Dileep joins JKH Leisure to spearhead brand marketing

Top tourism industry professional Dileep Mudadeniya has joined John Keells Hotels as Vice President Brand Marketing.
He has been serving Sri Lanka Tourism both here as well as overseas and was responsible for many destination marketing campaigns.   

Dileep joined Sri Lanka Tourism in 1999 as the Director Marketing and was posted to the Sri Lanka Tourism Office in France as the Director France, Benelux, and Southern Europe.
On his return to Sri Lanka he was promoted as the Additional Director General, followed by an appointment as the first Managing Director of the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau.
Prior to joining JKH he was the Head of Standards, Quality Assurance, Investment, Legal, and Special Projects at SLTDA.
Development of a brand strategy for Sri Lanka Tourism, Hikka Beach Fest, IIFA 2010, first-ever international destination marketing campaign, revamping the Sri Lanka Tourism operation in France and Southern Europe, setting up the One Stop Unit, initiating the process for new guidelines for tourism services registration, as well as the development of investor guidelines were some of the key projects Dileep initiated.
Winning the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Gold Award for Best Marketing Communication Material in 2010 was another achievement under his leadership at the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau.
Commenting on this surprise move, Dileep said: “The JKH hotel sector has some ambitious plans. To be part of such a plan and an employee of a true corporate is an exciting challenge. Transferring the experiences gained locally and internationally in the public sector into a commercial platform and to be successful in building a local brand is something many professionals like to be involved in.”
Dileep is a graduate of the University of Colombo, Attorney-at-Law, Chartered and Fellow Marketer of Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) in the UK and has a Postgraduate Diploma and an MBA in marketing. He is also the founder of the recently set up Centre for Research and Sustainability Studies in Tourism (CRST) and the author of ‘Other Side of IIFA’.