A recent survey by a major publication in Singapore sparked a discussion about the value of art and artists in society. The survey found that over 70 per cent of the respondents picked artists as non-essential jobs.

It was later highlighted that the survey responses were closely tied to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic where essential needs such as health and food were arguably top of mind. However, the debate over the value of art and education in the arts persisted.

As a former scholar of an unusual combination of applied maths, engineering, and studio art, I am keen to reflect on what this will mean for the future of STEM, particularly in the field of data and AI.

There is plenty of discussion about diversity but acceptance of diversity is a larger economic, political, socio-economic question. Diversity is about accepting differences and not forcing men, women, NLP engineers, data artists, decision scientists to fit into the same mold.

In AI, this is especially true. As we advance towards a data-driven future, AI will require not just data and engineering skills but increasingly, and some argue, more importantly, there will be a need to emphasise judgment, decision-making, and people skills.

I have spent over 10 years in technology, moving from science-based health projects to pure technology across three countries. However, I didn’t choose a career path in tech. I knew from very early on that I wanted a people-focused career and tech was just the medium. My real passion was and remains mathematical storytelling.

Also Read: How learning like babies can be the future of AI?

By choosing to study the different areas that I did, I was able to combine both my analytical and creative talents and get involved in game-changing innovation like building robotic arms for smart prosthetics and then moving across the world to delve into the world of insights for large technology companies.

In my current role at GitLab, what I love most is making tech work for customers around the world through new innovation. We now have the capability to solve things that we couldn’t before through the lens of AI, but we can do this effectively only when we embrace the diversity in passions and talent.

As humans, we find comfort in certainty and reproducibility. For employers, to hire a good data scientist, they would fall back on a checklist of the robotic skills (python, stats, presentation). However, to build a good AI model, one not only needs a mathematician but also poets, storytellers, linguistic specialists, among others.

Instead of viewing analytics and soft skills as two distinct skill sets, they should be considered as part of the same genre of human problem-solving skills. How we use tools is the craft but how we apply these tools to creatively solve a human problem is an art. Analytics is, therefore, a subset of soft skills and vice versa.

In our day-to-day lives as STEM professionals, we have to be active listeners to understand the needs of customers, their problems, and their desires. Only with that understanding can we creatively craft the analytics solution to solve the need and articulate how the solution fits in the holistic journey of the customers.

We have reached the point in time where humanity and technology co-exist and our lives get more intertwined with technology in one way or another. While there is no denying that enhancing our technical skills is paramount, I believe that skills such as critical thinking, communication, and decision-making are equally important.

For example, Pure Math is a craft but Applied Math and how we use it to solve problems is art. Similarly in AI, we have data, tools, fast computing engines, fast mathematical solutions such as tensor flow, DevOps frameworks extended to Machine Learning (ML)Ops, AIOps and DataOps, but how we apply all these tools and concepts to solve a human problem is a work of art.

Also Read: How this project uses artificial intelligence to help develop restaurants’ menu

We need all sorts of minds in harmony orchestrating every gender of different myelinated fibre strength, not just in STEM but also in art to create the magic of AI. Diversity in AI is having a platform where passion and individuality are embraced and creatively used in unified machine prediction and storytelling, embracing the personalisation of strengths and complementing each other’s weaknesses, finding freedom through problem-solving in the harmony of different backgrounds, age, sex, mindsets without altering each other.

At GitLab, the phrase “Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging” (or DIB) refers to the terminology for the initiative to create a diverse workforce and an environment where everyone can be their full selves.

The approach will help us not only in creating better AI models but fundamentally change the way we interact with computers, to make human interaction and society more efficient and ultimately enable a digitised ecosystem to solve critical problems and barriers to our evolution.

In order to achieve the true potential of an AI-driven world, we need to support young people in genuinely choosing their passion without any discrimination, whether they be science, technology or art, philosophy and international relations.

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The COVID-19 pandemic has been brutal to startups and small businesses. How so?

Unlike big businesses, startups don’t have large cash reserves or profit margins to keep the wheels turning during unexpected slumps.

Reverse revenue churn coupled with business overheads have pushed many startups towards bankruptcy and shut down.

Startups in the seed phase (when businesses are low on liquidity since they are mostly bootstrapped or self-funded) have been most vulnerable. As their services/products were yet to generate revenue from real customers, they were forced to fold back operations before reaching maturity. 

While new-born startups had it extra-tough, the “valley of death” (in startup language) has engulfed startups in all stages.

Now, as the business world unlocks from global lockdowns, startups that we’re fortunate to survive the slowdown are looking for recovery plans to get their revenue engine up and running.

In this post, I’ll explain a few smart survival strategies for startups to emerge stronger in a post- COVID-19 world.

Let’s get started.

Also Read: What gaming industry can teach the fashion industry amidst COVID-19

How can startups get back on track after COVID-19

Being the worst-affected demographic, startups need risk-free survival strategies to resurrect. They might need to overhaul their business plans and long-term vision.

Whatever disaster management tactics you use, first conduct a risk assessment on them. If you miss this crucial step, you might end up investing heavily in a tactic that doesn’t give proportionate returns.

As a startup owner, here are the steps that you need to take to get your business back on its feet:

Reassess your expenses

Startups with liquidity problems need to control their expenses from mounting during this slump. You need to take a good look at your balance sheet and segregate expenses into fixed and variable categories.

Expenses that have a direct impact on revenue cannot be avoided without disturbing the income stream. On the other hand, running costs such as consumables and rentals can be minimised with smart planning.

For instance, manufacturers can automate inventory management so that they are alerted when stock prices fall. They can redesign product lines to use lower-priced items. 

Travel tech startups can divert resources from hotels and entertainment (which are halted at the moment) into more profitable service areas such as facility management. 

For startups in all domains, investment in digital experiences and tools can reduce travel overheads without affecting productivity. There is virtually no key operation area that can’t be facilitated through automated tools.

Also Read: How to emerge stronger in a post COVID-19 world

Anything else?

Yes. Monitoring your cost-revenue balance should not be a one-time activity. You need to reassess your situation every three months at least. While planning resource allocation, it’s best to create short and flexible plans as the market is very unpredictable right now. 

Approach your existing investors for reinvestment

Every business needs capital to survive. Startups, in particular, rely heavily on venture capitalists (VC) or high-net-worth individuals (HNI) for funding. Since it’s uncertain when this pandemic will end, VC/HNI investors are extra-vigilant and taking their time evaluating investment opportunities.

Sound familiar?

I bet it does. But you don’t have to panic. You can approach your existing investors with reinvestment plans. Since they already have a stake in your business, there’s a good chance that they will extend the collaboration.

If you support your investment appeal with concrete business strategies and data-backed profit projections, you can make it a no-brainer for investors.

What if your investors don’t buy your story? Should you press the panic button?

Not yet. 

If you have liquid reserves, you can tide through this period and wait till you are better placed. In the meantime, keep a close watch on your business valuation. Make a strategic call about when to approach investors for round two of funding.

I might seem too optimistic, but I’m not joking when I say that you can convert this adversity into an opportunity. Use your business acumen and adaptability to create more business opportunities for yourself and your stakeholders. That can convince your investors to increase their equity stake.

Also Read: Has COVID-19 pushed us into the digital future?

Check business model for feasibility

Your startup might be marginally lucky if you are covered under essential services defined by state governments. By tweaking your working format, your business model will be feasible during and after the pandemic. 

However, if your supply chain is affected by government-imposed lockdowns, you might have to revisit business plans. You’ll have to relook your current financial position with regard to sales, bad debts, credit cycles, and collections.

Here are some ways by which you can pivot your business model to align with the “new normal” conditions:

• Renegotiate your variable expenses (equipment rentals, office leases, and salaries).
• Change your selling strategy from in-person to virtual.
• Focus on recovering bad debts.
• Cut down on travel expenses of operations teams by allowing them to work remotely.
• Scale down your marketing plans.
• Revise sales targets and product delivery timelines.

Through all this, it’s essential that you stay connected with all stakeholders, including vendors, workers, and customers. In such uncertain times, it’s easy for them to lose faith and look for other business opportunities, which can be a big setback for you. 

Explore alternative business models

The pandemic has changed buyer behaviour in a big way. Consumers prefer to engage with trusted brands who can assure them real value, deliverability, and customer service.

Startups are suddenly finding themselves locked in a heated competition with established brands.

To capitalise on the situation, your startup can try an affiliate business model.

Also Read: Humanising customer experience is the best way to build loyalty in a post-COVID-19 world

What’s that?

You can partner with reputable brands that sell complementary products. Though these brands are targeting the same audience as you, they are not direct competitors. They refer their customers to you in return for a commission. 

In this way, you earn new leads without spending a bundle on direct marketing.

However, the affiliate model is feasible only if it’s mutually beneficial. You will need to keep a watch on performance indicators that you and your affiliates mutually decide. If you have multiple affiliates generating leads for you from multiple channels, affiliate marketing platforms can help streamline things.

You can also ask existing customers for referrals and retarget lost leads to save on customer acquisition costs.

Demonstrate empathy

Lastly, brands need to be empathetic in all of their communications with workers, suppliers, and customers.

Why is that important?

Once markets bounce back, people will remember and reward brands that displayed integrity and compassion when times were tough. 

Also Read: How to organise your workforce for the volatile world

Also, there have been cases where brands have received negative publicity for mishandling their stakeholders. That can be disastrous for growing startups.

Startups need to be mindful of how the pandemic has changed customer expectations from brands. They need to step up their customer service game to beat the competition and retain customers.

You can crowd-source service ideas from customers by asking for their suggestions. Create feedback forms asking customers to share which services they expect from your brand. Implement the suggestions on priority. In this way, you can improve customer loyalty and also prevent your existing customers from going astray. 

When it comes to workers, you need to strike a balance between their professional aspirations and your business needs. While salary cuts and lay-offs might be inevitable, it’s good to go about it in a compassionate manner. Discuss the business situation with them honestly and explain why the rollbacks are necessary.

Startups that are transparent in their communication can boost their credibility and trust quotient, which can earn them new business opportunities.

The COVID-19 pandemic has toppled the delicate ecosystem of startups. Even mature startups are finding it hard to adapt to the unprecedented challenges they are facing.

But new challenges build new capabilities. Startups need to keep up their efforts. The survival strategies in this post can help you sail through this period. Do you need more information on any of the tips I’ve mentioned? Leave your questions in the comments below. 

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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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Wavemaker Partners, Southeast Asia’s leading early-stage VC firm focussed on enterprise and deeptech startups, has announced the final close of its third Southeast Asia (SEA) fund at US$111 million, exceeding its initial target of US$100 million.

Also Read: Peace of mind: Meet the coworking space that aims to facilitate mental health professionals’ practices

The backers of the new fund include new investor Concentric Equity Partners will join existing ones Pavilion Capital, Temasek, IFC, and Vulcan Capital.

As per an earlier press release, Fund III aims to invest in 60 new companies with an initial check size of about US$500,000.

Since 2012, Wavemaker has built a wide-ranging portfolio across industry verticals (e.g. financial services, healthcare, food/agriculture), horizontal processes (e.g. HR, sales & marketing, cybersecurity), and technologies (AI, IoT, additive manufacturing). It has invested in over 130 startups, of which 100 (86 per cent) are enterprise-focused with over 40 (32 per cent) of these in deeptech and Artificial Intelligence.

Companies that have received funding from the VC firm include Zilingo​, ThinCI​,​ CashShield​, L​ynk​, ​Structo,​ ​Growsari,​ ​Igloohome​, Silent Eight, Novade, GudangAda and Transcelestial.

It also has some exits to its name, including Indonesian mobile point-of-sale system Moka (acquired by Gojek), cloud communications software company Wavecell (acquired by 8×8) and regional payments solutions provider Red Dot Payment (acquired by PayU/Naspers).

Wavemaker’s second fund worth US$66 million was one of the largest early-stage fund focused on enterprise and deeptech startups in the region.

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Patsnap’s software sales were actually higher in the past few months during COVID-19 than they were at the beginning of the year before the pandemic hit the world hard.

If you are wondering how, like us, then watch the latest webinar where we chatted with CEO of Patsnap, Jeffrey Tiong. He shared their transition from a sales-led to a product-led growth model and how COVID-19 actually enabled it.

Key takeaways

• In today’s hyperconnected business environment, it is not the fittest that survive, but the most adaptable one. This is in line with the idea that British naturalist Charles Darwin had proposed years ago.
• In the 1980s, when Microsoft and other software companies came into the market, purchasing decisions were made on a top-down basis. It was done with the big bosses in command.
• Patsnap traditionally relied on a sales-led growth model where the sales team would make cold calls to potential customers.
• The typical funnel looked like this: “We talk to them and ask if they are interested. If they are, we qualify them. We will do a demo. And once they’re once they agree to purchase, we will onboard them.”
• But now the department managers have the power and the budget to make these decisions. “We are entering the end-user era.”
• With examples such as Zoom and Slack, the end-user is now opening up and guiding enterprise decisions. This is the bottom-up era that has been going on for the past few years and COVID-19 has accelerated it.
• Product-led growth is when the end-user sees the value in a product and how it can aid their lives thus influencing their companies, startups, or even communities to adopt them.
• Patsnap shifted gears to the product-led growth since COVID-19 struck China and seen considerable results.
• While they still do the typical marketing approach such as using SEO, SEM, Content marketing, and other channels, they started a free use of the product in Q1 in China. Surprisingly, it has led to higher customer interest and lead generation for them.
• This “freemium” model allows the customers to use and test the product even before the salesperson gets to them. This totally changed the customer acquisition model for Patsnap. Their conversion rate was higher and user acquisition cost went down considerably.
• “Use your product to become your spokesperson and let the customers experience its value.”
• Product-led motion worked well for Patsnap across markets such as the US, China, and Europe.
• It is important to make the product journey simple and easy to use for consumers. Even if the product is free but complex for a user to comprehend and avail without guidance, it will not yield results.
• Continue to monitor and analyse metrics for users that log in but don’t continue using the free product. So keep looking for answers to the “why”.
• The funnel looks like this: Acquisition, activation, retention, revenue, referral.
• The right timing, employee buy-in, and a strong product are the only essentials you need for driving product-led growth.
• Be prepared to change your full company DNA. It will not just affect your customer acquisition but also operations, product development, and other areas.

Also Read: From sales-led to product-led: PatSnap founder shares how COVID-19 shifted their growth strategy

Silver lining

• Tiong emphasised that usually shifting to a product-led growth model would lead to resistance from the sales teams but COVID-19 is actually a good time to bring in this model. The markets are in a tizzy and this is a great time to adapt and shift gears. It is the best time to make a big change.
• Even if your product is a service or not easy to sell, there are many valuable propositions. It can be a feature, it can be a part of the product, etcetera. So look harder.
• For an entrepreneur, anything is possible.

Worth mentioning

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.”- Charles Darwin

“We have seen two years’ worth of digital transformation in two months.” – Satya Nadella, CEO, Microsoft

Resources

To know more about what happens to your existing sales team when you adopt this model, or how to retain the new customers and more, check out the full video recording.

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Consumer spending recovers in Singapore: Revolut data

The story: Financial super app Revolut has revealed data showing the recovery of consumer spending in Singapore as it enters Phase Two of its post-circuit breaker measures.

More data: After facing a hit during COVID-19 lockdown, restaurant and in-store shopping transactions are returning to normalcy and have increased in growth up to 125 per cent and 168 per cent respectively.

Transport has also seen a spike of growth with Gojek increasing by 96 per cent and Grab by 41 per cent. Lazada and RedMart have also seen growth of 25 per cent followed by online marketplaces.

Analysis: Digital payments are expected to grow as more consumers turn to contactless transactions solutions in the current climate.

Also Read: Peace of mind: Meet the coworking space that aims to facilitate mental health professionals; practices

Walrus raises funding

The story: Bangalore-based neobank Walrus has announced an undisclosed amount of funding for its platform.

Investor: Better Capital (lead investor), Raveen Sastry (Co-founder, Myntra), Raghunandan G (CEO of TaxiForSure), Brijesh Thakkar

Plans with the capital: Hiring and enhancing current product

More about Walrus: A digital-only banking platform aimed for teenagers to help them manage their money smartly and incorporate good financial habits.

Through the app, parents will be able to set saving goals for their children, teach them how to invest small amounts of money in SIPs and mutual funds and teach them to budget their expenses. The app is currently still in its beta stage.

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Image Credit: Revolut

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