Jack Hill may not have foreseen the massive revolution telecommuting would create in the global work scene when he postulated a flexible working structure for workers who reside in distant locations in his book “Telecommunications-Transportation Trade-off”.

Today, remote work has become a fast-growing trend in the tech ecosystem with more start-ups using remote teams as opposed to resident staff, proving that remote work works.

Despite the difficulties in setting up such structures, remote work has proven that its benefits far supersedes the cost with visible evidence of increased productivity, progressive workforce, employee satisfaction, reduced cost of business operations and geographical impact.

This new wave seems to be thriving more in Southeast Asian than other parts of the world. 

Southeast Asia prides itself as the hub for telecommuters and digital nomads with countries such as Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam taking the lead. 

Over the years, these regions have emerged as the most popular pools for remote workers which have proven to be beneficial to the growth and expansion of local start-ups. This does not come as a surprise as these digital hotspots boast of a fast-paced tech scene, flexible organisational structures, efficient networking systems and an extensive pool of young talents.

Here are some reasons remote work has become increasingly popular recently in Southeast Asia.

Thriving tech and startup Ecosystem

Southeast Asia has made great strides in technology and digital innovation development. Regions like Singapore and Malaysia appear to be taking the lead in this highly competitive entrepreneurial scene.

Singapore ranks second in the list of countries whose market scene promotes ease of doing business, with Malaysia trailing behind in 13th place. These regions boast of an internet economy of over US$100 billion. Local start-ups are pulling their strings to become major disruptors in the global market.

This has attracted more financial investment and partnership with Chinese tech giants like Alibaba, Tencent, Softbank, and other US based companies which accounts for 25 per cent capital infusion in these regions.

This rapidly growing economy creates more opportunities for remote workers due to the need for increased human capital to foster innovative and entrepreneurial activities. With better infrastructure, resources, internet connectivity and training, it becomes easy to build formidable remote teams for effective growth and scalability of local businesses.

Access to a wide pool of creatives

Southeast Asia is not regarded as the home to talents of the future for nothing. Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia were listed among countries actively investing in the younger generation to build the tech scene. 

Its talent pool of young tech-savvy individuals accounts for over 50 per cent of its massive population of 660 million people and is said to grow by 10 percent each year. This implies more influx of young talents into the workforce which includes indigenously trained talents, remote workers, digital nomads, and students studying abroad categorised as the sea turtles who return to their home country to launch their career. 

With more start-ups springing up in this booming economy, it creates a conducive system, flexible work schedule and collaborative work structure to nurture these budding talents. This is geared towards building a well organised and tech-savvy network.

Exotic travel destinations

It’s no secret that Southeast Asia is the most beautiful place one would love to visit and live in. From the aesthetic cities, scenic beaches, cool weather, historic sights, mountains, and delicious cuisines; employees and digital nomads are often spoilt for choice. 

Cities like Thailand and Singapore offer urban scenery with a well structured public transportation system, free WiFi spots, and cafes. The bustling digital communities are filled with excellent co-working spaces that offer fast internet connectivity and lots of networking opportunities for remote workers and local entrepreneurs working from home.  

The pleasant ambiance creates a relaxed atmosphere for working remotely with a network of highly skilled professionals. Foreigners are constantly visiting and settling in these cities to have a taste of the exquisite lifestyle while living on remote or part-time work.

Low living costs

Finally, the cost of living in Southeast Asia is relatively low compared to other countries in the world like the United States, Europe, and Australia. 

One can afford decent accommodation, food, and a comfortable lifestyle while working remotely. The expenditure of a typical remote worker or digital nomad in regions like Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam in a month runs into an average of US$1,000.

Also read: The future of remote work is happening now, here’s how to make it work for you

However, consumables in Singapore appear to be slightly less affordable than in other cities. 

Due to the reduced cost of living, local start-ups and businesses can easily set-up their offices and hire remote workers which requires a quarter or less of what it costs to pay a full-time qualified staff. These remote teams reduce expenses incurred on office overhead as workers won’t have to commute and work from the office daily.

This also creates room for other organisational expansion and investments which can be accessed at cheaper rates.

Conclusively, remote work is the future for startups. This trend of working with remote teams will possibly grow and spread to other global markets as more start-ups and businesses are keying into the new ecosystem.

As it appears, Southeast Asian will be at the centre of this disruption with an increased influx of young tech-savvy talents into their workforce as remote staff.

With their impressive tech scene, an extensive pool of creatives and reduced cost of living, there are more potentials for innovative growth and development.

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Recently, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the major outbreak of a novel coronavirus (better known as Wuhan virus) as a global emergency. This pandemic has caused China to issue lockdown on cities to contain the situation.

More than 46 million people are isolated, with flights suspended to and from China. In addition, businesses are not resuming operations even after Lunar New Year.  This threat has already become disruptive to China and increasingly to the rest of the world. China is dismal and has spiral chain reactions onto various industries, affecting other countries in one way or another.

This critical situation can relate to the SARS incident between 2002 and 2003. During that period, the outbreak had caused a serious global economic loss of US$40 billion and slowed the world GDP growth.

Thus, it is estimated that the impacts caused by this newly identified virus will be unlikely negligible.

The virus originated from Wuhan, China. Being the hub of transport and industry for central China, sealing off Wuhan by restricting its transport links will have a great influence on the economy outside the city.

Many large enterprises such as Microsoft, General Motors and Groupe PSA have a presence in the city. Extended shutdowns in factories will hit the manufacturing sector hard since Wuhan holds the significance for its booming auto industry and as a major logistics centre.

Also Read: Today’s top tech news: China-based tech manufacturers restart work amidst coronavirus outbreak

The halting of transport services including trains, buses, and planes means that goods cannot reach their intended destinations as planned, and it is unclear how long the transport suspensions will last.

Current and potential impacts on economies

China and the rest of the globe are experiencing a slowdown in their economies, specifically in tourism. Ever since the outbreak, various countries such as Singapore and Indonesia have started denying entry for visitors from China to their countries.

Such measures can be effective in containing the spread of the virus. However, at least 160 million Chinese tourists account for 30 per cent of the travel retail sales worldwide in 2018.

This resulted in many countries reducing the GDP forecasts for 2020 as travel restrictions have been imposed hard on mainland Chinese, leading to the loss of revenue generated through tourism – hospitality retails and aviation.

The economic impact can be keenly felt across Southeast Asia, where China is not only a major trading partner but a vital source of revenue from tourism.

One of the notable examples will be Thailand. Tourism is one of the most significant sectors driving the economy of Thailand, which has been creating lucrative income all this while. One of the top nationalities visiting Thailand will be the mainland Chinese, which constituted about more than a quarter in 2018.

Also Read: Hope in despair: Will the c-virus scare slow down investment in China?

With the Wuhan virus spreading around and travel restrictions been enforced onto the mainland Chinese, Thailand expects to lose approximately US$2.6 to US$3.2 billion in income, cutting the economic growth by 0.5 to 0.7 percentage points.

The economic outlook can be quite gloomy as issues such as political upheaval, poor productivity and hefty household debt have been hovering in Thailand for some time, even before the outbreak of the deadly virus. With the current situation aggravating, Thailand maybe stumbled into recession soon.

Another country that is experiencing similarly will be Singapore. In 2019, at least 3.3 million visitors are from China. Their spending on attractions, dining and luxury goods contributes largely to the tourism receipts.

With the travel restrictions set, Singapore expects a drastic drop in the number of tourists and businesses pertinent to airlines, hotels, restaurants and transport providers will be adversely affected. Singapore government has intervened in implementing measures to address the economic slowdown.

Such measures aim to meet the firms’ short-term cash flow needs and provide support for the workers. The government has also offered financial help to self-employed people SG$100 (approximately US$72) for each day they are quarantined. Such allowance was also issued during SARS outbreak.

Capital markets

The stock market has been relatively stable in recent months, but investors are seriously spooked by the spreading Wuhan coronavirus epidemic.

Also Read: Today’s top tech news: OYO cuts jobs in the US, Facebook fights coronavirus misinformation

Panic is growing, and adverse economic implications are increasing as the number of confirmed cases in China and abroad continues to escalate. There is a certain degree of uncertainty to which the pandemic will spread and intensify. Markets usually react negatively to the increases in uncertainty.

As a result, many countries in Asia experienced a plunge in their stock markets. Many investors are waiting for more clarity on how disruptive and severe this outbreak can turn out. Such a rise in uncertainty has investors moving away from risky equities and towards safer investments such as gold, which rises in price during this fearful period.

With the suspension of Disney Theme Park, Nike factory and even casinos, it is apparent that their share prices are dropping. Such a period can be deemed as an opportune window for investors to invest such stocks or of similar nature of activities.

However, as the predicament is still developing, the coronavirus might not reach the peak. It is notable that investors should exercise extra care when investing in stocks as the current volatility is higher.

On the contrary, with the widespread of coronavirus, healthcare and e-commerce stocks have soared. People are afraid of travelling and naturally will shop or order food online. Many medical companies are also, at this juncture, trying to provide solutions to tackle this challenge.

China commodity markets also slumbered, attributed to the increasing fears that the spread of the coronavirus can diminish the demand for copper and oil.

Also Read: Today’s top tech news: Multiple Chinese tech firms rallies to donate the fight against coronavirus

Workers are not able to work due to the extension of shutdown in many provinces and cities of China, reducing the operating rates. Futures related to copper has also dropped its lowest since October 2019.

In general, with the exceptions of healthcare and e-commerce, majority of the shares suffered the same plight – a sharp decline in prices. It is an opportunity for investors to consider adjusting their portfolios as the situation may persist for the next three to six months.

What are the things to look out for

During this perilous time, businesses and investors can look into investments instead of reserving cash flow to tide through. Particularly in the capital market, where paranoia is spreading fast with trade volumes and prices dropping drastically, one should consider entering to look for stocks that are undermined in the intrinsic value.

Companies should also find innovative ways to increase efficiency and enhance the ability to survive the crisis. One of the solutions is to maintain R&D investment during tough periods.

The conventional way will be reserving cash and reducing any costs. However, the markets are ever-changing and faster than before. It is always important for companies to continue their R&D so as to create new technology or products for the future.

In addition, communication and collaboration with the stakeholders are vital in the companies’ processes.  Those enterprises that continue investing in stakeholder relations are likely in a better position to understand the changing conditions inherent to an economic downturn.

Also Read: Hope in despair: Will the c-virus scare slow down investment in China?

They can identify concerns and opportunities, and adapt to the shifting needs, demands, and expectations of suppliers, consumers, and other relevant stakeholders, compared to companies that curtail such investments.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) can help companies to differentiate themselves from their competitors. The companies are capable to recover faster from unfavourable situations.

They usually strengthen connections with the local communities, improve labour productivity, enhance consumer loyalty, improve access to government procurement contracts and lower capital constraints. These elements are extremely important during the downturn as they can improve the resilience and help companies in maintaining or even enhancing their competitiveness.

When the economy sours with businesses slowing down, companies must be especially judicious when considering expense cuts that can materially impact customer experience quality. Such actions might yield short-term gains, but they also introduce serious long-term risks.  The quality of customer experience can influence its ability to successfully navigate a downturn.

Companies and investors should not overreact to the market sentiments as the event is still developing. The coronavirus and the impacts brought by it, similar to SARS, may be short-lived. It is necessary for the parties to consider the cost-benefit of any investments and exercise prudence during this depressing term.

Outlook and conclusion

This pandemic would be of a “black swan”. It is sudden and unplanned, unlike the course of the financial crisis in 2008. Based on the similar natural disasters and pandemic experiences in the past, the economic impact of the virus will be most likely to be temporary, with the effects felt most in transport, tourism and retail sales.

Also read: Why China should be the next market for your startup or scaleup

While there is usually a rebound in economic activities after a successful containment of a health crisis, the current one has not reached that point yet.

It is still premature to determine how serious this coronavirus can lead to despite the fears and negative sentiments in the markets. However, as compared to SARS, the magnitude of losses will be greater. This is partly because China has liberated the market in recent years, increasing the trades between China and the rest of the world tremendously.

As such, it will amplify the ripple effects, three to four times the global cost incurred during the SARS period.

The trade war between USA and China, even before the pandemic, has already caused disruptions in the markets and are still ongoing. This virus outbreak has only paused the tensions for the time being.

Wrecking damages to the economies have been done, with transportation and freight being hit the hardest. This virulent situation is just an add-on to the precedence.

The economic outlook can be murky as the Wuhan virus impaired China’s ability to meet the purchase target as agreed in the trade deal with the USA earlier in January 2019.

Also Read: Circles.Life raises funding round by Warburg Pincus, reportedly closer to unicorn status

Extended holidays for the businesses can further damage the trade economy, spilling negative effects over the countries that have been relying on China as an essential source of income.

However, it is too early to conclude the verdict of trade tensions as the two countries are still in negotiation for the next phases.

As for the capital markets, it will be prudent to invest in safe-haven assets such as gold and bonds in times of health crisis. The stock markets can be lucrative when one enters precisely and only be looking for short-term gains.

The current situation has worsened the markets, making them volatile and sceptical. With the plunges of tourism stocks and the appreciation of healthcare shares, it is opportunistic for investors to adopt different strategies to earn – common ones are contrarian and momentum investing.

Business owners can also make use of this period to identify and acquire potential businesses. As the economies are taking hits, many companies may not be able to survive through this ordeal. Recessions can occur imminently, depending on the severity and disruptiveness of the novel coronavirus.

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Asia has more space to heath tech startups than anywhere else. The region’s economies have gained spectacular development, enclosed with higher spending on the healthcare sector among Asians’ pockets.

According to OECD’s report, Southeast Asia (SEA) has seen an extreme expansion of healthcare expenditure. Except for Singapore, SEA nations are predicted to spend more than 70 per cent of the budget on healthcare system compared to the statistic from 2017.

In the next five years, ASEAN 6 countries, including Vietnam, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Indonesia, expectedly raise their expenditure to roundly US$750 billion. Furthermore, the value of the medical tech industry will surpass US$130 billion in 2020.

It means that digital health and medicine will remain a hot topic in the next decade. In which, Electronic Health Records (EHR) are reported to grow by approximately five per cent per year. This prediction comes up with the idea of “beyond hospital to community”, which is claimed to be the future of the health industry. In this kingdom, digital hospitals will be the king.

In the dawn of a new decade, we expect remarkable change in the healthcare sector, including novel projects, investment flow, IPO, cybersecurity, and M&A.

E-commerce giants join the digital health market

Undoubtedly, e-commerce firms could gain confidence in the race of health tech innovation. They own enormous customer data and purchasing behaviour, which is valuable in building customer relationships for their next project.

Also Read: This startup wants to bridge the “missing link” in Indonesian health tech scene

In 2019, Amazon revealed a minor part of its Amazon Care plan, a virtual care platform.

In pursuing its project, Amazon acquired a digital diagnostics platform Health Naviator and integrated it with JP Morgan insurance. Amazon Care will predictably be launched as an Amazon Prime service at the end of 2020, serving over 105 million current subscribers of this brand.

Asia currently holds powerful advantages in the forms of high population and rapid growth in the e-commerce industry. With a similar scenario, Asian e-commerce giants could create another version of Amazon serving in Asia.

Typically, Alibaba and Lazada have a high incentive to invest in telehealth. Additionally, after the coronavirus crisis in Wuhan, China might upgrade their healthcare strategies to be in favour of private sector investments.

Digital health startups to mature in 2020

As mentioned above, 2020 is the game of incumbents. Several digital therapeutics startups might feel confident with their financial ability, while others might get into a joint venture with tech giants.

As a successful Singapore startup, DoctorAnywhere readies itself to expand to Vietnam. It integrated with ViettelPay, a big Vietnamese payment platform, to set up the first virtual clinics in Vietnam.

Also Read: Doctor Anywhere raises US$4.1M to offer patients easy access to healthcare providers through video consultations

China’s Ping An Good Doctors collaborated with tech unicorn Grab to deliver their internet hospital in Singapore. As a result, a higher barrier in the health tech sector has been built to deter new entrants.

This situation also encountered in the US, where well-funded digital therapeutics providers got enough cash to sustain. Livongo added a series of small companies to its partner networks. Omada announced an expansion plan that provides treatment for more diseases, instead of just diabetes.

At the end of 2019, several medical incumbents return to the race. That time, the world saw a decreasing trend in investor appetite globally. The measured indicated both funding and deals experienced an extreme drop by roundly 40 per cent.

Digital health providers keen on staying private –instead of going public

We have no optimistic view of the IPO situation of private health tech firms in 2020. Although Asia Pacific dominated the global IPO volume last year, we have evidence to believe that IPO activity will slow down shortly. This perspective mainly due to the economic instability in Asia at the beginning of 2020.

IMF has cut down its growth forecast for the majority of Asian countries. Particularly, Singapore’s expected growth rate dropped from 2.4 per cent to one per cent. The forecasted growth rate for China would be 5.8 per cent instead of 6.1 per cent.

Reasons came from the political crisis between China and the US; or China and Hong Kong. The current situation would lead to a significant decrease in foreign investment in this area. In fact, the IPO activities in the Asia Pacific fell by 12 per cent in volume and 27 per cent of the process in 2019, in comparison with that in 2018.

Also Read: Singapore Health Tech launches VentureCraft to bridge China

IPO reports for Asia proposed the downtrend in the IPOs market from several nations, including Greater China, Japan, and Australia. The same situation had happened in SEA 2019, where both IPO deals and fundraising decreased by eight per cent and 55 per cent, respectively.

With the economic slumps predicted to continue in 2020, several health companies have the incentive to keep its business in private.

Cybersecurity risks in healthcare

In fact, 2019 was seen many serious cyberattacks targeting healthcare firms. A data breach resulted in exposing health data of over 32 million people. Additionally, those attacks were worsened by the increasing trend of scales, frequencies, and money loss.

Over 14,000 Singapore citizens’ medical data from HIV Registry has leaked to the internet. Australian authorities announced the risk of roughly 100 breaches detected from January to June 2019.

Healthcare leaders have more concern in ransomware attacks than any other threat. The risk for ransomware in Asia reported being 40 per cent higher than the global average.

Also read: Hope in despair: Will the c-virus scare slow down investment in China?

Vietnam, Indonesia, and India remain with the highest encounter rates. In 2020, there will predictably be more hospital shutdowns with larger volumes and more disruptive because of ransomware.

In fact, governments and authorities would invest a high effort in dealing with cyberattacks. Government funds expectedly address unchecked cybercriminals. Alternatively, they should enforce cybersecurity protocols supporting hospitals.

M&A could be efficient strategies for health tech firms in 2020

M&A activities in the Asia Pacific will expectedly follow the global increase trends in 2020. Instead of IPO, telehealth startups tend to choose M&A and joint ventures in terms of optimising financial and operational performances.

Following the US, Asia would become the largest regional location for medtech growth, predictably rise by 35 per cent in 2023. Additionally, M&A across the continent might increase, since 61 deals have been made by Asian buyers and firms in the EU and US.

Regarding electronic health record (EHR), Google plans to develop a project for potential EHR tools. The power of Google is indisputable, causing current EHR firms in the market to pursue M&A plans in beating the potential domination of tech giants in the market.

A combination of the factors above makes the scene for healthcare startups in Asia in 2020 quite exciting.

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Kevin Osmond, CEO of Printerous

Finance

On-demand digital printing platform Printerous raises Series A Funding to support national expansion

Printerous​, Indonesian online printing and packaging platform announced that it has raised an undisclosed amount of Series A funding led by ​BAce Capital​, ​AddVentures​, ​GDP Venture​, and ​Gobi Agung​. Existing investor ​Sovereign’s Capital also joined in this round.

The company said it will use the funding to deploy its technology infrastructure and expand its presence to 30 cities in Indonesia. It also plans to further grow the business in a sustainable way.

“Micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Indonesia face difficulties in designing, ordering, as well as distributing the prints and packaging supplies. Printerous’ way of aggregating printing & logistic service providers help solve those problems by making the entire process more cost-efficient, convenient, and transparent for MSMEs,” said Kevin Osmond, Founder and CEO Printerous.

Printerous currently partners with more than 250 printing and logistic service providers and claims to have been used by more than 35,000 businesses.

Business

Vietnam cancels plans to cap foreign e-payment firms, stating risky effects on the activities

Vietnam, who has seen foreign ownership exceeding 49 per cent in some digital payment firms, announced that its central bank has put a stop to its plan to limit foreign ownership of such.

According to VNExpress‘ article, it initially released a draft of its foreign ownership cap proposal in November for consultation, seeking to “balance the ease of attracting foreign capital with ensuring an active role for local firms in the fintech sector”.

According to the consulted experts, a change in regulations could affect the activities of some digital payment firms.

Also Read: Cash is still king in Vietnam, but two fintech firms look to bring a drastic change

The central bank said that by the end of the first quarter this year, there were 27 e-wallets in the market through five parent companies owned 90 per cent of them. The five, which the State Bank of Vietnam did not name, have foreign ownership of 30-90 per cent.

Growing middle class and the rapid improvement of telecom infrastructure have both contributed to Vietnam becoming the breeding ground of cashless payment. The government has expressed the plan to make 90 per cent of all transactions cashless by the end of this year, despite heavy reliance on cash, which still accounts for 80 per cent of Vietnamese.

Edutech accelerator EduSpaze introduces first cohort of startups, kicking off a 100-day programme

EduSpaze, a Singapore-based edutech accelerator, has announced its inaugural cohort of startups of nine early-stage edutech companies from Malaysia, Singapore, and Australia. All companies cover the categories of Pre-K, K-12, higher education, and corporate learning.

They are:

• Makers Empire, Australia. It is an Australian edutech company helping K-8 educators harness the power of 3D design and 3D printing technology to teach STEM, Design Thinking, and Project-Based Learning skills.
• FutureLab, Malaysia. It is a corporate learning platform that provides a SaaS mentorship platform that allows universities, companies, and accelerators to manage, track and scale their mentoring programmes.
• Vere360, Singapore. It is an edutech startup that utilises the immersive capabilities of Virtual Reality (VR) to increase access to quality education in the Southeast Asian region.
• HARDSKILLS, Singapore. It is an online learning platform and framework for enterprises to train and coach teams in the hard-to-teach behavioural skills such as critical thinking, and influence.

Also Read: Just launched: Edtech accelerator by Spaze Ventures to focus on customised grooming for startups

• Practicle, Singapore. The company uses data analytics and AI to augment teachers’ skills by automating personalised formative assessment for mathematics subject, to help students practice effectively and improve faster.
• Yumcha Studios, Singapore. It is a content and education technology company that helps children learn fearlessly through lovable characters and stories and a unique translingual learning system that bridges home languages and target languages.
• Flying Cape, Singapore. It is an edutech company that seeks to shape the future of education through a Global Distribution System built specifically for the industry.
• ACKTEC Technologie, Singapore. It is a pioneer in the development of digital interactive content that uses AR, VR, and 3D animation to deliver immersive and authentic learning experiences for corporate and training institutions.
• ArcLab, Singapore, Corporate Learning. It is a mobile learning L&D SaaS platform – empowering organisations to deliver training efficiently to workers directly on their mobile phones with no app to download and no fuss.

All participating companies will present their solutions at a demo day in Singapore on May 20.

EduSpaze is managed by seed capital firm and startup incubator, Spaze Ventures and supported by Enterprise Singapore, the enterprise development agency.

EduSpaze aims to nurture a vibrant edutech startup ecosystem that serves the education sector in Singapore and Southeast Asia by supporting early-stage edutech companies with up to S$500,000 (US$360,000) funding, providing a unique and custom accelerator programme, mentor support and a live sandbox environment in the region for proof-of-concept implementations.

AstraZeneca-Singapore establishes three strategic partnerships to improve digital health innovation

The founding partner of AI Innovation of Sweden,  AstraZeneca, announced today that it is entering into strategic partnerships with three healthcare innovators and organisations in Singapore, using artificial intelligence (AI), big data and genomics to step up the development of life-changing biomedical science.

AstraZeneca signed partnerships with homegrown AI startups eko.ai, the SingHealth Duke-NUS Academic Medical Centre (AMC) and the Agency for Science, Technology, and Research (A*STAR).

Also Read: Sequoia India, EDBI co-lead US$4M funding in eko.ai

The partnership aims to build on government initiatives such as the National AI Strategy and the Healthcare Industry Transformation Map. It also aims to speed up the deployment of digital healthcare technology to identify risk factors for disease prevention, enable earlier diagnosis, and to improve the treatment and management of chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. It plans to accelerate scientific talent and skills development, and advance Singapore’s position as a global hub for health science innovation.

With eko.ai, AstraZeneca will work to accelerate the development and deployment of AI-technology that speeds up the diagnosis of heart disease.

With A*STAR, AstraZeneca will work to advance Singapore’s research capabilities in genomics and precision medicine. It aims to achieve that by combining AstraZeneca’s bioinformatics and genomics expertise with Asia’s largest genetic databank, spearheaded by the A*STAR Genome Institute of Singapore.

With the SingHealth Duke-NUS AMC, AstraZeneca will be exploring collaboration on the acceleration of open innovation, real-world evidence generation, and development of new health technologies to enhance patient-centric care and improve care outcomes.

Through these strategic partnerships, AstraZeneca will specifically have its research expertise in Sweden, the UK and the US built in Singapore. AstraZeneca will also be providing opportunities for local and overseas training on genetic counselling through their partnership with A*STAR.

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Image Credit: Printerous

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How integrated software solutions such as Odoo are integral to every successful business model

Doing business in the digital world today does not just require business acumen and willpower. The current business environment depends heavily on integrated systems to keep operations ticking over without a hitch. Gone are the days when each department had to use multiple software systems — software integration has helped make business operations seamless and accessible to anyone in the company.

However, integration is not all there is to it. Uncomplicated user experience is essential to giving companies the ability to navigate and maximise an integrated software system’s full resources. It is especially important when it comes to accessing data — a high-quality UX interface gives better visibility into overall data repositories, resulting in faster and more accurate decision-making.

User-friendly interfaces that are intuitive to the business user’s needs and don’t demand too much time to learn how they work are in high demand. The better a user interface design is, the more comfortable users will be when faced with a new feature or functionality, and the more confident they are when going about their day-to-day tasks.

Who is Odoo and what do they do?

Enter Odoo, a Belgium-based software company that is the most installed business software in the world. Odoo is offering new and improved user interface and new applications with its most recent annual upgrade. The company’s all-in-one business solution is comprised of uncomplicated applications that are integrated, customisable, and easy-to-use to help companies run smoothly.

Every single Odoo app is developed for a specific purpose — whether it’s CRM, Sales, Accounting, and beyond — and to make accountability easier, information created in each app can be easily accessed in other apps. For example, an invoice created in the Sales app can be found in the Accounting app and can be validated once a customer has paid. This reduces human error, which sometimes results in oversight or confusion, and saves the company precious time, money, and resources.

Having a streamlined system such as Odoo also improves communication among staff from different departments. Companies can do away with bygone methods of having to call multiple people to check if an action has been followed through or accounts add up simply by having a system that provides clarity and up-to-date information that can be accessed by everyone. This is especially important when it comes to Accounting, and Odoo’s thought of that too.

When it comes to keeping track of accounts in multiple branches and global locations, Odoo has a specialised Accounting function to ensure companies stay on top of things. It synchronises with banks, manages bills and expenses so departments know exactly what transactions are due, manages invoices and recurring bills, tracks payments, and synchronises every transaction with stocks to keep valuations up to date. Odoo also converts currencies and tax automatically to meet various needs, making sure companies are well-prepared for anything.

On top of accounting, digitalisation in these industries is in high demand. In marketing, for example, it is imperative that one’s platform targets the right audience through audience segmentation, and through the right channels. Going digital in marketing entails various benefits such as mass mail, push notifications, and social media marketing, among many others.

Odoo serves as a one-stop application suite for brand-building and marketing, from providing managers with live reports and insights to handling social media pages. New Social Marketing and SMS Marketing apps allow businesses to analyse their reach and traffic and find out if different methods are worth the expenditure.

On the other hand, digitalisation proves to be useful in field service as well. Odoo’s Field Service Management is a system of coordinating field service operations. It manages dispatch, tool assignment, customer information and more. This allows businesses to synchronise its field operations seamlessly and reduces the propensity for error often derived in fragmented systems that do not streamline functions under one umbrella.

Odoo 13 and what’s in store for users everywhere

In this year’s annual upgrade, dubbed ‘Odoo 13’, Odoo has introduced a focus on the well-being of employees, as well as 9 new apps and an upgrade of existing features that provides a friendlier interface. Odoo’s priority is creating beautiful, user-friendly software that is a pleasure to use, and aims to provide amazing software on par with the apps people use in their everyday life. So Odoo 13 lets staff focus on the things that really matter: doing their job well and spending time with customers.

Armed with a sharp understanding that enterprises, especially SMEs in Asia, need high standard operating procedures and user experiences, Odoo 13 provides companies with the freedom and flexibility to customise systems to fit into local operation styles and restrictions and generates reports with plenty of quantitative analysis to give them an unparalleled edge.

Odoo 13, which is five times faster than the previous version, gives businesses a full overview of what the public is saying about them and automatically compares reports with competitors and other industry players.

Odoo’s exponential growth across the Asia Pacific and the world is a testament to just how much confidence their customers have in them. The company achieved an 80% growth rate in the last decade and now has 9 offices worldwide. Get a taste of what Odoo can do for you by scanning this QR code for a free trial:

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In my work with new startups, I often find people who believe that the terms “entrepreneur” and “inventor” are interchangeable. Yet I find a big difference between “starting a new business” and “creating a new product.” In my experience, most successful entrepreneurs have indeed created a new product, but most people who claim to be inventors have a hard time starting a business.

The simple solution I recommend to inventors is to find a partner who can focus on business and marketing, while you focus on technology. Bill Gates did this with Microsoft, by teaming with Steve Ballmer from Proctor & Gamble, and Steve Jobs, who started Apple, did it in reverse by teaming with Steve Wozniak. Two people with complementary skills are often equal to three.

Unfortunately, most inventors I know tend to look for partners who are also technologists, perhaps because they feel more kinship with them, or they assume great products will lead to great businesses, without any real effort on the business side. Here are some of the key entrepreneur characteristics most often overlooked by inventors:

1. Driven by customer-centric view of needs, rather than technology. Understanding what drives customers to buy, in different market segments and cultures, is usually just as challenging as creating and combining technology to deliver function. In fact, many customers have an inherent fear of new technology and the complexity it often brings.

2. Ability to raise money, manage it, and think in financial terms. A good entrepreneur starts with quantifying the problem, rather than a solution looking for a problem. They worry about the infrastructure needed to attract and support customers, including investors, employees, organisation, marketplace coverage, manufacturing, and delivery.

Also Read: 7 common legal pitfalls startup founders should avoid

3. Skilled and motivated by building a multi-disciplined team. A great inventor is most often a lone technologist who doesn’t have the interest or skills for building and managing a team. In fact, they may fear team leadership as a burden, or a potential dilution of their ownership. Certainly interfacing to the outside world may not be an inventor forte.

4. Master of multi-platform communication and marketing. Even the best solutions these days need to be marketed on multiple platforms, including online, social media, and the proper industry and customer channels for customer geographies. The old philosophy of “if we build it, they will come” doesn’t work in today’s information society.

5. Proven ability to spot new trends and willing to take risks. Believe it or not, the business world changes even faster than technology, so you need to see changes coming in your industry, and even drive them. That means taking calculated risks with new business models, new customer segments, as well as new products and services.

On the other hand, inventors and technologists have some key attributes that every entrepreneur can benefit from in a partnership, including the following:

1. Turns customer needs and desires into solutions. Dreaming and talking about potential solutions is not enough. Someone has to have the skill and discipline to turn these dreams into reality. Inventors follow a structured process to assemble and test solutions, file patents for intellectual property protection, and define production details.

2. Provides the focus to balance entrepreneur distractions. Good entrepreneurs are often diluted in their potential by trying to attack too many new market opportunities or customer requests concurrently. They need the reality check of good technologists to keep their interests bounded, and provide realistic risk assessments on new demands.

Also Read: Keep calm and remain communicative: Startup founders share how they cope with coronavirus crisis

3. Ability to keep track of new technology advancements. New business and product opportunities come from the world of science, as well as the world of customers. Inventors have the required connections and interest to track these evolutions, and assess their potential for the business at hand, including non-technology challenges.

Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk are often cited as two of very few modern entrepreneurs who also have a strong technology background. Mark personally invented the early Facebook social network, while he was at Harvard, and went on to build a huge business. Elon Musk has a deep technical background that has helped him lead multiple businesses, including SpaceX and Tesla.

Thus I recommend to every inventor and every entrepreneur that they take a hard look at their personal strengths and interests, and not be hesitant to solicit a complementary partner who can make one-plus-one equal three, and get all of us where you want to go in business a lot faster.

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This article was syndicated from nfinitiv. It was first published on Inc.

Image Credit: Annie Spratt on Unsplash

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Nothing is permanent but change. And this holds true for businesses too. Keeping up with change is essential, especially for marketeers since it gives them a bird-eye view of consumer behaviour –allowing them to better anticipate future movements.

we are social and Hootsuite recently released a report that provides global stats and key findings in social media and digital trends that will give us a sneak-peek into how 2020 is going to be like. Some issues that it covers include gender gap in social media use, global growth in the use of voice interfaces, and concerns around personal data security.

This infographic will show you how the Singapore market is like:

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Image Credit :Jakob Owens

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Born and raised from a humble background, I witnessed the importance of working hard. Coming from the blue-collar sector, my parents worked extremely hard to support my upbringing. As the only child, my parents gave me all they could, to provide for my education.

For 26 years, my dad worked as a driver so that he could support our family. My mum also contributed by taking up a blue-collar job.

Times were difficult, but I understand that at a very young age. I grow up recognising the fact that is only through hard work and perseverance, that one can overcome the hard times.

What my education taught me  

Both of my parents have never been to school, but they understood the importance of hard work, discipline, and grit. I grew up watching their hard work in hourly roles and that inspired and motivated me to strive forward.

I was blessed to get the chance to receive a college degree in a local university, and I learned that I had to treasure all the opportunities I could get. I did and I made use of every single opportunity in school.

During my education at the National University of Singapore, I was offered a chance to attend the NUS Overseas College programme. This chance did not come easy. My first application was rejected, and my second appeal only got through one day before the closing date.

Also Read: From a troublemaker in school to drone maker, this Malaysian entrepreneur is now living his dream

I came to know that such chances do not come easy, so I made sure to make the best out of it. This programme got me deep-dived into the startup ecosystem and fostered my entrepreneurial mind.

My internship at a digital marketing and tech company in China provided a good headstart for navigating the Chinese landscape. Subsequently, Farfetch proposed a unique acquisition. In July 2018, they were acquired and Farfetch filed an IPO later that year.

Looking back, I certainly did not know that I would have ever gotten the chance to intern at a startup that witnesses the transformation from acquisition to IPO. I learned that with hard work and education, all is possible. Upon my graduation this May, I will be the first generation degree holder in my family.

How do I support my entrepreneurial ventures financially

Coming from a blue-collar background, meant that we could not afford a lot of luxuries. I do not have the capacity to attend extracurricular activities such as learning music.

When I was in my teens, I took up part-time jobs, working in fast food chains and restaurants. My experience from waiting tables in the F&B industry taught me about the importance of understanding the customer.

This includes a complete journey from having empathy for their needs to delivery of the service itself. Being in a front-facing role, I learned how to be authentic and approachable, so that customer satisfaction can be enhanced.

Also Read: 6 fashion startups that actually deliver value

The hourly rates I earned taught me the importance of practising financial prudence.

I understand the importance of saving for rainy days and this had taught me how to be more financially prudent, especially as I am embarking on my first startup. We have to make the best use of all our resources, without imposing an additional financial burden. This also meant prototyping at the lowest possible costs and learning how to negotiate for throw-ins.

When we first started out, my team collaborated remotely using Taskade. I first heard about them through Y-Combinator and I was sold by the simplicity of their design. I signed up for a free account and onboarded the rest of my team.

After collaborating remotely for two months, I arranged for a feedback and review session with the CEO of Taskade, John Xie. I told the team how much I love their product and even highlighted some of my key findings from using the platform in an article here.

For me, the main reason that stood out from other collaboration tools was their interface and content support. John placed utmost importance in providing articles and guidelines in their blog, to help their customers.

Later, they upgraded my subscription to a PRO account. I think having an honest and authentic conversation helps, not even in just being transactional. And of course, I learn how to engage and produce meaningful conversations, that ultimately might bring benefits for my startup.

Also Read: E-commerce startup Get acquires Daung Capital to provide one-stop fintech solutions to Myanmar’s micro-entrepreneurs

Conclusion

For everyone out there coming from humble backgrounds, I sincerely hope that this piece inspires you and let’s keep on keeping on! Our beginnings do not determine our outcome, and only in tough times, perseverance, and hope can be conceptualised.

It is only during times that we preserve, that we can reap the fruits and process of our journey. Make the best of all the chance you can get, and have faith that it would lead to something more majestic.

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Image credit: Samuel Toh on Unsplash

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Formerly known as the coronavirus, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the COVID-19 outbreak as a global public health emergency, with China being the most affected followed by Japan (174), Singapore (58), South Korea (28), Thailand (25), Malaysia (16) and Vietnam (15), at the time this article was written.

Beyond affecting daily life, this outbreak has also affected a large chunk of businesses. A multitude of short and long term effects have been anticipated, from the postponement of events to missed launch target due to office closures.

Even Elon Musk’s Tesla was not immune to the consequence, as its stock crashed to 19 per cent after news of delay in Model 3 deliveries in China.

e27 has compiled a list of comments from startup founders from Southeast Asia on how they plan to cope with the impact of the outbreak.

The offline side of the business

The impact of the outbreak is more significant for tech startups with a strong offline element in their business.

Take the example of People Matters, who had had postpone its People Matters TechHR Singapore event. In a statement to e27, CEO Ester Martinez explains how the company has been monitoring the issue closely and had to make the difficult decision.

“I hope the situation comes to normalcy soon,” she says, expressing gratitude to the event’s partners and sponsors.

A different story happens to CoderSchool, a Vietnam-based coding school who had recently launched an online-only programme. While the launch seemed to coincide the outbreak, CoderSchool co-founder Charles Lee said that the school had not seen anyone signing up “just because of the virus fear.”

“We are prepared to do more online, study-from-home type of stuff, but so far it has not seemed necessary. One big test for us will be next week when we have a large event, a demo day for one of our classes. The hope is that attendance won’t suffer,” Lee says.

However, the approach startups are taking vary from market to market. In Indonesia, where there is zero number of confirmed case by the time this article was written, startups are taking a more relaxed approach.

While ride-hailing giant such as gojek is taking precaution by encouraging drivers to monitor body temperature and disinfect their vehicles, other companies such as DailySocial are not doing beyond what is commonly implemented.

“Of course there are precautions when meeting someone who recently travelled abroad, but that just means more people wearing masks,” Rama Mamuaya said.

Part of the company’s offerings include the running of startup events such as #SelasaStartup (“Startup Tuesdays”), and CEO Mamuaya noted how customers in the market behaved as usual.

“There has not been much impact in Jakarta aside from cancelled conferences abroad. Everyone still works, goes to meetings, etcetera,” he writes in a message to e27.

Business (un)usual

For companies with a heavier online presence, adjustments are made in their internal operations.

As a cybersecurity firm, Singapore-based Group IB has always put emphasis on its employees’ health and wellbeing early on, and this attitude benefits the company during the crisis.

“Funnily enough, I had brought masks for my employees from Moscow, but no one has touched it until now. We may be a little laid back about it, but we feel like the virus only affects if one is not cautious about everyday personal health and hygiene,” says Group IB founder Ilya Sachkov.

Also Read: Coronavirus is driving the world into an economic slump. How to cope up?

Circles.Life –which had operations in Singapore, Taiwan, and Australia– are taking precautions by limiting gatherings and encouraging unwell employees and those who had recently travelled to China to work from home, as prescribed by the authority.

“I think it is important to keep things in perspective and not overreact,” says Circles.Life co-founder Abhishek Gupta.

“We were lucky that we often had to make such plans, given the heavily regulated nature of our business, but I can imagine many others not being as lucky,” he says.

Also Read: What healthcare transformation in Asia will look like in 2020

“As with most things, just acknowledge everything openly and be ready to listen,” says CoderSchool’s Lee.

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Anisa Menur Maulani contributed to the writing of this article.

Image Credit: All founders in the article, edited by e27

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(Left to right) Forrest Li, Chairman of Lion City Sailors FC; Lim Kia Tong, President of the FAS; Winston Wong, Chairman of Home United

Business

Indonesia to have a bill that makes foreign talent hiring in startups easier

Lack of local viable engineers reportedly prompts the Indonesian government to give access to more foreign talents hired by startups through a new bill proposal, as shared by Nikkei Asian Review.

Being home to five unicorns doesn’t make Indonesia’s startup scene a strong one when it comes to local talents. Indonesia reportedly produces only 278 engineers per million people a year, which is still far behind compared to peers such as Malaysia or Thailand, which produce over 1,000, according to consultancy A.T. Kearney.

The change is a part of sweeping reforms that President Joko Widodo has put forward in a draft omnibus law on job creation, which packages a number of legal revisions into a single vote.

The copy of the job creation bill says that an employer categorized as a “startup” need not “have its plans to hire foreign workers approved by the central government”, which is quite a change from the previous labor law that only allowed “representatives of foreign countries that use foreign workers as diplomatic and consular employees”.

The 1,000-plus-page draft includes a simpler process for business permits and relaxed labor rules. In a separate bill about taxes, Indonesia vows to lower corporate taxes, as well as make internet companies that offer service in Indonesia without having a local presence pay taxes in the country.

Also Read: This Indonesian startup believes they have the solution to hiring Millennials

Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo hopes that by having this bill, the country can welcome more foreign investment and boost economic growth.

The bill, once submitted to the legislature, is likely to pass within six months, as Widodo’s ruling coalition controls about three-quarters of the 575 seats in the People’s Representative Council. The bill has already created a backlash as more than 4,000 people protested outside the legislature on Wednesday when the job creation bill was submitted.

Sea Group buys Singapore Premier League club Lion City Sailors, unveils new squad for 2020

Sea Group, the Singapore internet unicorn and owner of e-commerce platform Shopee and mobile gaming company Garena, has announced that it has officially backed Lion City Sailors, which was formerly known as Home United.

Sea becomes the club’s new owner right before its debut in the upcoming Singapore Premier League (SPL) season with a new name, kit, and squad.

Forrest Li, Founder, Chairman and Group CEO, of Sea, will serve as Chairman of Lion City Sailors FC.

“By uniting with a club with a rich heritage, exceptional fans, and a great organisation, we intend for Lion City Sailors to set a new benchmark for footballing excellence in Singapore and the region. As a passionate fan myself, I know that Singapore has a huge community of people who love football, and our hope is that Lion City Sailors will strengthen that passion and ignite a new era for the development of the game locally,” said Li.

Accomplished coach team led by the former Socceroos captain Aurelio Vidmar and more star signings to ignite the 2020 SPL season Lion City Sailors are said to be targeting domestic silverware and a place in the AFC Champions League. Some off-season signings including Lions stalwarts Hassan Sunny, Gabriel Quak, and Shahdan Sulaiman; Japanese defender Kaishu Yamazaki; as well as prolific Australian forward, Andy Pengelly.

Also Read: StoreHub set for SEA expansion after securing US$8.9M in Series A+ round

The launch of Lion City Sailors is set to inject fresh momentum for the SPL, with the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) welcoming more corporate involvement that can invigorate the league, identifying this pilot project as an opportunity to build a sustainable model for local football that will encourage other corporate partners to follow suit.

The new SPL season kicks off on February 29, 2020, where Lion City Sailors will take on defending champions Brunei DPMM at the Bishan Stadium.

Karbon, SBM Bank India to launch India’s first startup-friendly credit card

Powered by SBM Bank India, Indian fintech operating in the corporate cards solutions space Karbon announces the launch of Karbon Card, India’s startup-friendly corporate credit card. The corporate credit card features an expense management solution bundled with a reward program that comprises relevant offers from AWS, Freshworks, MakeMyTrip, and more.

Karbon Card will also help its customers network with venture capital players as well as empowering them to manage funds raised from their investors.

Sidharth Rath, MD, and CEO, SBM Bank India, said, “We firmly believe in Collaborative Banking – as the future lies in coming together of like-minded institutions to expand the market by creating more value per interaction for the target customers. Our focus is on enriching the ecosystem through collaborations, and this collaboration with Karbon in launching the initiative is a step in that direction.”

SBM Bank India becomes the first bank to receive a universal banking license from the Reserve Bank of India to set up and operate as a Scheduled Commercial Bank offering banking services through the Wholly Owned Subsidiary (WOS) mode. SBM Bank India has a network of 6 branches located in Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Ramachandrapuram.
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