For a leading global gamer lifestyle brand such as Razer, product development is the centre of the business that they are doing.

Founded in 2005, the company has had a long history in creating products that enable gamers to play games, engage with each other, and identify with the gamer lifestyle. It has won the Best of CES award consecutively for seven years –and has no plan to stop innovating. This year alone, despite a raging pandemic, Razer continues to launch new products such as the Razer Kiyo camera and the Razer Seiren X microphone, among the few.

In fact, as part of its effort to help the fight against COVID-19, the company also introduced a fully automated mask line.

Certainly, there are several things that startup founders can learn from the gaming giant. This is why e27 speaks to Ayush Sharma, the Lead Product Developer for Mouse Category, and Andrew Philippou, the Product Developer for Keyboard Category, to understand how Razer develops its products, the challenges that they are facing, and how they get through it.

What you can find in this article:

1. Principles and process of product development
2. Product testing
3. Challenges in product development
4. Next steps

Principles and process of product development

When asked about the key principles of product development that the company applies, Sharma starts by pointing out that as a business that targets gamers, Razer needs to have a deep understanding about the needs of their customers. And that begins with putting themselves in their customers’ shoes.

“We are all gamers. Not just those of the team; even people who are not involved in the product development process. We all play games; we love games. So we really understand the needs of all types of gamers,” he says.

Also Read: Afternoon News Roundup: Amartha CEO resigns from Indonesia’s presidential staff position; Razer launches fully automated masks

“We also have a team of passionate gamers and e-sports athletes and streamers that we continuously work with,” Sharma continues.

Speaking to e27 in a separate occasion, Philippou agrees to the explanation.

“It all comes down to addressing the needs of individuals,” he adds. “And just looking for opportunities to solve problems and make things better.”

Philippou then gives an example of Razer Kiyo (pictured), one of their recent releases. The product itself is a web camera with a built-in ring light that enables newbie broadcasters to set up and use the lighting correctly for their sessions.

The development of this product stems from the team’s understanding of the struggles faced by newbie broadcasters: Setting up and positioning their camera and light correctly. Having a product that combines both features in one device can help simplify the works for these users.

In developing a product, Razer begins by creating the concept of a product. There are two ways that a concept can be built upon: First, the engineering team can work on a new area of technology for the product team to consider creating a product based on. Second, they can also build a product based on the team members’ combined experience or inputs from users.

According to Philippou, the use of data plays a great role in this process, especially in deciding which problems to solve.

“We produce products that can solve issues that users are facing, but we do it in a way that is sustainable from the business perspective,” he says.

The team also aims to be “laser-focused” in deciding the main purpose of a product, instead of trying to create a product that “tries to do everything”, as Sharma suggests. They divided their target demographics based on the types of games being played or the purpose of the products.

“Then we basically flesh out that concept, add all the details to it, and have a vision of what that product needs to be and how that’s going to address all the needs and wants of our customers,” Sharma explains.

Also Read: After Razer and Grab, China’s Ant Financial applies for digital banking licence in Singapore

“Once that is done, we essentially go to the feedback phase where we make a few hundred or a thousand prototypes. Then we send it across to gamers across the globe … We also work with a bunch of partners and even external engineers and scientists. We tweaked on those designs until we are satisfied with the results,” he continues.

Within the company, there are different individuals that work on different products, but they are all considered as under one team. Each week, the product team conducts a routine brainstorming session where they are able to share ideas freely. They are also able to test out each other’s works.

“We also look out to develop synergies within our products,” Sharma adds.

While the products team works mostly with engineering and software team, they also work closely with marketing.

Product testing

Another crucial part of product development is testing. According to Sharma, this process is being divided into two parts: Subjective testing (how potential users feel about the product and how they would like to use it) and objective testing (testing the quality of the product itself).

Subjective testing is the part where Razer would send product prototype to gamers, e-sports athletes, and other influencers in the industry to get their feedback while objective testing is being done in the company’s internal laboratories or partner organisations.

“We work with different companies to develop, for example, our ball switch sensor and other related technologies. We take their help to test our products as rigorously as we can, and we keep on fine-tuning them to perfection,” Sharma explains.

But what if a product turns out to have flaws in it, and the flaw is only revealed after the product is being launched? According to Sharma, the first step to take is to admit that there was an issue.

“Then we work with our partners to ensure that the product got an update that fixes the issue and essentially addresses all the other concerns that the customers have raised,” he explains.

Also Read: Razer Fintech leads consortium for youth-targeted bank as part of digital banking license bid

Challenges in product development

When asked about the challenges that they faced in product development, both Philippou and Sharma give a similar answer.

For Philippou, it is all about finding the balance between idealism and business. As developers, they certainly want to understand customers’ challenges and explore all the possibilities that the technology can offer. But they also have to consider the commercial side of things: Is there a big enough market for such a product? Is it going to be sustainable?

“So it’s been about, from my perspective, opening my thought process for developing products and making sure that they make sense for both the end-user as well as the business,” he elaborates.

As for Sharma, the challenge lies in making sure that everyone is happy with their products.

“We obviously get so many feedback and requests from our community … And it takes a lot of time to perfect and fine-tune a product. So I think the biggest challenge is to ensure that we have a good balance of the right portfolio,” he says.

Next steps

The ongoing pandemic has impacted the global tech ecosystem greatly, but according to Philippou, Razer is able to handle and finish their projects on time. In fact, in its recent RazerCon 2020 event (which has hosted virtually), the company announced a list of new products for its customers including the Iskur Gaming Chair, the Tomahawk Gaming Chassis, and the highly sought-after Sneki Snek Plushie.

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Image Credit: Razer

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Intro

Hello everyone, and welcome to the very first episode of the We Live to Build podcast.

I wanted to say hi because this is probably the first time you’re ever heard my voice, and it’s a great chance for us to get to know each other.

My name is Sean Weisbrot, my background is in Psychology, I’ve been based in Southeast Asia for 12 years, and I’ve been encouraging people to talk about their mental health since 2008 when I started out as a teacher in China.

I found that a lot of my students had mental health issues, but they didn’t have anywhere to go.

Their teachers didn’t want to hear it, their parents didn’t want to hear it, and in general, society basically kind of just swept it under the rug.

Throughout the years, I’ve become an entrepreneur and faced a lot of these issues myself, which you’ll learn about more.

Despite spending an enormous amount of time learning and applying techniques that help me manage stress (like developing daily routines with exercise, meditation, sleeping early, taking breaks often, etc), I have still endured hardship along the way that sometimes came close to breaking me.

Also Read: Why we started a podcast amidst COVID-19 to grow our businesses

If you want to learn more about my back story, I urge you to check out our About page.

Anyways, COVID-19 has fundamentally changed the way the world works, and the increase in pressure on a daily basis has finally caused people to start talking more openly and honestly about what they are experiencing.

I believe firmly that entrepreneurship is needed now more than ever to foster a new generation of ideas that can take us into a post-virus world that will hopefully be better, but the challenges that await us will be even harder than the past.

That’s why I decided to build a platform to encourage entrepreneurship in a way that also exposes aspiring entrepreneurs to the reality of what they might come to experience.

In that way, I hope you will be able to prepare yourselves so it will limit the problems you experience by taking better care from the start.

What you can expect

With that in mind, going forward you can expect three types of podcast episodes from us.

The first kind of episode is an informal conversation between myself and another entrepreneur, but instead of merely praising their successes, we’re going to talk about the rollercoaster journey they went on to reach where they are today.

The guests will be expected to share the hard truths they’ve experienced, as well as encourage you with their successes.

The second kind of episode is a monologue where I talk about a topic I think is extremely important, like why meditation saved my life, or how to turn a weakness into a strength.

Also Read: Vietnam’s podcast platform Voiz FM snags seed funding from 500 Startups

The third kind of episode will be where we answer a question from the community about something they are currently struggling with, like “How do I know when to delegate a task to someone else,” or “How do I determine the best country to incorporate in?”

Beyond these podcasts, we’ll also have content of several types, like roundups where multiple entrepreneurs will answer a question with a short response, or entrepreneurs and mentors writing a long-form article about a specific topic like “What was it like to hire my first employee?” or “What was it like to launch my first MVP?”

Thanks for spending some time listening to our introduction, if you liked this please sign up for our newsletter now, follow us on Twitter at @welivetobuild, and get ready to hear some wild stories that could be your life one day soon.

And remember, entrepreneurship is a marathon, not a sprint.

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This article was first published on We Live To Build.

Image Credit: Michal Czyz on Unsplash

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Mangan, an on-demand B2B food service startup in Indonesia, has secured an undisclosed sum in investment from Richard Avila, Senior Director at food distribution giant US Foods.

The round, which takes Mangan’s valuation to US$1 million, will be used for product optimisation and to add new features to its products such as ManganDaily.

The company was started in 2019 by brothers Hardi Halim (CEO) and Hutomo Halim (CFO). The concept was inspired from the duo’s personal experiences.

Also Read: Yummy Corp bags US$12M Series B to grow its cloud kitchen brand in Indonesia

“I had faced difficulties in getting lunch and choosing the meal varieties while working for a logistics company in the US. Back then, my employer didn’t have canteen facilities except a vending machine that only offered frozen sandwiches,” said Hardi.

Hutomo also had similar experience in establishing restaurants in Surabaya. He often found it hard in getting new customers because the business was still new. At the same time, existing restaurants found it difficult to accept large orders from bigger institutions due to limited connections.

This prompted the siblings to come together and start Mangan.

In a nutshell, Mangan provides popup restaurant and drop-off catering services by connecting restaurants serving on-site food with diverse institutions such as startups, MNCs, hospitals and schools in the archipelago.

Mangan claims it has partnered with more than 200 restaurants and serves more than 40,000 food packets to 80 office locations in Jabodetabek and Surabaya.

“We receive orders from 11 industrial sectors. A few months ago, we also opened an online marketplace for individuals to book catering service for events,” said Hutomo.

Also Read: iSeed SEA launches micro-fund targeting Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand

Avila, who has previously worked with Nestle, said he believes in the vision and mission Mangan brings to create innovations by offering new revenue streams to restaurants.

“I hope the foodservice sector is resilient and is able to come out of the pandemic and continue to grow significantly over the coming decades by going through a period of transformation with the support of technology and innovation. This is where companies like Mangan come in and contribute to change,” said Avila.

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Image Credit: Mangan

The post Mangan receives angel funding to provide on-demand food services to diverse institutions in Indonesia appeared first on e27.

NCS, an ICT services provider based in Singapore and a member of Singtel Group, has entered into an agreement to acquire 2359 Media, a local digital services consultancy focused on ideating and building digital products and platforms.

The transaction details are not known.

The completion of the acquisition is subject to fulfilment of closing conditions.

As per a statement, the deal will enhance NCS’s capabilities in agile development, design thinking and cloud native application development, complementing its NEXT service offerings in digital, cloud, platforms and cybersecurity.

Also Read: The cloud has moved mountains, but always keep an eye out for security

Post-acquisition, 2359 Media, which also has offices in Vietnam and Indonesia, will become part of NCS NEXT digital arm.

The combination of 2359 Media with NCS NEXT’s digital capabilities and strengths in large-scale application and infrastructure implementations will offer clients access to a range of digital services — from design thinking, rapid prototyping, cloud native app development, to creation of innovative digital solutions.

Ng Kuo Pin, CEO of NCS, said: “By leveraging on the strengths of 2359 Media in creating innovative mobile apps and solutions, we are in an even stronger position to help our clients accelerate their digital transformation agendas through experience design and purposeful adoption of digital technologies.”

Also Read: Cybersecurity threats on the rise as companies shift to the WFH model

According to Research and Markets, the global digital transformation market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 22.5 per cent from 2020 to 2027, to reach US$1,392.91 billion by 2027, with the Asia Pacific region accounting for US$379.95 billion in 2027.

Wong Hong Ting, CEO and Founder of 2359 Media, said: “Joining NCS NEXT presents a strategic opportunity for us to drive acceleration of digital solutions across a variety of industries. We started our company with the purpose of transforming the way people live and work through innovative application of digital technologies. With the backing of NCS’s resources and NCS NEXT services teams, we can create lasting impact and deeper changes with clients in Singapore and the region.”

2359 Media was part of the consortium led by Enigma Group to apply for a digital bank licence in Singapore.

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Image Credit: NCS

The post Singtel unit NCS acquires 2359 Media to accelerate the growth of its digital arm appeared first on e27.

Singapore-based hospitality startup RedDoorz, today announced the launch of SANS, a trendy, economy lifestyle hotel brand as part of its strategy to build the “largest new-age hospitality company” in Southeast Asia.

SANS — derived from the Indonesian word “santai” (roughly translated as “chill”) — aims to provide a vibrant and cosy stay experience at a low cost.

Properties under the new brand will feature trendy furnishings and amenities, and are intended for consumers who value stylish comfort and modern design without having to pay a hefty price.

Also Read: Founding RedDoorz “was like hitting the reset button” after years in the corporate travel industry: Amit Saberwal

With this launch, RedDoorz aims to become an ecosystem of various accommodation products, each backed by distinct brands and catering to the different needs of consumers — from no-frills budget stays to more premium, design-inspired experiences and even extended stays offering.

“We’ve had a great journey over the last five years growing RedDoorz into the region’s number one hotel brand. We are now getting ready for our next phase of growth, and despite COVID-19 we remain deeply committed to Southeast Asia’s hospitality potential,” said Amit Saberwal, Founder and CEO, RedDoorz.

“We want to continue to transform how people travel and live in Southeast Asia, provide more economic value to our accommodation partners and become the largest hospitality platform in our region,” he added.

Customers will be able to book rooms at SANS Hotels via the RedDoorz mobile app or its website.

SANS is the second brand launched by the company this year after KoolKost (an extended stay co-living brand in Indonesia that allows customers to rent long-stay rooms under flexible leases), which was launched in beta mode in January 2020.

KoolKost addresses the supply-demand gap in the long-term rental housing space and eliminates the unnecessary hassle of having to pay hefty deposits, worry about contract lock-ins or stress over unpredictable living conditions like maintenance, furnishing, and unreliable housekeeping.

Also Read: Our hyper-local approach sets us apart from competitors: Amit Saberwal of RedDoorz

RedDoorz to rebrand in Q1 2021

The vision of RedDoorz as a multi-brand accommodation platform will come to life with a new redesigned app and rebranding campaign in Q1 2021. The new app design will feature easy access and navigation to the different accommodation brands and will also be complemented by a new loyalty programme, which can be used to earn and redeem discounts and access exclusive partner offers and benefits.

Launched in 2015, RedDoorz is among the leaders in the hospitality sector win Southeast Asia. The startup has since expanded its presence into Indonesia,  the Philippines and Vietnam.

In July last year, RedDoorz bagged US$45 million in Series B round of funding, led by Qiming Venture Partners, alongside Jungle Ventures and its network of Limited Partners.

Prior this round, RedDoorz raised a US$11 million pre-Series B funding round in March 2018 from Asia Investment Fund of SIG, IFC, InnoVen Capital, and Jungle Ventures. This was preceded by a US$1 million in venture debt from InnoVen Capital in 2017.

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Image Credit: RedDoorz

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