All of May, we are taking a closer look at the workplace and all concerns of all kinds of workers. Afterall, Labour Day is the flavour of the month. Catch up what all the hype about a 4-day work week is all about and if its even worth it and learn how to manage you tech talent in lieu of the pandemic.

Also marching on is our Earth Day theme with some spotlight on slow fashion and impact investing. Hope you feel enlightened.

Labour Day specials

Voice of Employees: How the pandemic accelerated focus on employee welfare by Leong Chee Tung, CEO at EngageRocket

“Over the next few months, as organisations looked down the barrel of a potential economic downswing and damage to business continuity, HR departments provided the support and infrastructure that employees needed to stay productive and bring their best selves to work – even if that work happened in a virtual space.

For these reasons, 95 per cent of CHROs agree that HR played a leading role in their organisation’s response to COVID-19. As an ally during the period of challenge and change, HR’s role spread across facilitating business continuity in the early months, gauging employee sentiment and therefore the ideal organisational response, and intervening with the right technology at the right moments.

Like Voice of the Customer in the sales and marketing world, listening to employees in the workplace seeks to capture genuine employee sentiment and intent in order to plan more effective and targeted organisational strategies.”

How to retain local talent as global demand for remote tech workers surges by Jamille Tran, a reporter from Tsinghua University

“Technology staff in India, China, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Vietnam have long been known as the top IT outsourcing solution providers for global companies, according to A.T. Kearney’s Global Services Location Index (GSLI).

“Even before the pandemic, companies based in high labour-cost locations, like Australia and the US, have already utilised remote workers for non-core tasks, or even set up hub offices in lower-cost locations,” said Christopher Lee, senior manager of People & Organisation Management Consulting at PwC Consulting Vietnam. “COVID-19 has only accelerated this trend.”

With the acceleration caused by the pandemic, technology jobs like data engineer, senior software engineer, solution architect have entered the fastest growing remote jobs by application volume globally from March to June on Linkedin, the world’s largest professional networking platform.”

Is a four-day workweek better for employers or employees? by Duckju Kang, CEO of ValueChampion

“A number of companies including Microsoft Japan, American-based fast food company Shake Shack, New Zealand-based financial services company Perpetual Guardian have experimented with the four-day workweek in different ways.

Some companies have kept the same working hours and gave employees a day off for a total of 32 working hours per week, while others kept the 40 hour work week but condensed it into four days.

The companies that tested out the shorter work week conducted the experiment for a couple of months before deciding whether to implement the changes permanently.

The experiments yielded a few surprising results. Despite the shorter week, companies saw improvements in employee engagement and productivity. Employers also saw more cost savings and less turnover. However, there were also some negatives.”

As Glints CTO, this is what I want you to know about building an engineering team in Southeast Asia by Seah Ying Cong, CTO, Glints

“I had some abstract ideals about the perfect team I wanted to build. But at the end of the day, I am at a company with a budget, hiring against a tight timeline in a constrained talent market with a thin history.

There are realities to contend with, many of which are unique to the fragmented and multi-cultural context that is Southeast Asia. If I could hop on a Zoom call with that eager hiring manager from five years ago, here’s where I would focus his precious and soon-to-be-frayed attention.”

Caring for the planet

How to become a millionaire investor while scaling sustainability impact in the world by by Jamille Tran, a reporter from Tsinghua University

“BlackRock, one of the world’s largest asset management firms, noted in its recent report that sustainable investing would be no longer a niche area but turning mainstream without compromising financial goals.

International investors are expecting that this millionaire opportunity would prevalently occur within developing countries.

“People in developing countries are very committed to improving their standard of living,” said Ippel, while underlining that these countries account for three-quarters of the world’s population. “They are more committed to growth than entrepreneurs in North America or Europe.”

Slow fashion is back: How environmental sustainability becomes the hottest trend this season by Sarah Garner, founder and CEO, Retykle

“Popular high street brands can now produce weekly collections which are vast when compared to the four seasonal collections of traditional fashion houses.

The amount manufactured at an incredibly fast pace is only possible with some fairly aggressive factors at play which include unethical methods and techniques for producing materials, utilising workers far beyond the standard and ultimately safety, quality and efficiency of the garment.

The Sustainable Apparel Coalition estimates that designers control upwards of 80 per cent of a product’s environmental impact, and that it lies in the first steps of development. It is tough to work backwards when you are working towards a more sustainable product.”

And more….

What does the future of CBDCs actually look like and why does it matter? by Kanv Pandit, Payments and Banking at FIS

“The uncertainty created by the ongoing pandemic has led to cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin becoming mainstream. Both Apple Pay and PayPal recently started supporting bitcoin payments in the US. In Asia, Singapore’s DBS bank launched a digital currency exchange last December – this is the world’s first cryptocurrency exchange backed by a traditional bank.

As consumer demand for digital currency payment options rises, merchants in Asia are now beginning to accept such payment options across various channels. For example, in Japan bitcoin is accepted by over 260,000 stores and Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten had just launched a crypto wallet this month that allows users to shop both online and in-store using crypto.”

How cloud technology makes trading a hassle-free experience by Jeremy Choi, COO, ABCC Exchange

“From social media and banking to healthcare and government services, there is a need for efficient and reliable data infrastructure, cloud technology can greatly enhance the user experience.

For high-frequency trading environments, which depends on split-second decisions and execution, the use of cloud technology can help streamline the transaction process.

Why exactly is choosing a trading marketplace utilising cloud technology so important in improving the experience of buying and selling digital assets?”

Advertising with privacy: How SoMin employs AI to build brands and preserve anonymity online by Deon Tan, Block71 Singapore

“Consumers will also benefit from the increased privacy and absence of in-your-face advertisements that clog up news feeds. All in all, sophisticated adtech tools create a win-win situation for both businesses and consumers alike.

However, building sophisticated performance tools requires skill and a wealth of industry knowledge. Fortunately, a team of experts at BLOCK71 Singapore have been working to build the future of ad optimisation since 2017.

This month, I sat down with Hendrik Schwartz and Aleks Farseev, good friends and co-founders of adtech startup SoMin, to dissect the intricate workings behind their AI-driven marketing performance system.

Read on to discover the game-changing powers of ad optimisation for both businesses and consumers.”

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Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing contributions from the community. This season we are seeking op-eds, analysis and articles on food tech and sustainability. Share your opinion and earn a byline by submitting a post.

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It has been more than a year since the pandemic that sent nine-to-fivers packing their desks and relocating to dining tables at home. As regulations lift and workplaces open, companies are now trialling new combinations of working remotely and from an office.

Some have recalled staff back in separate groups, while others are on staggered schedules. Whatever the specifics, one thing is sure: the hybrid model is dictated from top leadership – leading the charge to get as many workers back to their seats as quickly as possible – and hastily implemented in a cut-and-paste manner down the chain of command.

Perhaps that is not surprising, speed has never been more important for companies seeking to bounce back. Despite what others may have you think, there is no shortcut.

Without strong leaders on all levels, these return-to-work models do not make reliable guides.

One hybrid model doesn’t fit all

There is no definite standard of what hybrid work should look like, and of course there is none. It depends on the industry in which the company operates and its corporate structure. Similarly, there should not be one be-all-end-all hybrid model across the departments within your organisation.

Say you impose a split-team work arrangement; your Sales Division will continue to bring in steady business, but with less hands on the loading docks, your Warehouse Crew can no longer keep pace with operational demands. Some workloads may decrease, while for others their workload may increase.

Also Read: Why remote working is the future for startups

Considering a hybrid work model also extends beyond just departmental functions. Individual work style strengths also play a part. If there’s one thing we learned from weeks of defaulting to online communication, it is that some people take better to working from home. Put them back within the confines of a cubicle and they lose their spark.

Conversely, employees who benefit from meeting in-person cannot be expected to achieve the same efficiency from behind a screen. Ask any seasoned worker and they will tell you that remote work is the silver lining of the pandemic. But for those who are on the learning curve or even promotion-list, zero physical proximity with their higher-ups will stunt their progress.

In fact, the knowledge that was once accessible is now siloed in emails and chats groups. New hires can forget about shadowing their managers without flouting the 2-metre rule.

One hybrid model doesn’t fit all and forcing it to work across the entire organisation will lead to decreased productivity and poor employee experiences.

What has leadership got to do with it?

Top management earns their stripes by making big calls for the company. But when it comes to running smaller units, the real decision-making power lies in the hands of team leaders and project managers. It is up to you to align your operations with the type of hybrid model that best fits the team.

The team leader decides how these distinct modes; remote and onsite work, can integrate to advance the company’s goals. At The Little Black Book, we have worked hard to provide what we call a blended hybrid structure. We are a mix of team members who prefer to be in the office during work hours and those who only come back as needed.

Also Read: Are your influence skills ready for remote work?

In addition to daily check-ins, we hold weekly face-to-face meetings. Or in this case, facemask-to-facemask meetings. Team leaders are empowered to delegate growth, not just tasks, make operational decisions and establish working norms. Working norms ensure that your downlines are clear about what is expected of them.

For instance, we ask our remote team members to give notice of any extended time away from the laptop during the workday. Even without a punchout clock or timesheet, your team has the structure it needs to function seamlessly.

This type of decentralised decision-making allows greater autonomy within departments or teams, and thus greater productivity. For rigid bureaucratic types, the blended hybrid model might sound too ‘work when you feel like it’. However, it is not about pandemic-proofing the office, setting everyone loose and hoping for the best – it starts with company culture.

Time to adapt your work manifesto

It is time for leaders to rethink performance metrics, which in this post-pandemic reality, is not about how long an employee stays behind after everyone has clocked out. For a blended hybrid model to work, the focus should be on measuring work output rather than hours. Rewrite your cultural manifesto into one that values communication, practices fairness and assumes goodwill of its team members. And even more crucially, include this in your culture deck: remote work is a competitive advantage.

The pandemic will soon play out, but we believe that the hybrid work has a permanent place in the employment mix. Approach this new framework less like an interim response to the pandemic, and more like an opportunity to grow your organisation globally. With a blended hybrid structure in place, your internal teams will have access to remote-ready talent from all over the world – but not otherwise possible if you continue to run top-to-bottom.

Every organisation should look beyond operating in survivalist mode and plant the seeds for long term success. After all, as your organisation continues to recover from the pandemic, the very nature of how its department and teams work will evolve.

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Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing contributions from the community. This season we are seeking op-eds, analysis and articles on food tech and sustainability. Share your opinion and earn a byline by submitting a post.

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In my first startup founded in 2016, I was a student entrepreneur who had to figure everything out independently. Running a company is tough, even more so when one is a student who has to juggle everything.

Along the way, I’ve received plenty of help from individuals and institutions, whose only request was for me to pay it forward to the next generation of founders (besides buying them coffee).

And paid it forward I have. Since then, the kindness I’ve received was paid forward in various capacities, such as:

• being a NEXT50 mentor, a TRIVE pay-it-forward programme
• speaking on student entrepreneurship, e.g., TEDxNUS, Clubhouse, etc
• mentoring in local and international innovation challenges, e.g., hackathons, innovation sprints, etc.
• being the CTO-in-residence for the venture builder program in the Singapore University of Social Sciences

Mentors who contribute their time and energy, despite having highly limited amounts of them, will agree with me on this: it is fulfilling to assist, guide, and discover the next generation of awesome folks who will change society.

However, the tipping point for me came when I was involved in an entrepreneurship start-a-thon in the first weekend of May this year.

Long story short, I felt that my time was completely wasted with huge opportunity costs incurred due to a lack of professionalism of the organising team. Apart from my anger with the team, I am angrier with myself for not listening to my instincts, even though the red flags were present.

As such, to help fellow founders out there who are passionate about mentorship in events, I’ve compiled a short list of red flags so that you can decide whether it’s worth your time to pay it forward.

Red flag #1: The organising team moves slowly

You can tell how organised an event will be based on how quickly a team moves. How does one tell whether a team moves quickly or otherwise?

One such sign is how the team spends the time in between first contact and subsequent engagement of the mentors.

For example, let’s say you indicate your interest a month prior to an event. Instead of contacting you immediately to either accept or reject your interest to mentor, the team only engages you five to seven days before the event.

Also read: What you should expect from your startup mentor

What was happening in the three weeks between first contact and second contact? Who knows, but it’s irresponsible to leave someone hanging until the last minute when the mentor might have to shift things around to accommodate the team’s poor organisation.

To a busy entrepreneur, one week is not a lot of time to change plans just to accommodate the timing provided by the team.

Time is a resource that you’ll never get back once you lose it. If the organisers don’t respect their own timeline, don’t expect them to respect yours either.

Red flag #2: Poor communication

Organising an event requires multiple stakeholders to be in sync and aligned, and it is impossible to do so without poor communication.

As such, a red flag to watch out for is how well the organising team communicates with you. A lack of communication/lack of coordination in communication is a precursor to things messing up, be it before or during the event.

A good team over-communicates and ensures that you know exactly what you need to do, and when you have to be there. On the other hand, a poor team does the opposite and leaves you in the dark.

Apart from communication between the team and you, watch out for signs of poor communication between team members as well. The most telling signs:

• repeated messages to you
• slow replies with scant details
• lack of coordination amongst team members
• having poor email habits

If you catch yourself asking why it’s so hard to talk to the team or find yourself confused, it’s time to reconsider your participation in the event.

Red flag #3: You ask yourself “what’s going on?”

A mentor’s job is to go into pre-arranged sessions and support the participating teams in their bid to create the next big thing. Thus, the onus is on the organising team to ensure that this happens smoothly. In fact, all of the thinking should have been done for you by the organising team.

Also read: Meet Mentor For Hope, the startup mentorship programme that will donate 50K meals for those in need

At any point in time, if you have to take the initiative to ping the team to get updates or are in constant doubt, you might have to be mentally prepared for things to go awry.

In fact, if you have to guess what’s going on at any time, it’s probably not a good idea to stick around the event.

Conclusion

That’s all folks, the three red flags that one should look out for.

Organisers, if you read this and you felt like the red flags applied to you, please commit to improve for future events. Organisers-to-be, I hope you share this piece amongst your team members as a cautionary tale as you organise your events. In fact, these red flags are meant for all kinds of events, not just startathons, hackathons, or any -athons.

Fellow mentors and individuals thinking about helping out in hackathons/events/challenges, I hear you that it’s important to contribute time to the ecosystem. Use this list of red flags wisely in the future as you decide how you want to contribute.

At the end, I hope this piece will lead to a change in how events involving external mentors are run. As for me, I’ll be taking a break from paying it forward unless it’s a warm referral or a request by trusted peers and just focus on hustling.

Founders, you should focus on hustling too unless the reasons to mentor are extremely compelling and the organising team respects you and your time.

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Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing contributions from the community. This season we are seeking op-eds, analysis and articles on food tech and sustainability. Share your opinion and earn a byline by submitting a post.

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As the leading full-service telecommunications company in the Philippines, Globe plays a vital role in connecting a sprawling archipelago of over 7,600 islands and more than 100 million people. But building a successful enterprise is just part of the picture.

We knew that to bring digitalisation to the wider nation — one that is brimming with opportunity, yet also struggling with poverty and limited resources — we had to start from home and transform the company’s own digital culture before expanding this to the wider nation.

A fresh start for building a vibrant future

To start, we launched Globe’s new digital identity on a collaborative cloud platform. As an investment that would shape the workflows for thousands of employees, we wanted to make sure the platform we chose was the best fit.

We organised a competition between two leading cloud providers, who were invited to demonstrate features of their solution on five different floors in our old office. Our leadership team also included a site-creation challenge in which team members built 62 project sites on the competing solutions, working with features that required no prior IT background.

When put to a company vote, Google Workspace was the choice for more than 75 per cent of participants, with its primary factor being its powerful, easy-to-use cloud-based features.

Google Workspace was introduced to our workforce of 17,000 people in only four months, and we began with utilising messaging and communication platforms including Gmail, Hangouts, Meet, and Calendar, before moving to productivity and collaboration apps such as  Drive, Slides, Sheets, Forms, and Sites.

Accelerating business process automation with a no-code platform

We use a lot of manual processes to serve our customers, and are embracing digitalisation as a business to embed software within those processes, or use software to create end-to-end processes.

Globe’s adoption of AppSheet, an intelligent, no-code platform that enables teams and individuals to create workplace apps, helped accelerate the organisation’s digital transformation program.

In Q2 2020, an AppSheet ‘hackathon’ was held as part of our adoption strategy, and we invited all our employees to join and conducted workshops, and then we gave them eight weeks to complete their application on top of their usual workload. 

AppSheet enables Globe employees to build and iterate apps and, best of all, since they are typically the end user of an app, they understand precisely what they need; there is no need to pass information from business analyst to project manager to developer.

The agility to create business process automation is the significant value we see for AppSheet. By enabling employees to build apps to automate internal processes without support from the business’s IT operation through AppSheet, we were able to centralise costs and implement internal automation processes that were not previously prioritised or accepted when business cases were submitted. 

As Globe’s Chief Information Officer, Carlo Malana shares, “we’ve always been on the lookout for grassroots innovations among our employees at Globe, and this is something that we’re very keen on cultivating for our people. AppSheet gave us this flexibility — it is the perfect tool to mine these innovative minds, and allows us to quickly execute and transform how business is done and improve how we serve our customers.”

Also read: Better workforce management leads to greater customer satisfaction. Here’s how Google did it

The success of the no code hackathon made a very good impact in showcasing our employees, the winners, and the applications they built using AppSheet. We believe we were able to get those early adopters to provide their insights and support for our program.

Post-hackathon, we also engaged Google Cloud to run an enterprise workshop to assist with the deployment of AppSheet. They also provided a success manager and account manager, and supplied AppSheet documentation and ongoing premium support, to assist with the training of hackathon participants in the transition to developing critical applications in AppSheet.

Since then, Globe has expanded the number of no-code apps developed using AppSheet from 59 created during the hackathon to 350. From the five-day enterprise workshop run with Google Cloud, we trained 450 employees, 180 of whom are now app creators.

The final objective of federation through AppSheet is to enable Globe’s workers to undertake their own business process automation. This means enabling citizen developers to use APIs and other tools to integrate with goal systems such as our customer relationship management systems. Eventually, we aim to integrate all our platforms and enable rapid prototyping through AppSheet.

Moving forward, we also hope to continue building skills internally through training and workshops delivered via Globe’s University campuses, and to collaborate with Google Cloud to enhance its capabilities in areas such as monitoring.

Adapting quickly during a pandemic

This forward thinking in employee training and empowerment proved to be especially helpful during the pandemic that prompted lockdowns in the Philippines. We needed to adapt quickly and at scale, with AppSheet helping the business make the necessary adjustments.

For instance, our store specialists had challenges managing customer visits during the pandemic. To overcome this, the team created an app to enable customers to reserve time slots to attend stores, enabling them to complete their visits quickly and efficiently.

Furthermore, Globe’s human resources team automated a process that enabled employees to claim internet, electricity and other resources required to work remotely during the pandemic.

Business process automation speeds up

Based on a review of 25 launched apps, Globe’s business process turnaround time has been reduced by 79.8 per cent since deploying AppSheet.

Prior to that, we had to create a business case to justify the development of each app and then prioritise the work. Going from prioritisation to production would take about three to six months, depending on the complexity of the app.

Now, a skilled citizen developer can deliver a complex app in two to four weeks and a more straightforward app in a week or two. There is less of a need for testing and less of a need to create documentation – we can shortcut directly from idea to development.

The no-code development platform allowed our citizen developers to utilise its machine learning capabilities to build richer, more intelligent apps; for example, a hackathon team used AI and machine learning features to deliver competitive customer experience speed test estimates using AppSheet’s predictive model. They can also use spreadsheets as a common, easy-to-use data source for apps.

Furthermore, with AppSheet’s seamless integration with Google Workspace, employees without coding backgrounds can also create AppSheet apps directly from Sheets, eliminating the need to search drives for the correct data sources.

Creative solutions in the cloud

These cloud tools are key to Globe’s ‘zero back office’ project. Our aim is to eliminate all internal paper communications, for everything from expense approvals to gym reservations.

Also read: A hyper-intelligent workforce and the future of work

At the same time, these allowed us to strengthen our security policies, adopting single sign-on and multi-factor authentication, mobile device management, content compliance, and other features, while also storing all employee data in a secure cloud environment.

Furthermore, as Globe moves away from slide-based presentations for monthly and quarterly reports to dashboards that provide near real-time information and a single source of truth, we use other Google Cloud features to unlock the power of data through visualisation, insights, and storytelling.

We have a dedicated team using Google Cloud BigQuery for data analysis to support its enterprise office group and marketing services hub, while Google Data Studio enables employees and groups to track performance for everything from completion of mandatory tasks to organisational KPIs.

Our close partnership with Google Workspace and Google Cloud enables our team to strive towards making Globe’s vision a reality.

This article was co-authored by Francis Pugeda, Head of Emerging Technologies &  Red Jaques Bernaldez, Workplace Technology Portfolio Head, Globe Telecom.

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Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing contributions from the community. This season we are seeking op-eds, analysis and articles on food tech and sustainability. Share your opinion and earn a byline by submitting a post.

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Nano Technologies (Nano), a Vietnam-based fintech startup that allows workers access their wages immediately, has raised US$3 million in seed capital.

Existing investors Golden Gate Ventures and Venturra Discovery led the round with participation from new investors FEBE Ventures, Openspace Ventures, and Goodwater Capital.

For Vietnamese wageworkers living from paycheck to paycheck can lead to financial distress due to sudden expenses. This further leads to debt traps of microloans with near to 300-500 per cent year interest rates just to make ends meet.

To solve this problem, Dzung Dang, an ex-Uber executive, and Thang Nguyen launched Nano.

The six-month-old company empowers low-income workers to access earned salaries anytime and anywhere to take care of daily expenses without having to wait until the next payday.

Through its payroll app called VUI, workers can not only get their pay before payday but through it they can also keep track of work attendance, announcements (from the company), and learn basic personal financial management concepts– for free.

As of now, the company claims to serve more than 20,000 employees from employers in Vietnam including GS25, LanChi Mart, and Annam Gourmet.

Also Read: Former Carro COO’s financial wellness app GajiGesa bags US$2.5M seed for Indonesia expansion

Nano has also recently taken part in Y Combinator’s accelerator program.

In a press statement, Chi Phan, the CEO of LanChi Mart, said “On-demand salary via VUI is an obvious idea and practical HR initiative that LanChi team is pleased to roll out to our employees as a new voluntary benefit. VUI provides a much-needed financial lifeline from LanChi to our employees, keeping the employee morale up during the pandemic and reducing attrition rates post-Tet,”.

“Given the ubiquity and acuteness of the cashflow mismatch problem for the working people, more frequent payroll is not only good for low-income workers but also a tactical yet underappreciated initiative that employers could deploy to stand out in the labour market. This model also eliminates the need for black market credit at small ticket sizes,” Dang added.

The employer-sponsored salary advance model has been adopted by thousands of employers in the US, Europe, and Latin America.

Walmart, the largest retailer globally has adopted this solution since 2017 for their 1.4 million workforces with over US$300 million of bottom-line impact annually.

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Image Credit: Nano

 

 

 

 

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As a foreign company, how do you grow in a hyper-local market such as Asia?

Smule, a Silicon-valley headquartered karaoke app company, is one of the few that has made a mark in the region. According to Musical.ly, Smule not only has 40 million users globally but also 20 per cent of its user’s hail from India.

Although being the pioneer of the social music-making trend certainly played to its advantage, its unique features such as Live Jam, integrated lenses powered by Snapchat, AutoRap, and more within its app quickly turned into a hit, especially among teenagers.

In an interview with e27, Smule CEO Jeff Smith said; “Innovation is what sets us apart from the competition. We were the first to launch collaborative singing worldwide and in Indonesia. We have many new features in the works, all designed to provide our community with the tools they need to sing and share with friends and fellow singers around the world.”

To further learn more about its growth strategies and its future plans, particularly for Indonesia, e27 speaks to Smith in an interview.

Below are edited excerpts:

Smule was one of the earliest karaoke apps that started when there were far fewer apps similar to it. What drove its adoption? Was the growth entirely organic?

From the very beginning, we set out to connect the world through music.  The combination of our technology, relationships in the music industry, and dedication to our community helped us grow, gain recognition, and build trust early on. Most of our growth in the Southeast Asia region has been organic. 

Also Read: Tencent leads US$54M in music app startup Smule to help it expand footprint in Southeast Asia

During your early days of growth and expansion into Southeast Asia, what were some of the challenges that you faced?

One of the challenges that we faced was the diversity and bandwidth of devices across regions such as the Philippines, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

Our goal is to give people the best experiences like high-definition video versions of their songs, which turned out not to be very practical. Things like the size of our application, the amount of bandwidth it takes to download, were also affected.

We had to be very aware of our limitations, and that’s one of the reasons why we came up with fully audio experiences in those regions. And part of that is because audio experiences are beautiful, you do not always need videos, sometimes just using ears and not our eyes is something that we underappreciate.

And plus, a lot of the phones that are used in those regions are not as sophisticated in giving us information that allows us to correctly identify a language, and sometimes the phones also have bugs. So that’s another challenge that we have to face.

What are some differences that you have observed in American users compared to users from Southeast Asia? 

Unlike the US, where two-thirds of Smule’s community members are women, most of the community members from Indonesia are men.

My own theory is that the western culture hasn’t really lent itself to the men feeling as empowered as the women in areas around the arts leading to this gap.

Another big difference is the level of social engagement. In the US, a common form of a song is a solo, unlike in Indonesia where it’s much more common to do a duet or a group performance with someone else.

And then finally, our Indonesian users, are spending 70 minutes a day, compared to the US, which spends only 30 minutes.

Can you shed some light on the patterns of user engagement of the Indonesian audience?

Our Indonesian community is one of the most active and engaged in Smule. Time and time again we hear our users join Smule for the singing experience but stay for the incredible friendships and supportive, positive community that’s built and sustained through the shared experience of singing together.

For many of our Indonesian users, that comes in the form of joining groups that keep members engaged by hosting concerts, live meet-ups (when it’s safe), and weekly challenges to celebrate and share members’ voices and talents. 

Keeping our community at the forefront, we’ve built unique programs and products to deliver on our promise to bring people together through music. These include recurring programs like our bi-weekly challenges and timely campaigns tied to cultural moments and holidays like Ramadan and Independence Day. 

Also Read: Vewd CEO: APAC users more likely to use ad-supported streaming services compared to North American users

What will drive the next phase of the company’s growth in Indonesia that can add another significant number to the user base?

We’ve been fortunate to partner with Timesbridge in India and experienced impressive growth as a result. We’re considering similar strategic partnerships in key regions, including Indonesia. By working with local companies that understand the landscape, we’re able to break down language and cultural barriers to deliver a better, more localized experience and explore new channels and media we otherwise may not know or have access to. 

In addition to partnerships, we’ll continue to expand our Partner Artist program, which currently hosts nearly 60 Indonesian artists. We look forward to bringing more artists on board in the near future

How are you going about brand partnerships and monetisation in Indonesia? 

We’re open and interested in exploring opportunities in Indonesia. We had a collab planned for 2020 but unfortunately, it was postponed due to the pandemic. The hope is that we can see it through but we’re still working through some details.

Regardless, we’re dedicated to growing Smule in Indonesia and are eagerly working to identify the right local partners to reach new audiences there.

We have also have filed patents for some of our features in Southeast Asia to maintain our status as a frontrunner as a social-music app.

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Image Credit: Smule

 

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When it comes to finding the right people and ideas to invest in, visibility is everything. Remember that you are not alone in trying to land the hottest new emerging startups in your portfolio. If you want to become a true partner for innovation and earn the opportunity to catalyse the growth of some of the most brilliant young companies in the world, you really have to stand out.

As such, we bring good news to the most active investors in our e27 ecosystem! Lucky for you, we have just launched our latest Investor Side Widget on our e27 homepage!

These investors are listed on our Investor Side Widget because of their high level of engagement on our e27 platform and their responsiveness to Connect requests from startups. We are working to improve the discovery of more active investors in the Investor Directory as well as a follow-up next step.

For all the verified investors out there at e27, here is a chance for you to gain some extra visibility on our platform as the hottest startups in the region can now easily get connected with you via our side widget on the right side of our homepage with just one click. In order to become an active investor, a combination of factors is taken into account. This includes the 2 main factors as follows:

1. How responsive an investor is in responding to “Requests to Connects” from startups — QUICK TIP: if you have any pending requests sitting in your email, now is the time for you to clear them up.
2. Level of engagement on our e27 platform
   • Level of Profile Completeness
   • Up-to-date Investment Updates
   • General activity on the platform

For all startups out there, here is the chance for you to get connected with the most lively investors in the region! And what’s better, you know for sure now that they are the more active investors out there and will probably be responding to you in a more timely manner.

For general investors interested in the program, please read here on how it works and here on how to join.

The post Active investors get a special feature in brand new Investor Side Widget appeared first on e27.

The Fintech landscape in Southeast Asia has grown tremendously over the last 10 years. For one, Open Banking, which was initially perceived as a good-to-have, has now become essential due to many industry factors, such as a booming e-commerce industry and a large growth in cross-border business activities.

Open Banking, in layman terms, is the “opening up” of banks to external vendors and developers. This creates a controlled, and in most cases, regulated access for Third-Party Providers to make use of banking services and customer-permissioned data — services and data which would previously have been siloed behind secured servers and legacy systems.

You might then wonder why Open Banking is useful, and why banks should adopt Open Banking, which may come with the risk of subjecting their confidential and critical information to online attacks and piracy.

Similar to the past trends of open-source software and open API applications, there can be many new ideas and innovations that will be able to benefit as a result of the power of the collective mind.

How Open Banking can Accelerate Innovation

Over the years, banks have created many financial services and products to serve consumers and businesses. They have done well addressing the core financial needs of their customers. However, when it comes to innovating beyond their core strengths and expertise, it is sometimes beyond the bank’s resources and capabilities to do so.

Also read: The 5G era is here, and you can be part of the revolution

Banks could counter this issue by opening up access to some of their financial services and data to developers, financiers, and potential users. This financial ecosystem could then leverage everyone’s various strengths and expertise to develop useful solutions and use cases to provide a greater variety of improved financial products and experiences, that are able to cater to different customer needs.

Resistance to Open Banking

Although the benefits of Open Banking are easy to understand, the main reasons for the slow uptake in some regions is due to resistance and inertia. Those unfamiliar with Open Banking may be concerned about unnecessarily exposing themselves to potential risks such as fraud, security breaches, and regulatory non-compliance.

Furthermore, many large financial institutions have multi-layered organisations with many legacy systems which are deeply entrenched. This means that an extensive amount of time and resources would be needed to overhaul systems, educate stakeholders about the benefits of Open Banking, and ensure that the proper procedures are implemented.

Open Banking in Southeast Asia

While the US and European markets are global leaders in Open Banking, there has been significant progress in the Asia Pacific region. For instance, in China, Open Banking has been fairly widely adopted, and this is predominantly market-driven, as large Chinese banking groups face fierce competition from Internet-based companies such as Ant Financial.

On the other hand, in some Southeast Asian markets, such as Singapore and Indonesia, the local regulators have been promoting and encouraging the adoption of Open Banking. These regulators have published guidelines on APIs and appropriate frameworks for third-party access to the banks’ data. In other Southeast Asian markets where guidelines have yet to be published, most central banks have initiated their own payments-related APIs in order to facilitate improved e-commerce transactions .

Generally, the largest banks in each market have taken proactive steps to open up their APIs and work with Open Banking platforms such as Finantier, Brankas, and Brick to develop their own frameworks and guidelines.

Impact of Open Banking on Fintech Startups

In the past, in order for Fintech startups to successfully launch their own products, they will typically have to go through the process of building their own core banking systems, such as risk management and payment systems. They would then need to undergo robust and rigorous security checks, and acquire the necessary licenses and compliance approvals. Alternatively, they would have to integrate with legacy banking institutions, or form strategic business partnerships with them. These processes would typically take at least one to two years, and require a lot of resources as well.

Also read: Want to fast-track your growth? Fast-track your way to improved customer experience

However, with Open Banking, startups can now focus on what they do best, while leveraging existing banking systems to develop innovative and personalised solutions for consumers. Consequently, the duration required for a Fintech startup to bring their product to market has been significantly reduced. For instance, Gromo, a social media platform dedicated to financial products, was able to reduce their go-to-market timeline by up to 80%, by resolving banking integration challenges using Decentro’s Account Validation API.

On the digital payments front, startups are able to roll out their own e-wallet capabilities, while depending on banks to provide ledger systems, account opening services, and cash management services in the background. They may also offer white-labelled credit cards and Buy Now Pay Later services to new or underserved market segments, while utilising banks’ credit facilities. Additionally, startups can easily launch products quickly across various markets by making use of the local banks’ licenses, instead of applying for their own license.

What’s Next?

In both of his articles published on e27 last month, Diego Rojas, the Co-Founder and CEO of Finantier, has discussed how Open Banking has brought about Open Finance, as an extension of Open Banking data-sharing principles — to provide access to financial data, in order to enable third-party providers to have a better idea of a consumer’s financial position.

Although it might take a while for more banks to adopt Open Banking, we are starting to see that the possibilities with Open Banking are limitless. It is now up to us to decide how to best utilise the extensive financial data and information available.

To all founders and startups who are interested in learning more about Open Banking, we would like to invite you to join Diego Rojas and David Engel, Fintech Specialist at AWS, for a webinar on 24th May to learn more about the Open Banking landscape in Southeast Asia and how to tap on this burgeoning opportunity to accelerate the launch of your Fintech innovation. Eligible startups which attend the webinar will also stand to receive complimentary AWS Founder Activate credits after the event.

Interested to join? Register here.

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This article is produced by the e27 team, sponsored by 
Plug and Play

We can share your story at e27, too. Engage the Southeast Asian tech ecosystem by bringing your story to the world. Visit us at e27.co/advertise to get started.

The post Open Banking: why this risky pursuit is the key to accelerating Fintech innovation appeared first on e27.

 

In today’s edition of “Active Investors of the week”, we have Golden Equator Ventures , ExtraVallis, KDDI as our top three most active investors in our e27 Connect Program. The following are some details on who these investors are and what are their investment criterias:

Golden Equator Ventures
Based in: Singapore
Investment range: Not specified, Series A, Series B, Series C & Above

Straight from Golden Equator Ventures: Golden Equator Ventures (GEV) is a venture capital firm that invests in high-growth technology companies in Southeast Asia. GEV is a subsidiary of Golden Equator Group. Through its ecosystem of businesses and networks, Golden Equator invests in the future generation through its key pillars of Capital, Technology, and Community to build financially rewarding businesses while driving positive social impact.

Latest Investments:

1. Whitecoat (Singapore), Series A, $8M, Apr 2021
2. dahmakan (Malaysia), Series B, $18M, Feb 2020
3. Rever (Vietnam), Venture Round, $2.3M, Sep 2019

Verticals: Fintech, Human Resources, Media and Entertainment

ExtraVallis
Based in: United States of America
Investment range: Not specified, Angel / Pre Seed, Seed

Straight from ExtraVallis: ExtraVallis enables you to focus on your business rather than fund-raising. Ensures exposure to investors, control over how you raise capital, and easier management and presentation of your metrics to demonstrate success.

Verticals: All/Any

KDDI
Based in: Singapore
Investment range: Not Specified, Seed, Pre-Series A / Bridge, Series A, Series B, Series C & Above

Straight from KDDI: KDDI supports startups that shape the new future, through offering investments, facilities, and marketing channels. KDDI is committed to creating a new world with you challengers.

Latest Investments:

1. Repro (Japan), Series C, $27M, Feb 2020
2. Cluster (Japan), Series C, $7.47M, Jan 2020
3. GTRIIP (Singapore), Venture Round, Undisclosed, Dec 2019

Verticals: Fintech, Consumer, IoT/ AI

We wish you all the best in your fundraising journey and hope our e27 Connect Program will assist you to secure quality conversations with the top investors in Southeast Asia in the quest to attain your fundraising goals. If you are a startup looking to fundraise, sign up here now for a free trial to get connected with the abovementioned investors.

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Photo by RODNAE Productions from Pexels

The post Here are 3 investors active on e27 Connect that you may start connecting with today appeared first on e27.

The story: Neuron Mobility, a Singapore headquartered rental electric scooter operator, has launched into Canada, after winning a contract to operate in Ottawa, in the coming month.

More about the story: Neuron will be launching its safety-leading N3 e-scooters which electronically secures a safety helmet to every e-scooter.

The e-scooter will also be fitted with bilingual voice guidance, in English and French, to educate users and help them ride
and park safely.

As of now, the company operates in cities across Australia, New Zealand, the UK, and South Korea.

Zachary Wang, CEO of Neuron Mobility said: “We’re delighted to launch in Ottawa. This year, more than ever before, Canadian cities are realising the benefits of e-scooters, and we think we are well-placed to meet their needs.”

Ata Plus appoints Elain Lockman as new CEO, plans to go IPO

The story: Ata Plus, an online equity crowdfunding (ECF) platform, announced today that it has appointed Elain Lockman as its new CEO in addition to her role as co-founder and director.

More about the story: In line with this appointment, Ata Plus has also revealed its plans to go public.

“Our vision requires us to make considerable investments in both technology and regulatory infrastructure so as to readily
facilitate the new products and services we plan to launch in the short to medium term,” said Aimi Aizal Nasharuddin, Executive Director of Ata Plus.

Also Read: Ecosystem Roundup: Is Singaporean startup Team Labs legitimate?

“We feel that going public serves our needs best as it is in line with our philosophy to democratise investments by allowing public participation at this relatively early stage of our growth,” he added.

Hong-Kong’s blockchain gaming firm Animoca Brands raises US$88M

The story: Hong Kong-based blockchain gaming firm Animoca Brands has raised US$88.8 million in its latest funding round
Investors: Kingsway Capital, RIT Capital Partners, HashKey Fintech Investment Fund, AppWorks Fund, LCV Fund, Huobi, Octava, Ellerston Capital, Perennial, Axia Infinity Ventures, SNZ, Liberty City Ventures, and Metapurse.

What the funding will be used for: To develop new products, make strategic investments, and secure additional intellectual property licenses.

More about the story: With this new funding, Animoca Brands has also gained unicorn status.

According to Tech In Asia, the company went public on the Australian Securities Exchange in 2015 but was taken off the exchange last year due to governance, personnel, and non-compliance issues.

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Image Credit: Neuron Mobility

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