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Looking back at 2022: A year of digitalisation, adaptability, and collaboration through the lens of the innovate team

2022 has been fruitful and filled with growth and challenges, especially for the Innovate team. In a nutshell, our 2022 was focused on digitalisation, adaptability, building a solid foundation, and collaboration. These elements are vital for businesses to thrive in today’s fast-paced and constantly evolving business environment.

“If it’s not working, change it.”

We did a lot of pivoting this year but our goal to provide equal opportunities to startups and founders and to connect you with the right network remains unchanged.

Here’s a recap of what we did and the lessons you can take away from it:

Geography is no longer our master

In the last few years, we have seen a digital transformation happen faster than before. We were limited by geographical and anthropogeographical access, but with most processes now digitalised, it opened a whole new set of opportunities and challenges for everyone.

We worked with Zoom, which is now expanding its vision to support startups innovating hybrid workforce collaboration and delivering happiness to their customers. We organised:

  • A webinar where we talked about what customer experience and customer communications are. You can watch the recording here.
  • An in-person roundtable with selected VCs to empower companies in the ecosystem to build a memorable customer experience for all its customers and stakeholders.

We are also running the Meta Community Accelerator Programme for the third time to support online communities in APAC and Bangladesh. With community building at the heart of e27, we are honoured to empower online communities by providing them with the necessary tools, training, guidance, and connection to grow and nurture their communities.

We have supported 50+ communities to achieve their goals, conducted their dream activities, and connected them with relevant connections to further amplify their impact. What started as a hobby for some and a safe space for others, these community leaders are continuously providing value to the people around us.

Also Read: A year in review: How e27 served the tech ecosystem in 2022

What used to be physical has now turned digital, and we are no longer bound by geography.

Adaptability over sustainability

Put in a different context, sustainability is the ability to sustain your operations and support your customers, but sustaining your operations is not enough to meet the rapidly changing needs and expectations of your customers – especially in the digital world.

We partnered with CleverTap to discuss with key growth and top marketers in the region how to adapt and integrate optimised customer growth and retention strategies on mobile touchpoints to be able to double down on retention and win in the markets in which our businesses operate. 

We just finished our roadshow events in Jakarta and Singapore this year, and we are going to Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, and the Philippines in 2023 to discuss how you can craft innovative customer experiences.

Stay tuned to the events’ updates and registration openings through this link.

Building a solid foundation for innovation

Innovation doesn’t happen in a vacuum. The best innovation comes in response to long-standing problems we are facing, and having a stable foundation allows us to explore and innovate freely.

We have been using maps to navigate around cities and places. But despite having a lot of updates to our maps, approximately 75 per cent of the world is poorly addressed, leaving them underserved. 

We teamed up with UNL Global to host a webinar to talk about how they are planning to develop a next-gen micro-location and mapping technology to build maps that bring your business forward, empower your delivery agents, and build the internet of places.

Having accurate data and mapping play a significant role in your business operations. And In the context of e-commerce and last-mile delivery, it refers to the delivery of products and services quickly and seamlessly and to your customer’s doorstep.

Click here to watch the webinar recording.

Collaboration over individual endeavours

There are many benefits to collaboration. With this, individuals and organisations can pool their knowledge, skills, and resources and can achieve more than they could alone. Collaboration can also foster creativity and innovation as it encourages the sharing of ideas and the development of new approaches.

This year we worked with SAP and XS APAC over a series of engagements. Starting with a series of webinars focused on you can do business with large enterprises, a virtual roundtable with investors where they talked about how they can support investor portfolios, and a panel discussion during this year’s Echelon Asia Summit!

Also Read: ‘Focus on your north-star vision’: 30 startups speak of their learnings in 2022

The engagement focused on the importance of Startup-Corporate collaboration to boost:

Speaking of access to new markets, this year, we teamed up again with JETRO (Japan External Trade Organisation) for their 2022 Global Acceleration Hub Programme to support Japanese startups with their plans for overseas expansion. We’ve worked with:

  • Credit Engine: a SaaS products provider for the financial sector that provides services that cover the online lending process to debt collection with data-driven digital technology.
  • Cross Sync: Provides iBSEN – real-time monitoring of ICU patients and their severity using AI and ICT. They provide D-to-D Tele-ICU telemedicine service with an AI monitoring function.
  • Terra Drone: Focuses on providing drone utilisation services for oil and gas, renewables, terminals, survey, and processing and storage.
  • TB-M: Focuses on developing and manufacturing ecological new material, LIMEX – a composite material of over 50 per cent made of limestone. LIMEX has been developed in Japan that provides ecological and economic benefits

If you would love to work with them, please let us know, and we would be more than happy to connect you!

Collaboration is not just limited to startups or corporates partnering with each other or other entities to support their vision and mission. We also work with our network to connect startups with the right investors.

Together with Techstars, Facilitated the Demo Day with 200+ attendees and made more than 130+ matched connections with investors and strategic partners over a two-day programme split between Global Scale and Clean Tech cohorts.

The selected 26 startups also underwent a series of sessions to help address the issues they are facing specific to their companies to help them build and grow their companies. The event was attended by mentors, investors, and other startups, with more than 80 per cent of the attendees looking for business opportunities with the startups.

Collaboration can take many forms, and by working with other organisations, businesses can access new ideas, resources, and expertise and can achieve more together than they could alone.

Looking back at 2022

In recap, digitalisation, adaptability, building a solid foundation, and collaboration are all key factors that can help businesses to thrive in today’s fast-paced and constantly evolving business environment. By adopting these strategies, businesses can stay competitive, achieve their goals, and create value for their customers, employees, and shareholders.

What’s in store for 2023

2022 posed a different set of challenges, and we are anticipating that some of these challenges will remain.

As we mentioned, we did a lot of pivoting this year but our goal to provide equal opportunities to startups and founders and to connect you with the right network remains unchanged, and it doesn’t end here!

Send an email to programs@e27.co to see how we can work together to craft the right story to showcase your brand, how you can get connected and engage the community in Southeast Asia, and how you can amplify your impact. This is where you start!

This article has been co-written by Selma Ayuanshari and Mayeda Bidushi.

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Image credit: Canva Pro

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