Law Conference 2009” which will be inaugurated on January 28 followed by the technical sessions on January 29 and 30 at the Hotel Galadari.

This first ever SAARC Conference is a continuation of a series of ICT Conferences held in the past couple of years. Chairman of ICT Committee S. Thurairaja said, “Information and Technology has captured almost every aspect of human life and that it is unfortunate to note that the law has not kept abreast of the latest developments and trends that have hit mankind as a result of ICT.

While ICT has been extremely beneficial to humans, it has also generated legal problems that require urgent attention.

The purpose of this conference is to gather intellectuals from across the globe under one roof to grapple with these legal issues and provide for viable solutions to overcome the various barriers created by ICT itself”.

The annual ICT conference has significantly grown in popularity and scope and this year’s conference has been well designed to satisfy the thirst of lawyers and other professionals to overcome the problems posed by modern technology.

This year’s conference will be a two-day program lined with topics which are pertinent to the current needs of the legal, business and industrial community. The topics will cover the following areas:

Intellectual Property and Information Technology (IT), Legal issues arising out of outsourcing software development contracts, Telecommunication and legal implication on Mobile Commerce, Internet Banking, Law of Evidence and the Internet.

The conference will also cover the impact of IT on the capital markets, Telecom in the information age, Security and control of information in the IT age and e Governance.

Analytical instruments completes 20 years in industry

Established in 1989, Analytical Instruments (Pvt) Ltd has been in the forefront of supplying latest technologies and products to diverse markets in the medical, analytical and agriculture sectors in Sri Lanka.

During the past 20 years Analytical Instruments have pioneered many innovative technology transfers progressively driving Sri Lanka, facilitating innovative research, preventive and curative healthcare and has played an active role in the industry providing infrastructure support to maintain laboratory standards, pharmaceutical manufacture, industrial research, effluent control, water quality monitoring, export agriculture, tissue culture and petroleum testing.

Analytical Instruments is well-known throughout the country for its branded medical diagnostic products and reagents, general laboratory and animal husbandry products, consumables, chemicals and glassware.

The Company has introduced many innovative breakthrough products ranging from PCR technology for DNA identifications, atomic absorption, high performance liquid chromatography, and mass spectroscopy from some of world’s prestigious manufacturers and is renowned for providing exceptional customer and technical support throughout the country by well trained technical application specialists and after sales service engineers and technicians.

Analytical Instruments Group has obtained the ISO 9001:2000 certificate from SGS United Kingdom Systems and Services certification and operates a company wide quality management system throughout the work processes.

The company celebrated its 20th anniversary on January 3. A highlight of the celebrations was the presentation of long service awards to employees who has been in the company since inception and who have completed five years service.

Raman Roy joins SLASSCOM Advisory Board

Raman Roy regarded as the “Father of the Indian BPO Industry” joined the Sri Lanka Association for Software and Services Companies, SLASSCOM, the unified national IT/BPO industry association Advisory Board further strengthening the objectives of SLASSCOM.

Raman Roy played a pioneering role over the last 16 years in promoting Indian BPOs and proving that India can be a preferred location for Remote Processing. He is a pioneer four times over, having successfully led the BPO initiatives of American Express, GE (now Genpact) and Spectramind (now Wipro BPO) before starting Quatrro in mid 2006. Raman was the CEO of GECIS, the Business Leader for American Express’ BPO business and the Founder and CEO of Spectramind.

“We are delighted to have a person of Raman Roy’s calibre on our advisory board. His pioneering experience in shaping the Indian BPO industry would be of immense value to Sri Lanka” said Ranjit Fernando, Chairman of SLASSCOM.

Raman is intensely involved in shaping the future of the BPO industry in India, China, Mauritius and Sri Lanka. He is a member of the Executive Committee of NASSCOM, Chairman of the BPO committee of ASSOCHAM, in addition to being a member of various committees formed by the central government and state-level governments.

These include committees formed by various industry associations such as NASSCOM, CII and ASSOCHAM. Raman was recently appointed to the high-powered working group formed by the Indian Prime Minister’s Office for making recommendations on improving the supply of suitable talent to the IT and BPO sectors.

Raman is a rare example of a living practitioner of the BPO industry having created many successes and overcome many challenges. He has participated in directly creating 35,000 jobs in India and indirectly enabling the employment of over 700,000 people by his pioneering efforts that led to the creation of the BPO industry.

Raman is actively involved in the Sri Lankan BPO industry through his joint venture partnership with JKH. He is a passionate proponent of the IT/BPO industry and has close interactions with industry leaders in Sri Lanka. Raman Roy in his advisory capacity will assist SLASSCOM to define the road ahead for the IT/BPO Industry in Sri Lanka.

The objective of SLASSCOM is to act as a catalyst of growth of the Sri Lankan IT and BPO industry by facilitating trade and business, propagation of education and employment, encouragement of research and innovation, and by supporting the creation of a progressive national policy framework.

E-WIS rated Silver in inaugural Corporate Accountability Rating 2009

The high standards of accountability maintained by E-wis ensured that the Company was granted a silver rating in the inaugural Corporate Accountability Rating 2009.

As a pioneer in the local ICT sector, E-WIS has been creating a high bench mark in the field, with respect to business practices and social responsibility initiatives which has led them to this level of supremacy. As a socially responsible entity, they have recognised the legal and moral obligations towards all their stake holders and have set objectives and methodologies in order to assure the accountability in every action performed.

Chairman of the E-WIS Group of Companies, Sanjeewa Wickramanayake, said “We are answerable firstly to our most valued customers and also to the government, business partners, suppliers and also our trusted employees in every aspect of the relationship that we maintain.

We only believe in ethical business practices and at all times work towards creating win-win situations. Starting from solution expertise to business practices, quality policies, environmental policies, employee welfare to CSR initiatives we are accountable in every facet.”

E-WIS adheres to standardized and globally recognised practices in order to deliver the best to the market. Being the first IT Company in Sri Lanka to obtain ISO 9002 certification and the one and only IT company to affiliate with United Nations Global Compact is proof of same.

Acting as the local interface of many international business partners E-WIS is maintaining strong and long lasting relationships with Lexmark as the sole distributor for SL, Microsoft gold certified partner and HP tier one partner.

Commitment towards customer care, service standards, qualified labour and expertise have made them the most credible ICT vendor in the market.

Global ICT sector is rapidly changing and any ICT business should be up to date with market and technological trends in order to be competitive in the market. E-WIS concentrates on Employee standards and welfare constantly. Training programs to develop technological and soft skills are organised locally and overseas to develop the standards of E-WIS employees.

The 700+ employee base of E-WIS is properly looked after with health and safety training, proper sanitation facilities etc.

Practices within the organisation are focused towards building self confidence, educational and personal growth, high moral standards etc. The CSR initiative of E-WIS namely ‘E-Praja Kirana’, is geared towards linking the gap between the rural and the urban with a digital bridge aiming at prevention of brain drain from rural to urban.

Wickramanayake said “rather than ‘fulfilling’ needs, ‘guiding’ towards the solution is what we carry out with our CSR initiatives.

Many are concerned about brain drain from Sri Lanka to other countries, but, we forget the primary stage of this phenomenon, which is the brain drain from rural to urban.

Biz Tech quiz

This week’s Biz Tech quiz is Which computer peripheral is used to protect your computer power related problems?

The winner will receive the world’s smallest computer mouse sponsored by Sala Enterprises.

Sala Enterprises is involved in marketing IT related products over 14 years.

You can send your answers to [email protected] or post your answers to Sala Enterprises No 445, Havelock Road Colombo 06. Please mark “Daily News Biz Tech quiz” on your answers.

The winner will be announced next week.