Sri Lanka Telecom through its Internet service provider (ISP) SLTNet, the market leader in Internet services in Sri Lanka -has from its inception been a champion of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). With a mission to take the Internet to the masses, this ISP which has presently captured 75% of the local Internet market, has been keeping businesses in business despite turbulent market conditions.
 

SLTNet has introduced several state-of-the-art and affordable products for the SME sector including mail servers for Internet cafes, hosting of websites for on-line catalogues and corporate websites for entrepreneurs, high bandwidth lines for more affordable and convenient international telephony, webcam and data transfer, and  special corporate packages with a host of value additions.
 

Furthermore, SLTNet has also made other lucrative tools available to SME entrepreneurs such as multiple user dialup e-mail accounts, development of websites and back - up of a company’s valuable data into a high security Internet Data Centre (IDC) facility.
 

SLT officials stated that all these facilities will enable SLTNet’s SME customers to safeguard their company’s electronic track record and goodwill.
A recent addition to SLTNet’s high standards of customer service is the provision of on-site training for their corporate clientele, arming them with the requisite tools to effectively troubleshoot without waiting for outside assistance and thus saving valuable time whilst minimizing losses.

The travelling SME businessman has also not been forgotten. The organisation also has in the market an Internet Prepaid Card which offers recourse to the unsubscribed dial-up market – this allows the user to surf the Internet 24 hours a day with the comfort of flat rates per minute, without the hassles of application, activation and monthly billing. This facility has proved to be ideal for the traveling SME business man with the added advantage of allowing him to test the service before signing up for a permanent account.

SLT’s SME customer base also benefits from the company’s numerous points–of–presence (POPs) across the country, thus allowing subscribers to access the Internet for the cost of a local call at special discounted rates through a single number (150). SLT’s unmatched backbone bandwidth of 324 Mbps is also of the highest quality providing uninterrupted connectivity.

 

SLT first to introduce eProcurement System in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT), for the first time in Sri Lanka, launched a web based e-Procurement system facilitating complete automation of the processes enabling  ‘paperless’ transactions relating to Procurement of material and services. eTENDER facilitates online transparency and efficiency. This latest initiative is aimed at increasing transparency, reducing cost of doing business, reducing duplicity, bringing out more efficient purchasing process and increasing the ability to capture strategic information on procurement including purchasing patterns.
 

SLT’s eTENDER website provides suppliers with up-to-date information they need to provide quality goods at competitive bidding practices. The eTENDER initiative provides a vehicle to deliver more focused governance over the procurement system, thereby leading to improved quality of service. Implementation will also benefit both SLT and the suppliers.
 

SLT’s eTENDER system will increase the exposure in open tenders to the whole world and the system will enhance the competitive bidding practices adopted by SLT which at present have limited access by local suppliers for most of the goods. Furthermore, prospective tenderers can download the tender document free of charge within a few minutes after publishing in the website, thereby reducing the actual process to minutes. In global tenders, the tender document can be down loaded by the foreign principle within few minutes after notification.Restricted tenders can be down loaded using the username and password provided to each registered supplier.
 

However the manual system will continue and initially, suppliers have a choice between the manual system and electronic tendering system.
 

Another feature in the eTENDER is that it allows online bidding for small and standardized purchases where suppliers have to register for the facility by downloading the “master agreement” and submit the signed documents to Procurement division of SLT.
 

eTENDER can be accessed via http://www.slt.lk
 

eProcurement system is not limited to eTENDER but has all the other in-house components like Material requirement Planning, making Purchase request online, electronic LC, automated custom clearing (being implemented) and single point of contact. To facilitate the eProcurement system SLT implemented electronic Documentary management system (eDMS) where documents related to procurement are generated, distributed, authorized, approved and archived electronically
 

SLT understands that customers come in increasingly unique and differentiated segments. They want to be seen and approached as individuals with specific needs and SLT’s effective e-commerce provides them with a careful balance of ideas and marketing strategies and a thorough understanding of customer behaviours and motivations. With e-commerce facilities, SLT strives to cater more efficiently to its stakeholders and customers by providing value, service and performance.
 

Sri Lanka Telecom (www.slt.lk) is one of the country’s most vital utility companies with an annual turnover in excess of Rs.29.5 billion. The company has a customer base of 860,000 including multinational corporations, large and small corporates, retail and domestic customers. Today, with NTT of Japan as a strategic partner, SLT provides facilities and services to its customers, which are unmatched in scope. These services range from domestic and international voice, advance data transmission services which include internet services on leased lines, broadband [on ADSL] and dial up, data circuits, frame relay solutions, to IP based services such as IP-VPN, total solutions of combination of multiple services, satellite uplink services and mobile telephony through fully owned subsidiary Mobitel. The company was also awarded an AAA (sri) rating by a Fitch Ratings Lanka followed by a B+ international rating by Fitch International and Standard & Poor’s.