The travel and tourism industries experienced the hardest hit during the COVID-19 outbreak. As countries closed their border and airlines cut down on routes, the number of travellers drastically dropped, directly affecting businesses of various sizes in the sector.

In the past few months, e27 has covered startups in the travel and tourism sectors and how they are dealing with this difficult time. We have published about Vietnam-based tour packages platform Triip who introduced StayHome Heroes campaign.

We have also named capsule hotel platform Bobobox as Startup of The Month for their ability to secure a US$11.5 million funding round and survived through enforced quarantine measures in the country.

This time, we are looking into how Travelhorse, a Singapore-based startup, deals with the challenge at the very early days of its operations.

Incorporated in January, the team at Travelhorse was developing a platform to connect travellers with local shops and businesses to store their luggage, when COVID-19 was discovered in Singapore.

Also Read: [Updated] Thai travel tech startup Tourkrub to raise US$5M in Series B funding to support regional expansion plan

The outbreak continued to threaten, forcing the government to introduce a circuit breaker (CB) measure to handle the situation, which was implemented in April.

At this rate, travellers and tourists –the potential customers that they originally wanted to target– were barely existing in the country.

“Before the CB was announced, we already have a network of 35 jockeys across Singapore and Southeast Asia. We saw this COVID-19 situation in Singapore worsen in the sense of numbers, and also the direction of the government policy. So we thought about how we can create value by rallying up local initiatives through our jockeys and our network,” Travelhorse Founder & CEO Scott Koh explains to e27 over a call.

So the startup introduced an F&B Dash and logistics delivery service, which had begun operating by the time the CB officially started.

“The decision was strategic in many senses. [We aim] to create added value for existing jockeys, and to onboard more jockeys into our network,” Koh says.

Collaboration matters

The change seemed to work for the startup, especially since they were not alone in their work to support local F&B businesses.

Also Read: Roundup: Singapore ranks 16 in global startup ecosystems; Anthill invests in Indian travel-tech firm QuaQua

“When circuit breaker was introduced, Enterprise Singapore made an open call for F&B merchants [as they aim] to fund their delivery costs via partnership with three delivery giants: GrabFood, Deliveroo, and Foodpanda. They also made an open call for third party logistics to come and support this effort,” Koh says.

Travelhorse’s application for this programme was then approved.

Ever since then, the company has also expanded its logistic services to include packing and storage for students, professionals, or small business owners who have been displaced by the outbreak.

What is next?

The story of Travelhorse began when Koh struggled to find a convenient place to store his luggage when he arrived in Hong Kong in 2018 for a hackathon event. After dropping his luggage at a student hostel, he had to spend 4.5 hours to reach his destination as he had to take a reroute.

The luggage storage platform was then developed to help travellers reduce their travelling load, enabling them to explore the destination with ease and convenience.

When the interview happened, the company was still in wait-and-see mode regarding the future. But when asked specifically about the fate of the luggage storage service, Koh says that they intend to continue on developing it.

“In fact, we are still working on the development effort to create that platform. Moving forward, it will be our main business model,” he says.

When asked about how the startup deals with uncertainties and arising challenges, Koh stresses the importance of open communications and being responsive to changes.

“We are a team of five members and we aim to be very open in communications, and [to make decisions] based on the current situation,” he says.

—

e27 Pro membership will further empower you with insights, tools, and opportunities that help you solve the problems that hold you back. Begin your company’s journey to success here.

Image Credit: Travelhorse

 

The post How travel tech startup Travelhorse survives the pandemic by branching into new territory appeared first on e27.

In recent months we have seen healthcare systems in many parts of the developing world coming under immense pressure as they struggle to control the spread of COVID-19.

However, even before the current novel coronavirus pandemic, existing brick-and-mortar healthcare systems in much of Asia were struggling to cope with demand from ageing and increasingly health-conscious populations.

As we look ahead into the new decade, we can confidently predict that new digital technologies will transform the healthcare industry-disrupting traditional business models, enabling a more preventative approach and bridging the infrastructure gap by enabling people to see their doctor from the relative comfort of their own home.

Digital technology in healthcare

In most parts of Asia, digital technology is shaping the region’s healthcare industry through – what can best be described as – a digital revolution. It’s a revolution because it is being led not by large companies or government, but from the bottom up, by the region’s entrepreneurs who have founded a wave of innovative digital health startups.

In Singapore, the government’s commitment to digital innovation and adoption, coupled with strong internet connectivity and high mobile and smartphone penetration has given our digital entrepreneurs a significant headstart in comparison to those from other parts of Asia.

In January 2020, Singapore Parliament passed the Healthcare Services Bill giving authorities the ability to license, and therefore implement, new models of healthcare such as telemedicine. This follows other pioneering initiatives such as the Ministry of Health’s creation of a “regulatory sandbox” – the Licensing Experimentation and Adaptation Programme – and a strong framework of supporting guidelines such as the National Telemedicine Guidelines and Singapore Medical Council’s Ethical Code and Ethical Guidelines within which innovation has been allowed to thrive.

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

Singapore is ASEAN’s sandbox for digital innovation

Singapore is estimated to be home to around nine per cent of Asia’s healthtech startups, the largest number after China and India. The growth of the sector in Singapore has also been impressive with the number of startups rising from 45 in 2012 to 174 in 2018, and the proportion of those raising Series A and B funding rounds increasing steadily as the sector has matured.

Furthermore, Singapore’s start-ups are among the most innovative in the region and are often developing healthcare solutions that address the unique needs of Asian people.

From using blockchain to improve the certification of halal products, to applying artificial intelligence to diagnose and manage diabetes, or digital platforms, apps and wearable devices using local languages to help people in traditionally underserved rural communities manage their health and wellbeing.

However, no matter how innovative an entrepreneur is, they are unlikely to successfully commercialise their product without money. Raising investment is extremely hard for any start-up and this can be compounded by the complexity of the healthcare sector.

Yet for experienced and skilful investors willing to consider smaller deal sizes, early-stage digital health companies can offer the potential for high-multiples and this has been recognised by Singapore’s investment community.

In 2018, Singapore attracted US$105 million into its health-tech startups, or 24 per cent of total investment, excluding China and India. Big names such as Sequoia Capital, MassMutual Ventures SEA, Heritas Venture Fund, Venturecraft, and Wavemaker Partners have all begun to make significant plays.

Also Read: Beyond the hospital: Challenges and opportunities in Indonesian healthtech scene

Singapore’s public healthcare system has also stepped-up and is pioneering the use of innovative patient-centric digital solutions through partnerships with the private sector. For example, the Singapore startup Holmusk recently announced a partnership with National Heart Centre Singapore to use its machine learning and data analytics technologies to improve care for patients with coronary artery disease.

Over the last 12-months many of Singapore’s largest public health groups, such as SingHealth and National Health Group, have been involved in similar private-sector collaborations.

To complete Singapore’s digital health ecosystem, our large healthcare companies need to be willing to take risks and act more like the tech giants of Silicon-Valley by supporting digital entrepreneurs through partnerships, licensing deals, and even seed investments.

Some large multinationals, such as Johnson & Johnson and Novartis, have been quick to recognise the innovation emerging from Singapore and inked partnership deals with our leading health-tech startups, such as Bioformis – the developer of software-based therapeutics to treat heart and lung diseases – and Ark Bio Holding – the medtech enterprise focused on early cancer detection.

But challenges remain…

Yet even in Singapore challenges remain, and entrepreneurs must carefully consider the best commercialisation pathway to bring their new digital healthcare product or service to market.

Firstly, they must devise a viable revenue model that answers the key questions of ‘who will pay’ and ‘how will they pay’, not just in their home territory of Singapore, but across the region’s different healthcare systems if they are to scale. These revenue models can be broadly categorised as B2C or B2B.

Also Read: The Story of You with Homage Co-founder and CEO Gillian Tee

Startups such as Homage – the developer of a digital platform that matches caregivers with those needing home-care support – provides its product directly to the elderly and their families. While others, like Bioformis, offer their innovation to pharmaceutical companies or healthcare providers that apply the technology and use it with their own customers or patients.

Secondly, each healthcare market in Asia is at a different stage of development, each with its own regulatory systems governing data privacy and cybersecurity. For a Singapore startup, navigating this complex web of rules and regulation requires a significant investment of money and time and is enough to give an entrepreneur a headache, one that needs its own healthcare innovation to cure.

In early 2019, Homage raised a double-digit Series B equity financing round led by EV Growth to fund the expansion of its caregiving service into other parts of Southeast Asia. Homage has expanded successfully and today offers a network of more than 1,000 professional caregivers in Singapore and Malaysia.

Other companies, typically those applying a B2B model, have chosen to partner with a local player or a large multinational already familiar with the eccentricities of different Asian markets to ease their expansion. For example, in November 2019 Bioformis announced a partnership with Novartis to apply its digital therapeutics to treat patients recovering from heart failure in six countries across Southeast Asia, rapidly scaling the start-up’s exposure to patients across the region.

Collaboration is key

Singapore is home to a vibrant and talented community of entrepreneurs building successful and innovative digital healthcare businesses that are among the best in the business. Their innovations offer the potential to transform Asia’s brick and mortar healthcare systems and in so doing improve the health of thousands of Singaporeans and millions across Asia.

Also Read: Same same, but different: How local foodtech startups are driving Singapore’s public health goals

However, for these businesses to thrive, Singapore must support its start-ups by fostering a symbiotic digital healthcare ecosystem.

It is now time for all industry stakeholders – including large healthcare companies, investors and the public healthcare system, to get behind Singapore’s digital entrepreneurs and, in so doing, help to ensure the country retains its position at the forefront Asia’s health-tech transformation.

The views expressed herein are those of the author and not necessarily the views of FTI Consulting, Inc., its management, its subsidiaries, its affiliates, or its other professionals.

–

Register for our next webinar: Meet the VC: Qualgro Partners

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

Image credit: Piron Guillaume on Unsplash

The post Why Singapore is ASEAN’s sandbox for innovation in healthtech appeared first on e27.

Launching e27 Pro a few months ago, we wanted to achieve one particular goal: to empower the startup ecosystem by helping companies solve the challenges that keep them from reaching their goals.

After careful study, we learned that one of the key areas that startups struggle with is fundraising. This is why with e27 Pro, we decided to help address challenges in the fundraising space particularly by providing startups with better visibility on our platform.

As many of you may know, e27 manages one of the largest startup databases in the region. Given the network of startups and investors we have accumulated over the years, we believe we are in the best position to help startups attract investors and hopefully take the next big step in their fundraising journeys.

e27 Pro Fundraising Highlight

Scrolling down the e27 homepage, you can find below the articles a section dedicated entirely for fundraising startups. This section displays a list of startups from all over Southeast Asia looking for potential funding.

Included in the list are crucial information about the startups such as the country they are headquartered in, their verticals, their official websites, and the funding they are currently raising.

Also Read: How e27 Pro helps startups remain in view of APAC key investors

With the e27 Pro Fundraising Highlight, startups stand to gain the unique opportunity of being featured prominently in our platform. This enables them to stand out from the diverse startup ecosystem, and attract investors looking for new businesses to fund.

How to be included in the Fundraising Highlight

The e27 Pro Fundraising Highlight is an exclusive feature for pro membership. Upon signing up for Pro, all you have to do is create or update your existing startup profile, and indicate if you’re currently fundraising. From there, you can indicate the amount you are trying to raise, and what funding round you are raising.

It’s that simple!

Join e27 Pro

Interested in taking the next step? Be a part of the community and sign up for an e27 Pro membership today! You may visit here for more details.

The post Is your startup in need of funding? Let the e27 Pro Fundraising Highlight do the trick! appeared first on e27.

Kejora Capital and SBI Capital have partnered to launch a US$30 million fund called the SBI Kejora Orbit, designed to invest in early stage tech startups in Indonesia, according to the company statement. The final close of the fund is expected to be by the end of June.

The first Orbit Fund will infuse US$200,000 to US$3M for each startup in areas ranging from supply chain, education, healthcare, consumer goods and retail, agriculture, fintech, and digital media.

According to the statement, Orbit has received “strong” backing from an undisclosed group of investors which include family offices, high net worth individuals, corporations, and other institutional investors across Indonesia, Singapore, Japan, and Europe.

“More than ever, startups nowadays need support from experienced VC. Orbit Fund will not only provide financing but also offer combined resources from Kejora and SBI and insights from the extensive portfolio companies across the 25 countries to help build a strong generation of startups in Indonesia,” said Billy Boen, Director at Orbit Fund, who will also be leading the operation and investment initiatives.

Also Read: gojek names Facebook, PayPal as new investors in latest funding round

“Since our first co-investment with Kejora more than three years ago, we have continuously cemented our confidence in the Indonesian technology sector through investments and partnerships. As such, we are thrilled to renew our commitment to the technology asset class in Indonesia with the launch of Orbit Fund,” said SBI Holdings president and CEO Yoshitaka Kitao.

Japanese financial giant, SBI Holdings, has already been an active investor in the region, having invested in several prominent companies such as Tokopedia, Investree, Ralali, Amartha, and Taralite. This will mark SBI’s first fund focusing entirely on Indonesia.

Kejora, on the other hand, is a local venture capital firm that oversees more than US$380 million in assets under management across three funds, namely Kejora Star Capital I, Kejora Star Capital II and InterVest Star Southeast Asia Growth Fund I. The VC’s prominent deals include Indonesian delivery firm Sicepat Ekspres, C88 Group, SmartStudy, and Sorabel.

–

e27 Pro membership will further empower you with insights, tools, and opportunities that help you solve the problems that hold you back. Begin your company’s journey to success here.

Image Credit: Orbit VC

The post Kejora Capital, SBI Holdings launch US$30M fund to invest in early stage Indonesian startups appeared first on e27.

Businesses are reeling from the COVID-19 global pandemic.

The IMF claims that the global economy is expected to shrink by over three per cent in 2020 – the steepest slowdown since the Great Depression of the 1930s. Plus, data indicates that 41 per cent of startups globally are threatened in the ‘red zone,’ having three months or less of cash runway left.

To top it off, around 74 per cent of startups have had to terminate full-time employees since the crisis began.

The term ‘social’ no longer makes us think of social media posts. Rather, the mind automatically thinks of ‘social distancing,’ with everyone glued to their phone screens or laptops, ‘Zooming’ past (pun intended) the distance that now separates family and friends.

Global economies have taken drastic measures – complete with lockdowns and phased re-openings – to flatten the curve and fight against the increasing human toll. In doing so, they gave rise to the world’s biggest work-from-home experiment.

Results so far? Businesses are keeping their heads above water and staying afloat. So much so, that tech giants such as Facebook are leaning towards allowing half of their employees to work from home permanently by 2030.

The point we’re driving home is this: Whichever way you slice it, communication has become the saving grace during the crisis and will remain so in the post-COVID era.

Whether it is coworkers connecting from their homes, companies relying on – and ramping up – their online presence, or globally-dispersed families celebrating virtual birthdays, the power of technology to deliver seamless communication has emerged as the clear winner.

Also Read: Navigate the challenges of COVID-19 while feeding a low-income family in need through #MentorForHope

In this blog, we will look at proven strategies to communicate more effectively with customers, with real-life examples from companies doing it right during this time.

Personalised and honest communication is most needed right now

Recently, Airbnb made headlines, thanks to a heartfelt letter penned by the CEO and co-founder of the company, Brian Chesky. What’s astounding is that despite letting go of 25 per cent of his company, he still won hearts and was praised for being real. Here’s why:

The communication felt genuine and was not another corporate rant about the business going belly up. On the contrary, it was compassionate, humane, and humble in style while being abundant-thinking in approach.

It was an honest account of the decision-making process that led to job losses. Plus, the CEO also made sure to highlight the uncertainty that looms over the travel business instead of making false promises. As you can imagine, this small act of transparency and genuineness gave way to greater confidence and loyalty in the CEO’s actions.

The communication was crystal-clear and extremely detailed, leaving no room for misinterpretations.

In short, Chesky demonstrates what it takes to be human and conduct business when ‘being human’ itself in the times of a crisis is difficult.

Also Read: Communicating a crisis: The one thing you can control right now is how you respond

Another reason why the brand Airbnb tops our list for best communication is the fact that the website is fairly transparent, informative, and open for employees, customers, and the community at large. Notice how everyone can access the CEO’s updates and ‘stay informed’ about how the company is faring at all times:

Key takeaway: In today’s digitally-connected world, it pays for businesses to be human and put themselves in the customer’s shoes (and mind) when communicating about delicate issues.

Offer real value to customers

Perhaps the one thing that you should disavow when it comes to communicating your offerings is making them too sales-y.

After all, your customers are suffering, and they don’t need to be overwhelmed with endless emails about offers or sales. Take a cue from the following brands that ensure that they’re offering true value to users and addressing the elephant in the room instead of pretending not to be doing business as usual:

Headspace’s website is a treat for sore eyes and a cure for an anxious mind. Notice how the brand has a dedicated page for the unemployed – there’s real value in what the brand is offering to the users. Plus, it manages to deal with the sensitive issue of unemployment in as humane and compassionate a way as possible, while urging users to experience their product/service:

Another example we’d like to share is that of Airbnb (yes, again). The website showcases ‘online experiences’ and ‘frontline stays’ as a part of Airbnb’s COVID-centric responses:

Another example that’s worth considering is the car insurance company, Geico, which proactively informs customers of all the steps the company is taking to help them during the pandemic. Here’s an email that the company rolled out to its customers:

Plus, the company highlights all these benefits in greater detail on its website as well, calling it ‘The Geico Giveback’.

Businesses need to represent their brand in a new positive and meaningful light to garner greater trust and build deeper connections with their customers. One way of doing this is by gauging how the brand can do their part to give back to the community and communicate about the same with the right tone, content, and context.

Also Read: We are a coding and robotics school. This is how we prepare for COVID-19 outbreak

Content tonality

COVID-19 has affected nearly every business possible; the entertainment sector is no different. With malls and theatres ordered to stay closed indefinitely, producers in India took the onus of releasing big-budget movies directly onto the online streaming partner, Amazon Prime.

Naturally, this ruffled some feathers among the multiplex owners and here’s how two of the biggest multiplex chains in India – INOX and PVR responded:

INOX’s Statement

PVR’s Statement

No brownie points for guessing which of the two multiplex houses faced immense backlash from the Twitterati. Case in point: When it comes to corporate communications, the tone of your content is everything.

Or in other words, if you turn tone-deaf on your communication collateral, it can do more harm than good. In fact, brands that shy away from showing their vulnerable side can be misjudged as too harsh or even inhuman (as in the case of INOX), whereas, as we saw in the case of PVR, a little empathy goes a long way. Agree?

Customer support team

You could have the best-looking websites and the smartest content across your communication touchpoints, but if your customer service team is not well-equipped to deal with the growing list of anxious and emotionally-charged customers, all that effort can go to waste.

After all, physical illnesses, travel cancellations, insurance coverage disputes, financial constraints, among other things, takes a toll on customers as well as the company in question.

Also Read: The social network: Leveraging connections to expand your business through COVID-19

Let’s think of it from the agent’s perspective – most of whom have never worked-from-home. In this new normal, most agents are seen grappling with poor technological support.

Logically, if the agents themselves are facing innumerable challenges, addressing unpredictable customer concerns is out of the question. To counter this, here’s a three-pronged approach that companies can try:

• Update customer policies to be in line with new requirements post COVID-19.
• Encourage managers to engage in integrated virtual coaching where the agents can voice their concerns and get appropriate guidance. Here’s what a leader from a study by the Harvard Business Review suggests:

“We had to make sure our managers were doing more open-ended questioning with their reps to find out how their calls were going — what they were feeling good about and what they were struggling with — and scheduling several mini-check ins across the day with their people using video conferencing to mimic the cadence and structure of integrated coaching sessions.”

• Foster a culture of belonging and connectedness among the agents by way of intuitive collaboration tools.

Taking stock of the situation at hand, we know that the pandemic is not going away anytime soon. Naturally, businesses will need to rework their communication strategy (if they haven’t already done so) to focus on being heartfelt. Luckily, there are hundreds of brands that are already doing the same.

So, if your inspiration dries up, try these strategies that have worked wonders in the real world and give your brand a fighting chance. And, remember that the end-goal is to woo your most loyal fans, your customers, with authentic conversations.

–

Register for our next webinar: Meet the VC: Qualgro Partners

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

Image credit: Brian McGowan on Unsplash

The post Authenticity first: 5 tips for effective customer communication post-COVID-19 appeared first on e27.

Stay home, stay safe. That is the rallying cry of the month, if not the year, as we embrace social distancing and travel restrictions to flatten the infection curve of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The longer these restrictions remain, however, the more pressure Southeast Asia’s automotive market faces. Consumer sentiment is weaker, with rating agencies revising their forecast numbers for vehicle salesin the region downwards.

As the pandemic continues, the burden on car dealerships is expected to increase. In Malaysia, some 50,000 members of the car dealer and importer workforce may lose their jobs if the crisis continues beyond two months. However, the common consensus is that COVID-19 is here to stay for at least the next year or so, as doctors and scientists rush to find a suitable vaccine or cure.

Demand for personal vehicles may slow down, but it will not cease. Commuters still depend on cars for transport, especially with transmission fears resulting in plunging public transportation ridership numbers around the world. COVID-19 has challenged dealerships to rethink the way they market their automotive offerings, reach their customers and find niches they can fill in this time of limited mobility.

As with many other industries, the answer lies in leveraging technology, and digitally native startups that can help traditional dealerships overcome this physical divide will herald this transformation.

The digitalisation of dealerships

Government lockdowns and movement control orders across the region are keeping people at home and forcing non-essential businesses to close until the situation improves. This has had a major impact on dealerships as footfall traffic is proven to correlate significantly to vehicle sales. In the absence of walk-in buyers, dealers must now turn to the digital marketplace instead.

Also Read: Automotive marketplace Carro adds US$30M to Series B round; acquires Indonesia’s Jualo.com

Prior to the pandemic, the adoption of digital sales platforms was poor in the automotive industry. Cars are big-ticket items and consumers prefer the security of in-person inspections and test drives.

However, the fast-growing online commerce community in the region is seeing a surge of activity from a combination of businesses shifting their operations online and an increase in consumer Internet usage, which makes a strong case for dealers to invest in leveraging these digital channels to reach their customers.

Leading car companies in Asia are already paving the way with innovative solutions. Geely delivers car keys by drone to its customers as part of its fully contactless vehicle sales in China. BMW Asia’s digital showrooms allow customers to browse model ranges and schedule doorstep test drives.

Kia agent Cycle & Carriage launched a flash warehouse sale online with discounts and fully digital consultations. More dealerships are also investing in online sales portals and digital order bookings.

Understandably, customers may be more reluctant to make big purchases completely sight unseen, especially as buying a car is a very personal decision. In the short term, ‘halfway house’ solutions may be more prevalent in automotive sales as the industry and market take time to adjust.

Virtual reality car showrooms, 3D virtual car tours and price negotiations through videoconferencing have the potential to set the stage for the eventual complete digitalisation of the car buying experience.

Data-driven approach

Maximising operational resources is vital to a business’s survival – especially in crises – and this can be achieved through data insights. It is said that 95 per cent of vehicle buyers search for information on vehicles online, with almost twice as many starting their research online instead of at the dealers.

On a basic level, this makes it imperative for both car manufacturers and dealers to have a robust online presence for customers to reach them easily and to stay top-of-mind.

By investing in the correct data management and analysis tools – or working with digital native startups specialising in this area – dealers can drill down further into this consumer behaviour data for better insight into customer search terms and patterns, as well as the sites they are browsing.

It can even be compiled to reveal emerging trends in car shopping behaviour.

Concurrently, this shift shows that relationships are moving from the ‘one-to-many’ to ‘many-to-many’ business models. Which means instead of one model where one company invests and builds an e-platform for many suppliers, more industry networks are trading products and forming public marketplaces for on-the-spot purchasing.

Also Read: Surviving COVID-19: How to adapt your digital marketing strategy amidst a global crisis

This is important as when it comes to the exchanging of cars, individuals can pretty much sell on any platform. But in the past, dealerships or corporate customers remained hesitant due to their preference for traditional norms. Yet, as more businesses buy online, B2C-type open public networks – driven by sellers – can provide quality ‘foot-traffic’ to vendors.

Want to thrive? Then digitalise

New car technologies are being developed every day, yet the purchasing process itself has changed little from both a customer and dealer standpoint. While it is true that COVID-19 has placed a lot of unexpected pressure on car dealers, it can be argued that the pandemic has simply forced long-time operational and engagement deficiencies into the light. It has also highlighted the need for transformation as our dependence on digital technologies grows.

The current situation has already launched a global push for industries to digitalise to survive, and it is imperative that the automotive sector is not left behind. While this is not an overnight change, car dealerships must ramp up their digitalisation efforts to future-proof their operations.

On this front, working with the right digital startups like Carro can help to accelerate that change. The benefits of foresight now will carry well into the future, and dealerships that are first to adapt will blaze the trail for the new normal of the automotive industry.

–

Register for our next webinar: How to keep your customers happy?

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

Image credit: Erik Mclean on Unsplash

The post Digitalisation is driving the new normal for Southeast Asia’s automotive sector appeared first on e27.

 

Updates: The funding amount has been updated

Hubble, a startup that aims to automate construction processes, has raised US$3.6 million in a Series A funding round led by B2B-focussed venture capital firm Tin Men Capital, according to a company statement.

Prior to this funding round, the company has been self-funding its business.

With this latest investment, the Singapore-based company has expressed plans to further scale into different regions in Southeast Asia.

Construction is a large market, and what was long seen as a slow-moving and manual sector, is now finally beginning to digitise rapidly.

By embracing technologies such as data, building information modelling (BIM), smart materials, digital twins, and collaboration platforms, the industry is slowly gearing up to combat infrastructure challenges that are bound to arise as cities grow.

Hubble is one such tech startup which wants to move away from the traditional method of doing construction by venturing into a more efficient way.

Also Read: gojek names Facebook, PayPal as new investors in the latest funding round

Through its software tools, Hubble connects everyone involved in the process such as contractors’ developers, consultants, fabricators, contractors, and facility managers all into one platform.

It improves capabilities across processes of scheduling, resource deployment, and management of productivity via easy to use dashboards and apps that are usable by both contractors’ ground personnel and head office.

The company’s primary focus is Southeast Asia, and it has already partnered with several prominent local government organisations such as Building and Construction Authority (BCA), Public Utilities Board (PUB), and Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA).

Southeast Asia is viewed as an emerging market with immense potential to grow, making it a good option for Hubble’s future expansion.

“Building good products is important but is of no use without market adoption,” said co-founder of Tin Men, Jeremy Tan.

“We saw that almost all the major contractors in Singapore have quickly signed on as happy clients with Hubble, including Woh Hup (one of Singapore’s largest building contractors), Jacobs (an NYSE-listed construction services firm), KKL (one of Singapore’s largest earthworks contractors and materials suppliers), and HSC Pipeline Engineering (an infrastructure specialist with a track record spanning over a quarter-century), among others. None of this would be possible without the tight-knit team that consistently and swiftly delivers under the leadership of SJ and his co-founder and CTO Peter Widjaja,” he further added.

However, Hubble is not the only company working in the construction tech space, with Vulcan Capital-backed Novade also operating in a similar area. The company raised Series B recently in mid-April this year.

–

e27 Pro membership will further empower you with insights, tools, and opportunities that help you solve the problems that hold you back. Begin your company’s journey to success here.

Image Credit: Hubble

 

The post Hubble lands US$3.6M in Tin Men Capital-led Series A for digital construction platform appeared first on e27.

We live in truly unprecedented times. On 26th May 2020, Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) and Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat unveiled the Fortitude Package, a S$33 billion supplementary budget that seeks to provide support for businesses and workers to adapt to the new normal in a post-COVID-19 world. DPM Heng also spent considerable time in his parliamentary speech expounding on how the government is putting in S$500 million via this package to drive digital transformation in Singapore-based companies. 

TeamSpirit is widely acknowledged as a thought leader in the field of digital transformation in Japan, with frequent appearances by our CEO Koji Ogishima in the media. 

Today, I wish to leverage on our extensive expertise on digital transformation to elaborate three mindset shifts that are needed for companies to thrive in a post-COVID-19 world. 

The journey of digital transformation starts with a brave first step, so let’s begin–

Defining digital transformation

According to the International Data Corporation (IDC), global digital transformation spending is expected to reach US$2.3 trillion in 2023, and this figure is likely to increase in a post-COVID-19 world. 

Let’s start by clearly defining “digitisation”, “digitalisation” and “digital transformation”: 

• Digitization refers to the conversion, storage, and usage of analog data to digital data
• Digitalization refers to the usage of digital data to reconstruct business processes, often to increase efficiency and productivity. Note that there are no changes to fundamental business models
• Digital transformation refers to the usage of digital data or emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence to create new business models or economic value. 

Remember the early days when people have to flip through the Yellow Pages to find out how to get from point A to point B? This is a classic example of analog data. On the other hand, with the popularization of smartphones, people can simply head to www.gothere.sg or use google maps to key in the starting and ending points.

We can easily retrieve information such as the distance and time needed to travel between both points, and then make informed decisions about which mode of transportation to take. As a result, we progressed from an analog process into digitalisation– not only is data stored digitally (digitisation), it is also used to reconstruct key processes to increase efficiency and productivity for all. 

Also read: Digital transformation is now real: How COVID-19 has sparked innovation in tech companies

Eventually, we witnessed digital transformation when new “unicorn” startups emerged that capitalised on digital technology such as Uber and Grab. Both companies are born out of completely new business models— neither Uber nor Grab owns the physical vehicles, and yet the economic value and wealth they create is enormous. 

Mindset shift #1: Accept that digital transformation is not linear

Now that definitions are clear, let us consider the first mindset shift that is needed in digital transformation. It is a common misconception that the process of digital transformation is linear. To address this, let’s use a pyramid to illustrate the relationship. 

Only a few companies can reach the pinnacle of digital transformation after a rigorous competition, where the customer value is also higher. The state of technology in most companies will fall within the space of digitisation and digitalisation.

It would serve businesses well to also acknowledge that digital transformation is not a destination, and is instead a continual work in progress. This is because rapid changes are happening in the business and technological landscape every single day.

Along the journey of digital transformation, there will be mistakes and failures, yet this is completely normal. The key is to recognise that the process is not linear.

Mindset shift #2: Embrace a “digital first” mindset

For the past three months, many of us found ourselves participating in an unplanned global experiment on remote work. In April 2020, TeamSpirit did a company-wide survey to find out how our employees are coping with remote work.

And this trend of remote work is likely to continue in a post-COVID-19 world, as companies start to re-evaluate the function of a physical office.

In his Facebook post dated 23 May, Minister Lawrence Wong urged Singaporeans to “now embrace working from home as the new norm”. He made these remarks as Singapore seeks to reopen after Circuit Breaker ends on 2 June.

Tech companies like Facebook and Google announced that their employees can choose to work from home till the end of 2020, and Twitter’s CEO gave employees the choice to work from home permanently, except when they have to be in office for important meetings. 

If partial or full remote work is here to stay for a long time to come, then a digital workplace experience is crucial. According to Deloitte, a digital workforce experience is the “natural evolution” of the workplace. Systems should be in place to ensure that employees enjoy the digital workforce experience which is not constrained by geographical boundaries. 

Also read: Surviving COVID-19: How to adapt your digital marketing strategy amidst a global crisis

As more and more companies start their journeys in digital transformation, employee experience is delivered through digitalised systems and processes. This will determine the success of employee engagement and elevate their productivity. 

The digital workforce experience is likely to become the new norm for many companies, as HR and tech teams strive to streamline digital systems and experiences. Therefore, it might be wise to adopt a mindset of “digital first” in a post-COVID-19 world, leveraging on the Fortitude budget to invest in platforms that allow a stress-free digital workforce experience.

Mindset shift #3: Towards a growth mindset

According to a recent 2020 research by Rohei, there are five broad reasons why employees resist new digital processes: 

• Lack of understanding of the context — “Why are we going digital?”
• Inadequate skills development design— “I haven’t been taught this, what should I do?”
• Insufficient alignment and support–” I’m already so busy, why do I need to learn this?”
• Fear of loss of identity–” Am I going to be made redundant by younger staff/ bots?”
• Having a fixed mindset — “Everything keeps changing, I’m too old for this.”

In the past three months, many of us had been forced to learn digital tools because we were unable to work remotely otherwise. In other words, we confronted our fears regarding all things digital because we had to. We googled, experimented, and found that it wasn’t so intimidating after all. 

This is why a growth mindset is so crucial to success in digital transformation.

A growth mindset towards digital transformation also creates a space for creativity and collaboration. I have been particularly impressed by the “Trace Together” app, which the Ministry of Health, GovTech, and SGUnited came up with using Bluetooth technology. This application is designed to help facilitate community-driven contact tracing in the event of contact with an infected person. And because the software source code is open-sourced, collaboration can take place across borders. 

There are other examples of creative collaboration in Japan, fuelled by a strong growth mindset as well. At the start of the year, developers in Japan kickstarted a COVID-19 specific GitHub page and submitted pull requests to supplement information provided by the official government pages. Verified community news was then posted on the associated COVID-19 landing page. 

Similarly, companies can also encourage an environment where talented people can come together to find creative ways to solve problems, and not be afraid of failure. 

In the book On the Origin of Species, Charles Darwin wrote, “it is not the most intellectual of the species that survives; nor is it the strongest, but the one that is most adaptable to the changing environment in which it finds itself.” 

Indeed, we live in truly unprecedented times. Yet, we can still focus on what we can control– our mindsets. The post-COVID-19 world will look vastly different from the world we used to know. Let’s choose to make the rest of 2020 a year of transition by embracing digital transformation. 

–

Register for our next webinar: How to keep your customers happy?

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

Image credit: Headway on Unsplash

The post 3 much needed mindset shifts to thrive in a post COVID-19 world appeared first on e27.

Medical imaging startup Nanox secures US$20M to expand its AI-based system to Vietnam

Israel-based Nanox, a medical imaging startup that seeks to rewrite the way X-ray works with hardware, has secured US$20 million led by South Korea’s SK Telecom.

According to Venture Beat, the telco will partner with Nanox to deploy 2,500 of its systems in South Korea and Vietnam next year, which is still subject to regulatory approvals.

Nanox has created Nanox.Arc, an X-ray source technology that it claims can lower the cost of imaging hardware from millions of dollars to US$10,000, making it more accessible.

Nanox.Arc can help with the early detection of conditions discoverable by computed tomography (CT), mammography, fluoroscopy, angiogram, and other imaging modalities, and it will be offered under a pay-per-scan business model at prices “competitive” with alternatives, complemented with a cloud-based software dubbed Nanox.Cloud.

Founded in 2016, Nanox was established by Hitoshi Masuya, a Japanese venture capital tycoon, as part of a joint investment with Sony before the latter dropping out. Masuya then partnered with Poliakine, and the two decided to split the company’s operations between Japan and Israel.

Grab expands essential delivery capabilities covering Southeast Asia

Grab has announced the expansion of GrabMart into eight Southeast Asian countries, with Cambodia being the latest addition.

In three months, GrabMart scaled from two to eight SEA countries and is now live in 50 cities across Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, Myanmar, and Cambodia.

Also Read: News Roundup: Cybersecurity startup Horangi nabs US$20M Series B led by Provident Growth

GrabMart started as an on-demand daily essentials delivery service to support consumers during the COVID-19 pandemic. It now has partnered with over 3,000 stores in the region, including supermarkets and convenience store chains like FairPrice Xpress, FamilyMart, Mahnaz Food, Maxvalu, and Tops.

GrabMart provides consumers with a way to purchase a wide range of consumer goods including fresh groceries, home essentials, health and beauty items, gifts, and more. To access GrabMart, users can simply tap on the ‘Mart” tile within the Grab app.

Singapore-driven logistics & supply chain initiative GESCT rebrands into NEXST

Global Emerging Supply Chain Technologies (GESCT), a Singapore-driven global initiative that steers new business models and transformations in the supply chain and logistics industry, has rebranded to Next Supply Chain (NEXST),

NEXST was founded by Reefknot Investments, a Singapore-headquartered global VC firm, along with SGInnovate and Kuehne + Nagel.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Kuehne + Nagel, a global transport and logistics company; Reefknot Investments, a Temasek-backed VC firm; and SGInnovate, to this effect.

Wolfgang Lehmacher, former Director and Head of Supply Chain and Transport Industries, World Economic Forum, and Kong Wai Wei, Global Supply Chain Director, Starbucks Corporation, joined the three companies in their individual capacities.

NEXST was launched in September 2019 and recently launched a whitepaper around supply chain digital transformation post-pandemic, as well as welcoming publisher and event organiser Global Trade Review (GTR) as its latest member.

The whitepaper titled “Supply Chain Digital Transformation: Enhancement of Supply Chain Visibility For the Post-COVID-19 World” is available online through SGInnovate as well as Reefknot Investments’ websites, providing insights on what supply chain visibility means today, emerging issues and challenges and case studies on how cutting-edge technology, including IoT and AI could propel firms towards Supply Chain 4.0.

Malaysia’s Sunway launches urban farming innovation hub to focus on food and agritech solutions

Malaysian conglomerate Sunway has announced that it will build a 50,000 sq ft urban farming innovation hub, which will be completed in the third quarter of 2020.

Led by Sunway iLabs, Sunway FutureX will serve as a skills-building hub for urban farming professionals, tech companies, researchers, and young talents to collaborate and to create transformative solutions focussing on food and agritech, marking the group’s venture into agritech sector.

Also Read: Malaysian accelerator Sunway iLabs to invest US$480K in up to 10 startups in 2018

Sunway FutureX, located in the heart of Sunway City Kuala Lumpur, will have three pillars: FutureX Farm (indoor and outdoor smart farming area), FutureX Talent (R&D centre), and FutureX Campus (training and collaborative space which includes a cafe).

According to Matt Van Leeuwen, Sunway Group Chief Innovation Officer and Sunway iLabs Director, the FutureX Farm will also partner with Thought For Food (TFF), a global non-profit organisation dedicated to entrepreneurial innovation for food and agriculture.

Sunway Pyramid, Sunway Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) and Sunway Hotels also joined forces to introduce the Food CPR – Compost. Plant. Reduce. campaign aimed at tackling the food waste problem in Malaysia.
–

Photo by Ivan Bandura on Unsplash

The post Roundup: Nanox raises US$20M for Vietnam expansion; GrabMart now available in Cambodia appeared first on e27.