Axiata Digital Labs Adds Industry Veterans to Leadership Team

Axiata Digital Labs (ADL) is pleased to announce the addition of Sanharsha Jayatissa, Fawaz Ashraff and Niresh Samaranayake to their Senior Leadership Team.

ADL, an innovative software service provider, has added three new members to the company’s senior leadership team in order to facilitate its growth as the preeminent leader in software innovation. These appointments bring valuable industry experience to the company that was founded in 2019 and will position ADL to scale rapidly to meet the demands of their stakeholders.

“I am very pleased to add Sanharsha, Fawaz and Niresh to the ADL family. Our parent company, Axiata, has a clear digital strategy in place and ADL is a crucial part of that vision. We are uniquely positioned to deliver digital transformation for all Axiata operators, and our goal is to become a global leader in IT, telco middleware and managed services. I trust that this talented group of leaders will help take our company to the next level,” said Thushera Kawdawatta, CEO of ADL.

The new appointees join Uresh Duminduwardena, Vice President – Engineering, Platform and Products; Namal Jayathilake, Vice President – Engineering and Emerging Technology; Chandima Wijekoon, Country Head – Indonesia and Shifan Saleem, Country Head – Malaysia; on the senior leadership who have been with the company since inception.

Sanharsha Jayatissa, Associate Vice President – Global Operations and Client Services

Sanharsha has over 14 years of diversified experience and a proven track record of accomplishments in some of the most competitive markets and complex industries in Sri Lanka and the Asian region. He joins ADL after an illustrious career with a large-scale Sri Lankan company and an Australian based multinational, and spearheading IT and servicing as the COO of D Tech (Pvt) Ltd, a leading IT solutions company in Sri Lanka. He was also the General Manager for Camms Group and responsible for all the Asia Operations. He possesses exceptional operational and people management skills and practical knowledge on leading initiatives, building teams and developing innovative platforms.

Sanharsha will be overseeing all operations and marketing initiatives at ADL.

Fawaz Ashraff, Head of Business Development

Fawaz Ashraff has over 20 years of experience in various industries and held senior managerial positions in business operations, relationship building, strategic business development, client services, program management, consulting services and software development and support. He joins ADL from Lanka Government Information Infrastructure Ltd and spent many years honing his skills in client services at Virtusa. He has worked globally in the US and Europe.

Fawaz is responsible for strategizing and managing ADL’s business development ensuring consistent and rapid growth in sales across all channels

Niresh Samaranayake, Head of HR

Niresh has over 26 years of work experience starting with 16 years in software development and IT. Over 10 year ago, he transitioned to running human resources for IT companies and gained valuable experience in talent acquisition, performance management, learning and development, compensation and benefits and HRIS. He has conducted numerous training on personal development, leadership, time management, coaching, communication skills and mindfulness. He was previously responsible for the overall HR functions of John Keells Information Technology (Pvt) Limited, a newly formed through a merger of two business units of the John Keells Group.

Niresh will oversee all of ADL’s HR systems including talent acquisition and employee relations.

About ADL

ADL, a subsidiary of the Axiata Group headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, is an innovative software service provider founded in January 2019, that offers telco focused digital and IT services and solutions that enable individuals, startups and enterprises and the society as a whole.

With over 800 professionals spread across 7 countries, ADL helps global customers in the space of telecommunications, digital services & financial services. Our convergent digital design experiences, innovative platforms and reusable assets connect numerous technologies to deliver tangible business value and experience to our customers.

Axiata Digital Labs is the technology hub of Axiata Group Berhad Malaysia which is one of the leading groups in telecommunication in Asia with approximately 350 million subscribers in eleven countries with a staff of 27000 and an annual revenue of USD 5.8 billion. In pursuit of Axiata’s vision to be a New Generation Digital Champion by 2020, Axiata Digital Labs positions itself as a key driver to deliver a range of innovative telecommunication products and services.

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