Public servants need more IT empowerment skills
Indunil Hewage
Network Communications CEO - Larry Adams
Full Name : Larry Adams
Educational Qualifications : PhD, from Japan
Theological College , Ph D in Business Studies., M.Th from Japan
Theological College , B.Th From LBC Peradeniya , Dip-Th AGBC Colombo ,
MBA at ICFAI Colombo ,
Civil Status : Married, has three children.
Date of Birth : April 18, 1965 Favourite sport
: Cricket
Network Communications (Pvt) Ltd, a part of the Adam Group of
Companies, is one of the leading retail and wholesale providers of brand
new IT and network equipment which is importing IT equipment from
Taiwan, Singapore and China and the United Kingdom.
The company has an intensive distribution network in Sri Lanka.
Netcom strives to offer quality brands to customers at an affordable
price and has been building international partnerships with distributors
and suppliers. Netcom product line up consists of renowned brands such
as TP-LINK, Viewsonic, Biostar, EAST UPS, Suzuki Laptops and System X
branded desktop computers.
Daily News Business interviewed Network Communications (Pvt) Ltd CEO,
Larry Adams in this week's Tea with CEO column.
Here are the excerpts of the interview.
Q: Could you give us an overview of how you entered this
industry and how you came to this position?
Network Communications CEO Larry Adams. Picture By-Sumanachandra
Ariyawansa |
A: I am from a background of Theology, Psychology, Philosophy.
I was thrown into the IT field suddenly after I came down to Sri Lanka
from Canada and I saw a massive vacuum in the Sri Lankan IT industry in
1999 and a lot of people in the country barely knew about the IT
industry in Sri Lanka and it was in its infancy. Some people think that
IT people need to be extraordinarily knowledgeable and educated.
This gave me an opportunity to start my career in the IT field in Sri
Lanka, I started my career at Tec Sri Lanka as the General Manager and
Operations Head. In addition, I held many positions overseas and in
local companies.
I was the Sales and Marketing Manager in Consumers Choice Home
Improvements in Canada. Corporate Sales Head in PC House CEO in Neat
Lanka, COO in Epsi Computers Sales Head and Marketing and Head of
Operations Head in Lumen Technologies and Xerox Sri Lanka and at present
I am working as the CEO of Network Communications.
Q: Can you elaborate on how the ICT can be deployed to
increase productivity in government institutions?
A: I think government servants need to be empowered with IT
skills since many of them are not familiar with computers. Public
servants have to take collective initiatives to go with the ICT since it
will increase productivity, efficiency of all government institutes. I
think, they can be more professionals with the usage of ICT without
going into book form any longer.
Q: What are your views on the IT industry in Sri Lanka?
A: The Sri Lankan IT industry has leaped beyond anyone can
understand it.
The Sri Lankan IT Industry has witnessed a remarkable growth and
sound development over the years. Sri Lankans have shown a keen interest
in the IT industry and this has resulted in increased demand for PCs,
smart phones, laptops and other IT related services in recent times. It
is happy to note that Sri Lankans are becoming more tech-savvy as never
before.
Q: What are the latest trends you see in the global IT
industry?
A: On a global basis, IT purchases will be $1.69 trillion in
2011, with software accounting for the largest portion of the expense at
$ 430 billion. The year 2010 was huge for virtualization in enterprise
data centers. The era of the virtual data center is here, its effect has
also extended far beyond traditional data centers. The past few years
focused on server virtualization, the next few years will be spent on
building cloud computing technologies. Server virtualization was
primarily about containing hardware sprawl, and clouds are about
optimizing IT and redefining roles and responsibilities. Clouds also
offer flexibility, agility, availability, and with cloud technology, IT
as a service is finally within reach. These technological changes are
creating opportunities for qualified job seekers.
Q: Are you satisfied with the Sri Lankan initiatives taken by
authorities to develop the IT industry in Sri Lanka?
A: Yes, we are quite satisfied with the initiatives taken by
the government to develop the IT industry and it is making a great
effort to take IT and English to villages. We do not find this kind of
thought and effort from a President or government in any country to
promote IT. I think, all Sri Lankans need to be empowered with soft
skills to achieve our development targets.
It is an infallible truth that many industries in the world will not
be able to survive without IT. As an example if we take a physician, he
will not be able to perform a proper scan and operation without the
proper IT contribution.
Q: What are your achievements in business?
A: I have been delivering lectures in Chief Information
Officer (CIO) and Chief Technical Officer and Chief Operating Officer
(COO) forums in various countries, I managed to educate people in the
world on future information and technological advancements. As a Sri
Lankan, I think I was successful in achieving my goals in my career by
sharing my knowledge with the world.
Q: What are your interests and hobbies?
A: As a part of my hobby , I do teaching in marketing, CIO and
CTO conferences and this gives me an opportunity to talk about Sri
Lanka. I like to encourage and help people to achieve their goals.
Q: Where would you like to spend your holiday?
A: I would love to spend my holiday down south, specially in
beautiful places close to beaches.
Q: What sort of investment plan does your company have in mind
in Sri Lanka?
A: We are driven company, we are in the process of
diversifying into various ventures. We have recently started a new
division for hand phones and are bringing down new different phone
brands. We are also planning to diversify into home appliances and air
conditioning in addition to our branch expansion plan. |