Boston Consulting Group has taken office space in Sri Lanka and intends to house staff locally, the firm’s Asia Pacific chairman said in Colombo, where around 600 of its managing directors and partners are holding a three-day annual planning conference.
Asia Pacific Chairman Yasushi Sasaki and India Head, Managing Director and Senior Partner Rahul Jain set out the plans in an interview with the Daily FT. It is Sasaki’s first visit to Sri Lanka.
“In the last 18 months, things have really shot up. We are looking at greater local presence. We have taken a small office space also and we want some of our people to be housed here,” the two said, adding that the firm wanted to “contribute to the growth of the nation.”
BCG said it has more than 2,300 experts globally, more than 600 of them in the Asia Pacific.
Sectors and the India question
The firm identified banking and finance as a growth sector, saying it should attract more capital from abroad and eventually expand outside Sri Lanka. It also named agriculture and tourism as natural strengths requiring better innovation and productivity, and logistics as an opportunity given the country’s location and regional hub ambitions.
On apparel, the executives said Sri Lanka could expand by drawing lessons from Vietnam and Bangladesh. “Sri Lanka has some great apparel companies who can play a much bigger role in the global supply chain,” they said.
Jain argued Sri Lanka should treat India as a partner rather than a rival. “There is enough opportunity from a supply chain point of view, synergistic point of view to support each other,” he said, describing the relationship as potentially “win-win.”
Sasaki said retaining young talent was critical. “There is a role for the Government as well as business leaders, because talent will determine the future of the country,” he said.
Both stressed small and medium enterprises. “Without SMEs, no nation grows,” they said, adding that governments needed to consider financing and market access for the sector.
The executives identified artificial intelligence and geopolitics as the main emerging challenges for businesses, saying global chief executives now rank AI as their top priority.
The conference coincides with the release of a BCG survey, conducted with the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, showing household consumption at a record high but a shrinking middle class.
