A guest lecture done by me aiming the second year undergradautes of IIT Sri Lanka, June 2019

1. Tharindu Weerasinghe
www.tharinduweerasinghe.lk
Head of Operations | General Manager
Seebo Networks Lanka (Pvt) Ltd.
3rd
June 2019
@ IIT – Colombo 6, Sri Lanka
Professionalism &
Industry Expectations

2. Profession(al)/(alism)
● What is a profession?
– A paid job (or occupation) that requires specified qualification and training.
● Who is a professional?
– A person who is engaged in a profession
● What is professionalism?
– The competence or skillset and behavior expected from a professsional.

3. Things needed to be professional
1. Know your stuff very well (means, be an expert in your field of
profession)
– e.g. If you are a software engineer in (Java or in anyother OOP Languages) you have
to know programming with Java very well. You have to know OOP concepts, You
have to know Design Patterns, You have to know Data Structures and Algorithms
very well.
2. Carry-on continuous learning (improve your self, update yourself)
– e.g. If you work on a tech stack that requires extra learning and training you have to
do that. Well, you are not supposed to know many frameworks but the framework
that you work in, you should have handson experience and you have to be up to date.
.

4. Things needed to be professional (contd.)
3. Behave morally and ethically
- Be a human! Respect human values. Respect Others! Smile well!
Treat people in the best way that you can. Don't have favourites in
your work place. Treat everyone in a similar way.
4. Respect the organization culture
- In a professional organization, you are a PART of it. You have to
obey its culture!

5. Things needed to be professional (contd.)
5. Be on-time (Punctual)
- Be punctual to work, attend the meetings on time. Submit the
required work on time. Don't miss deadlines for unethical reasons.
6. Admit your mistake
– Be humble to admit your mistakes and never repeat mistakes. Learn
from the mistakes and avoid them in future.

6. Things needed to be professional (contd.)
7. Be straight / Have your say
- Don't do any backstabbing. Talk directly. Point out any issue (even to
management) politely. Give constructive feedback and you may open
yourself also to get feedback on YOU!
8. Have Good Etiquette and Softskills
– Have good table/toilet/telephone manners
– Improve your presentation and communication skills

7. The 1st
Impression
● Yes, it does matter
● Read these articles:
http://archives.dailynews.lk/2012/09/11/fea30.asp
● http://archives.dailynews.lk/2013/04/23/fea36.asp

8. Sri Lankan IT/BPO Sector
Well, for sure Sri Lanka is a destination of choice,
Why?
– Because of comptence, quality and professionalism
● We will see this video by Sri Lanka Association for
Software and Services Companies (SLASSCOM)

9. Industry | IT Industry
● Industry:
– Manufactruing or producing goods and services according to
known standards.
● IT Industry:
– Development of software, Implementing Networks and Systems,
Managing Information Systems, BIG Data, Cyber Security...

10. What does the industry expect from
YOU?
● Know your basics
– e.g. Know a programming language with basic concepts
covered, Know OOP, Know Design Patterns, Know Data
Structures.
● Be a team player
– e.g. In the industry, “I” is not valuable but “We” are valuable!

11. What does the industry expect from
YOU? (contd)
● Be a good learner
– Continuous learning is appreciated
– Attend trainings
● Be a loyal employee
– You stand by the company for all “good things” and the
Company will stand by you!

12. Mentioned with gratitude...
● https://smallbusiness.chron.com/10-characteristics-professionalism-708.html
● https://jzeroblog.com/2016/12/12/5-ways-to-be-professional-at-work/
● http://www.srilankabusiness.com/pdf/ict-bpo-ebrochures-1.pdf
● http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/industry.html
● http://www.csiteks.com/software-services/