In a nation facing key talent shortages driven by migration and a host of ongoing challenges, organisations that cultivate a healthy working environment gain an edge in attracting and retaining skilled employees. In contrast, unhealthy workplace atmospheres are proving costly, driving down productivity and eroding performance. Workplace culture, according to Great Place To Work® Sri Lanka Director & Chief Executive Kshanika Ratnayaka, is a core competitive advantage. In a conversation with Echelon, she explains how GPTW supports high performing workplaces in Sri Lanka.
Why is it important to continue to build a positive workplace culture?
A positive workplace culture is no longer a luxury—it’s a strategic differentiator.
In Sri Lanka’s evolving economy, national progress requires motivated, resilient, high-performing teams. A change in how we do business and run our companies is necessary to engage new generations. Organisations that proactively foster trust, inclusion, employee-wellbeing and fairness are better positioned to achieve business goals through thriving teams without the drag of high turnover or disengagement. A strong workplace culture becomes the glue that holds teams together, even in times of uncertainty, and the fuel that drives long-term growth and sustainability.
How does GPTW bring its mission and vision to life in Sri Lanka?
We believe that every organisation—regardless of size or industry—can build a high-trust, high-performance culture. Our local mission is to help make Sri Lanka a great place to work—for all, and we do this by enabling organisations to listen to their people, understand their culture, and take meaningful action backed by data. GPTW provides a comprehensive ecosystem of assessments, recognition, consulting, and community engagement.
GPTW’s globally validated tools measure employee experience and benchmark it against international standards. Positive recognition is used to motivate & inspire leaders to continuously assess and take action to build and sustain better work environments. Organisations that undertake the globally standardized assessment and meet the global employee feedback threshold earn the ‘Great Place To Work® Certified™’ badge for one year, which is an influential mark of current employee validation. Best performing organisations are annually awarded a more exclusive distinction in industry-specific, national and regional ‘Best Workplaces™ Lists’ for creating “a great place to work for all” that reflects excellence in leadership effectiveness, maximizing potential, and innovation-by-all.
We also provide custom surveys and tailored consulting, helping leaders decode survey findings, close cultural gaps, and align people management practices with strategic aims. Services include culture transformation programmes, leadership alignment workshops, post survey action planning, and the development of internal culture ambassadors.
Additionally, GPTW hosts numerous conferences and forums for community learning, such as the Great Place To Work® For All™ Regional Conference & CXO Forum, Sri Lanka’s premier event on workplace culture, which draws over 350 professionals from across the country, Asia, and the Middle East. This year’s edition introduced a C-level Master Class, expanding opportunities for senior leadership development.
As a global authority on workplace culture, what are the key findings from your global research and how are these insights useful to Sri Lankan organisations?
Our global research spans millions of employee voices across 100+ countries. The findings are clear: Firms that foster strong employee experiences and cultures of trust outperform their peers. Such organisations enjoy up to 50% higher retention, triple the financial performance, and significantly greater engagement, productivity, creativity, and innovation-by-all. Crucially, trust unlocks ideas from across the workforce, not just a select few.
Even through economic downturns, the resilience of great workplaces enables them to push ahead of their competitors. The phrase “Culture eats strategy for breakfast” is overused, but leaders now recognise supportive culture as a strategic business imperative.
These findings are especially relevant in Sri Lanka, where key talent shortages, intensified global competition and digital transformation challenge employers. GPTW helps firms localise global best practices via consulting and proprietary tools. Our benchmarks provide sector specific insights, our reporting supports data-led strategies for maintaining agile, inclusive, and high-performing cultures.
What differentiates GPTW from other HR consulting or employer branding firms in the local market, and what tools or methodologies does GPTW use to support organisations in building high-trust workplaces?
GPTW stands apart through its globally standardised and research-driven methodology, paired with local expertise. Its approach blends international and domestic benchmarking, offering tools such as the Trust Index™ Employee Survey to measure employee experience and Culture Audit™ to gauge people practice effectiveness. Interpretation of these tools and tried and tested methodologies are also adapted to Sri Lanka’s context and help shape effective leadership behaviours.
The offering spans the full journey, from assessment and action planning to recognition and consulting that supports impact. Tools include result dashboards, root-cause analysis, and peer learning forums. Surveys are rigorous, confidential, and inclusive, which serves to capture
employee sentiment across languages, formats, and regions. Those opting for the end-to-end model ensure that leadership buy-in is secured to sustain change, while internal culture ambassadors drive continuous improvement.
What distinguishes GPTW from traditional local consultancies is its global knowledge repository, secure platforms and proprietary tools which enable culture transformation through a structured yet flexible approach that empowers organisations and leaders to take action themselves. Additional upgrades provide managers with tailored data views, driving accountability and targeted action across multiple leadership levels.
For a business leader interested in starting their journey, what would be the recommended first step or next action?
The journey begins with listening. We recommend starting with our Trust Index™ Survey diagnostic, to identify where you are in this journey. From there, leaders can partner with GPTW to translate insights into action, build leadership commitment, align your people’s practices to promote high-trust high-performance cultures that enable teams to drive business goals, and create momentum for lasting culture change.
Whether you’re just starting or looking to elevate your culture, Great Place To Work® is your partner to building a workplace culture where people and performance can thrive.