What it does: Lanka IOC is an energy company based in Sri Lanka that provides retail petrol products, diesel fuels, marine fuels, lubricants, bitumen and other petrochemicals to retail and industrial consumers.
Best known for: Lanka IOC is best known for being the only private oil company in Sri Lanka that operates retail gas and diesel stations.
Staff stats: 172 employees in Sri Lanka. Its parent company, IndianOil, employs 33,500 staff worldwide.
The good bits: A wide range of salaries and a positive, forward-thinking workplace environment.
The not so good bits: Though they provide free housing for certain positions, the facilities only offer the bare minimum. Also, opportunities within the company are often scarce, primarily due to the company’s smaller size (though there are more opportunities if you’re willing to change to their main company, IndianOil).
Hiring grads with degrees in: Finance, Accounting, Business, IT & Computer Sciences, Systems Development, Engineering, Architecture, Human Resources.
Lanka IOC is a young subsidiary of the IndianOil Corporation, the largest commercial oil company in the country. In 2003, IndianOil incorporated Lanka IOC to begin retail marketing of petroleum products and other bulk products to industrial consumers. Today, the company has grown to be the second-largest retail fuel and diesel distributor, as well as one of the largest listed companies in Sri Lanka.
Candidates begin the recruitment process by accessing the company’s career webpage. Most positions only require you to send in a CV to a senior staff member or HR representative. After that, all you have to do is wait for an interview call.
Similar to their parent company, IndianOil, fresh grads can expect a highly specialised interview with Lanka IOC. Almost all questions will be directly related to the position in which you’re applying. For example, if you’re applying for a chemical engineering position, expect several difficult and pointed questions such as, ‘what happens if the discharge end of a centrifugal pump is closed?’ Nearly every other job has a similar interview process—the majority of your questions will test your working knowledge of your major.
Lanka IOC itself is quite small, with limited job openings and opportunities. However, since it’s a subsidiary of IndianOil, the possible career prospects are quite broad if you're willing to leave Lanka IOC. Combined with the parent company, career opportunities span from finance and customer service to engineering and R&D.
Lanka IOC offers competitive benefits, compensation, and bonuses. Salary ranges are wider than the usual standard, which means you can make more money without changing positions. For certain positions, such as engineering, they also offer free housing facilities (though they’re reportedly sub-standard quality).
The remuneration at Lanka IOC is perhaps their most valuable asset, with wide salary ranges. An operations officer can expect an average annual salary of Rs 1.2m (USD 17,800). Engineers can expect a salary range of Rs 1.3m up to 2m (USD 18,000 to 28,000) annually. Most positions also come with cash bonuses based on performance. For engineering grads, you can expect an average of Rs 380,000 (USD 5,368) per year in bonuses.
Every company claims they have a friendly and fun environment to work in; it’s not good business to say otherwise. But these claims made by Lanka IOC are backed up by numerous past and present employees. The culture exhibits a combination of optimism, forward-thinking (embracing technology for the future), pride in the work being done, and friendly cooperation. There is very little competitiveness within the company culture, possibly due to a lack of opportunities or simply because of the wide salary ranges.
Aside from making money, Lanka IOC's secondary mission is to use their resources and technology to not only make their fuels more efficient and less harmful to the environment but also to support sustainability efforts. Despite being a member of the oil and gas industry—which is a significant source of pollutants around the world—they do try to offset the damage to the environment.
For example, Lanka IOC, in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, has run a tree-planting campaign in Sri Lanka for many years. This campaign, known as ‘Clean Air Everywhere,’ gives ownership of each tree to individual school students, particularly those who come from low-income families. The company provides a monthly stipend the students can use to care for the tree for three years.
Reportedly, Lanka IOC is one of the most caring and well-paying companies to work for in Sri Lanka. Despite being a part of the oil and gas industry, an industry notorious for overworking their employees, Lanka IOC pulls off an adequate work/life balance for its employees. However, opportunities within the walls of Lanka IOC are scarce, and remote facilities, while free, often only have the bare minimum needed to get by. The general vibe of the place? A positive workplace environment with friendly and passionate people, but with little opportunity for advancement without moving to their parent company.