Some years ago, a close university friend was urgently seeking a management role in finance. She requested that I introduce her to my contact, Mr. E, a long-tenured executive at a prominent local bank where he held a high-level position. As a family friend of many years, I was happy to facilitate the introduction as I knew my acquaintance possessed strong qualifications. However, I failed to confirm whether she sincerely desired the job.

Given my deep relationship, Mr. E took the time to personally interview her and offered her a role with excellent growth potential. To my dismay, she resigned only two days later. It became clear she had merely been awaiting another offer and departed without regard for the impact on myself or the bank.

I sincerely and deeply apologise to Mr. E for wasting his valuable time and for not realising my associate might treat the introduction casually. He graciously accepted my apology and underscored the importance of reputation in business circles.

“Relationships and networks are the lifeblood of commerce in Asia. Use them prudently,” was the essence of his counsel. It was a lesson I have carried with me. To this day, out of continuing embarrassment, I have not requested any further introductions from Mr. E, wary other referrals could similarly sour.

The importance of reputation and relationships in Asia

The power of relationships, often referred to as “guan xi” in Mandarin, has been well documented across Asia. In many Asian cultures, relationships are even more integral to business dealings and success.

When asking someone for a significant business favour, especially one that could impact their reputation or career, the requestor will carefully consider the risk involved, the strength of the relationship, and any potential benefits.

Also Read: Optimising workplace engagement in the digital era of productivity

For example, one startup founder was denied banking services after an assessment. Frustrated, he pointed to other similar startups that received facilities.

“Do I need to be your childhood friend to get the same treatment?” The unfortunate answer is often yes, to an extent. I knew the bank’s CEO and inquired about the differing decisions.

He explained that granting facilities to this startup carried too much risk since they lacked familiarity. However, he said, “If you’re willing to endorse them, I’ll approve it, but your reputation will be attached.”

While unstated, we both understood endorsing them could impact future assessments of my own credibility should I someday seek similar services. Not wanting to endanger my reputation, I declined to recommend the startup out of caution for what might occur if things went wrong.

Building connections

For an entrepreneur, building connections and working with various stakeholders throughout the value chain are essential. Connecting with associates or senior leadership at large multinational corporations can provide access to strategic resources. Entrepreneurs may also collaborate across borders and industries to deliver more robust solutions to major clients. Ultimately, cultivating useful, trusted relationships is important for business growth.

However, establishing such connections can be challenging, especially for newer entrepreneurs lacking an established network. Traditional outreach methods like cold calling or LinkedIn may yield inconsistent results. A preferable approach leverages one’s own contacts, such as close colleagues or mentors, to facilitate warm introductions to targeted individuals. Trusted intermediaries can help validate credibility and increase the likelihood of a successful initial interaction.

Overall, strategically developing professional relationships through referrals from within one’s own network may represent the most effective pathway to expand opportunities and resources over time. Ongoing relationship building remains a core competency for entrepreneurial success.

A cost to reputational capital

Before asking others to introduce you, remember that introductions require reputational capital from the introducer. For example, when introducing a startup founder to senior associates via email, my own reputation is at stake. Associates will respond based on their familiarity with and trust in me, believing that due diligence has been performed regarding the introduction. Simultaneously, introductions create an obligation — the introducer expects a favour to be returned if called upon.

For this reason, I am sometimes forthright when asked for introductions, only agreeing if trust is established in the person, and I am willing and able to reciprocate future favours to associates.

Respecting introductions

Having facilitated many introductions between startup founders and contacts, I have experienced both positive and negative outcomes. There are important factors to consider both when requesting and receiving introductions from others.

Also Read: The 3 questions that will help maximise every entrepreneur’s productivity

Do:

• Thank the contact for their time and consideration. Respond promptly, within 24 hours of the introduction if possible, to respectfully acknowledge their outreach and express your appreciation for the opportunity to connect.
• Be clear and specific regarding your objectives for the initial discussion while remaining open-minded to the contact’s perspectives and priorities. Rather than an open-ended meeting, outline how you hope your discussion might help address mutual interests or needs.
• Arriving early for any in-person meetings is a sign of your professionalism. Punctuality shows respect for the contact’s time and consideration.
• Acknowledge the relationship between yourself and your introducer to provide helpful context. For example, note if they previously mentored or collaborated with you.
• Throughout any discussions, maintain the highest levels of courtesy, respect and integrity. Remember, the introducer has entrusted you with representing them positively. Where applicable, consider modest incentives that might benefit both the contact and your introducer, recognizing their established relationship.

Expressing gratitude with sincerity

As a mentor, one disappointment I sometimes face is losing contact with founders after making introductions on their behalf. Even if follow-up occurs, the communication sometimes lacks sincerity and only aims to request more introductions without cultivating the relationship. It is unsatisfying to feel used solely as a resource without acknowledgement as a person.

When providing introductions, mentors like myself do so in a spirit of goodwill, hoping to help others progress in a reciprocal manner. Introductions are made with the trust that recipients will respect the connection and express proper gratitude.

Fortunately, some founders demonstrate appreciation admirably. Some promptly updated me on the progress of the introduction and reiterated their thanks. They offered to return the favour by helping those I referred to them.

Others express gratitude more personally through thoughtful gestures such as thank you notes or buying coffee. As a result, bonds of trust have formed, and new professional networks have been established.

In Asia, relationships are built on trust and reputation. Therefore, as a founder expands, introductions and connections should be treasured. The way one handles these interactions reflects one’s reputation, which can make or break important deals. Expressing sincere gratitude is key to cultivating strong, lasting professional relationships.

—

This article first appeared on TRIVE’s internal knowledge sharing.

Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing views from the community. Share your opinion by submitting an article, video, podcast, or infographic.

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

Image credit: Canva

The post Relationships and networks are the lifeblood of commerce in Asia appeared first on e27.

To this day, I don’t know how I managed to keep working despite the frequent daily trips to the bathroom and the abdominal pain since November 2022. However, back then, standard anti-diarrhoea medication still had an effect.

I even flew to the Philippines in November to moderate a blockchain gaming panel at the Philippine Web3 Festival. Then, in December, I went to Bangkok to help organise, host and cover the first Polygon Guild Bangkok Meetup.

Honestly, I didn’t even mind or show anyone any signs of the pain I was feeling. It would be different, of course, when I got back to my hotel.

But I’m a long-time believer in the power of technology for good and have fully embraced Web3 as the future. I was too excited to attend my first on-ground events since the pandemic and meet up with all the wonderful people in Web3 – many of them for the first time in real life – to let pain stop me. 

I think that’s what helps us keep going even when times are really tough. Faith in something bigger than we are. The desire to help others instead of just focusing on our own problems. The sense of responsibility I feel, as someone privileged to belong to the digital haves, to help the digital have-nots and bridge the digital gap.

Crypto Winter taught us to become resilient. It weeded out those who truly saw Web3 as a revolutionary force and focused on creating long-term value from those who were only motivated by greed and wanted cash grabs.

Now that Crypto Winter is thankfully over, the Web3 individuals and organisations that have kept the faith emerged stronger in 2024.

Others ran away. They kept building.

Learn to let go and don’t be afraid to ask for help

Still, resilience doesn’t mean ignoring our limitations. As with cancer, you can’t be a control freak in Web3. You need to be fully aware of your strengths and weaknesses. You can’t be a lone wolf, but you should be willing to collaborate with others and accept help when needed.

It’s been a bitter pill for me to swallow, but I can’t do a lot of things for myself anymore. Physically, I have lost almost 30 kg, the lightest I have ever been since college or during my early days as an employee. Sure, when I was obese, I wanted to one day reach my ideal weight, but cancer definitely wasn’t what I had in mind.

Also Read: What living with the Big C has taught me about Web3 (Part 1)

For someone who enjoys taking long walks and travelling inside and outside the country, I’m now mostly confined to our house. I’m immunocompromised, so I have to wear a mask again outside, avoid crowds, and visit malls only during weekdays and near opening hours, if at all.

Mostly, I just leave the house to go to the hospital, enjoy the condo facilities, and sometimes accompany my wife to the grocery store since a small community mall is directly connected to our building. Even then, I have to watch out because I randomly get tired and dizzy, particularly a week or so after a chemo cycle. 

I now need to use a cane when I’m inside the house and a wheelchair when I go out. It took my wife a long time to convince me because it made me feel so helpless. But I learned to accept that it was for my own good because it would be worse if I suddenly collapsed while walking outside.

In March, I was confined twice for a total of two weeks. First, due to an infection that caused me to be admitted during the first two days of critical care because my blood pressure plunged to 60/40, I was suffering from a fever, and the doctor wanted to guard against sepsis.

Then the most recent one because my blood count kept dropping even after the infection was cured. A new blood culture revealed that my bone marrow was dysplastic, meaning new blood cells were dying before they could reach maturity and be released into my bloodstream. Thankfully, no presence of lymphoma has been detected in my bone marrow. Instead, it seems my immune system is attacking my bone marrow, so my doctor started me on a new regimen to treat this.

Also, no matter how much food I try to eat, my body is not absorbing nutrients properly. So during my confinement and for the first two weeks after I was discharged, I received parenteral nutrition, receiving nutrients intravenously.

My chemo infusions increasingly became more aggressive as the treatment was tweaked based on my response and progress. The first three cycles were already more aggressive than the usual CHOP chemo treatment. Instead, we opted for CHOEP, which stands for cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin (hydroxydaunorubicin), vincristine (for its brand name Oncovin), etoposide, and prednisone/prednisolone. This required a two-day infusion because of the additional drug etoposide. 

After the third cycle, my doctor ordered another scope and biopsy. He then recommended switching to an even more aggressive chemotreatment because we hadn’t made as much progress as we initially expected. So, the next three chemo cycles, which were supposed to be the last three, made use of dose-adjusted EPOCH. The same combination of drugs, but now infused for five days for 24 hours.

Dose-adjusted EPOCH truly was aggressive. During and after every cycle, my immune system would suffer greatly. My blood counts would drop drastically, even though since the start of the first chemo cycle, I was being injected with a booster that would stimulate the production of white blood cells. Even so, sometimes, I needed to be confined because of a fever caused by an infection, despite taking every precaution.

Prepare a game plan but don’t get too attached to it

The original plan was for me to undergo six chemo cycles, followed by an autologous stem cell transplant after MEITL was wiped out. My healthy stem cells would be harvested after my bone marrow healed. Then stored and reinserted into my body to replace the stem cells that were destroyed by chemo. Again, this medical procedure (which is rather expensive, by the way, because it’s not exactly a routine operation) doesn’t guarantee survival. But it does give me better odds.

As the popular adage usually attributed to Prussian General Carl von Clausewitz reminds us, but, according to Quote Investigator, it was actually first written in an 1871 essay by Prussian Field Marshal Helmuth von Moltke the Elder in this form: “No plan of operations extends with any certainty beyond the first encounter with the main enemy forces.” 

Or, better yet, as Mike Tyson eloquently put it, “Everybody has plans until they get hit for the first time.”

Also Read: To leverage Web3 technologies, Web2 companies may start by building the right culture

MEITL was still around after the sixth chemo cycle, as the biopsy and PET (positron emission tomography) scan showed. So, the original plan was off the table. My doctor asked if I wanted to take a calculated risk. We could do two additional chemo cycles but use a different drug that would be more targeted. He said it would be pointless to keep trying the same combination of drugs that have already failed. 

He proposed the chemo drug cladribine. It’s not an experimental drug, but it would take some time to be processed for delivery because it’s not a common drug stocked in the hospital. Plus, this would be an off-label use since normally it’s used to treat hairy cell leukaemia and B cell chronic lymphocytic leukaemia. Still, the pros were that normally, it would have less of an impact on the immune system than my previous chemo drugs and could be infused for seven days for 24 hours. Bonus: it doesn’t cause any hair loss. So, after my wife and I discussed the pros and cons, I decided to go for it. After all, my sixth chemo cycle had already ended on November 15th, and MEITL is an aggressive lymphoma.

Since it would take time to get the permits and have the drug delivered, I was able to spend a holiday at home with my family for the first time in 2023. For some reason, my chemo cycles and emergency confinements always coincided with a holiday. The doctor said I could rest in December after I told him that my daughter and I have birthdays that are close to Christmas. He estimated that the new drug would arrive in time for a seventh cycle that would see me spending New Year’s Eve in the hospital. I was more than fine with that.

That was my December miracle. My wife and I were so optimistic. MEITL was still there beneath the surface, but the many tiny ulcers on my colon that were the outward manifestation had been wiped out. The PET scan showed that only a small area was lighting up, so surgery might now be an option after the eighth cycle if MEITL remained localised. I felt stronger than I had ever been since the start of chemotreatment. I was even able to go to the mall occasionally and didn’t even need a cane or wheelchair.

Originally, my wife and I had been convinced that six chemo cycles would be enough to get rid of MEITL. We truly believed that. Now we were sure that the two extra cycles would finish the job.

But as in Web3 and in most things in life, things don’t always go according to plan. Even if you did all the right things, checked all the required boxes, followed all the best practices. My body didn’t react as expected. The arrival of the drug had been unexpectedly delayed, but I finally began my seventh chemo cycle on Jan. 15th. This seventh chemo cycle was fine. While I felt more weak and tired than I was after my first six cycles, my immune system and blood count numbers were more stable.

But the eighth and last cycle really threw me for a loop. Even before the seventh day on Feb. 21st, my blood test was showing that my numbers were plummeting. I had to receive blood transfusions for the first time in my life.

Post-cladribine me is shockingly different inside and out. The normal range for white blood cell count ranges between 4,000 and 11,000 cells per microliter. When it falls below 1,500, this is considered neutropenia, which can range from mild (1,000-1,500), moderate (500-1,000), to severe (less than 500). Mine dropped to 40-50 during confinement and the succeeding thrice-a-week doctor appointments to take blood tests, boosters, and blood transfusions. 

It has already been two months of constant treatment post-chemo, but as of this writing my white blood cell count is just 1,600. Worse, my latest biopsy confirmed what my wife and I already knew in our hearts. My MEITL was still around. Not only that, but also three large ulcers have taken the place of the tiny ones that were wiped out, and now surgery is no longer a viable option.

My haematologist has also candidly told me that my body can no longer tolerate any additional chemo infusions.

For now, the focus is on addressing the immune system attack on my bone marrow and managing my symptoms to improve my quality of life. I’ve actually had a healthier appetite and eaten a lot more in the past two weeks, which is why they took me off the twice-a-week visits to the daycare for my parenteral nutrition. Instead, every Saturday is now daycare day for my regular blood test and, if necessary, a blood transfusion.

Honestly, the only viable medical treatment left is oral chemodrugs. Of course, taking them would carry its own risks. At any rate, even if we do consider it, it’s off the table until my bone marrow heals further and my blood cell counts improve a lot more.

My doctor, wife and I perfectly understand that this won’t be anytime soon.

The last resort would be clinical trials for new drugs. I haven’t checked it out yet, but in the US, a Phase 1 human trial for a new drug is looking for test subjects for different types of cancer, including MEITL.

Of course, we know what clinical trials entail. Assuming I qualify, I’m agreeing to be a guinea pig who could die even sooner than I might have. 

—

Part two of a three-part series, continuation to follow next week.

Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing views from the community. Share your opinion by submitting an article, video, podcast, or infographic.

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

Image credit: Ian Schneider on Unsplash

The post What living with the Big C has taught me about Web3 (Part 2) appeared first on e27.

Dear reader,

Elon Musk’s recent meeting with Indonesian President Joko Widodo marks a significant step towards potentially expanding Tesla’s footprint in Southeast Asia.

Indonesia’s offer to host an electric vehicle battery plant, utilising the nation’s abundant nickel resources, aligns perfectly with Musk’s vision for sustainable energy solutions. The discussions, held after the World Water Forum in Bali, also included proposals for SpaceX to build a launchpad on Biak Island and an AI centre, highlighting Indonesia’s ambition to become a hub for advanced technology.

While Musk has yet to comment, the move underscores Indonesia’s strategic push to attract major tech investments and develop its EV sector. By leveraging its rich mineral resources and strategic location, Indonesia aims to position itself as a key player in the global electric vehicle market.

If Tesla accepts the offer, it could catalyse significant economic growth and technological advancement in the region. This potential partnership reflects broader trends of integrating advanced technologies into emerging markets.

Sainul,
Editor.

===========

NEWS

Indonesia minister says Musk to consider offer to build EV battery plant in country
Indonesia’s government has been trying for years to lure Tesla to build manufacturing plants related to electric vehicles as the government wants to develop its EV sector using the country’s rich nickel resources.

Vertex Ventures launches US$64M fund for Japan investments
Vertex Ventures Japan focuses on deeptech, digital transformation, AI, and the creator economy; The new fund’s launch follows Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India raising US$541 million for its fifth fund in September 2023.

Snowflake is in talks to buy Reka AI for US$1B
Reka AI develops large language models that can be used in areas like online customer support and caption generation; The company was founded by ex-employees of Google and Meta– Yi Tay and Dani Yogatama.

Alibaba adds US$230M into Lazada’s coffers
With this, the Chinese tech giant has poured a total of roughly US$7.7B into Lazada since 2016, when it invested US$1B into the Shopee rival to take a controlling stake.

Kasagi Labo secures US$12M to bring Japanese anime to global audience
The investors include Burda Principal, CMT Digital, SuperScrypt, Hashed, Sfermion, and Gold House Foundation; Kasagi’s platform aims to unite the entire anime content creation ecosystem, from IP owners to artists and voice actors.

Humble Sustainability raises funding to help organisations reduce e-waste
The investors include Gobi Partners, National Development Company, Double River Impact, and XA Network; Humble, which helps businesses sell their old IT equipment, claims to have diverted over 250k kilograms of e-waste from landfills so far.

BANIQL attracts US$1.6M for its innovative approach to nickel, cobalt extraction
The investors include BEENEXT, Seedstars, A2D Ventures, Sopoong Ventures, and XA Network; BANIQL can reduce water and energy consumption, minimise chemical usage, and decrease the ecological footprint associated with nickel and cobalt extraction.

Singapore VC Satori Giants enters Cambodia with investment in Jalat Logistics
X Venture Holdings is the other investor in the round; Jalat Logistics provides a management portal to streamline logistics operations and enhance service delivery.

Pine Labs gets Singapore court approval to shift base to India
Pine Labs offers a range of products and services to merchants such as cloud-connected point-of-sale machines and working capital; It is backed by Peak XV, Fidelity, Invesco, Temasek, PayPal and Alpha Wave and is valued at over US$5B.

Musk, Indonesian health minister, launch Starlink for health sector
Musk said the availability of the Starlink service in Indonesia would help millions in far-flung parts of the country to access the internet; The country is home to more than 270 million people and three different time zones.

Didi co-founder Liu steps down after decade at helm of Chinese ride-hailing firm
Liu, the daughter of Lenovo Group founder Liu Chuanzhi, was heavily involved in the company’s key financial decisions, including its merger with Alibaba-backed Kuaidi in 2015 and its takeover of Uber China business.

FEATURES

SEA startup surge: Major funding wins and strategic acquisitions across SEA
Explore the latest startup and investment news, featuring major fundings, M&As, and innovative ventures shaping the region’s tech landscape.

Collaboration and a sense of urgency: What it takes to support climate tech startups in Southeast Asia
How far can entrepreneurs and investors expect help from the government when it comes to supporting climate tech startups?

FROM OUR CONTRIBUTORS

Relationships and networks are the lifeblood of commerce in Asia
Developing professional relationships through network referrals is often the most effective way to expand opportunities and resources.

Human-AI collaboration: The key to unlocking Gen AI’s potential
The Gen AI era is here to stay and will evolve, requiring regular, institutionalised, and purposeful collaboration for a bright future.

Infographic: A visualisation of Indonesia’s electric vehicle transition
To fully bring the local EV industry into the mainstream, Indonesia must craft supportive policies and strengthen its commitment to local production.

FROM THE ARCHIVES

Report: BNPL remains popular amongst Indonesian fintech services users
The survey also revealed that in choosing a fintech platform to use, Indonesian users considered three key factors.

These startups focus on informal plastic waste workers in fight against climate crisis
In many parts of Asia, plastic waste is commonly processed by informal workers who are part of the marginalised society.

7 ways to optimise your product page to attract more sales
If the conversion rates from your product pages are low, it’s time to test their functionality and optimize them.

5 ways to monetise social media technology for startup success
Startups launching into the digital landscape need to use social media to promote and grow their businesses passionately.

Dream big, start small: Joel Neoh shares lessons from his years with Fave
In this interview, Joel Neoh reveals his more details of his plan to take a break after leaving Fave in March 2023.

To leverage Web3 technologies, Web2 companies may start by building the right culture
According to a panellist, Web3 is all about “a change in how we are looking at our community and our audiences”.

With US expansion on the horizon, Helport aims to help customer support teams cut down on error rate
This year, Helport has a major plan to expand in the US while maintaining its leading position in Southeast Asia.

Artem Ventures: Malaysia is a fantastic starter market, but startups need help to scale internationally
Artem Ventures is a VC fund management company currently managing a fund in partnership with insurance giant FWD Group.

500 Global: SEA’s agritech sector holds enormous potential as funding winter drives resilience
500 Global Partner Saemin Ahn highlights the rise of agritech in SEA. How can investors tap into this opportunity?

DANA Indonesia advocates fintech companies’ vital role in advancing financial inclusion
DANA Indonesia CEO Vince Iswara spoke about how fintech services introduced unbanked society to the ease and practicality of transacting and managing their finances.

—

The post Ecosystem Roundup: Musk to consider offer to build EV battery plant in Indonesia | Alibaba injects US$230M into Lazada | Vertex Ventures launches US$64M Japan fund appeared first on e27.

A solid tech stack can take a startup from its earliest stages to the heights of success, so the choices you make when your planning is still more of a primordial soup than a fully evolved entity will determine whether this is a smooth ride or a path paved with potholes.

It takes a healthy dose of attention to detail to do this efficiently and with good end results, so before you go any further, read over the following factors in order to come to a satisfactory tech stack decision.

Combining compatibility and longevity

First and foremost, compatibility and future-readiness need to be at the top of the agenda as you lay the foundations of your tech stack. 

Here are pertinent points to consider:

System compatibility

Ensure that each component of your tech stack seamlessly integrates with others. For example, if you choose a front-end framework like React, ensure your back-end services like Node.js can easily communicate with it.

Scalability

As your business grows, so will your system needs. Choose technologies that can scale up efficiently without requiring a complete overhaul. A good example is using AWS or Google Cloud, which provides scalable cloud infrastructure as demand increases rather than being held back by an overreliance on in-house hardware.

Also Read: 6 SaaS startups to showcase cutting-edge solutions at Echelon X

Another example is selecting the right container orchestration platform — like Kubernetes, Docker Swarm, or Apache Mesos — which takes an in-depth investigation of the available options. These platforms enhance load-balancing capabilities and streamline integration with both cloud providers’ tools and open-source alternatives, making scaling smoother as demand increases.

Future-proofing

Opt for technologies that are regularly updated by their developers and have a strong community backing them. This ensures that you are not left behind as new advancements emerge. 

For instance, utilising Python for machine learning applications ensures you’re working with a language that’s continually updated and widely supported. A similar concept can be applied more broadly to capital allocation, so it’s a strategy that will stand you in good stead as a startup founder.

Maintenance and support

Consider the ease of maintenance and the availability of support channels. Being able to quickly address technical issues can drastically reduce downtime. 

So in the case of choosing a database, the likes of PostgreSQL not only offer comprehensive documentation but also provide widespread community support which can help in quickly addressing technical issues.

These considerations are sensible because they avert costs and complications in years to come — as evidenced in a recent Lenovo study, which found that 83 per cent of CIOs are concerned over a lack of resource availability in spite of facing obstacles to IT infrastructure innovations.

Prioritising performance and cost-effectiveness

Another lynchpin part of putting together your tech stack is knowing that performance and cost must strike a perfect balance to ensure your startup’s longevity and efficiency. Here’s how you can achieve this:

Resource efficiency

Select technologies known for low resource consumption, which can significantly reduce hosting costs. For instance, Go is renowned for its efficiency in CPU and memory usage compared to other back-end languages like Python or Java.

Also Read: Lack of pitching skills is a major problem Hong Kong-based startups face: HKSTP’s Derek Chim

Cost of implementation

Factors include not only the initial setup cost but also long-term financial implications. Using open-source software such as Apache Kafka for handling real-time data streams can be less costly than proprietary software due to no licensing fees.

Performance under load

Consider how well the technology performs under increased loads or high user traffic. MySQL, for example, handles read-heavy applications well but might struggle with write-heavy scenarios, where PostgreSQL could perform better.

Ensuring security and compliance

Security threats and regulatory requirements are significant when choosing your startup’s tech stack – particularly given that cybercrime costs are set to rise by US$5.7 trillion over the next five years. 

Here’s how to tackle these crucial aspects effectively:

Built-in security features

Opt for technologies that offer robust built-in security features. For example, Ruby on Rails has built-in protections against SQL injection and cross-site scripting, providing a safer development environment.

Compliance readiness

Choose technologies that simplify the compliance process with prevalent regulations like GDPR or HIPAA. AWS, for instance, offers configurations that are compliant with multiple regulatory standards out of the box, which can expedite deployment timelines.

Regular updates and patches

Incorporate tools known for regular updates to protect against vulnerabilities. Ubuntu Server is a good example; it offers frequent security patches and updates crucial for maintaining system integrity.

The bottom line

Be mindful that even with your tech stack on lock, your startup journey will require a lot of other pivotal decisions to be made — often at a point in time when you might not have the experience or adequate data to choose wisely. That’s why taking your time is necessary, even if you’re eager to forge ahead.

—

Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing views from the community. Share your opinion by submitting an article, video, podcast, or infographic.

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

Image credit: Microsoft Copilot

The post 10 decisive factors for choosing your startup’s tech stack in 2024 appeared first on e27.

At a recent May Day Rally, PM Lee Hsien Loong shared an inspiring story about community initiative and government support. He said: “We told her, if you take the lead, the Government will support you.” It sparked my imagination about what could be possible for startups.

He spoke of a scenario where government support helped turn a vision into a thriving reality for the community. What if this kind of support could be extended to the startup ecosystem? While his focus was on community development, it got me thinking about the potential for government collaboration with the private sector to turbocharge local startups.

I think the government could really benefit from closer collaboration with private companies to drive significant improvements. Both sectors aim to succeed and boost employment, but they need to coordinate better to maximize their efforts. While semi-government-linked companies exist for this purpose, they often struggle with public perception. It might be time to explore new approaches under fresh leadership.

Here’s an idea that might seem a bit ambitious since I’m not in public service, but imagine if NParks and the LTA worked together to create bike lanes and pathways connecting to MRT stations. This would not only make cycling safer but also reduce road traffic and daily commuting frustrations.

Another innovative concept could be for Singapore Post to experiment with drones for delivering small packages. Given Singapore’s compact size, we could start this on a small scale to test its viability. If successful, it could be a game-changer for local logistics, expanding to cover more areas.

Also Read: Singaporean VC firm Satori Giants enters Cambodia with investment in Jalat Logistics

We also need to enhance our recycling efforts. Countries like Sweden and Germany have set high standards in waste management, and we can learn from them. Starting a comprehensive campaign to educate the public on better recycling practices could help us avoid a future waste management crisis. 

In the vibrant city-state of Singapore, we have all the ingredients to become a leading startup hub: a strategic location, robust infrastructure, and a forward-thinking government. Entrepreneurs here are buzzing with ideas and ready to take on the world. However, despite these advantages, there are hurdles that can dampen the entrepreneurial spirit.

Businesses in Singapore, whether small enterprises or large multinationals face several significant challenges. High operational costs are a major hurdle, with steep rental fees and a high cost of living impacting the bottom line. Additionally, the tight labor market makes finding skilled talent difficult.. Furthermore, the complex regulatory environment poses a daunting challenge, especially for smaller companies that may lack extensive compliance resources. These factors combine to create a challenging landscape for business operations in Singapore.

Singapore’s government is not slouch for supporting innovation with initiatives like SkillsFuture and flexible work arrangements. However, the reality sometimes falls short of the needs. With a myriad of funds and resources available, the landscape can be confusing. Wouldn’t it be great if accessing support was as simple as ordering a kaya toast set? We need a streamlined, less overwhelming system that directly meets diverse sector-specific needs.

As we’ve welcomed many MNCs to our shores, it’s time to nurture our own companies to compete on the global stage. Singapore is ripe for innovation and growth, and with the right support and collaborations, local enterprises can evolve into the next big global players.

In moving from the ‘Little Red Dot’ to a global startup hotspot, Singapore must foster uncharted collaborations that redefine public-private partnerships. It’s time for all stakeholders to come together and turn these visions into reality, propelling Singapore to the forefront of global innovation and entrepreneurship.

—

Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing views from the community. Share your opinion by submitting an article, video, podcast, or infographic.

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

Image courtesy of the author.

The post Uncharted collaborations: From little shiny red dot to startup hotspot  appeared first on e27.