LEADERSHIP, OWNERSHIP AND INTRAPRENEURSHIP: LESSONS FROM AAT SRI LANKA CONFERENCE 2026

Not everyone needs to start a business to think like an entrepreneur. Taking ownership, creating value and contributing to an organisation’s growth can be equally important within an existing workplace.

That broader view of entrepreneurship and leadership emerged during the closing panel of the AAT Sri Lanka Conference 2026, where entrepreneurs and corporate leaders shared experiences of building businesses, navigating crises and creating value within organisations.

The session, Transformative Leadership: Lead to Inspire, was moderated by Dr. Chamara Bandara, President of AAT Sri Lanka, on the final day of the Precision of Power-themed conference at Waters Edge, Battaramulla, on 8 and 9 September.

The panel featured Charith N. Silva, chef and culinary content creator known as Wild Cookbook; Dulanjana Vithanage, Managing Director of Jack Fruit Ceylon; Ranil Goonatilleke, Managing Director of Vito Pizza Group; and Bhagya Senevirathne, Vice President of Finance and Administration at Castoranets Singapore Pte. Ltd. A recorded address by Dudley Sirisena, Chairman of Araliya Group of Companies, was also screened.

Entrepreneurship and creating opportunity

Opening the session, Dr. Bandara reflected on how his entrepreneurial outlook had been shaped early in his career after questioning why so many graduates sought jobs rather than creating them.

He noted that developing countries recorded higher rates of entrepreneurship than developed ones, although largely driven by necessity rather than scalable market opportunity.

“In developing countries, entrepreneurship is mostly driven by necessity and unemployment,” he said, citing Sirisena’s rise from a small village rice business to a large corporate enterprise as an example of scaling beyond necessity-driven beginnings.

Leadership begins with oneself

In his recorded address, Sirisena said leading a disciplined personal life was fundamental to becoming a leader in business or society.

“Before becoming a social leader, the most appropriate way to gain experience is to become a leader to yourself,” he said.

Sirisena said accounting and commerce education provided a foundation for structured business planning, while discipline could help entrepreneurs overcome early capital constraints by building trust with family, friends and financial institutions.

He recalled washing dishes at wealthier friends’ functions during his early years to remain close to networks that could help him access capital.

He also warned against dishonesty in business: “Dishonesty destroys all growth and eventually reduces a person to the lowest social tier, regardless of their education level.”

Ownership does not require being the founder

Bhagya Senevirathne brought another dimension to the discussion: intrapreneurship and the value employees can create within organisations.

Senevirathne, who lost the use of both legs and her right hand in an accident at age 16, completed her Ordinary Level examinations the same year and later graduated with first-class honours from Rajarata University.

She joined MAS Holdings as an intern, later leading a SAP system implementation and supporting data migration during pandemic lockdowns, before leaving after fourteen years to start her own venture.

She described intrapreneurship as treating one’s workplace as a second home and taking full ownership of organisational growth.

“Education is the foundation, but experience shapes our journey. Not everyone can be a founding entrepreneur, but we can work alongside one and add value,” she said.

“Since people spend much of their lives at work, entrepreneurs must create a sense of belonging. Even after starting my own business, I still feel that MAS is mine because its culture gave me that feeling.”

Adapting when circumstances change

Ranil Goonatilleke said Vito Pizza began almost by accident, evolving from wood-fired pizza served to foreign guests at his family’s hotel in Kandy. The Easter Sunday attacks and COVID-19 halted foreign arrivals and forced the business to look towards the local market.

“We asked ourselves, ‘What do we do now? Who do we cater to?’” he said.

The company launched a delivery service within three days of the lockdown. Goonatilleke credited his accounting background with giving him the financial literacy and banking exposure needed to later secure funding for his first property.

“Accountants handle bank loans and documentation for chairmen every day, so why can’t we do it for ourselves?” he said.

The business has since expanded to Colombo, Peradeniya, Galle and Negombo.

Creating value from an overlooked opportunity

Dulanjana Vithanage’s Jack Fruit Ceylon journey demonstrated another route to entrepreneurship.

Growing up in a remote village in Galle, Vithanage recalled fallen jackfruit routinely obstructing footpaths. “As a child, the tree I hated most was the jackfruit tree,” he said.

He later mobilised university students across faculties to survey why communities avoided eating jackfruit, eventually developing high-protein jackfruit-based noodles and pasta with support from a small government grant and self-funded machinery.

“We built machinery, failed at candy making, and once dimmed the entire village’s lights when turning on our machine,” he said.

The business has since grown into an ISO-standard factory employing 30 people, supported by 406 rural suppliers, with exports reaching international markets.

Calculated risk and responsibility

Charith N. Silva, who spent seven years in the hotel industry before pursuing content creation full-time, said he began publishing short-form culinary videos in 2019 after losing his hospitality job to the pandemic.

“You must have a Plan B when taking risks,” he said, adding that managing younger staff required leaders to set aside ego.

Silva said his content now reaches more than 20 million followers globally, bringing with it a responsibility not to influence audiences negatively.

Summarising the session, Vithanage said education remained a full foundation for entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs, while Silva emphasised that a business depended on its staff and required treating them with respect. Senevirathne highlighted the importance of creating workplaces where employees felt ownership.

Closing the panel, Dr. Bandara urged attendees to apply the lessons shared.

“When you act as a leader, you inspire followers. Transform yourself and transform those around you,” he said.