MTI Consulting

The MTI International team led by CEO Hilmy Cader, is currently in Kathmandu as part of its initiatives to strengthen ties with NBSM Consulting, MTI’s associate in Nepal. Commenting on the significance of the visit, MTI CEO Hilmy Cader said, “We have always looked forward to working with boutique consultants across emerging markets. Our association with NBSM Consulting gives us the right opportunity to set footprints in Nepal. With a population of 29 million people and an economy growing at over 6%, Nepal is Strategically located between two large and rapidly growing economies - China and India – with easy access to markets of more than 2.8 billion people. Our experience in the South Asian markets gives us an edge in serving the public and private sectors in Nepal.” MTI Consulting has worked on assignments across emerging and frontier markets in Asian, Middle East and African regions, which include projects carried for multi-national and regional companies and agencies in Algeria...

Leading the global discussion on climate change this week, Sanith de S. Wijeyeratne, CEO of the Carbon Consulting Company (of which MTI Consulting is a Strategic Equity Partner), was invited to speak at the Asia Pacific Climate Week (APCW2018) hosted across three days in Singapore. The event was held under the leadership of the UNFCC, and sponsored by The World Bank Group and the ADB. The theme for APCW2018 was ‘Climate Action for Sustainable Development: Driving Change in Asia Pacific’ which focuses on market-based approaches, economic instruments and climate-aligned finance to drive investment in climate action. Carbon Consulting Company (CCC) was chosen to showcase its work in helping achieve water neutrality for one of the world’s leading garment manufacturers – Linea Aqua – which became the first garment factory in the world to achieve corporate water neutrality. “It is an honour to be invited to speak at such a prestigious international summit,” says CCC CEO Sanith de S. Wije...

Since the company’s inception in 1997, MTI Consulting had conceptualized and continuously improved their concept of a ‘Smart Office’. This was taken a notch higher when MTI recently moved into its new Smart Office at the Aitken Spence Towers at Vauxhall Street. For the first time, MTI has ‘open sourced’ their concept of a Smart Office, why it is needed and how it is lived on a day-to-day basis. The essence of the Smart Office concept is captured by 11 principles. However these principles do not stand alone and must be applied in synergy to create the optimal environment for focused thinking which is the foundation of any knowledge based enterprise. True Value of focused, quality thinking based value-addition In the modern workplace distractions are more abundant than ever before, whether it be our phone, emails or even a chatty coworker. Simultaneously as more routine tasks are being automated the value of focused thinking required to solve complex problems is greater than eve...

Teatulia, the USA and UK based fast growing organic tea brand has developed its strategic direction with MTI Consulting. Teatulia is the international organic tea brand of leading Bangladeshi conglomerate Gemcon Group. At the final presentation held in Denver, Colorado, President of Teatulia and Director of Gemcon Group Dr. Kazi Anis Ahmed stated, “We have been working with MTI Consulting for the last 15 years and as always, we are very pleased with the outcome of this project. Organic tea is one of the fastest growing food and beverage market segments in the world. In order to capitalise on the increasing opportunities, we have sought MTI’s expertise and advisory.” MTI CEO Hilmy Cader added, “Teatulia Organic Tea is a main focus area for the shareholders, given its unique value proposition and the appeal to a niche but growing customer base in the Western world. Through this project, MTI assisted Teatulia’s senior management to identify the key growth markets and opportunities and...

Bakamuna, a mixed media lifestyle design brand, enabled by MTI’s idea2fund has successfully completed a nine-day run of its pop-up at The Hilton Colombo. The brand’s first ever pop-up, a repurposed bullock cart that carried a range of lifestyle products such as homeware, stationery and accessories was stationed at the Hilton Colombo from 23 June till 1 July. The traditional mode of transportation was given a modern vibe with the use of contemporary design elements and was used to showcase a range of products that had been created through mixed media design. The overall footfall generated by the pop-up was noticeably greater each day and it proved to be a major attraction for tourists and locals alike. This store concept enables Bakamuna to easily take their mobile shopping experience to different locations. “Bakamuna had the amazing opportunity to interact with our local and international community on a more personal level and we were so happy to be able connect with all those who ...

The National Policies and Economic Affairs Ministry has announced that the Cabinet Appointed Procurement Committee has recommended Lazard Asia Ltd., Singapore in association with MTI Consulting to be awarded the contract to act as an international transaction advisor for the sale of State-owned Hilton and Grand Hyatt Hotels. The Public Enterprise Development Ministry called for Request for Proposals (RFPs) on 5 January to act as adviser to seek suitable investors for the purchase of Government ownership in Hilton Colombo and Grand Hyatt Colombo. National Policies and Economic Affairs Ministry in its website said: “We are pleased to inform you that the Cabinet Appointed Consultant Procurement Committee has recommended Lazard Asia Ltd. of Singapore in association with MTI Consulting to be awarded the contract. They will act as an international transaction advisor for the sale of Government ownership in Hilton and Grand Hyatt Hotels.” The appointed transaction advisor is expected to adv...

BE it the tampering of a cricket ball, clubbing a leopard to death or the daylight robbery of a jewelry shop – they must all be unconditionally condemned and the culprits punished. But equally important is to do some deep psyche research as to what drove them to do this. While those who committed the crime need to held responsible, how much of this is influenced by society? How do we shape society in manner that we minimise the drive for people to commit such crimes?

Incubated by MTI’s idea2fund Bakamuna’s first ever pop-up will be hosted by the Hilton Colombo from 23 June till 1 July. Bakamuna is a mixed media lifestyle design brand powered by MTI’s idea2fund which is a platform for aspiring entrepreneurs. The concept of the pop-up being a flexible and mobile shopping experience; inspired Bakamuna to repurpose a functional bullock cart. The Sri Lankan traditional mode of transportation has been given a modern vibe with the use of contemporary design elements to showcase a range of lifestyle products. Cultural vintage items such as the ekel broom and rice kulla have been used as props for the store, further reinstating Bakamuna’s signature design style; traditional elements with a contemporary twist. Bakamuna draws inspiration from indigenous cultures, nature, music and many other elements and environments. The pop-up will carry a range of mixed media lifestyle products such as homeware, stationary and accessories. Mixed Media is Bakamuna’s spe...

1. When was the last time you introduced a truly life-changing product? 2. Small businesses are the life blood of our economy – is it in your blood? 3. Is there wealth at the bottom of your pyramid? Thought of being the ‘wholesale’ banker to tap this wealth? 4. How many ‘scientists’ work in your R&D lab? 5. The power of the intelligence you hold – what are you doing about it?  6. What national economic challenges are you trying to address? 7. Are your conventional fixed-cost channels hungry enough for new business? 8. Sri Lanka’s ‘economic geography’ is changing – is yours? 9. How much ‘Jelly Fish’ is your structure? 10. Does your staff represent the ‘Generation Next’?  11. What National Social KPIs will your CSR positively change?  12. How genuinely ‘Green’ is your banking practice? (Beyond awards and accreditations!)

Chemanex PLC, a leading player in the chemical industry for more than four decades, successfully concluded a major business restructuring exercise with MTI Consulting, thereby rationalizing many of its business units/operations in order to focus on its core business. The rationalization, based on a detailed consulting assignment carried out by MTI in 2015, and re-visited in 2017/18 as part of the ‘CIC Re-Strategizing 2020’ project (for which MTI was retained by CIC Group), resulted in rationalization of all operations of Chemanex, with the exception its Local Chemical Trading business. The Business Units which were rationalized included the export business, the retail paints business and support services. The relevant subsidiaries handling these operations were also rationalized, or have been identified and are pending rationalization. The intensive restructuring exercise, for which MTI was retained in 2015 and 2017/18, involved in-depth research into the operations and performance...

Bakamuna’s first ever Pop-up Store will be hosted by the Hilton Colombo from 23 June till 1 July. The lifestyle store is an exciting launch for Bakamuna, a mixed media lifestyle brand powered by MTI’s idea2fund for aspiring entrepreneurs. Having launched early last year, Bakamuna has been steadily making a name for themselves in the design and lifestyle space. Looking to further their retail reach through a spin-off chain of Bakamuna Pop-up Stores, the young and creative company approached the Hilton Colombo. Hilton Colombo General Manager Manesh Fernando said: “It is our pleasure to partner with Bakamuna on this initiative and to be able to play our part in supporting and enabling the startup ecosystem in Sri Lanka through our professional service and business facilities. We see a lot of potential in this unique and daring brand and we look forward to support their future ventures.” Hilton Colombo has continued to support idea2fund since 2016. ‘idea2fund’ is a year round venture c...

  0     16 Dialog completed its seventh consecutive annual employee recognition awards with MTI Consulting as the independent facilitator and playing the lead role in the judging panel. Since the very first Dialog Awards held in 2011, Dialog has worked alongside MTI Consulting to identify, motivate and recognise Dialog’s employees who have been untiringly working to explore innovative technology solutions for Sri Lankan people and enterprises. “Once again, Dialog and MTI have together successfully completed Dialog Awards 2017 which recognised the exceptional leaders and teams based on their performance during the past one year,” stated Dialog Axiata PLC Group CEO Supun Weerasinghe. He further stated: “Year on year, MTI Consulting has been retained to evaluate the submissions, whilst reinventing the awarding criteria and serving as an independent judging partner.” “Dialog Awards, a significant initiative by MTI HRM Solutions which is a subsidiary of MTI Con...

New Zealand based blockchain startup ‘Redeem’ ( www.redeem.global ) recently obtained advisory from MTI Consulting to refine their investment pitch. Acknowledging the evolving cryptocurrency market, MTI will also accept part of its consultancy fee in the form of Redeem’s cryptocurrency, making MTI among the pioneers in international consulting to do so. Redeem (RDM) is a (physically located) gold standard retail banking system and a blockchain that uses pre-existing international metal vendors as agents to convert digital assets into physical assets such as precious metals, fiat currencies and 24 karat jewelries. Their cryptocurrency RDM, is backed by 10 precious metals such as Gold, Silver, Platinum and Palladium to name a few, providing a stable coin to protect investors from currency volatility which is a weakness in most of the existing currencies such as Bitcoin. Redeem’s CEO Mr. Jarrod Cordier said, “Redeem is here to revolutionize the global commodity trading market ...

The Carbon Consulting Company (with MTI as a Strategic Equity Partner) and its long term client, one of the world’s most awarded sustainable tea companies  - Eswaran Brothers  Exports celebrated another outstanding joint achievement when Eswaran Brothers Exports was awarded GLOBAL GOLD WINNER: in the Food and Drink category  of the Green World Awards. These awards have become one of the world’s most prestigious recognitions for companies, organizations, and governments championing for a greener future. This new accolade comes to the company as a result of the extensive work carried out by CCC in creating a strategic sustainability road map for the entire Eswaran group of  companies,  and establishing concrete milestones along the journey.  Already certified as the World’s First CarbonNeutral® Tea company, Eswaran Brothers has continued to push the boundaries in the areas of product and organizational Water footprinting, Supply Chain Water and...

N. Vasantha Kumar - Chief Executive Officer and General Manager, Hilmy Cader – CEO MTI Consulting with S. A. R. S. Samaraweera – Deputy General Manager of HR and Rajika Sangakkara - MTI’s Project Engagement Lead. People’s Bank is set to execute a Scientific Capacity Planning Study linked to Career and Succession Planning and a Two Way Performance Appraisals Mechanism, which was facilitated by MTI Consulting with the main objective of realigning the HR systems and appraisal process of the bank. Chief Executive Officer and General Manager of People’s Bank, N. Vasantha Kumar stated: “MTI worked closely with People’s Bank in developing the Strategic Plan in 2015, and are very acquainted with the challenges faced by the Bank and its employees, relating in particular to customer service quality and human resources management. The intended study is a result of the outcome of the Bank’s Strategic Plan, which will lead to the implementation of two of the most important Strate...

The Sri Lankan economy, after a period of post-war growth, is showing signs of cooling down. The depreciating rupee and recent fuel price hikes and its ‘snowballing’ effect on cost of living is bound to impact consumer sentiment and spending, business investments and the demand for credit. The natural tendency of many businesses would be to start cutting costs and freeze development initiatives. Research and MTI’s international experience, clearly shows that, the way in which companies respond to tough times, is what separates the ‘living’ from the ‘departed’. Most organisations tend to indiscriminately cut costs, freeze all forms of developmental work and adopt a ‘wait & see’ approach. We call them the ‘Chop & Cripple’ companies. By contrast, the Smarter Companies (we call them ‘Trim & Fit’ companies), while being prudently cautious, uses the crisis period as an opportunity to critically evaluate every aspect of its Strategy, Structure, Staff and Systems, chall...

The MTI International Team led by CEO Hilmy Cader and Consultant Darshan Singh are currently in Addis Ababa, as part of an initiative to strengthen ties with BCaD Consulting, MTI’s Associate in the second most populous African country. Commenting on the significance of the visit, MTI CEO Hilmy Cader said, “Our international go-to-market business model has been to work with boutique independent consultants in these emerging and frontier market. With a population of 105 million people and an economy growing in excess of 9%, Ethiopia is geographically well-positioned to serve the fast growing East African region. Our experience in frontier markets gives us an edge in serving the public and private sectors in Ethiopia.” MTI Consulting has worked on assignments across emerging and frontier markets in Asian, Middle East and African regions, which include projects carried for multi-national and regional companies and agencies in Algeria, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Egypt, Indonesia, Jord...

The root cause of most ethnic conflicts is the lack of integration. We are all born innocent. Thereon our families, our schools and the wider society shapes our values, our thinking, that then drives our actions.  Early on in life if we learn to appreciate diversity and if we learn to respect each other’s religions and cultures, peaceful cohabitation is possible. Our schooling environment plays a major role in shaping us and builds lifelong friendships. This is where integration needs to start.  But how can this happen in a society where schooling is increasingly discriminated along religious lines?  How can this happen when political parties are formed on racial divides? The solution, which looks increasingly utopian, lies in enactments (constitutional changes), enforcements and enlightenment. Wishfully thinking we had a ‘bot’ (not our politicians) to fix this!

Carbon Consulting, one of South Asia’s leading sustainability consultants (with MTI as a strategic equity partner), has urged Sri Lankan businesses to take a more scientific and proactive response to Climate change, stating that “businesses must make it their business to respond to climate change” These comments were made by Carbon Consulting’s Suraj Vanniarachchy as he presented his paper at International Conference on Climate Change hosted by the University of Colombo in collaboration with Colorado State University, the Climate Change Secretariat, the Ministry of Mahaweli Development and Environment, and the International Institute of Knowledge Management. The Conference witnessed the participation of more than 100 participants representing more than 20 countries across the world. The countries included  Sri Lanka, Germany, United States, United Kingdom, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Taiwan, Thailand, India, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Indonesia, Nepal, Myanmar, Iran, Australia, ...

Incubated and mentored by MTI’s idea2fund The MTI idea2fund venture of Bakamuna is currently planning a spin-off chain of BKM (Bakamuna) pop-up stores – which will be a locally owned and operated franchise. The intent would be start with an few experimental store in store concept stores – in high traffic lifestyle environments and then gradually expand the concept. Bakamuna’s multidimensional contemporary art mixes both digital and non-digital mediums combining multiple artistic media such as ink and pastel, or painting and collage to create lively and unique illustrations inspired by indigenous cultures around the world, the natural environment, and elements of music. Bakamuna’s mantra consists of three Cs; with the aim to Create innovative and unique mixed art illustrations, Connect with the audience to help them express themselves through art and design, and Collaborate with the community to celebrate life through art. “Art and design have always been my passion. T...

Calls for needs-based scientific approach that will cascade to remaining state organisations If local media outlets are anything to go by, the su ggestion of radically restructuring the Cabinet is a welcome move and the nation hopes that this will not be just another outburst in a euphoric moment!  Structuring any organisation, irrespective of size and type, needs to be aligned to the purpose, direction and strategy of the organisation. This needs a very scientific approach, using purpose-specific structuring frameworks and an inclusive process of facilitating stakeholder involvement.  If this process is entirely left to politicians (whose only entry qualification is the popular vote, while few of them may have specific managerial and technical competencies), then it tends to be driven by political motives and not by what is in the best interest of the people of a country.   In this feature article, MTI shares some of the extensive thought leadership research don...