Binuk Kodituwakku

Duke University, Fuqua School of Business

“I am ambitious in my career, family-oriented and I don’t take myself too seriously.”

Hometown: I am fortunate to have two hometowns – Tarala, Sri Lanka and Perth, Australia

Fun fact about yourself: I once was made into a funny Twitter meme after the 2019 Australian football draft.

Undergraduate School and Degree: University of Western Australia, Bachelor of Law (Honors) and Bachelor of Commerce (Distinction)

Where was the last place you worked before enrolling in business school? Adelaide Crows Football Club – Head of Analytics and Football Innovation

Where did you intern during the summer of 2023? 777 Partners, within the Football Analytics Group

Where will you be working after graduation? I am currently in discussions with a few different sporting organizations, trying to work out where I can make the most impact.

Community Work and Leadership Roles in Business School: Fuqua/Coach K Center on Leadership & Ethics (COLE) Fellow, Co-President of the Media, Entertainment and Sports Club, Section International Student Representative, Fuqua on Board Fellow and McGowan Foundation Scholarship Recipient

Which academic or extracurricular achievement are you most proud of during business school? I am most proud of being selected as a McGowan Foundation scholarship recipient. This scholarship is given to a person who is in the top 5% academically and also shows great community leadership. It is awarded to one person from one of ten business schools at the end of the first academic year. I am proud of this achievement because I was able to successfully manage my academic and extracurricular responsibilities, while also working full-time with the Duke University football team.

What achievement are you most proud of in your professional career? While in business school, I was hired by Duke University’s head football coach, Mike Elko, to be his Director of Recruiting Strategy. When Coach Elko left to become the coach of Texas A&M, I was really proud of the way I was able to assist in ensuring alignment between the football team, athletics department, and external stakeholders in the immediate aftermath, when there was an interim coach in place. I am also proud of the way that I helped the new head coach, Manny Diaz, and his staff acclimate to their new roles, providing them with the institutional knowledge they needed to hit the ground running.

Why did you choose this business school? I chose Fuqua and Duke University because of all the wonderful things I heard and experienced about the alumni network’s support of students. As an international student who wanted to pursue a non-traditional path, networking was going to be integral to my success in the United States, and that is why I prioritized a school with a great reputation for alumni support.

During the application process, I was able to meet alumni who not only told me about the great support I would receive but put it into action without me even having enrolled at Fuqua. A special mention must go out to Simon Moore-Crouch and Scott Lewis, who have been incredibly supportive. Since arriving at Fuqua, I have been blown away by the alumni support.

Who was your favorite MBA professor? John Heater. John taught core Accounting, and made a topic that is not the most vibrant extremely interesting. He is very personable and engaging in class. More than that, he genuinely cares how students perform. He went out of his way to organize extra review sessions to make sure students did not fall behind.

What was your favorite course as an MBA? Emerging Markets Strategy. This course has broadened my perspectives on the global economy, and I have learnt so much about different business practices that exist around the world. I have also learnt so much from my international classmates, as they shared their perspectives on their home countries. Their experiences added an extra dimension to what we were being taught. I think this class should become part of the core curriculum so that all business school students can gain a perspective on what it takes to succeed in different parts of the world.

What was your favorite MBA event or tradition at your business school? I really like the fact that Fuqua’s allocated day off for students is Wednesday, not Friday. The benefit is that many students stay in town on the weekend, allowing for deeper bonds to be built with classmates.

Many students at Fuqua don’t have any ties to the city of Durham. By being present on the weekends, students explore the various hiking trails, new restaurants and pickleball courts together, further reinforcing the sense of community.

Looking back over your MBA experience, what is the one thing you’d do differently and why? I would look to start building strong relationships with professors sooner than I did. Due to the intense nature of the first few months of the MBA program, I didn’t capitalize on the wonderful experience of our professors. It wasn’t until spring in my first year that I made a conscious effort to build relationships with professors. Some conversations I have had with professors have been truly perspective-altering, and I would have loved to have more early on in my MBA experience.

What is the biggest myth about your school? I think there is a myth that Fuqua only focuses on consulting recruiting. There are extremely thorough and clear pipelines for those who wish to enter consulting. Fuqua not only has similar paths for finance, brand management and tech but it also has dedicated resources for those entering custom searches and non-traditional industries. Fuqua does a great job leveraging the wider Duke community to assist students who are pursuing non-traditional paths.

What did you love most about your business school’s town? I love the growth of Durham and also the wider Research Triangle area. The startup ecosystem of the Research Triangle is booming, and there are always exciting new business and career opportunities. A lot of my classmates have said that they plan on moving back here after a few years. Additionally, there always seem to be new restaurants and cafes opening.

What surprised you the most about business school? I was genuinely surprised by the vast range of experiences that people had prior to coming to business school. I have been able to get to know people who have served in the special operations forces of the military, dedicated their lives to improving the conditions of those living in poverty in Africa, and started charities in India. The MBA experience was a truly global experience that has widened my horizons beyond expectations.

Which MBA classmate do you most admire? Connor Cook. Connor was part of my C-Lead, which is a small group assigned by Fuqua with whom I went through my core classes with. The more I got to know Connor, the more I have been impressed by him. Connor comes from serving in the United States military after a decorated career as a Division I lacrosse player at West Point.

Initially, I was very impressed with the way Connor could distill information and extract only the most relevant parts of any given text or speech. Connor was also extremely balanced in the way he dealt with team conflict. However, as I got to know Connor and the challenges he faced while at business school, I admired the way he pushed through them and kept a positive outlook on life.

What are the top two items on your professional bucket list? I plan on working on sport for the rest of my professional career, and as such, I would love to contribute to winning a championship. Secondly, I would love to create a charity in my home country of Sri Lanka.

What made Binuk such an invaluable addition to the Class of 2024?

“Binuk exemplifies what is possible through our experiential learning programs when personal passion intersects with initiative and ambition. Through our Mentored Study program, students can design a project with an external organization that aligns with their career goals. After determining that gaining exposure to the field of sports management from a global private equity investing perspective was the next step to help propel his learning journey, Binuk sourced a project with 777 Partners, a $10 billion private equity fund focused on sports, media and entertainment.

Through his project, Binuk participated in building out the broad strategy for their newly acquired Melbourne Victory soccer team. What sets Binuk apart is that he took this experience as a first-year student and parlayed it into leadership opportunities within our own Duke Athletics department. He has held influential roles within Duke Football and the Durham Devils Club to develop experiential learning programming that has enabled his classmates to engage in the rapidly evolving NIL space. Binuk brings a multiplier effect to the spaces where he operates that benefit organizations and others on his team.”

Ben Thomason
Managing Direction, Private Equity & Venture Capital – Duke I&E

DON’T MISS: MBAS TO WATCH: CLASS OF 2024