The inaugural ceremony of the 7^th intake for the Master of Business Management in Marketing program offered by the Department of Marketing Management, University of Kelaniya, was held on 23^rd October 2022 at the Kingsbury Hotel.

The University of Kelaniya, as a responsible national university in Sri Lanka, has pioneered many developments in the higher education industry of Sri Lanka and has contributed to the country's economic development in many ways.

The Faculty of Commerce & Management Studies (FCMS) of the University of Kelaniya is one of the country's finest and fastest-growing business faculties in terms of the quality of graduate output, the qualified faculty, and the diversified undergraduate and postgraduate programs it offers. Addressing the gathering, Dr. Naradha Fernando, Dean, FCMS and the chief guest of the event, stated that FCMS is an absolute powerhouse in Sri Lankan business management education with strong research culture, qualified staff, up-to-date curriculums and a stimulating and supportive environment for its learning partners to excel personally and professionally. 

Prof. Bandara Wanninayake, Coordinator of the MBM program stated that the Department of Marketing Management, one of the premier academic bodies in the university, has taken many initiatives to uplift the quality of marketing management education in Sri Lanka. In their journey towards crafting strategists, they could be the first business management department in the country to obtain the ISO 9001:2015 quality certification and the first SAP University Alliance partner in Sri Lanka.

Senior Prof. Kapila Senavirathne, Dean, Faculty of Graduate Studies and the Guest of Honour of the event, commended the program delivery of MBM in marketing by stating that it offered its learning partners the opportunity to develop their careers to their fullest potential.

Expressing her views, the keynote speaker of the ceremony, Group Chief Customer Officer of Dialog Axiata PLC and Director of Dialog Business Services, Mrs. Sandra De Zoysa highlighted the evolving trends of Marketing and how the local marketer should comprehensively craft and deliver an appealing yet relevant proposition to the consumer

Mr. Thilina DK, Technical Coordinator of the program explained that this program uses innovative teaching and learning approaches like experiential learning and has introduced a series of systematic and innovative course units that take place both inside and outside the classroom. This MBM program will help individuals to be versatile professionals by enhancing their capabilities and developing a career through professional coaching, mentoring, knowledge sharing, and insights from the peer network.

Further, present at this ceremony were the academic and non-academic staff members of the FCMS, and the new learning partners of the MBM in Marketing Programme.