DIMO
STEERING THE WHEEL OF SUCCESS
DIMO CEO’S VISION FOR A THRIVING FUTURE
With a strategic emphasis on agility, digitalisation, innovation, net zero emissions and sustainable growth, DIMO’s Group Managing Director and CEO Gahanath Pandithage shares his ambitious vision of steering the company into the future.
In this exclusive interview, Pandithage outlines how the initiatives, inspiring industry trends, vision and strategic priorities in the company’s growth agenda keep DIMO at the forefront of the market, driving its success as a diversified, sustainable and tech driven conglomerate.
“The company’s future revolves around agility, innovation, digital transformation and achieving net zero emissions with sustainable growth,” emphasises Pandithage.
“Leaders in today’s volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) world face a multitude of challenges. In fact, companies that are fast in dealing with new situations and have strong operational discipline are nearly three times more likely to be highly successful organisations, as compared to those that are only fast-moving but lack stable operating disciplines,” he adds.
Pandithage goes on to say: “Given DIMO’s diversification across 10 sectors with plans for further expansion, agility is paramount. We must leverage our core values as our operational disciplines while fostering dynamic capabilities to swiftly respond to emerging challenges and opportunities by building a sustainable product portfolio that prioritises green technologies.”
He underscores the critical need to transform the organisation’s culture and capabilities for the digital era: “Accelerating the adoption of digital tools and leveraging data to navigate the evolving market, while building ecosystems that will further fuel innovation and resilience are my key concerns in the company’s digital transformation. Tech driven strategies such as e-mobility, SMART farming and building technologies, alongside the ongoing ERP implementation that streamlines business processes, are all part of DIMO’s digitalisation journey that will solidify a customer-centric culture, thereby ensuring DIMO’s future success.”
“Creating a customer-centric environment where the entire organisation is aligned to deliver exceptional customer experiences is important. Customer experience (CX) will be vital for us in driving our exponential profitability, competitiveness and sustainable business growth,” he asserts.
Fostering a culture of innovation inspires employees to embrace new ideas while keeping them connected and engaged. Further, he believes encouraging C-suite executives to drive progress by deploying new ideas with a forward-thinking mindset will minimise resistance to change and facilitate innovation.
Highlighting a few examples of DIMO’s recent innovation efforts, Pandithage states: “DIMO Agribusinesses’ agri techno parks facilitate research into agriculture inputs, and new cultivation methods and technologies, and the partnership with the University of Ruhuna that focusses on experimenting agricultural machinery are some of the initiatives the company has embarked on to promote innovation.
Implementing Sri Lanka’s first microgrid system at the University of Moratuwa, which connects standalone grids to renewable power supplies while ensuring a continuous power supply, and the recent market innovation in the outdoor camping segment with the introduction of WURKAI, Sri Lanka’s first state-of-the-art caravan designed for the international market, are a few projects that demonstrate the company’s innovation efforts.
According to Pandithage, climate change is a generation defining challenge that demands a steadfast commitment towards achieving net zero emissions. His long-term focus remains on achieving net zero emissions, prioritising investments in decarbonisation and exploring new avenues such as green hydrogen in future endeavours.
Sustainable growth is crucial for the future of any organisation. Cultivating a culture and mindset centred on growth and innovation is vital in this journey. By leveraging data analytics and technology, DIMO is forging new pathways for sustainable growth, ensuring its continued success and resilience in an ever evolving market, he says.
Emphasising current trends in different spectrums that inspired him to explore, Pandithage avers that the power and energy sector demands sustainable solutions that reduce emissions, improve affordability and ensure energy security; while in agriculture, tech driven solutions such as blockchain technology enable verification of the origins and quality of agricultural products.
The building services sector is keen on green buildings, leveraging environmentally-friendly SMART technologies to create better living spaces. In the water and fluid technologies sector, the focus is on sustainable water production and zero discharge of water, targeting the recycling of water without wastage.
He further states that the industrial sector’s move towards Industry 4.0 necessitates industrial automation while the healthcare sector is being transformed by AI, impacting specialities such as radiology, pathology and ophthalmology, with potential expansions into oncology, cardiology and neurology.
The mobility sector is embracing e-mobility with the electrification of vehicles, and the development of ecosystems that support charging stations and renewable energy for electric vehicles.
“These trends create a wealth of opportunities for a diversified conglomerate like DIMO, enabling the company to fulfil its purpose of fuelling the dreams and aspirations of the communities it serves,” he says.
True vision is a destination guided by a meaningful purpose – particularly when that purpose involves positively impacting the lives of others.
“DIMO’s vision resonates with the purpose of fuelling dreams and aspirations, by making meaningful contributions to people, the planet and the organisation. Creating a positive impact within broader communities requires a cohesive team that’s passionately driven towards a common goal. However, inspiring individuals to reach a common goal requires a compelling vision. A powerful vision ignites people’s enthusiasm for their work. As they contribute to a positive impact on the world, they feel a sense of purpose that fuels their excitement. This passion makes them eager to get out of bed each morning, ready to be a part of the journey towards realising that vision,” explains Pandithage.
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices help enhance the company’s reputation, attract capital, mitigate risks, drive innovation, ensure regulatory compliance and foster long-term sustainability.
“By continuing to align with ESG principles, DIMO is following a trajectory characterised by increased resilience towards its long-term vision. We envision DIMO’s future as a resilient business that creates resilient communities while conserving the living planet,” states Pandithage.
By building a resilient business, the company supports economic development in the country. By prioritising employee wellbeing, diversity, inclusion and equality, the company can create a thriving workplace. This extends to fostering opportunities and partnerships for different communities to thrive while enabling the organisation to make a positive social impact. DIMO can ensure a sustainable environment by minimising its environmental footprint, and actively participating in conservation and restoration efforts.
DIMO’s expansion into 10 sectors – including agriculture, power and energy, water, education, home and garden, industrial, construction, building services, digital, mobility and healthcare – is guided by its core values of integrity, accountability, people-centricity, excellence and customer delight.
Pandithage remarks that these values are the cornerstone of DIMO’s operations and serve as stable principles guiding the company towards a common goal. Aligned with its core values, DIMO focusses on diversification as a key growth strategy while enhancing its sustainable product portfolio.
“Diversification helps build resilience and reduce vulnerability to calamities, enabling DIMO to navigate through the best performing sectors without relying heavily on industries impacted by crises. This approach enhances the capability of facing various challenges,” elaborates Pandithage.
With a focus on taking its products and services beyond borders, Pandithage emphasises that globalisation is another key element in DIMO’s growth agenda, in addition to local value addition, differentiation, the circular economy and strategic collaboration, playing a prime role in the company’s road map to growth.
DIMO is well positioned to navigate the future by embracing agility, ensuring that the company remains a leader in its diverse sectors while making a positive impact on the world in its journey towards fuelling the dreams and aspirations of the communities it serves.
