Shantha Fernando

Questioner
DISC Type : c

Chief Marketing Officer at airtel

Sri Lanka

Overview

Shantha Fernando is a strategic marketing leader with over two decades of experience across the FMCG, technology, and telecommunications sectors. As Chief Marketing Officer at Airtel, he leverages expertise gained from senior roles at Samsung, The Coca-Cola Company, and Unilever. He holds an MBA from the University of Wales.

His career is distinguished by leading the marketing and business units for a series of major multinational corporations—Unilever, Coca-Cola, Samsung, and Airtel—specifically within the Sri Lankan market.

Personality Overview

Price-Sensitive

Systematic

Cautious & Analytical

They generally do not appreciate an overfriendly approach and prefer to stay to-the-point.  They prefer to fully evaluate every situation. While they don't hesitate to ask questions, they are generally risk-averse and tend to be late adopters.

Topics They Care About

Marketing Personalisation
Participated in a recent roundtable on how Sri Lankan brands are using data and technology to evolve towards real-time, personalised customer experiences.
Strategic Partnerships
Actively forges key collaborations, such as providing exclusive enterprise solutions to the Government Medical Officers’ Association and partnering with the Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing (SLIM).
Mobile Business Growth
Previously led the entire mobile business for Samsung in Sri Lanka and the Maldives, demonstrating deep expertise in the competitive mobile technology space.

Media Appearances

Shantha has no verified media appearances

Work History

6-2022
Chief Marketing Officer at airtel
3-2018 - 1-2021
General Manager - Head of Mobile Business at Samsung Electronics
3-2012 - 2-2018
Country Marketing Manager at The Coca-Cola Company
7-2011 - 2-2012
Category Brand Manager - House Hold Cleaning at Unilever
1-2009 - 7-2011
Brand Manager - Face Care at Unilever

Education

2006 - 2008
Master of Business Administration - MBA from University of Wales

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 16 Location : Sri Lanka Job Level : Leadership Designation : Chief Marketing Officer at airtel
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Insights For Selling To Shantha

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • If you have a lower priced product compared to the competition, call out the same
  • Emphasize on objective proof of ROI, help them do a thorough evaluation
  • Keep some extra margin in hand as they will likely negotiate the pricing

DONT's

  • Don’t try to be too friendly or informal with them
  • Avoid rushing them, be polite and patient
  • Don’t overhype the product/pitch, keep it measured

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Shantha is

  • Confidence that the product provides ROI, effective pricing and process adherence matter the most to them.

  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Shantha

  • It doesn’t come naturally to them but they can say no if they are not convinced.

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Shantha move?

  • They can move at a reasonable pace while making their decisions if they have the necessary information.

  • Can Shantha take some risk or not?

  • If they believe that they have analyzed the situation well, they can take a little risk.

You And Shantha

Personality Compatibility


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