RANDHULA DE SILVA

She is the Founder and CEO of GoodLife X. She is a Director of the Global Entrepreneurship Network and is a Co-Founder of Kolamba Talkies. She was the former Chief Executive Officer of Hatch Works.  She was a former Director of Trace Expert City, and the former Chief Disruptor, Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. She was the Executive Producer of the Sinhala movie, ‘Avilenasului.’ She was the former Head of Information Intelligence Services at Verite Research. An alumnus of Musaeus College, Colombo, she is armed with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Business Economics from the University of Colombo, and a Master’s degree in Regional Development and Planning. She also holds a Post Graduate Diploma in International Relations and Foreign Affairs from the Bandaranayake Centre for International Studies (BCIS). She was the recipient of the Global Olave Award presented by the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGS) in 2014. In 2020, she was conferred with the Chevening Research, Science and Innovation Leadership Award by the University of Oxford, for her work in Sri Lanka that contributed to creating a positive social and economic impact. In 2022, she was recognized as the ‘Game Changer of the Year’ at the Women in Management (WIM) Top50 Professional and Career Awards, hosted by Women in Management in partnership with IFC, (International Finance Corporation), a member of the World Bank Group, and the Government of Australia.  She constantly strives to go beyond these titles, labels and designations to mark her journey and prefers to be identified with the changes proposed by her work.

She Can and she is a disruptive game-changer in Sri Lanka. She is an innovative risk-taker who doesn’t take ‘NO’ for an answer. She believes anything is possible if one has the right mindset. She is fierce, she is creative, she is diligent and is an empowered power house; Randhula De Silva. 

Share with us a summary of your entrepreneurial journey?

My journey is not a straight line and never will be. It’s been an unorthodox one stemming from unexpected pivots and breakthroughs. I think the commonality across all roles I’ve played is spotting opportunity to create change and acting on it. It took a while for me to understand that I was straddling different sectors and worlds, working as a systems entrepreneur, facilitating change in entire systems to move the needle towards better change. From startups and SMEs, sustainability in private sector, International development agencies, innovation in media and socio-politics. After different stints I did right after school through University, including internships in PR, to professional compeering, corporate training and event management, I stepped into Verite Research as the Head of Information Intelligence Services in 2011. In 2013, I moved to GIZ to work in private sector development, where I got the opportunity to create an entire pillar dedicated to innovation and startups, and was able to create a role for myself as the ‘Chief Disruptor.’ This led me to work with many players from public and private sector as well as academia, helping me identify gaps and also build innovative solutions. The National circular for University Business Linkage Cells (UBL Cells) operating in local universities today is a result of this work, as well as the community space of YARL IT Hub and Hatch Works in Jaffna. 

After years of working closely with players from the innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystem, I assumed the role of CEO at Hatch Works in 2019, at the point of its inception, while parallelly building Good Life X (GLX) accelerator within GIZ. Playing this dual leadership role, I went on to create disruptions in the status quo in the ecosystem as a whole, as well as of functions of an international donor agency and private sector entity through exploring deep collaborations to achieve similar goals. Back in 2019, GLX was the first sector-specific accelerator in Sri Lanka committed to building conscious entrepreneurs working in areas of food, agriculture, wellness and tourism.

Working with international and local players to craft this program gave me a plethora of experience that’s unmatchable to any formal learning. The significance of this initiative is its effort to grow a new breed of entrepreneurs while positioning the goodness of the luscious natural and local elements of Sri Lanka in its due place, globally. Which is what’s led me today to spinoff GLX as its own private entity. In parallel to the work in the entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystem, I also work closely with artists and activists to go beyond the conventional forms of influence by creating platforms and movements to form a more liberal and free thinking society. Co-Founding Kolamba Talkies in 2013 as an alternate film screening platform, No more July in 2014 and Red Festivals in 2015 and 2016, working on the Sinhala Feature film ‘Avilenasului’ as its Executive Producer and Co-Founding, Freedom Hub are milestones of that journey to date. 
 

Share with us a summary of your personal journey?
As a child I was never an academic achiever nor a sportswoman. I’ve never been to a single prize giving for an academic award and have only participated in the college sports meets with the March Past (and was always the loud one in the front row making commands). Beyond being the one to always ask unwanted questions in the class room like, “why exactly do we need to learn this stuff?” - I chose to thrive outdoors, in campsites and labs, and of course on stage. Girl Guiding, drama, choir, science, environment and astronomy societies were where I spent most of my time during and after school. Certain breakthroughs come find you, regardless of whether you take the obvious route or not. Being appointed as the School Captain of Musaeus Collage was such an instance. Something I was not expecting and the least prepared for. It truly was a deep-end discovery of myself which formed and shaped my leadership journey. Thereafter, the four distinctions I got for my Advanced Level  exams when the whole world including myself, was expecting me to fail, because I was never in class, never had a note, and was least interested to work hard for exams, was a shock to say the least.  Getting selected to Colombo University with that approach was a massive breakthrough. Again, it was unexpected and I was unprepared for it. I was thrilled to have received the opportunity which took a huge burden off my parents to invest in an international degree, and moreover for the opportunity it gave me to root myself locally even further. There too I continued to do drama and graffiti even while I was reading for my BBA in Business Economics. During University, I also took a Diploma in Professional Diplomacy at BDITI and did a Post Graduate Diploma in International Relations at BCIS. My passion for economic development was further explored through my Masters in Regional Development and Planning at the University of Colombo. Throughout my life from childhood to now, the people I’ve been attracted to are creatives, visionaries and mischief-makers. I think the deep and meaningful relationships I have with them is what keeps me alive and away from settling for the ordinary. I currently live in Colombo with my partner and two cats. 

What are the most important attributes of successful leaders today? 
I’ve seen Managers who’ve assumed leadership positions and go on to work the same way they always have and blow a fuse every time something goes out of line, resulting in teams being ineffective and organizations to crumble from within in the face of adversity. Being a leader is beyond being a Manager, it’s to be a force of energy that can take whatever shape and form to emerge through a situation and evolve for the better, so you can create better opportunities for your team. For me the most critical attributes of successful leaders are the ability to unlearn and reinvent. Equally important is the ability to build trust during uncertainty and the willingness to walk towards challenges and not away from it, with clarity of mind and awareness.  As years and successes add up,  we can tend to get attached to our methods of the past and resist inevitable change. The ability to master the process of unlearning and reinventing to serve your end game is an age-old point of wisdom which has now come to surface with the current times as something that kept the most resilient ones thriving through uncertainty. The world we live in is erupting with fast paced growth and endless stimulations as we speak. It’s easy to lose sight of our intentions and get overwhelmed with all that’s going on outside. Amidst all this, teams and partners need conviction to take the roads less traveled with you, and this takes a leader who can walk towards a challenge without running away from it, to build trust and steer the ship with clarity and awareness.

How did you move forward when everyone kept telling you that your suggestions or ideas won't work? 
Every time I had an idea or a method that I knew was significantly important to make a change, I always found a way to do it, at least once. Regardless of whether it was accepted or not. On one hand, I was curious to see how it’d turn out, and on the other hand I knew that a tangible outcome is always more powerful than an idea to get buy-in from non-believers. Since I have many intertwined backgrounds, there were many who expected me to fail in months after being appointed as CEO at Hatch, as I came from the development sector which carried a certain bias. And went on to say that I’d never be able to kick off an accelerator as there’s no one who’ve made it work by 2018. Sure, I was not trained for any of it, but being someone who is willing to try things for the first time is what made me do it all. And it isn’t an easy adventure. You have to trust your gut, be ready to get zero support from most around you, expect yourself to make some painful mistakes, and if you succeed also be ready to have many fathers/mothers to that success who would step up to own that spotlight with you. For me, success truly is to be able to respond to each of these instances with the same attitude without internalizing any of it or taking things personally. Keep your eyes and mind on the goal, and you just stride on.

Tell us three exciting or game changing projects you have executed during your career? 
Firstly, and most importantly, is creating platform to bring innovation to the nature-based value chains and conventional sectors like Food and Agriculture, Wellness and Travel, with sustainability at its core for the first time in Sri Lanka. Good Life X (GLX) came about as an idea, as a result of the disconnect I noticed among the untapped abundant resources in Sri Lanka, tech entrepreneurship and digital innovation everyone was excited about, and the rise of the conscious consumer globally. Post-colonial Sri Lanka has always failed to offer the best of its wonders to the world, and what is left is either untapped or largely exploited in the most industrial way. 
At the time, most start-up and innovation ecosystem players focused on pure tech solutions, while development agencies and public sector players continued to work on archaic models and methods, which have failed to make a breakthrough for decades.  Good Life X wanted to change this and launched the first of its kind accelerator with brands like Sozo, Honest Greens, Kimbula Kithul, Ananta, etc. There were innovation leaders who had their best interest for me asking why I was wasting my time working in food and agriculture back then. I’m happy to see the same people now actively investing into the same spaces. We saw this possibility and need, early on and went on to do the work and grew our work beyond startups, all the way to SMEs, farmer networks to corporates, before we started talking about it. After six programs, sixty entrepreneurs, and thirty experts working over 12,000 hours, I truly am proud of the shifts we have made in the Sri Lankan ecosystem. To have more and more players recognize its importance and join the work, that for me is a system change. Looking back, it all looks like a dream, looking ahead, there’s still much work to be done.

Another project I am proud of is - The Freedom Hub, a nonpolitical space that envisions to transform the culture and mindset of Sri Lankan youth by providing genuine opportunities to experiment, acquire knowledge, collaborate and thrive in their creativity. Freedom Hub is a space and a network that encourages budding influencers and young creatives to build their voices towards a more equal and just society with radically centrist values. Our approach is diverse and fun where we educate, mentor, network and facilitate productions and ideas in the digital and new media space. Going by the model of building a vibrant community, proving affordable studio facilities, curating programs and connecting opportunities to grow. This is something that I among others, Co-Founded together with the Late Former Minister, Mangala Samaraweera. We continue to build it up, staying true to the dream that we saw together for the future of Sri Lanka. 

Do you ever think – “Am I crazy?" 
It’s something I celebrate in me every day!

How do you differentiate yourself? 
I’m comfortable in my own skin and I don’t try to be anyone else but me. There’s really just one of us in this world and even if there can be many who are inspired by the work we do or who we are, and replicate our work, our words, or our outer appearance, the heart and soul of who we are and what made us, is unique to each one of us. Its effortless to just let that shine through than trying to be someone you’re not, to fit in, to play on, or to prove something. 

What is your 'why?’ 
Status quo makes me uncomfortable and untapped potential to do better makes me restless. This is what pushes me to go beyond limitations and tap into possibilities that can create a more conscious and positive change for all of us.  With certain things that have formed me in my life (not always through the most pleasant ways), I carry a certain freedom in my mind which allows me to see possibility in barren land, to connect unapparent dots, to not let voices of the world define my next step, and to be comfortable in the unknown on the way to creating new realities. This is my gift, and all I do ultimately is to enable many others to access and tap into their gifts and purpose. 

Who do you look up to for inspiration or mentorship? 
Professionally, I’m blessed to have many mentors who respect and accept my craziness and are patient to mentor me for years. Marton Koscev, once my boss, and now friend, Arj Wignaraja  and Amanda Kiessel, two of the most amazing humans I’ve come to meet who are my closest mentors. Also, the troublemakers, Prof. Rohan Samarajiva, Mangala Karunaratne and Harsha Purasinghe, to name a few others. In terms of inspiration, it’s mostly those who dared to live on the edge and create their own terms, Kasthuri Chellarajah, Kate Reworth, Andy Wahol, David Lynch, Anais Nin, Vandana Shiva, and the peers amongst me doing this work together on a daily basis; entrepreneurs, innovators, artists, and fellow seekers of change. 

Your biggest regret? 
Not having been there at the death bed of the nanny who brought me up and my mother-in-law.

What is your biggest fear and how do you manage it? 
I love nature and hiking and still can’t manage my screams around leeches!

What has been the highlight of your career so far?
Starting Good Life X focused on sustainable enterprises and to have brought it this far; to spinning it off as its own private entity, when many told me it’s a waste of time. I didn’t have any of the initial team coming with me as we formed the company, since it was too much of a risk to take on in the middle of the pandemic. Building a team from scratch, training them on the job to design, manage and run programs, and plugging in likeminded individuals who envision to create the same conscious change as I do, and as my partners do, are recent key wins. As an entity, Good Life X is now equipped with extensive experience and tested models created over the years in not just transforming and elevating sustainable startups and SMEs, but also corporates who are keen to not just innovate but regenerate. We represent the new and work towards building the new for many others. We have no hierarchies or restrictions internally on how information flows and how work gets done. My team writes their own JDs and assumes their own roles according to the gaps that needs filling and their ambitions to grow. We have programs open enough to collaborate with anyone and draw from collective intelligence of likeminded people all over the world. It’s a breeding ground for many conscious people, be it investors, entrepreneurs, creatives, academics and experts to connect and grow together.  

How do you keep generating new ideas for your business?
I never compete with anyone around me but myself, to do better. I begin each day as a brand new one and never go to sleep with regrets. 

What do you want to achieve next?
The same thing I achieved today; a day fully lived.
 

If you could go back and tell yourself one thing before beginning your career, what would it be?
Don’t ever skip a real-life moment to respond to an email, or put off your physical wellbeing and daily habits to make space for a meeting. 

What was the biggest rookie mistake you made when just starting out? 
Not checking and changing the time zones of the office desktop I was given and setting a calendar invite for a council meeting at USA time, which was 2.00am IST time. 

Have you been harassed or discriminated against?
Sure, almost through the first ten years of my career, by both men and women, and those experiences are what truly formed me to become who I am. It’s common across the world, especially for those who are striving to shift the needle and won’t settle for the ordinary, whatever sector they may be in and whatever identity they may carry. Most people are inherently change resistant and most are taught by the industrial education systems to be competitive and step on others on their way to the top. In my professional experience, women have broken me harder than any man because of the trust I placed in them. I could have let it leave me bitter, but I chose to do the opposite and be someone who lifts as I climb.

Where do you see yourself ten years from now?
Living a full-life and enabling anyone that crosses my path to do the same, the best way I can. 
Share with us a secret no-one else knows.
I have five tattoos. 

How do you want to be remembered one day? 
As a woman who ran with the wolves.