About Us

		ABOUT US

		PUBLISHER OF LMD, LIVING, THE LMD 50, BRANDS ANNUAL, MOST RESPECTED and LIVING COLOMBO GUIDE PRESENTER OF BENCHMARK Media Services (Private) Limited 59 Ward Place, Colombo 7, Sri Lanka. Email (Marketing): advertising@lmd.lk Email (Editorial): editorial@lmd.lk Email (Corporate): corporate@lmd.lk Facsimile: (94-11) 2672019 Telephone: (94-11) 2672017-9, 2672104

		BOARD OF MANAGEMENT MANAGING DIRECTOR/ EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Hiran Hewavisenti ACA MARKETING DIRECTOR Brian Emmanuel ACIM GENERAL MANAGER Lalin Goonesekera B.Com	EDITORIAL EDITORIAL MANAGER ASSOCIATE EDITOR (PRINT) Edine Weerawardane DEPUTY MANAGER – EDITORIAL ASSOCIATE EDITOR (ELECTRONIC) Larry Enas EDITORIAL EXECUTIVES Anushan Selvarajah (Electronic) Avanti Samarasekera (Print)

		MARKETING GM - BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT Anil Boudewyn DEPUTY MANAGER - MARKETING Tania Fernandez MARKETING SERVICES SUPERVISOR Asha Greig MARKETING SUPERVISOR Trevin Ekanayake MARCOM COORDINATOR Sharon Thiele MARKETING EXECUTIVE Sanarie Jayawardana	COMMUNICATIONS & PR COMMUNICATIONS SUPERVISOR Natalie Kelaart PR SUPERVISOR Andrea Emmanuel COMMUNICATIONS EXECUTIVE Luxshmi Ellawala PR EXECUTIVE Tania Solomonsz

		GRAPHICS & IT GRAPHICS & PRODUCTION MANAGER Wasantha Amarasinghe GRAPHICS COORDINATOR Lakmal de Silva SYSTEMS COORDINATOR Rohan De Silva IT COORDINATOR Naushan Sariffodeen GRAPHICS EXECUTIVE Sanjaya de Silva	FINANCE & DISTRIBUTION FINANCIAL SERVICES SUPERVISOR Prasanna Ranaweera FINANCE COORDINATOR Sujith Widanagamage RETAIL EXECUTIVE Jude Roberts EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT – RETAIL Iroshan Wisidagama EXECUTIVE ASSISTANTS – LOGISTICS Gopalsamy Selvakaran Lionel Rupasinghe TEAM ASSISTANT – DISTRIBUTION Chandana Thilaksiri TEAM ASSISTANT – ADMINISTRATION Soma Punchimahathmaya

		CONSULTANTS BENCHMARK (TV)/LMD CORRESPONDENT Savithri Rodrigo CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Angelo Fernando Yamini Sequeira Mihiri Wikramanayake	PRODUCTION PRINTING Softwave Printing and Packaging COLOUR SEPARATIONS Softwave Pre-Press

		COPYRIGHT All material © Media Services (Private) Limited. Reproduction in whole or part, without the Publisher’s prior written permission, is strictly prohibited. Views expressed in LMD are not necessarily those of the Publisher. The Publisher does not return unsolicited publication material. REGISTRATIONS Press Council – P650 GPO – QD/01/NEWS/2008 ISSN 1391-135X	THE RIGHT TO REPRODUCE MATERIAL The Publisher reserves the right to reproduce – in any form and anywhere – articles that it has paid for, and photographs, charts and any other visuals that are submitted to Media Services (Private) Limited. The Publisher considers it the responsibility of organisations or persons sending articles, photographs, charts or any other visuals to ensure that this material does not infringe the copyrights of any other party or person – and that any royalties accruing to third parties are paid.

		CORPORATE PROFILE
		1. FLAGSHIP PUBLICATION Our corporate profile revolves around the company’s flagship publication, Lanka Monthly Digest (LMD). The pioneering magazine was launched in August 1994. Today, it is the only magazine with Superbrand status in Sri Lanka. 2. CORPORATE STATEMENTS VISION STATEMENT “To become the nation’s most respected and influential media organisation.” MISSION STATEMENT “To be a benchmark for medium-scale businesses in this country, to cultivate a ‘dream team’ of committed professionals, to enhance the quality of life of team members and to contribute towards the nation’s big picture.” 3. BUSINESS AGENDA Sri Lanka’s ‘Voice Of Business’ strives to achieve excellence in business journalism that is comparable with the best magazines in the world. In Sri Lanka, it has pioneered concepts that are now benchmarks for other publications. LMD’s focus is, uniquely, on the big picture of Sri Lanka’s business landscape. This encompasses most of the burning issues which confront the nation – war and peace, bribery and corruption, professionalism and ethics, politicisation, law and order, infrastructure, technology, productivity and poverty, amongst others. LMD was the only publication of its kind in Sri Lanka at the time it was launched. It continues to blaze a trail across the corporate landscape of this country. 4. READERSHIP LMD enjoys a monthly readership of around 20,000 (a print run of 5,000 copies on average, read by about four people per copy). The target readership comprises business and opinion leaders, and senior managers and professionals. It is increasingly read by the academic and diplomatic communities, and civil-society organisations. LMD’s CYBER EDITION is available online, at www.LMD.lk 5. CONTENT LMD covers the gamut of business, politics, current affairs and management, catering to corporate leaders, managers, executives and directors – as well as to anyone who is interested in both Sri Lankan and international corporate, economic, financial, political and current affairs. The layout of the magazine is in the form of a digest, which consists of the following segments: Business m Contains ‘Key Biz Indicators’ which include key economic indicators such as stock-market indices, interest and forex rates, price indices, and government debt and agricultural production, to name a few. m The LMD–NIELSEN Business Confidence Index (or BCI) is the only one of its kind in Sri Lanka. LMD’s monthly update is compiled in association with The Nielsen Company and has been tracked for over a decade. It is based on a survey of 100 senior executives in the city of Colombo, and is compiled from answers to a series of questions on business conditions and expectations. m The magazine contains in-depth, unbiased analyses and interviews with leading personalities in the corporate world, politicians, opinion makers, key public figures and the next generation of leaders. m The ‘Business Forum’ segment focuses on critical issues that arise in Sri Lanka’s corporate landscape, including unprejudiced opinions on what problems exist in key sectors of the economy and how they can be resolved. m In its ‘Business Affairs’ section, the magazine provides in-depth analyses of the local and regional markets, and monthly industry updates. m The magazine’s ‘Executive Digest’ covers the latest trends in management, including regular columns on leadership, IT, human resources, legal matters and marketing. Current Affairs m In-depth accounts of local and international current affairs, including an up-to-date business news briefing. Politics m LMD provides an unbiased analysis of international and national political affairs, painting a broad picture of state proceedings and international events. Political perspectives are provided by both local commentators and through foreign correspondents. m The magazine prides itself on being fiercely independent. 6. ADVERTISER PROFILE LMD boasts what is arguably the most high-profile combination of advertisers in the nation’s print media (Refer ADVERTISER INDEX in LMD). 7. SUBSCRIBERS Those who subscribe to LMD receive a complimentary slimline diary each year. Readers are entitled to substantial discounts on books, via the LMD–VIJITHA YAPA BOOK CLUB. Some of the biggest names in business are LIFETIME SUBSCRIBERS to LMD, a unique concept pioneered by Media Services in July 2001. This subscription base now exceeds 500. LMD has tied up with a leading loyalty card – ‘Nexus’ – which is a subsidiary of one of the nation’s largest conglomerates: namely, John Keells Holdings. This is another initiative to add value to LMD’s subscriber base. Regular competitions in the magazine offer hotel vouchers and airline tickets to winners. 8. CORPORATE SUBSCRIBERS The nation’s leading commercial bank, HNB, also offers LMD as a value addition to some of its customers. 9. IN-FLIGHT READERSHIP LMD is available, in-flight, to business-class passengers on SriLankan Airlines. 10. RETAIL SALES The magazine is sold at leading bookstores and supermarkets, islandwide. 11. VALUE FOR MONEY Advertisers in LMD enjoy exclusive coverage, every month, of company news – via the magazine’s ‘Advertiser Forum’ segment. This consists of exclusive press releases of new products, launches and activities of media interest. 12. PRE-PRESS AND PRINTING Our printer, Softwave Printing and Packaging, has won awards for both excellence and merit in selected categories. Among its client portfolio are large corporates, which include Ceylon Tobacco Company, Eagle Insurance, the Ceylinco Group, Shell, Ernst & Young and PricewaterhouseCoopers. 13. INNOVATIONS LMD has gained a reputation for innovation over the years. Some of its pioneering concepts include the following: THE LMD 50 A ranking of the leading listed companies in Sri Lanka, THE LMD 50 has come to be known as Sri Lanka’s version of ‘THE FORTUNE 500’. First published in May 1995, not only is THE LMD 50 the first of its kind (in terms of ranking listed companies in Sri Lanka), it is also the first ranking to be published each year. From 2003/04, THE LMD 50 has been published as a separate (standalone) edition. most respected This standalone edition is published annually and it represents another pioneering venture by Media Services. The ranking of Sri Lanka’s ‘most respected’ entities is based on a survey of working people undertaken by leading research firm The Nielsen Company, on behalf of Media Services. SRI LANKAN OF THE YEAR Launched in January 1996, this has been an annual feature ever since. Nominees have included Lakshman Kadirgamar (1995), the Sri Lankan cricket team (1996), Deshabandu Sanath Jayasuriya (1997), Deshamanya Ken Balendra (1998), Deshamanya Dr. Lalith Kotelawala (1999), Susanthika Jayasinghe (2000), Chandra Jayaratne (2001), Ranil Wickremesinghe (2002), K. N. Choksy (2003), Dayananda Dissanayake (2004), Sri Lankabhimanya Lakshman Kadirgamar (2005), Jayantha Dhanapala (2006), Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe (2007) and Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya (2008). THE LMD–NIELSEN BUSINESS CONFIDENCE INDEX (BCI) Refer section 5 (Content). LMD-TNS TALKING POINT An exclusive opinion poll commissioned by LMD and executed by TNS Lanka – a leading market research and information-services company – on issues that confront the nation and its leaders. THE 50 GREATEST SRI LANKANS SINCE INDEPENDENCE A celebration of the achievements of Sri Lankans and Sri Lanka, in the February 1998 issue of LMD, to coincide with the nation’s golden jubilee. LIFETIME SUBSCRIPTIONS Lifetime subscriptions were introduced on LMD’s seventh anniversary, in July 2001. LMD has in excess of 500 lifetime subscribers. 14. OTHER PUBLICATIONS Other Media Services publications include, or have included, the following: LIVING A glossy bimonthly round-up of leisure and entertainment in Sri Lanka, including restaurant and nightspots guides, airline schedules, an events guide, hotel and restaurant reviews, cricket and other sports, the arts-and-culture ‘buzz about town’, décor/architecture, fashion, glitz and glamour, a theatre review and diverse aspects of city life. The journal was launched in September 2005. SUPERBRANDS sri lanka Media Services produces all Sri Lankan editions of Superbrands, for Superbrands Lanka. In order to be considered for Superbrand status, a brand needs to satisfy the criteria of exceptional quality, achievement of consumer trust and confidence and consistency in delivering on its promise. Our flagship publication, LMD, was amongst the 50 superbrands selected by the Superbrands Council in the inaugural Consumer Superbrands edition. BRANDS ANNUAL Media Services’ fifth publication, the inaugural edition of the Brands Annual, lists Sri Lanka’s leading brands. The launch issue of the yearly publication profiles the top 200 listed, public and private-sector brands in this country – it is arguably the most comprehensive analysis of brands and is carried out in association with Brand Finance Lanka. This standalone edition sets yet another benchmark in business media here, in Sri Lanka. BENCHMARKING COMPETITIVENESS Published in November 1999, in association with J. E. Austin Inc. (USA), the Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Sri Lanka (FCCISL) and ORG-MARG SMART (now The Nielsen Company), this special issue focused on competitiveness in South Asia and the global challenge. CRICKET WORLD CUP – SPECIAL ISSUE LMD’s 1999 World Cup Special Issue featured contributions from David Frith (former Editor of Wisden), Sidath Wettimuny and Anura Tennekoon. SRI LANKA TRAVEL PLANNER Media Services was appointed the official publisher of this annual travel publication by the Sri Lanka Tourist Board, for a period of three years. The first two editions of the Sri Lanka Travel Planner were published in 1999 and 2000. The third edition, which was published in 2001, was renamed the Sri Lanka Travel Manual. SRI LANKA TRAVEL MANUAL Media Services published the nation’s official travel manual in 2001. The manual was the nation’s guide for international tour operators and travel agents. The venture followed the appointment of Media Services as publisher by the Sri Lanka Tourist Board. THE CHARTERED ACCOUNTANT Media Services was commissioned to publish the journal of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka, in 2004, commencing with the second issue for the year. ANNUAL REPORTS Media Services produced the annual report of People’s Leasing Company for two years. 15. TELEVISION PRESENCE BENCHMARK is a weekly, half-hour, business programme on TV. The programme was launched in August 2001, in collaboration with the nation’s leading production house, the wrap factory. The programme airs on TNL every Sunday (including a repeat), as well as on LBN and Dialog TV. LMD provides and presents the content of this programme, which includes the following. m Interviews with leading businesspeople, emphasising their perceptions of current issues and expectations for the future. m The week’s key business indicators. m Regular survey segments on public life, especially issues affecting the corporate sphere. m A monthly update on business confidence, featuring the unique LMD-NIELSEN ‘Business Confidence Index’ (BCI). MANAGEMENT TEAMS board of management Managing Director/Editor-In-Chief Hiran Hewavisenti A member of the Institutes of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, and Australia, and a former Senior Manager of Coopers & Lybrand (now PricewaterhouseCoopers), in Australia. Hiran has worked in the UK and Australia, with short stints in the US. He also has experience in corporate finance and exposure to the Board Audit Committee of a conglomerate (Fletcher Challenge) listed in Sydney and New York. Marketing Director Brian Emmanuel An associate member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing, UK. Formerly of Commercial Stock Brokers. Brian is a member of a sub-committee at the Chartered Institute of Marketing in Sri Lanka and a long-standing Rotarian. Brian was President of the Rotary Club of Cinnamon Gardens in 2006/07. General Manager Lalin Goonesekera Holds a B.Com. Degree from the University Of Colombo. A finalist at the examinations of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka, Lalin is a member of the Association of Accounting Technicians of Sri Lanka. He completed his audit and accountancy training at KPMG, Sri Lanka.