The Business Legacy- Article (May, 2021 ) by Mr. J.M.M.G. Wijeratne Bandara, the Deputy Director of Sri Lanka Customs
Business Legacy is one of the signature projects, organized and hosted by the Association of Business Administration of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura. As the first phase of the project, the Association has invited its Alumni to share their valuable insights and thoughts which will be helpful to our business undergraduates in facing the challenges of the dynamic corporate environment.
This is how a proud member of our Alumni, Mr. J.M.M.G. Wijeratne Bandara, the Deputy Director of Sri Lanka Customs (Compliance and Facilitation) has shared his inspiring insights.
I entered the University of Sri Jayewardenepura as a Business Administration Undergraduate for the academic year 1984/85. I was graduated in 1991 with a second-class upper division degree, amidst the youth unrest and the insurgency during the late 1980s. I started my career as an Audit Examiner in the Department of Auditor General in 1987, when I was an undergraduate. After one and half years of service in the Department of Auditor General’s, I got selected to the Department of Sri Lanka Customs after passing through a very competitive examination, as an Assistant Superintendent of Customs in 1989.
My ambition was to join the Department of Inland Revenue after the completion of my degree. Therefore, while I was working at Customs, I sat for an open competitive examination and got selected to the Department of Inland Revenue as an Assessor. Then I had to choose between Customs Department and Inland Revenue Department. In the end, I decided to continue in the Customs service, because the best opportunity I received from this job is the Japan-WCO scholarship which was awarded to me to study at GRIPS for a Master’s degree in Public Finance. Also, I have participated in many international forums representing Sri Lanka Customs.
I also became a member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants-United Kingdom. Then I was able to use the designations after my name as ACMA-Associated Chartered Management Accountant and CGMA-Chartered Global Management Accountant. I also obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Law at the Open University of Sri Lanka, and after passing the Law college final exam, I became an Attorney-at-Law. Currently, I am working as a Deputy Director of Customs.
To achieve the development targets of the country, customs must find the right balance between customs controls and trade facilitation. As the main revenue collecting body of the government, Sri Lanka Customs Department has the biggest responsibility to collect the due revenue to the State while creating a business-friendly environment and facilitating international trade. With the knowledge I have acquired through my Business Administration degree and other academic & professional qualifications, I have been able to strike a balance between these two contradictory objectives i.e., trade facilitation & customs controls.
During my career in Customs, my interest was to detect and investigate customs-related commercial frauds. My studies in Business Administration degree helped me a lot to have the commercial awareness of different types of business forms such as Proprietorships, Partnerships, Limited liability companies, Public Limited Companies (PLC), State Own Enterprises and Multi-National Companies. Also, the subject knowledge in Accountancy, Auditing, Finance, Economics, Marketing, HR, Commercial & industrial law, etc., helped me a lot to deal with the different types of businesses mentioned above. The knowledge helped me to gain more than two billion of additional revenue to the State.
Business administration graduates have a considerable number of opportunities in the corporate sector. However, my advice is if the undergraduates can pass the examination with a class, they get more chances in the corporate sector as well as in the government sector. And also my advice is to have some professional qualifications in Chartered Accountancy, Chartered Management Accountancy, and Chartered Marketing or in the field of law (Attorney-at-Law) which will be an added advantage to face the highly competitive job market in the corporate sector. An undergraduate should be able to learn and adapt to the corporate culture to face the challenges of the corporate world. They should also learn how to work as a team and improve the knowledge they have to suit the corporate world.
My message for the undergraduates is to build up connections with the industry and work towards your goals while pursuing your degree. In addition to the educational and professional qualifications, improve your communication skills and it will place you in an advantageous position in the industry.
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