ASEAN countries have consistently achieved high economic growth rates, which are attributed to careful macroeconomic strategies, relatively open trade and investment policies, and access to export markets in developed nations.

A key driver of the ASEAN economies is the manufacturing supply chains. From 2015 through 2019, manufacturing exports from ASEAN’s ten member states averaged five per cent annual growth—outpacing the global average of three per cent.

As governments across the world implement ESG and reporting regulations, businesses and manufacturers in ASEAN are faced with increased urgency and pressure to adopt sustainable practices to maintain competitiveness in the global supply chains. More than that, there are significant opportunities to extend its capabilities in manufacturing and establish competitiveness in green manufacturing.

The rise of ESG regulations and sustainable procurement in ASEAN and beyond

Globally, regulatory frameworks have evolved rapidly, led by the European Union with parallel initiatives in Asia.

Under the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), exports to Europe will be subjected to carbon tax on their emissions starting in 2026, posing major trickle-down effects for ASEAN businesses by affecting export competitiveness.

The release of the International Financial Reporting Standards’ (IFRS) inaugural ISSB standards in June 2023 has also placed renewed attention on the ASEAN ESG regulatory landscape. Many ASEAN governments have started taking a phased adoption approach in incorporating new global sustainability reporting standards, with Scope three emissions reporting due to become mandatory under regulatory standards from 2025 onwards. Reporting is also no longer confined to just publicly listed companies but also non-listed and smaller companies.

Also Read: The future of finance: ESG integration in tokenised funding

Digital tools needed to accelerate corporate sustainability

Today, sustainability reporting, especially for businesses with extensive supply chain activities, involves the demanding and manual process of collecting data from various sources such as SMEs, suppliers, clients, and other stakeholders within the supply chain.

In the ASEAN context, where SMEs dominate the market and supply chains, accounting for 98 per cent of existing businesses, this challenge is particularly pronounced. SMEs face difficulties in commencing their corporate sustainability and sustainability reporting journey efficiently, mainly attributed to the absence of streamlined digital processes, sufficient resources, and requisite expertise.

As such, a gap has emerged in ASEAN between the growing data needs for comprehensive ESG reporting and the actual availability of such data in SMEs and entities in their supply chain, presenting a challenge around compliance.

Embracing supply chain transparency for green manufacturing

While local reporting is not yet mandated across most ASEAN countries as of 2024, foreign corporates and MNCs, which ASEAN manufacturers serve, are increasingly adopting sustainable procurement, causing major trickle-down effects on ASEAN businesses.

There is a need for ASEAN businesses to prove their green-ness in order to set themselves up for greater business and investments opportunities.

This is where ESG tech and digital solutions come in to play a key role in empowering ASEAN businesses and manufacturers towards corporate sustainability and ESG compliance.

Digital solutions like ESGpedia play a pivotal role in helping to facilitate easier and more robust self-serve reporting for ASEAN companies, with subsequent third-party assurance and certification. They help support efforts to navigate the evolving ESG regulatory landscape by digitalising country-specific and international reporting frameworks (e.g. ISSB, TCFD, GRI, etc.) for a streamlined and guided way for businesses, especially those with limited resources and expertise, to easily access and input. This is particularly beneficial in times when regulations are becoming increasingly complex and soon to be mandatory.

Third-party assurance and certification can also be digitally facilitated by technology. This is important as they offer credibility and recognition to companies so that they can effectively prove their sustainability commitment to global MNCs and stakeholders, mitigating the risk of greenwashing. For instance, an ISO14064 aligned report produced under the renowned ISO standard serves to recognise company’s commitment towards establishing, validating, and reporting its GHG emissions in accordance with international standards.

Establishing Scope three GHG metrics with full value chain calculations​ is a fundamental step for the ASEAN manufacturing sector to embark on sustainability. However, Scope three GHG calculation is typically a time-consuming and complex process, requiring great ESG expertise and manual data collection from each supplier.

Also Read: 6 reasons why startups should invest in sustainability

To lower the barriers to this seemingly massive ESG challenge, businesses and manufacturers in ASEAN can leverage technology solutions to digitally streamline the end-to-end process, from data collection to mapping both the value chain and product lifecycle, accurately calculating the company’s Scope three emissions in accordance with industry methodologies, and to take actions to actively engage suppliers in order to drive compliance with regulations across the entire supply chain.

Government support to facilitate doing well while doing good

It is no doubt that sustainability equates to profitability in the long run. It is time for ASEAN countries to extend their focus and capabilities from manufacturing to green manufacturing to maintain competitiveness in the global market.

ASEAN countries can benefit by engaging in cross-border collaboration to build their green economy and workforce. For instance, the Singapore government’s Budget 2024 covered a tiered support approach for businesses on their digitalisation roadmap, particularly focusing on financial support for training and digital adoption as well as digital technologies such as AI. This is something that the other ASEAN governments can consider emulating in order to advance ESG initiatives across the region.

Governments across ASEAN can also consider introducing a standardised set of guidelines in relation to ESG disclosures to help companies future-proof against upcoming mandatory sustainability reporting to be implemented in 2025. Relevant examples already implemented in the region include the Simplified ESG Disclosure Guide (SEDG) Adopter Programme in Malaysia, as well as the Sustainability Report (SuRe) Form in the Philippines.

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Dilip Krishnan steps into the role of President & CEO at Vatic AI, succeeding Arthur Becker, who transitions to Executive Chairman.

Krishnan, who is based in Singapore, will also join the board of directors. With over 16 years of experience in Digital Innovation and Corporate Strategy, Krishnan brings a wealth of expertise. His responsibilities will encompass overseeing Vatic AI’s global expansion into new markets, managing mergers and acquisitions, and spearheading the development of new AI products, mainly focusing on predicting creditworthiness within anonymous online audiences.

Having previously served as the Global Lead for Digital Transformation at Mastercard Data & Services, Krishnan boasts a proven track record in driving growth and innovation. His background includes stints at esteemed financial institutions such as OCBC Bank, Citi, and HDFC Bank, where he played pivotal roles in designing and executing transformative strategies and fostering fintech partnerships. Moreover, Krishnan’s involvement as a mentor with Enterprise Singapore and SMU Institute of Innovation & Entrepreneurship underscores his commitment to nurturing the startup ecosystem across the region.

Under Krishnan’s leadership, Vatic AI aims to leverage its Qscore product, which uses AI to predict the credit qualifications of anonymous online audiences.

“In the longer term, we envision being the audience intelligence platform of choice across industries, helping to strengthen credit access by leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI),” he says in an email to e27.

Also Read: Artificial intelligence and the art of building presentations

By harnessing proprietary algorithms, the company seeks to optimise advertising expenditures at the Top of the Funnel while simultaneously driving down customer acquisition and processing costs for the finance industry. With Krishnan’s vision and experience at the helm, Vatic AI is poised for strategic growth and continued innovation in artificial intelligence and financial services.

“We saw that traditional digital advertising platforms use broad keyword categories for audiences, which can lead to irrelevant targeting. With more precise keyword categories, we can create more value to the online experience for both brands and consumers. Combining this with our data refreshes happening every hour, instead of DSP data normally 30 days or more old for audience categories, we can be the most relevant and reach the most in-market users,” Krishnan explains.

Regarding its Qscore product, he says, “We have developed our Qscore product for the finance industry, which uses AI to predict the creditworthiness of our audiences based on multiple factors, indicating the individual user would be qualified financially for a wide range of products. This AI technology allows brands to optimise their top-of-funnel advertising and only advertise to the audiences qualified for their products, massively reducing customer acquisition costs.”

This is why the financial services industry will be the company’s focus today.

“We are actively engaging in acquiring digital banks and lenders as key clients, using our marketing efforts to show our AI’s value and solve their issues of unqualified leads, high decline rates, and ad waste. We are working on strategies in key growth markets in Asia Pacific where we can solve these issues,” Krishnan says.

Also Read: These Artificial Intelligence startups are proving to be industry game-changers

Vatic AI has raised funding from investors such as Jenny Johnson (President & CEO of Franklin Templeton) and Arthur Becker.

The company said that it currently works with around 300 paying clients.

“Our inception was over five years ago, when we built a team offering managed services for our core AfterSearch technology. We used keyword targeting for our clients to improve their results in display advertising. Post that, we’ve scaled substantially with our executive team based in Singapore and improved our product development and focus to become a data tech SaaS company.”

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Image Credit: Vatic AI

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In addition to running their businesses, startup founders have another important responsibility to take: To stay in tip-top condition throughout the day. They are expected to be in 100 per cent condition all the time; not only for the business that they are running but also to set up an example for their team members. It is also known that a productive day begins with a good morning routine that is able to improve one’s mood and organise their activities.

DailySocial sits down with several Indonesia-based startup founders –Fabelio, Gadjian, e-Fishery– to learn about their go-to productivity hacks. Hopefully, this can serve as a reference for those who are struggling with time management.

The first tip comes from Christian Sutardi, one of the co-founders of Fabelio, who happen to have a unique morning routine. He wakes up after seven hours of quality sleep –without the help of alarm clock. The founder then proceeds to check the company’s performance report from the previous day while enjoying a glass of sugarless iced americano. He also responds to incoming messages according to their priority.

“Then I moved to the living room, have a glass of water, and check the news headlines of the day. Usually, I would read international news on Bloomberg. I start with international politics, COVID-19 updates, the stock market, and any other news that Google recommends. My news preference includes furniture industry, startups, stock market, football, and other sports,” Sutardi elaborates.

Sutardi officially begins his office hour at 8.30 AM. To maintain his productivity, he implements a framework known as “eat the frog first” or to start with the most urgent tasks (the “frogs”). The framework demands users to start with just one of the most pressing task as the first thing to do in the morning. The task does not have to be finished in one go; users are allowed to continue the next day.

Also Read: SEA tech founders playbook: A to Z of becoming a fundraising legend (Part 1)

The next tip comes from Afia Fitriati, CEO of Fast8 Group, the company behind the Gadjian, Hadirr, and Benefide platforms. For Fitriati, getting enough sleep is crucial in maintaining productivity. By getting enough sleep, according to her, the brain will be able to take a moment to recuperate after a long day at work. I will also be able to gain clarity in thoughts.

“There will never be enough time for everything, so it is very important for founders, or anyone in the startup ecosystem, to be able to prioritise. If you are doing it wrongly, you risk wasting precious time that you can never get back, doing insignificant activities. So, my advice is to always ask yourself every day: Do the things that I am doing today matter or not?” Fitriati points out.

The last tip comes from Gibran Huzaifah, CEO and Founder of eFishery, who considers himself as a morning person just like the other two founders. He prefers to use the morning to exercise, plan his day, and learn new things.

“The morning hours are the brightest, most exciting time of the day, that is why I always start with activities that make me feel pumped: Exercise, planning the day. The exercise can include a jog around the house or a seven-minute workout. It helps to improve energy and maintain mental health,” he explains.

“Then I spare a slot to learn or read. If I don’t get to read, I’m going to take an online course on Udemy. On Saturdays and Sundays, I like to spare four hours for learning activities like this, in the morning and evening. With this learning slot, whenever there is a new task or role to take, we can hit the ground running because we always spare the time to learn,” he continues.

Huzaifah also believes that every urgent or impactful task need to be done in the morning, such as strategic thinking or planning, followed by an internal update and problem-solving. If there is a key project or metric that he has been delegating, he is going to spend time in the afternoon to work on something meaningful for the project.

Also Read: 5 productivity hacks for successful people

“The other crucial moment happens in the evening after family time, once the children are asleep when I would review the agenda of the day. Which one goes well, which one doesn’t. It usually involves a simple question: What do I need to do to be five to 10 per cent better than now? Especially on Sundays, I have one more sheet to track my time management. It becomes a base for my improvement plan next week,” he continues.

All three sources agree on the importance of time management. For Huzaifah, having a good system will enable founders to manage their mind, energy, and time. This includes building a good daily routine, complemented with constant evaluation.

“A great part of our life is spent doing things related to work. By becoming more productive, we can do more in a much shorter time. This will enable us to allocate more to other parts of our life, maximise our potentials as a human being, and contribute as much as possible,” Huzaifah closes.

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This article was written by Prayogo Ryza in Bahasa Indonesia for DailySocial. English translation and editing by e27.

Image Credit: Tim Foster on Unsplash

This article was first published on October 26, 2020

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“It’s not about ideas. It’s about making ideas happen.”

If you are reading this then you no doubt also have a sense of urgency as we observe and digest what is happening to our climate and planet.

The inevitable question then becomes, “How can we collectively work together to make a difference?”.

To further break this down, we must include Southeast Asia (and its cities) in the solution.

Why? Consider these immutable drivers:

• It is the region with the highest growth globally in terms of population and city growth.
• The demographic bulge is around a very young population (compared to ageing regions such as North Asia, Europe or North America).
• It adds the equivalent of a New York City every six weeks in new urban sprawl.
• Cities account for 75 per cent of global CO2 emissions (but are only three per cent of total land mass).

If we don’t get Southeast Asia “right,” then our global environmental issue can’t be demonstrably solved or improved.

With Southeast Asia so critical, what models or precedents can we observe and potentially adopt to accelerate sustainability and green tech?

Also Read: Growing and transforming global green techs for sustainability

Consider how software evolved in only the last few decades.  It is not only the overwhelming majority of capital spend and investment for businesses but also ubiquitous and integral to our personal lives and our consumption of both services and products.

But it was only a couple of decades ago that software was in monolithic (say ERP) isolated stacks.  It was only specific IT members with deep domain expertise who understood the tech and its usage.

This looks very similar to today’s green tech solutions. It’s difficult to understand areas such as “carbon footprint and management”, “waste to fuel”, or “hydrogen power”. What are the categories around these that are relevant for my business or as an employee? How and where should I start? Am I making the right decisions on the tech, and how do I create an overall integrated architecture that makes sense?

Software presents a very compelling example and set of learnings in this regard.

Firstly, software and its impact and relevance were continually and simply explained to us. We were “conditioned” around “what problem it solves”. From this problem, we then began to understand this new category. This is a critical step in adoption because we think in categories.

A simple example of this is our neighbourhood supermarket. It is not organised alphabetically (or pictograms, etc.). It is in categories. And if we were to jump into a time machine and go back to our supermarket 20 years ago, many of today’s categories (“vegan”; “non-gluten”; “energy drinks”) wouldn’t exist.

If we take that same time machine to 20 years in the future, we will see many new categories that we never thought of, that we never thought we needed! This is because we have been conditioned (and explained to) around why the categories (based on a problem) are relevant to us.

Switching back to software, we see how clear categories evolved. In fact, an entire industry (tech analysts such as Gartner, Forrester, and IDC) was formed to tell us what those categories are and who the respective leaders are in each of them.

This meant that both IT and the business functions could talk about “architecture”. What key problems are we targeting, and how will we architect and combine the categories of software needed?

Also Read: Unlocking green fintech prosperity in Asia: Navigating the top 4 challenges

This is in an ecosystem where solutions can be integrated and interoperate with each other (and “system integrators” are another whole industry based on this).

We  are clearly not “there” yet with sustainability and green tech:

• The solutions are still very difficult to understand for a broad set of internal employees or external users. They are thus not clear “categories” yet.
• They are largely stand-alone and do not easily integrate into a multi-component ecosystem.
• From a business or individual standpoint, it is difficult to see why I would adopt and benefit from this solution.
• ESG, while at least a broad-based framework, is open to interpretation with a convoluted set of components (such as diversity and inclusion).

For green tech startups and innovators to flourish and become as ubiquitous as software, they must “condition” and explain to us the core problem being solved and why it is relevant to us.  This is a “point of view” rather than the product and its tech specs. Within this POV, tell us what this new category is.

And a category cannot exist as one company.  There has to be an ecosystem of partners, channels, regulatory agencies, APIs, data flows (the list goes on).

For real change and impact in Southeast Asia and its urban growth, we must move from isolated products and tech to clear categories and their surrounding ecosystems.  This is a massive opportunity for green tech startups and innovators to seize category and market leadership.

The critical context and impact of Southeast Asia in climate and sustainability around this has never been greater.

As business leaders, investors and advisors, we must encourage green tech startups and guide them on how to elevate their category strategy and the accompanying ecosystem mapping and execution.

It’s about designing the future and not just following! Carpe Diem, Let’s go make a difference!

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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.

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Talino Venture Studios, a global venture studio for sustainable innovation, and Chemonics International, a sustainable development firm, have launched and invested in Philippine fintech startup Higala.

An inclusive instant payment system (IIPS), Higala connects thrift banks, rural banks, and microfinance institutions currently excluded from payment networks because of high switching and on-ramp costs.

Also Read: Talino Venture Studios lands US$5M to bridge financial inclusion in emerging markets

Despite 400 rural banks in the Philippines, only 18 are part of InstaPay because of the lack of interoperability among them. As a result, the full potential of financial inclusion remains largely untapped, depriving many Filipinos of the benefits modern banking technologies can offer.

Higala promotes inclusion by lowering the cost of real-time payments, helping financial institutions price their instant payments reasonably. It also aims to provide inclusive financial solutions to the underbanked and rapidly enable merchants to accept digital payments.

The fintech startup is also building a core instant payment technology that can accommodate financial institutions of all sizes and turn banks into digital banks through white-label app services.

Higala leverages the open payment platform of the nonprofit Mojaloop Foundation. With Mojaloop’s open payment framework, Higala facilitates connectivity among various financial entities, including banks, institutions, payment gateways, merchants, and the central bank. This approach enhances affordability and accessibility in financial transactions.

“Higala will help modernise our country’s digital financial infrastructures and enable the participation of financial institutions through our network. Our goal is to make banking more inclusive, especially to the underserved segments of the population that have limited access to traditional banking services,” Higala President and CEO Vice Catudio said.

Also Read: Philippine startups raised US$956M in 2023 amidst funding winter

“Through Higala’s open payment platform and suite of solutions, we will enable new market players to aggressively develop and market innovative payment services to both consumers and merchants. This includes integrating solutions such as regulatory technologies like e-KYC and AML-TF monitoring, AI-based risk detection and management, banking microledgers, payment hub that will enable instant fund transfer across participating banks, and a global transaction gateway for remittance,” he added.

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The AI4Health Asia Accelerator, a 10-month program dedicated to facilitating the responsible development and scaling of AI innovations in healthcare across South and Southeast Asia, concluded its impactful journey with the AI4Health Asia Impact Showcase.

Hosted by Villgro Philippines in partnership with the International Development Research Center (IDRC) of Canada, the showcase marked the culmination of the accelerator program, spotlighting pioneering solutions of eight emerging healthtech startups across the region.

Over the past year, the AI4Health Asia Accelerator has provided vital support to eight startups addressing pressing health issues intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic. Concentrating on key areas that range from sexual, reproductive, and maternal health, to epidemic and pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response, these startups have received a comprehensive package of mentorship, funding, and resources to propel their innovations forward.

Also read: Discover promising early-stage startups across Southeast Asia with A2D Ventures

Priya Thachadi, Co-founder of Villgro Philippines, remarked, “Business models addressing complex issues like sexual and reproductive health or last-mile delivery of affordable healthcare services are challenging to execute. I believe that the resilience, commitment, and passion of the AI4Health Asia cohort inspire confidence and are deploying solutions that can strengthen the healthcare ecosystem in the region. Tech and innovation, especially leveraging advancements in AI, can accelerate these models and lead the way to systemic change in Asian health systems.” 

The AI4Health Asia Impact Showcase included demo day-style presentations, engaging discussions, and networking opportunities with entrepreneurs, investors, and experts in the health sector in Asia. The event, held on March 22, 2024, at the Radisson Suites Bangkok Sukhumvit in Bangkok, Thailand, featured a line of booths where participating startups showcased their solutions and demonstrated their impact on healthcare in the region. The showcase aimed to enhance visibility for the eight startups, catalyse growth, and facilitate connections for potential collaborations.

8 promising healthcare startups showcase their innovations at AI4Health

At the showcase, Varangtip Satchatippavarn, Founder of Ira Concept, delivered a compelling discourse on femtech within the region, shedding light on the potential for Asian health tech entrepreneurs to lead in this flourishing sector. The event also featured a dynamic panel discussion centred on cultivating a thriving ecosystem for Asian health tech entrepreneurs. The panel featured industry experts including Varangtip Satchatippavarn, Paul Meyers — Founder and Head Coach at Asian Founders Coaching — and Lindsay Davis of Femtech Asia Association.

Also read: Empowering financial resilience with Moomoo Singapore

The AI4Health Asia Impact Showcase marks the beginning of a new chapter for the participating startups as they continue to scale their solutions and create a lasting impact in the healthcare landscape. Villgro Philippines remains committed to supporting innovation and collaboration in healthcare and looks forward to seeing the continued success of the AI4Health Asia accelerator alumni.

Villgro Philippines extends its gratitude towards the following valued ecosystem partners: CSIP, Techsauce, Impact Hub Dhaka, Impact Hub Kathmandu, and ANGIN. Their commitment to fostering innovation and social impact has been integral to the success of the AI4Health Asia Accelerator program and its culmination through the Impact Showcase. 

Please visit the AI4Health Asia Accelerator program page for more information.

About Villgro Philippines

Villgro Philippines is an award-winning gender-smart incubator that funds, mentors, and nurtures innovative startups addressing urgent social and climate issues through market-based models.

Also read: Transforming the creative economy and entertainment industry with TipTip

About the International Development Research Center – Canada

As part of Canada’s foreign affairs and development efforts, the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) champions and funds research and innovation within and alongside developing regions to drive global change. IDRC invests in high-quality research in developing countries, shares knowledge with researchers and policymakers for greater uptake and use, and mobilises global alliances to build a more sustainable and inclusive world.

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This article is produced by the e27 team, sponsored by Villgro Philippines

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The tech industry is undergoing a paradigm shift driven by the proliferation of powerful APIs. These application programming interfaces are acting as digital bridges, connecting businesses and customers in innovative ways.

The global API Management market is expected to grow steadily from 2023 to 2030. In 2021, it was valued at US$2176.88 million and is projected to reach US$5695.06 million by 2027, growing at a rate of 17.38 per cent annually.

In the upcoming Echelon X conference, attendees will have the opportunity to explore four key conference themes: Agile Business Practices, Sustainability & Responsibility, Collaborative Ecosystems, and Fostering Creativity, with a special focus on the rise of the API economy and its pivotal role in advancing business objectives.

To prepare ourselves for the event, in this listicle, we familiarise ourselves with seven enterprise technology companies, each offering unique solutions designed to empower businesses, streamline processes, and create a more connected world.

Contentsquare

Founded in 2012 by Jonathan Cherki, Contentsquare offers AI-powered customer experience (CX) analytics solutions. Trusted by over 1,000 brands, their technology analyses data from millions of websites globally. This data provides insights into customer behaviour, aiding businesses in understanding user journeys. Contentsquare prioritises user privacy and inclusivity within its solutions. Businesses can leverage this data to optimise website experiences for efficiency and user-friendliness.

The company has experienced significant growth. Their workforce now exceeds 1,800 employees, and they have secured US$1.4 billion in funding. Since 2019, Contentsquare has expanded its offerings through acquisitions, including Hotjar, Clicktale, and Pricing Assistant. This broader suite of tools caters to a wider range of businesses. Today, Contentsquare positions itself as a resource for businesses seeking to understand and improve customer experiences.

Tableau

Tableau, a leading provider of interactive data visualisation software, empowers individuals and organisations to see and understand their data. This core mission remains unchanged even after its acquisition by Salesforce in 2019.

As an 11-time Leader in the Gartner® Magic Quadrant, Tableau offers integrated analytics and business intelligence tools for streamlined data governance and management. Tableau empowers business users with real-time data and automated insights, fostering informed decision-making and stronger customer relationships and supporting the entire self-service analytics process, from data preparation to analysis and sharing. Its AI, built on the Einstein Trust Layer, provides personalised insights within workflows, ensuring data security and productivity.

Also Read: 9 HR transformation companies that are helping companies enter the new era

Devrev

Founded in 2020 by Dheeraj Pandey (former CEO of Nutanix) and Manoj Agarwal (former Nutanix executive), DevRev aims to connect developers (‘Makers’) directly with customers (‘Rev’). Their mission is to foster a culture of “product-thinking” across the entire organisation, shifting customer-centricity from a departmental focus to a company-wide philosophy.

DevRev offers OneCRM, a purpose-built CRM platform specifically designed for the SaaS industry. This platform combines three modern CRM applications – support, product, and growth – onto a single, unified platform. Unlike traditional, horizontal CRMs, DevRev prioritises a ‘blank canvas’ approach, allowing for greater flexibility in collaboration tools, artificial intelligence (AI) integration, and analytics. This focus empowers SaaS companies to accelerate product development and minimise customer churn.

Under the guidance of CEO Dheeraj Pandey and President Manoj Agarwal, the company secured over US$85 million in seed funding and was recognised by Forbes in 2024 as one of America’s best startup employers.

Vonage

Founded in 2001 and acquired by Ericsson in 2022, Vonage is dedicated to revolutionising communications for enterprises globally. With innovation as its core, Vonage has evolved from bringing VoIP to households and small businesses to enhancing communications for enterprises.

Offering unified communications, contact centre solutions, and APIs, Vonage seamlessly integrates them into the world’s most adaptable cloud communications platform. Clients have the flexibility to select from ready-to-use applications, leverage an extensive portfolio of APIs, or combine both for customised solutions.

Serving over 100,000 businesses globally, Vonage empowers enterprises to remain at the forefront in an ever-evolving communication landscape.

Also Read: These 7 tech titans are empowering your business with reliable cloud services

8×8

8×8 offers a comprehensive cloud-based communication and collaboration suite tailored for businesses. Thoughtfully integrating voice, video, chat, contact centre functionalities, and enterprise-grade API solutions into a singular, secure cloud platform, 8×8 empowers workforces on a global scale to facilitate faster collaboration and adopt more strategic work practices.

The platform offers both bundled service options and the flexibility of add-ons, allowing organisations to tailor their communication experience according to their specific needs. Furthermore, real-time analytics provide invaluable insights across all communication channels, empowering businesses to elevate customer satisfaction and propel organisational growth.

Perfios

Perfios, a leading Indian fintech company, empowers the BFSI sector (Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance) with real-time financial data analysis. Its Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions leverage AI and machine learning to equip financial institutions with the tools needed for informed decision-making throughout the customer journey.

Perfios offers a comprehensive suite that streamlines key functions like credit decisions through real-time analysis of financial statements and alternative data sources. It also automates customer onboarding, conducts thorough due diligence and ongoing client monitoring, and even provides solutions for automating tasks associated with loan defaults and litigation processes.

Perfios’ unique ability to analyse both structured and unstructured data provides a more holistic view of borrowers, fostering faster loan processing, risk mitigation, and enhanced customer experiences within the BFSI sector.

Twilio

Twilio’s mission aims to inspire innovation by empowering businesses to create dynamic user experiences. Their cloud communications platform seamlessly integrates voice, video, chat, and SMS functionalities, simplifying infrastructure setup for developers. With user-friendly APIs, Twilio enables developers to focus on innovation, enhancing competitiveness in the digital age.

Beyond communication channels, Twilio offers a Customer Engagement Platform (CEP) that unifies customer data for smarter interactions. This includes a leading Customer Data Platform (CDP) and Communication Platform as a Service (CPaaS) solutions supported by robust interoperability and a partner ecosystem.

With real-time data and a developer-centric platform, Twilio empowers millions of builders to create engaging customer journeys, facilitating over 14 trillion customer interactions globally for leading companies.

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Image credit: Canva

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There isn’t one specific priority that tops the list of startup founders. Priorities often vary depending on the maturity of their businesses, with prominent concerns usually being fundraising, market differentiation, partnerships, and customer acquisition.

Understandably, there is a strong emphasis on the growth of a startup’s business, focusing on upward trajectory and opportunity — but what about looking beyond just growth?

There is a temptation for founders to focus solely on the present, but the future is just as important.

It’s inevitable that there’ll be changes in leadership due to either planned departures or unforeseen circumstances. With that being the nature of work, startup founders wouldn’t want to simply sit back and watch their hard work crumble due to a lack foresight, which is why succession planning is crucial to ensure stability of a startup amid change.

What is succession planning and its benefits?

In essence, succession planning involves pinpointing crucial roles within a company and crafting strategies for individuals to step into those roles. By considering both present and future objectives, this approach guarantees that organisations have appropriately skilled personnel in key positions both now and for the future.

Implementing succession planning offers key benefits for startups and their long-term success. First off, it reduces risk and uncertainty. It ensures a pipeline of well-trained and experienced individuals ready to step into key roles, minimising gaps in talent and negative impacts on productivity and performance.

Succession planning also helps boost morale and employee engagement. By defining clear career paths and aligning employee goals with the business plan, succession planning can improve employee morale, engagement, and retention.

Also Read: Beyond unicorns: Building successful startup starts and ends with impact

Furthermore, it is a cost-effective solution for startups as it minimises disruptions, knowledge loss, and the need for expensive external hiring and training.

Why succession planning matters for startups

From my experience in European corporates, they have good continuity programmes that startups can learn from. CEOs and Division Heads earmark high-potential employees one to two levels down the managerial hierarchy and send them for global programmes like the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) and Company Led Training Programmes — setting the stage for future leadership with a strong foundation.

For startups like ours, we typically don’t start out with that kind of organisational hierarchy. Instead, I identify partners and senior management who are 12 years younger than myself, who in turn hire team members who are over 12 years younger than themselves. This creates 20-to-24-year age gaps — a sufficient timeline for a startup to grow, scale globally, and establish at least four to five generations of innovation or complimentary offerings.

With multiple generations within a startup, founders can mobilise regionalisation and globalisation, establish a good culture, and reduce generation gaps. If this can be carried out, the business will establish a culture of continuity whether the founder exits by IPO or buyout, as the business will continue like a well-oiled machine. This ensures that the startup is not simply a one-headed monster with only the founder at the helm. Succession planning and continuity programmes also aid in avoiding mass walkouts, hence reducing the risk of collapse and possible fraud.

Most importantly, succession planning ensures continuity and stability. Having a pool of competent individuals ready to assume critical roles ensures continuity and stability, even during times of transition or unexpected departures.

The three phases of succession planning

Typically, succession planning can be broken down into three phases:

• Assessment
• Evaluation
• Development

During the assessment phase, think of it as an overview. The current leadership team should have a look ahead to the next one to five years, identifying the significant business challenges. With that, the critical positions that will be needed to support business continuity must be identified. Competencies, skills, and corporate knowledge critical to success are then listed out, and the startup’s leadership can then create an employee shortlist for evaluation.

Understandably, a startup’s headcount might be small to begin with — making the assessment phase complicated as employees might not have the potential for such positions. To counter this, startups could have a hiring criterion prior to this assessment in mind, employing only those with potential from the get-go, eliminating the possibility of a lack of internal potential for future leadership.

Next, the evaluation phase of succession planning builds on what was assessed. There should be a selection of competencies employees will need to be successful in positions and to meet the identified business challenges. This, in turn, allows for the categorisation of skill or competency gaps — where high-potential employees will then be considered for future leadership roles.

Developing this pool of talent would be the last phase, where shortlisted employees capture knowledge from the leaders they worked with. This phase addresses any lingering knowledge or skill gaps through formal training, job shadowing, mentoring, and on-the-job experience.

Though the involvement of key stakeholders is encouraged within succession planning, multi-pronged input is not a luxury startups typically have. Instead of relying on a board of directors, external consultants, and HR departments, founders and seniors of startups need to focus on mentoring those within the layers of the hierarchy.

Also Read: The ultimate guide to validating your startup idea

This ensures that the key leaders know what is happening through their startup and understand the feelings and capabilities of employees through the layers. This fosters trust-building and provides an avenue for staff to provide input and feedback without fear of their direct superiors.

From the leadership front, the offer of ongoing support, guidance, and feedback to successors throughout the transition process ensures a better transition. Leaders should monitor their performance and progress and adjust as needed to ensure a smooth handover of responsibilities.

It is important to be cautious of any hidden biases that might arise when it comes to succession planning. Research shows that managers often prefer to hire and promote individuals who resemble themselves. In turn, it is highly advised that succession planning be a team effort within a startup, involving various leaders providing input during the identification, selection, and mentoring phases to avoid biases and ensure the best for the business moving forward.

Smooth, resilient, and successful with proper foresight

Succession planning is an integral part of ensuring the success of a startup to attract investors and customers. Serious investors always look at the people who drive the business, and a smooth flow of operations gives them an element of trust, with the same going for customers.

It not only mitigates the risks associated with unexpected leadership changes but also provides a structured approach to identify, develop, and nurture future leaders within the organisation. Startups should not just think about growth but weigh succession planning as a fundamental aspect of their strategy to safeguard their vision, culture, and operational resilience.

By implementing a well-crafted succession plan, startups can foster a talent pipeline, retain institutional knowledge, and facilitate smooth transitions. This proactive approach facilitates knowledge transfer, aligns employee goals with business objectives, and promotes a culture of continuous learning and development.

Ultimately, a robust succession plan serves as a strategic investment, enabling startups to navigate challenges, seize opportunities, and sustain their competitive edge in an ever-evolving business landscape.

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We’re less than 2 weeks away from Echelon X! Visit Echelon X to learn more about the program. Get your tickets here!

Digitalisation presents a myriad of challenges, particularly in the context of fragmented business processes. In an effort to transform traditional business practices with relevant tools, business owners are tasked with keeping track and creating a seamless flow for employees and stakeholders alike.

Businesses can streamline their workflows and data management using an integrated suite, which provides a unified platform for essential operations like CRM, accounting, HR, and more. This addresses inefficiencies, reduces costs, and enhances collaboration, allowing companies to focus on core objectives rather than wrestling with disparate systems.

Also read: Regional innovation economies collide at the government pavilions in Echelon X

Instead of juggling multiple disjointed tools, Zoho has created a business-friendly approach to software that democratises access to advanced business functionalities. This empowers organisations of all sizes to compete effectively in today’s dynamic market landscape.

One unified software suite to increase organisational efficiency

With 55+ apps in nearly every major business category including sales, marketing, customer support, accounting and back office operations, and an array of productivity and collaboration tools, Zoho Corporation is one of the world’s most prolific software companies. Businesses can manage their operations under one unified cloud software designed to help break down silos between departments.

Although Zoho’s flagship products like Zoho Mail, CRM, Campaigns, Accounting platform, and project management tools enjoy widespread recognition, businesses can leverage their software for advanced functions such as contract life-cycle management, digital signing applications, AR-powered support tools and customised e-commerce website development. Moreover, their solutions are seamlessly accessible via mobile apps and other workspace integrations, facilitating smooth global connectivity with employees.

Also read: JDI hosts Vietnam Pavilion: Spotlighting innovation at Echelon X

Zoho respects user privacy and does not have an ad-revenue model in any part of its business, including its free products. More than 100 million users around the world, across hundreds of thousands of companies, rely on Zoho every day to run their businesses, including Zoho itself.  Their privacy-first approach, long-term thinking, deep engineering focus, and customer-centric philosophy are just a few things that set them apart.

Zoho is privately held and profitable, with more than 15,000 employees and offices in Singapore, the United States, India, Japan, China, Mexico, Australia, the Netherlands, and the United Arab Emirates.

Community outreach is its heart

Zoho prides itself on crafting software like its art. It utilises and prioritises its R&D, keeping in mind the needs of the businesses it aims to service. Its core strategy for brand awareness is focused on community outreach amongst the business community.

Khoo Chia Ching, Zoho’s Regional Marketing Manager, will be part of the panel “Tech Adoption of SMEs in SEA and the Way Forward”. Khoo will be sharing insights on the present landscape of technology adoption among small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Southeast Asia. For this discussion, the stellar panel will feature challenges and opportunities faced by SMEs in adopting new technologies, such as digitalisation, automation, and e-commerce, to enhance their business operations and competitiveness.

Also read: AI4Health Asia Accelerator showcases innovative solutions in healthcare at the culmination event

After the panel, there will be more opportunities to connect with Zoho, as they will also be exhibitors during the conference proper. Interested businesses, big or small, are welcome to ask questions and inquire more about how Zoho can help their business scale.

Get to know Zoho at Echelon X!

Zoho is one of the many exciting industry leaders from across the Southeast Asian region who will be joining us for Echelon X. Joining them are other key leaders, visionary entrepreneurs, and groundbreaking startups from all corners of the region who will be gathering together for two packed days. Echelon X will feature dedicated content stages, exhibitions, panel discussions, and more — all to support and empower the tech startup ecosystem with actionable insights through a series of knowledge-sharing activities.

Whether you’re eager to expand your knowledge, network with key players from the tech startup scene, or showcase your innovative ideas, Echelon X offers an unparalleled experience. Join us as a participant or an official partner by securing your spot now on our official page. Together, let’s embark on a journey to shape the future and create a lasting impact.

Join us at Echelon 2024, where innovation knows no limits, and the possibilities are endless!

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Climate technology proliferates, focusing on carbon capture and storage (CCS), including Direct Air Capture (DAC). Despite initial concerns about cost-benefit ratios, significant investments from influential entities like Breakthrough Energy Ventures, led by Bill Gates, are driving progress in this area. The commitment to this technology demonstrates a strong belief in its potential, bolstered by increasing capital flow toward its development.

Global leadership in climate initiatives

Several countries, including Germany, Japan, and Singapore, are leading the way in adopting and advancing climate technologies. Germany’s community-driven environmental consciousness, Japan’s strategic climate leadership, and Singapore’s development of carbon credit trading systems exemplify diverse approaches to climate action. South Korea’s commitment to developing carbon-neutral technologies and substantial financial investment indicates a robust national strategy for achieving a sustainable future.

Reinventing regulation through carbon credits

Carbon credits are pivotal in the regulatory environment, incentivising companies to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. A dual system of voluntary credits for companies taking proactive measures and compulsory tradable credits within national frameworks creates a comprehensive approach to managing corporate carbon footprints. This system encourages reduced GHG emissions and integrates climate goals into corporate strategies, enhancing transparency and accountability.

Also Read: The future of finance: ESG integration in tokenised funding

The rise of climate finance

Climate finance is crucial for facilitating large-scale environmental projects. By leveraging mechanisms like project financing (PF), this climate capital can support projects to reduce GHG emissions. Integrating modern technologies such as blockchain and NFTs with carbon credits could revolutionise the reliability and transparency of carbon credit trading, potentially leading to its integration into mainstream financial markets.

The promising horizon for climate technology investments

The future of climate technology investment looks promising, with increasing interest from global tech giants and investors. As awareness of climate technology’s financial and environmental benefits grows, we expect to see a surge in investments. Investment in climate tech will likely be driven by the dual forces of technological innovation and regulatory incentives, guiding more companies to engage in sustainable practices.

In conclusion, while challenges remain, the trajectory for climate technology and related financial mechanisms is positive. Ongoing development in these areas addresses environmental concerns. It opens up new economic opportunities, creating a virtuous cycle of investment and innovation.

Acknowledgement: Special thanks to Ms. Calli Seunghee Moon, a new business development expert in DX (Digital Transformation) and Climate Tech at SK Inc., and the author of ‘The Era of Climate Tech’ for her invaluable contributions to this article.

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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.

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