I came to know “Boss” way back in 1976, when he interviewed me for a job at Aitken Spence. I left the room overawed by his charm and personality. I said to myself: “Never have I ever seen or spoken to someone so exceptional”.
I joined Aitken Spence shortly after, and thus began a journey in which I would learn and grow under a master of a rare class. Tourism was in its infancy, but growing dramatically. I was one of the first to join his dream team (as we liked to imagine it!), a team that had the likes of Chandra, Manil, Mahinda and UC.
Mr. Sivaratnam was the perfect person for this people-related industry. He had all the qualities of a great leader, someone who could spur his team to unimaginable heights. He had charm and magnetism, and probably no one could match him. He was a colossus in our world. He took tourism at Aitken Spence to dizzy heights in a space of just four years, in the late ’70s. Everyone in the industry watched with awe as he rode to fame.
His greatest achievement during this time was securing TUI AG (Touristik Union International), Europe’s biggest tour operator, as an agent for us. What a coup that was! By 1980, Aitken Spence was an unchallenged leader in tourism, and we all owe it to the dynamic leadership and charisma of Siva, as he was popularly known.
What was great in this man was his unique quality of giving. He gave a lot to others. He was selfless by nature. At the same time, he was extremely sharp when it came to business. It was a treat to see how he outdid rivals of the highest calibre in business negotiations. He was razor sharp in cutting through and getting ahead of the competition, but always in his inimitable style. The greatness of this man lay in the way he balanced his success with his humility.
He was one of the first to introduce the great destination of the Maldives to tour operators around the world. The Maldivian community should be ever grateful for the tremendous service he rendered them.
My desire to venture out further afield for the sake of my career meant that I had to leave him, back in 1980. But even then he was gracious, advising me and warning me of the pitfalls I might encounter in my adventurous pursuit of greener pastures. He was not far wrong.
I kept in touch with this great human being, as I increasingly felt the absence and guidance of a great leader. Fortune favoured me when I came under his wing once again, in 1984, this time to head the hotel sector. It was a daunting challenge to survive at a time when tourism was looking right down the barrel. During this period, “Boss” took full control of the ship that was encountering bad weather at every turn. He steered us through troubled waters, and by the 1990s once again gave leadership to the industry by boldly venturing with the architect Geoffrey Bawa to build Kandalama Hotel, which took the world of sustainable tourism by storm. This was his dream project. The great hotel experience that is Kandalama is probably unmatched even in this part of the world.
He spurred me to go to the Maldives in 1990. Those in the industry know that the Maldives was probably Aitken Spence’s best ever investment in its long history of more than 140 years.
“Boss” could be compared to a good wine – the more it mellows, the better it gets. One success followed another. In the twilight of his career, Mr. Sivaratnam pursued an initiative to introduce “power generation” to Aitken Spence. This was a new sector altogether for those in the private sector.
The financial supremacy of Aitken Spence today is without doubt the result of the Maldives and power generation ventures. Full credit to you, “Boss”.Probably only my colleague Trevin and I knew about the many sleepless nights you spent to overcome so many hurdles. I was truly amazed at your patience, coupled with your killer instinct to achieve the impossible. Only you could have done it, “Boss”, and you did it without fear or favour to any one – a lesson for today’s leaders.Mr. Sivaratnam was much more than a man to me, and he made me what I am today. This applies in equal measure to several others who came under his caring leadership. There is one distinct quality that separates him from all others: “He is there for you when the chips are down”. He will never ever let you down. That was the man he was.
Today’s leadership has so much to learn from people like “Boss”, and I do hope they learn. There was his great friend, Mr. Ken Balendra, a corporate visionary. They both battled fearlessly as competitors, but had the good sense to sip a beer every Sunday and share good and bad times. This is the kind of lesson we rarely see in the business world today.
I could write so much more, “Boss”!
I say goodbye to a man who deserves the highest in God’s Kingdom. God Bless you “Boss”. You are truly immortal to many of us.
Prema Cooray | 
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