Sharmalee De Alwis: Driven by a passion for continuous learning and finding joy in her work

Sharmalee De Alwis first joined the Sri Lankan apparel industry as a finance professional in 1990, at a time the industry was still at its infancy. Her company, Star Garments, was one of Sri Lanka’s apparel pioneers as well as the first company to set up shop in the country’s first Free Trade Zone (FTZ) in Katunayake.

Now, three decades later, Sharmalee is an Executive Vice President (EVP) of Star Garments and is part of the company’s core leadership team in Sri Lanka. During her illustrious career, she has given leadership to a range of functions including finance, information technology, production control, warehousing, logistics, off-shore operations, business process outsourcing and many special projects.

Looking back on her professional achievements, she believes that from the beginning of her corporate journey, the enjoyment and fulfilment she found in her day-to-day work, the passion for excellence and the thirst to learn new skills were critical to her success.

“I can say with confidence that I’ve enjoyed each day of work. You can only be happy if you enjoy your life and when you are a career woman, your job plays a major role in your life. You can bring out the best in you, when you do what you like and like what you do,” she says.

“When I started my career, I enjoyed whatever tasks that were assigned to me. I was always eager to learn about the processes behind various functions. Due to this, my superiors and colleagues assigned various projects to me, which in turn helped me to gain an in-depth knowledge of many processes beyond finance and numbers.”

Sharmalee takes pleasure in tackling new projects and challenges, including those she lacks familiarity with. “Even now, I sometimes find myself handling various projects with colleagues who are much younger,” she says with a smile. “I don’t pay much attention to age, experience or differences when I am part of a team and I work with all on equal terms and we learn new things together.”

Sharmalee acquired her enthusiasm for collaboration even prior to joining Star Garments, during the time she was employed as a Management Trainee at a leading multinational pharmaceutical company. Working with a team of like-minded enthusiastic young professionals, she was called upon on many occasions to assist her superiors and team members on various projects. In doing so, she gained invaluable experience over many functions such as finance, information technology, marketing, production, process control and management reporting, which continues to guide and serve her even today in her professional career.

Sharmalee joined Star Garments in 1990, and left the company in 1995 to travel overseas. During her overseas stint, she worked for a large petroleum company, as a key member of the team involved in implementing an industry-based integrated systems solution. She re-joined Star in 1998 and was promoted to Vice President in 2003. In 2014, she was appointed Executive Vice President.

During her tenure with Star she saw the company grow from one manufacturing plant with around 1,000 employees in 1990, to ten manufacturing plants with over 8,500 employees. From 1998 to date she has been involved in many projects including acquisitions, mergers, restructuring of various operations, implementing new systems and corporate finance initiatives. Sharmalee believes that the acquisition of Star’s parent company by Charles Komar and Sons Inc. USA, in 2015 had a major positive impact on her company. Komar a global leader in the design, sourcing, manufacturing and distribution of apparel and aligned Star’s strategic direction with its global vision. 

Sharmalee was a member of the team that enabled the change of ownership of Star. She initiated the changes required by Komar, to commence operations in Sri Lanka. She was also a member of the team that set-up Star’s state-of-the-art innovation centre in Sri Lanka, the first passive house building in South-East Asia and the eighth in the world.

During her career, she witnessed the ‘passing of the torch’ in terms of Sri Lankan leaders taking over from foreign nationals who initially held most of the leadership positions in the local apparel industry. Currently, the industry leadership is held by Sri Lankans, with foreign nationals functioning mostly as consultants or contributing to special projects. She also observed a change in the calibre of new entrants to the industry. She believes that these young, enthusiastic, qualified team members are valuable assets and should be guided to take on leadership roles in the industry.

She also witnessed the massive technology transformation of the industry during her career. At its inception, the industry used basic data capturing and processing technology. Now, the industry makes use of various state-of-the-art technologies including 3D simulation, Fashion ERP, AI and robotics, thus providing opportunities to new entrants to obtain hands on experience in latest technology.

While Sharmalee recognizes the progress that the industry has achieved in gender parity at leadership level, she believes that there is scope for further improvement. She acknowledges that there is a need for improvements in gender equity within this industry.

“Women in leadership need to balance their careers, family and other aspects of life that are important to them,” she points out. “For them to thrive in their careers, such women need support from their workplaces as well as their families. Where that support is not available, they may still achieve their goals but the journey towards success will be much more difficult.”

“In my company, I was fortunate to have leaders, especially our Managing Director, who believes that women can bring value and balance to the organization. The leadership, colleagues and my team members have been supportive and they have encouraged me to progress in my career. Being a mother of three, juggling work and family is not easy. I am fortunate to be supported and encouraged by my family who understands the nature and challenges of my work.”

“I feel that female representation at leadership level within the industry is still not enough. Particularly small-scale operators may require additional support to empower and encourage women to take on leadership roles. They may not have access to the same level of resources, infrastructure and training opportunities that the larger players have.”

“Breakdown in work-life balance is another aspect that deter women from getting into leadership roles. Women need to be supported in this area if they are to progress in their careers. The bodies that represent the apparel industry with the support of the relevant authorities should take the initiative to help companies to train and empower their aspiring leaders.”

Asked for her advice for female professionals who aspire to become leaders, Sharmalee says to be patient, stay focused and never give up on your dreams. She emphasises on the importance of having clear objectives, determination to succeed, continuous learning and perseverance.

“Speaking from my experience in the apparel industry, I would say that the sector is constantly evolving. As a result, the path to growth is not straight forward and it’s a challenge irrespective of your gender. If you’re ready to face the challenges, commit yourself to the job, continuously upgrade yourself and stay-on in the industry, there will definitely be a light at the end of the tunnel. I do not believe that there should be a gender barrier to career growth in the apparel sector. Globally, the apparel industry is dominated by women, and therefore I expect Sri Lanka also to move in the same direction.”

“My advice to all aspiring young people in general would be to get as much experience as possible on the job. Academic knowledge is the first step in the career ladder but in our industry hands-on experience under a good mentor is the key to success. It’s only when you get your hands dirty on the job that you can gain expertise. Your own benchmark of success can either drive you towards your desired career or serve as a barrier to your success.”  

“I believe that women in Sri Lanka have the necessary leadership acumen to drive the industry forward. My advice to ambitious future leaders is to have a clear career goal, look for opportunities, sharpen your skills and project the best version of yourself and you’ll be successful.”