The world has never encountered anything like COVID-19 before and this has inadvertently given rise to the true power and meaning of community, where different communities have rallied together against a common “enemy” to do their part, to flatten the curve.

Community builders and leaders from around the world have been challenged to pivot and re-strategise on how they can engage their communities, moving all activities from offline to online, in the combined efforts to practice physical distancing and yet preserving social connectivity.

These efforts serve not just to keep brands and businesses alive and relevant, but also to preserve the sanity of community members who will suddenly find the need to fill a void in their life.

Kampung Collective, based in Singapore, very quickly pulled together a dipstick survey involving 66 community builders from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, China and  India.

This exercise also involved 30 Community Builders from a diverse representation of verticals and industries involving startups, venture capitalists, freelancers and government bodies, in both the profit and non-profit spaces, who participated in an online discussion addressing five key challenges that COVID-19 has impacted their respective communities.

Also Read: theAsianparent onboards ex-Mumbrella Asia GM Dean Carroll to drive offline initiatives for brands, communities

We summarise below the points of discussion and further findings from Kampung Collective:

Challenge #1: How do I build deep relationships with my community online?

One thing is certain, all who participated in the online discussion unanimously agree that over-communication on the online space to community members is preferred over not being heard at all.

The data also suggests that even though members might not be interactive and engaged through the online channels, it does not mean they are not seeing and reading information and activities that are happening real-time as you read this report.

Understanding what your community wants and needs is crucial as this will determine if the connections should be one-to-many or one-to-one and how regular the “check-ins” need to be and at what intensity.

Challenge #2: Our people are facing distress, how can we help?

Show vulnerability and talk openly about feelings because this shows authenticity and builds trust to allow for deeper connections even on the online space.

Now is the time to be creative – explore and start activities and challenges that take members outside and away from work-mode. Adopt more than one channel of connection for each member and understand what works best for each.

Also Read: All in the family: How to build a community that accelerates business

By identifying other empathetic community champions and leaders within the community, we can elevate them and empower them to further your reach and touch more with the personal touch.

Challenge #3: What are some ways we can engage with our community online?

Whilst most people are going to the more accessible and traditional platforms such as Zoom and Google Hangouts, there are actually quite a number of other free-to-use (or paid) platforms available for you to explore, from intimate one-to-one to one-to-many conference-style options.

Challenge #4: Our people are finding it hard to survive or secure their jobs, who will care about community?

It never is easy to communicate a cause and message that is larger than life and especially one that is eating up every aspect of everyone’s life, but as leaders in your respective communities, it is your responsibility to help your members understand this.

As Winston Churchill aptly put it, “To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour.”

Now is the time for Community Builders to lead our communities to the common goal to flatten the curve and help bring normality back to everyone’s life again.

Challenge #5: Unsure what type of content should we be sharing now with our community

With the large amount of unreliable information being circulated on different channels, it is important as leaders in your community to be careful to only communicate facts! Content should be positive and can be interspaced between news, resources and fun facts.

Also Read: The Unicroach approach: 10 tips on community building

Understanding what your community would find valuable and useful will help you decide which channels and mediums to use and what sort of innovative initiatives to roll out.

Also for your interest:

The discussion also brought to light more areas for further consideration and have been tabled for the next online meet-up.

Some key areas to highlight would be the issue of digital overload and fatigue with everything now being brought onto the online space; the possible consolidation of resources and channels as a solution to sieve through all the content (noise) for the most relevant to the receiver; attending to those who do not have the means to have the information delivered to them through online channels; and also understanding if the new engagement systems that have been put in place will be the new norm as a long-term implementation for community builders, even after the COVID-19 crisis.

For a more detailed report of the data, you may access it here

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Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing contributions from the community. Become a thought leader in the community and share your opinions or ideas and earn a byline by submitting a post.

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Image credit: Tim Marshall on Unsplash

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India has a population of 1.3 billion and countless daily wage workers are stranded, jobless and hungry. Migrant workers, including teenagers, are walking all the way back home to their villages (sometimes over 50 miles away) and their entire families are starving and in dire need of help.

Indian entrepreneurs and startup investors living abroad all around the world — from Silicon Valley in the West to Hong Kong in the East — have come together in solidarity to urgently raise a US$1M #Covid19IndiaFund to meet the immediate and urgent needs of the most vulnerable families in rural India. 

Prominent entrepreneurs, investors, tech executives and celebrities, such as Craig of Craigslist, Joanne Wilson, Padmasree Warrior, Mira Nair, Shekhar Kapur, Ranvir Shorey, Arlan Hamilton, Nakul Mandan, Nora M. Denzel, have supported #Covid19IndiaFund through donations and/or social media shares. 

With very little action, we can literally save lives in India! In India, our dollars can go incredibly far. With only US$30, we can give food and hygiene kits to a family to survive for a whole month.

After evaluating several options, we have selected American India Foundation (AIF) as our partner non-profit of choice. They already have a vast infrastructure in place, including 300-plus staff members in India, and they will provide us with a transparent impact report a few weeks after the fund deployment.

AIF is a top-rated 501(c)(3) non-profit with corporate partners such as Amazon, Goldman Sachs, Dell and IBM, and board members such as Mastercard’s President & CEO Ajay Banga.  

AIF has already been active on the field (press coverage by India Today and The Economic Times), and our fund will help them further reach hundreds of thousands of Indians in dire need of help. 

This is a race against time, and we hope that you will donate whatever you can afford. Every penny counts! The campaign page transparently describes where your money will go. All donors will get receipts for tax deduction under Section 501(c)(3) of US Internal Revenue Code as well as an impact report post fund deployment.

We hope that you will donate whatever you can afford and invite your friends to contribute. Sharing campaigns on social media can increase our donations by as much as 350 per cent.

Here’s a template you can use: 

Countless daily wage workers are jobless & hungry in India amidst #COVID19 lockdown. Please donate & invite your network to contribute to $1M #Covid19IndiaFund https://bit.ly/Covid-19IndiaFund. Help 25k+ vulnerable families in India with food/survival kits and medical help!

We sincerely appreciate your consideration!

If you have any questions, feel free to contact any of us active volunteers: Ashish Aggarwal (San Francisco), Charu Sharma (San Francisco), Mohan Belani (Singapore), Pritish Sanyal (Hong Kong), Syed Musheer Ahmed (Hong Kong).

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Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing contributions from the community. Become a thought leader in the community and share your opinions or ideas and earn a byline by submitting a post.

Join our e27 Telegram group, or like the e27 Facebook page.

The post How Indian investors and entrepreneurs abroad are pooling in funds to help their homeland appeared first on e27.

In times of global health crisis like this, where many countries are facing either partial or even full lockdown, one of the things that we miss the most is visiting restaurants. For me personally, my favourite part about dining in is seeing the menu –and wondering the process that they had gone through to develop them.

But today, I learned how artificial intelligence (AI) and data analytics can play a part in developing a well-loved restaurant menu.

Meet Wrap Bstrd, who dubs itself as the first F&B brand and dark kitchen in Singapore to be driven by AI and data analytics.

As a result of a partnership between tech-driven F&B company Ebb & Flow and AI solutions company SQREEM Technologies, Wrap Bstrd offers a range of wrap dishes that were developed combining behavioural data capabilities and pattern analysis with the skills of chefs, creative professionals, and branding experts from the two companies.

In an email interview with e27, SQREEM Technologies CEO and Co-Founder Ian Chapman-Banks explains how the company’s evaluation of over 200,000 individual data points to map behaviours and trends of distinct consumer groups in Singapore allowed the team at Ebb & Flow Group’s Dark Kitchen Lab to analyse customer journeys, predict demand, and map behavioural intent to purchase.

Also Read: 3 of the strangest uses of artificial intelligence that could make sense in the future

“What this means is that everything that went into the creation of Wrap Bstrd was derived from our ability to pinpoint the exact tastes and preferences of office workers in the CBD area – local comfort food that comes in convenient packaging,” he says.

How exactly does this process better than the conventional way of menu development?

According to Philipp K. Helfried, Chief Investment Officer at Ebb & Flow Group, it starts with enabling the company to take a lot of the guesswork and manual research out of the usual process required to build out F&B brands from the ground up.

“The ability to analyse 200,000 data points and convert these into actionable insights means we are able to glean a very specific direction to work towards when crafting our brands, and the menus. This way we can augment the creativity of our chefs by giving them the tools they need to make sure their recipe is a hit with a very specific demographic; in this case, office workers in the CBD area,” Helfried elaborates.

“Our use of data and analytics also spans more than just the creation of the menu, it also informs our decisions with regards to branding, and marketing; how, where and when we reach our audiences. It also allows us to trial new concepts and brands at a fraction of the cost of conventional methods, so we can test out new menus and fail fast with very minimal cost impact,” he continues.

Also Read: Artificial intelligence has been flourishing incredibly in these 5 Southeast Asia technology hubs

Technology in your plate

 

In their Artificial Intelligence Trends to Watch in 2020 report, CBInsights revealed some of the biggest themes to come up in the world of AI this year: from commercial deepfakes to AutoML to tackling small data problems in AI.

Implementation of AI in industries such as F&B –especially later when businesses will try to survive the aftermath of COVID-19 pandemic– might also present an unprecedented urgency to it.

Chapman-Banks is certain that the use of AI in F&B industry will be a trend in the future.

“In the F&B sector, AI or tech is traditionally only used to simplify operations. But we plan to go one step further and use it to craft concepts, develop brands, inform marketing decisions and even help companies make key strategic and business decisions,” he says.

“If you are able to not just know, but really know what your customers want, your course of action becomes much clearer. Which means you can innovate that much faster,” he adds.

Also Read: Artificial intelligence is a key consideration for companies looking to adapt operations to optimise user experience

But as a tech company, SQREEM is aware that the barriers of adoption amongst non-tech business include lack of information.

“Non-tech businesses may not be aware of the possible use cases,” Chapman-Banks points out.

Together with Ebb & Flow, SQREEM is set to launch at least eight AI-driven delivery-only brands.

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Aerodyne makes strategic investment in Middle East’s drone solutions firm FEDS

Malaysia-based Aerodyne Group, a provider of drone-based asset management solutions, has made a strategic investment in FEDS Group Holdings, a drone solutions provider in the Middle East.

The transaction details were not disclosed.

This investment would allow Aerodyne to leverage on FEDS’s growth trajectory and financial performance to further enhance value for its shareholders.

In the Middle East, FEDS provides premium turnkey aerial inspections of infrastructure assets in the energy utilities, geospatial survey, public infrastructure, and telecommunications sectors.

This strategic investment is part of Aerodyne’s two-year global plan, which will potentially see the completion of seven M&As within the period.

In December 2019, Aerodyne announced a similar strategic alliance with Measure UAS in America.

SFA collaborates with MAS, others to support fintech industry affected by COVID-19

Singapore FinTech Association (SFA) today announced the results of the recently-conducted survey with its members on the impact of COVID-19 on the fintech industry.

SFA has been working with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and key ecosystem partners, including National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and NTUC’s e2i (Employment and Employability Institute), on initiatives to save jobs and fintech companies.

The key findings of the survey are:

• 81.2 per cent of respondents have implemented business continuity plans (BCP)
• 47.8 per cent of respondents feel that COVID-19 has had a significant impact on their business.
• Larger fintech companies seem to cope better with COVID-19 as compared to their smaller counterparts with less than 20 employees

Also Read: Singapore’s SFA signs MOU with ASEAN’s AFIN to promote fintech marketplace APIX

Top-3 areas which fintech companies need immediate assistance on are:

• Advice on available government grants
• Fund raising
• Lead generation

Commenting on the survey results, Chia Hock Lai, President of SFA, said, “We urge fintech companies to take this opportunity to future-proof their business, build up new capabilities and seize new opportunities during this period. Singapore will emerge as a stronger fintech hub as the ecosystem is standing united to overcome the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

In response to the survey findings, SFA will be working closely with MAS and key ecosystem players like NTUC and e2i to address the main issues of saving fintech jobs through job redesign and upskilling of workers, lowering business cost through the new Financial Sector Technology and Innovation (FSTI) Digital Acceleration Grant for fintech.

Startups can obtain a co-funding up to US$120,000, which can be used for digital solutions and services, facilitating sales with an external auditor to come up with a new self-assessment framework, and funding stimulation through one-on-one access with investors.

Wavemaker Partners adds Gavin Lee to lead the investment team

VC firm Wavemaker Partners has announced that it has appointed Gavin Lee as a new Partner. Lee will be responsible for building the investment team at Wavemaker and is responsible for all investment-related activities.

Lee has led and participated in more than 100 investments and actively supports several Wavemaker’s portfolio companies including Shield and eFishery.

He started his career in venture capital with Matrix Partners China and Infocomm Investments, a Singapore government venture firm now called SGInnovate. He graduated with a BA in Financial Economics from Columbia University and is currently completing his Executive MBA in Finance at Tsinghua University.

CIMB, iSTOX to expand access to private capital markets through DLT

The Singapore branch of CIMB has signed an agreement with ICHX Tech, the operator of the capital markets platform iSTOX. The partnership will allow CIMB clients in the ASEAN region access to a faster, more flexible, and efficient way to raise funds at a lower cost.

iSTOX is the regulated capital markets platform available in any major financial centre to support the one-stop issuance, custody, and secondary trading of digitised securities.

Leveraging on the power of advanced smart contract and distributed ledger technology (DLT) to streamline the issuance and trading process, iSTOX allows investors and issuers to connect directly and removes barriers that have prevented a far greater pool of investors from access to private capital markets opportunity.

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Picture Credit: Aerodyne

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Sequoia Capital invests in Korean grocery startup Kurly

South Korea-based grocery delivery startup Kurly has closed a US$150 million Series E funding round with Sequoia Capital (existing investor), Hillhouse Capital and DST Global, according to TechCrunch.

According to news publication Korean Investors, this round has valued the firm at around US$780 million.

The five-year-old startup, which raised US$113 million in its Series D round last year, has raised about US$346 million to date, according to CBInsights.

MAS extends assessment of digital bank licenses due to COVID-19

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced today that it will extend the assessment period for the award of digital bank licences.

Successful applicants will be informed in the second half of 2020, instead of June 2020 as originally intended.

The total number of applicants until now stands at 21.

As per a statement, MAS said that the delay would allow applicants to dedicate resources towards managing the effects of the COVID-19 on their businesses.

“The global escalation of the COVID-19 pandemic since then has prompted the implementation of enhanced safe distancing measures in Singapore, and many companies are allowing staff to work from home to the extent possible,” read the MAS statement.

“Given these developments, MAS will extend the assessment period for the award of digital bank licences,” it noted.

TranSwap to launch borderless virtual accounts in US, EU, UK, Indonesia 

TranSwap, a payments platform for businesses, is launching a new feature offering free Global Borderless Virtual Account (GBVA) in the US, European Union, the UK and Indonesia.

Through GBVA, customers will be able to easily track transactions and enjoy transparency in fees and exchange rates, claims the company.

“By launching GBVA, we can help businesses, especially SMEs and startups, to accelerate their growth into new markets. They will be able to streamline payment and collection processes through a virtual account, all through a few clicks on our online platform,” said Benjamin Wong, Co-founder of TranSwap.

India’s BigBasket snags US$60M to deliver groceries

Bengaluru-based grocery delivery platform BigBasket closed US$60 million in a fresh financing round from investors such as existing investor Alibaba, according to KrAsia. Other participants include South Korea’s Mirae Asset and UK Government-owned CDC Group.

Also Read: Afternoon News Roundup: SPH, Snapask partner for online learning; Swiggy amasses US$43M

The new funds will help BigBasket keep up with timely delivery due to the surge in demand owing to the country’s current lockdown situation until April 14, with further chances of extension.

“The round materialised about two weeks ago. It’s a much-needed capital for Bigbasket that has been witnessing a surge in demand due to COVID-19,” a source familiar with the matter told Entrackr.

Other similar food delivery apps like Swiggy and Zomato have also made the pivot to delivering groceries and have each raised significant funding.

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Image Credit: Goh BL

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