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Showing posts with label Cheryl Yeoh. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cheryl Yeoh. Show all posts

Saturday, July 8, 2017

The ugly side of the digital economy



ALMOST everybody is addicted to the digital world of connectivity. Only a handful can dare say that they are not dependent on the Internet or the connectivity that comes with the digital age.

To those not convinced that they are addicted to technology and the Internet, they should try asking themselves a few questions.

When was the last time they accessed the computer to search for something through Google? When was the last time they accessed Facebook or Whatsapp to stay connected? How long have they gone without getting “an anxiety attack” without having their handphones with them?

If an uneasy feeling creeps into them without having their computers or mobile phones with them, then the chances of them being reliant on the digital world is high. If they are lost at work without “Mr Google” and feel handicapped, then they are hooked on the digital world.

From the hundreds of people I know, only two do not carry a mobile phone with them. One is a seasoned lawyer while the other is a retired factory manager. They are exceptions to the norm.

The digital age is here to stay and grow. The advantages of digital connectivity in terms of accessing instant information and staying in touch with others seamlessly are just too great to be without.

These days, even people in their late 50s and 60s are active users of Facebook, which they see as critical touch points of their lives with others. The instant response to their postings is a gratification of sorts.

These are new touch points that they would normally not be able to enjoy without digital connectivity. However, there is a downside to this digital addiction in both the social and economic sense.

There is a book going into the details of how more people are depressed without digital connectivity, how people have gone berserk without having access to Internet connectivity. This is one of the many social downsides of the digital age.

However, more shocking is the unconventional work ethics, sexual harassment and culture of idolising individuals that have become rampant with the rise of the digital economy.

Last week, the former chief executive of the Malaysian Global Innovation and Creativity Centre (MaGIC), Cheryl Yeoh, revealed that she was a victim of sexual assault by a venture capitalist, Dave McClure, three years ago.

The revelation only came after The New York Times reported that McClure had stepped down from 500 Startups following allegations of sexual harassment against him.

500 Startups is a Silicon Valley-based early-stage venture fund and seed accelerator. Generally, the principals of venture funds tend to exert their influence over those seeking their money.

It is rampant in the world of the new economy where funding from banks is not easily available. Banks would want to see profits and a strong balance sheet before they lend money to start-ups. Start-ups in the digital economy rarely have both financial elements.

Yeoh said that she did not come public with the incident earlier fearing that many would not believe her. She also did not want to jeopardise the business venture between MaGIC and 500 Startups.

McClure is not the only venture capitalist who has faced the brunt of unethical work practices. Travis Kalanick, the founder and prime force behind ride-hailing app company Uber, has also been forced out by shareholders after a series of scandals in the company.

Among those who complained against the work culture of Uber was software engineer Susan Fowler Rigetti, who in her blog posting stated that the company’s work environment was hostile towards women, leading to many of them leaving.

The hostility went beyond sexual harassment. It was even to the point of the women not getting leather jackets as their numbers were small compared to the men who had received theirs from the company.

Because the number of women working in Uber was small, the company, which is touted as the most valuable unlisted new economy entity, could not get the discounts required and hence did not order the leather jackets.

In a company engaged in the old economy of brick-and-mortar businesses, such reasoning would not have been tolerated. But it has happened in Uber, where Kalanick held a position so strong that the way he managed the company was not questioned.

Hero-worshipping the founders is quite common in new-economy companies. Whatever the founders decide is not questioned. It has come to the point where even when deals are concluded at lofty valuations, hardly any murmurs are raised.

No questions asked: Jeff Bezos of Amazon purchased a grocery chain, Whole Foods Market, for US14bil two weeks ago and nobody batted an eyelid or raised any questions. – AFP

Jeff Bezos of Amazon purchased a grocery chain, Whole Foods Market, for US$14bil two weeks ago.

Nobody batted an eyelid or raised any questions as to why a new-economy heavyweight was buying into a matured company in an industry that was facing huge challenges because of Amazon.

Amazon, with its online shopping platform for anything from books to groceries and even movies, has disrupted the retail industry. The likes of Wal-Mart and Tesco are reeling from the growing dominance of Amazon.

So, why is Amazon buying into a grocery chain operating in the industry that it is destroying?

Nobody knows the answer. They only rely on the faith that Bezos can do no wrong. Blind faith is the biggest downside to the digital economy.

Digital economy companies tend not to give dividends and spend a lot on research and development under the excuse that the business is still growing and needs all the financial resources.

Investors believing that mantra follow blindly. They are encouraged by the rising share prices even though there are little fundamentals.

One day, such blind faith will lose its lustre and the price will fall. Only then will investors realise that the old-fashioned way of valuing companies is still way better.

The alternative view by M.Shanmugam

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Tuesday, December 22, 2015

Building the startup ecosystem


To build a successful ecosystem, you need to first identify the end goal. Then, piece together all the components and players that will play a fundamental role in making that goal happen.

AS my tenure at MaGIC draws to a close, I wanted to reflect on my thought process for building the startup ecosystem in Malaysia and the region.

When I was asked to be the founding CEO of MaGIC, I came up with a comprehensive gameplan to build the startup ecosystem within the country and Southeast Asia and presented it to an interview panel in February 2014. One interviewer asked: “Sounds like you want to do a lot. It’s a very ambitious plan. But if there’s only one thing you want to accomplish at MaGIC, what would that be?”

I answered without hesitation: “I will put Malaysia on the global map. Because Malaysia has so much untapped potential and my job is to show what’s possible.”

When I was appointed and shortly after President Obama and our Prime Minister launched MaGIC on April 27, 2014, I sketched the ecosystem map above.

You can’t build an ecosystem without first understanding what the end goal is – to help startups succeed at a regional and global level. Only then can you piece together all the components and players that will play a fundamental role in making that happen. As a healthy ecosystem requires various parties to play different roles towards a common objective, this charted a clear path for me to fill in the gaps in the current ecosystem.

One of the reasons why MaGIC has been able to make such an impact so quickly is because I’m a returning Malaysian with an international perspective; no historical baggage, no hidden agenda and nothing to lose.

MaGIC’s initial focus on education, exposure and acceleration charted an agnostic platform and foundation for all parties to genuinely come together and create a critical mass much needed to take this ecosystem to the next level.

To create this, we strived to equip entrepreneurs with the right startup skills via our education portal, MaGIC Academy, expose entrepreneurs to other ecosystems like Silicon Valley and big markets within Asean, and accelerate startups via a global platform such as our MaGIC Accelerator Program (MAP) and 500 Startups’ Distro Dojo.

This critical mass, complemented with our media strategy of exposing and highlighting successful entrepreneurs, generated visibility that did two things: inspired the masses, private corporations and GLCs towards understanding and adopting startups, and generated massive regional and global mentor/investor interest in Malaysian startups.

For example, before MaGIC existed, there was only one accelerator called 1337. Now, there are seven more on top of MAP: Tune Labs, Game Founders, Maybank Fintech, Infinity Ventures, WatchTowerFriends, DistroDojo, 1337. Before MaGIC existed, investors would usually skip Malaysia and fly to other countries such as Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia to seek investment deals. At the MAP Investor Demo Day in November 2015, over 150 investors from all over the region and world came to hear 50 MAP startups pitch. Before MaGIC existed, there was a dearth of interest in startups. Now corporations like Axiata, Khazanah, Maxis, Accenture, Sime Darby, Sunway Group, YTL Group, all the way down to family businesses are trying to set up programmes and funds for entrepreneurs.

On the social enterpreneurship (SE) side, we’ve published a National Social Enterprise Blueprint, a Social Enterprise 101 guide, and the team has been traveling all around Malaysia, doing workshops via SEHATI in Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu, Johor, Sabah and Sarawak to create more awareness on SE. There’s a big opportunity for MaGIC to be a thought leader in SE because it’s a relatively new concept to the country.

These forces come together to make up the so-called magic recipe (pun intended) for a successful ecosystem. This ecosystem will only be self-sustainable if all parties can work together in a neutral, agenda-free environment.

Looking into the future beyond our initial core focus, MaGIC’s leadership should continue to focus on the exits and acquisitions of startups, which most other fledgling ecosystems in the world don’t pay enough attention to. There is also a need remove roadblocks via government and regulatory policies to make it easier for startups in Malaysia to flourish, regardless of race, gender, age or nationality.

In my opinion, MaGIC’s mandate and goals should be flexible to change every two to three years to adapt to rapidly evolving market and ecosystem needs, to ensure the agency remains relevant in continuing to fill in the gaps. At the same time, because MaGIC utilises public funds, we should continue to spend very wisely to ensure that it commensurates with the impact and effectiveness of our programmes. This should be the mantra of any government-funded ecosystem builder in any country.

I believe in the past two years, my team and I have laid the groundwork for MaGIC and the larger community while showing real impact for what’s achievable within a short amount of time. As with startups, if you put the right team of people together with a vision for common good, anything is possible.

Ultimately, it’s the software (people) that matter more than hardware (infrastructure, capital or assets). A good ecosystem’s foundation is built on good people coming together, and even the most expensive buildings or funding can’t replace that.

Our playbook and strategy has been shared across other countries. We’ve had multiple interest and hosted delegations from Czech Republic, Hungary, South Korea, Thailand, Kazakhstan, India, Japan, Philippines, Australia, New Zealand and many more. Most of these countries are keen to have their startups join MAP next year or collaborate with MaGIC in some ways.

As I approach the end of my contract and time at MaGIC, I can say with confidence and pride that the MaGIC team will continue to deliver as MaGIC moves on to its next phase under new leadership. Despite the initial challenges we faced as a new agency, we have gained the trust and respect of the community and entrepreneurs, and achieved regional and global recognition through our initiatives.

I hope you will visit impact.mymagic.my to view all the programmes we’ve set up and the accomplishments we’ve achieved in the past two years. This is a testament to my team’s absolute focus and commitment to deliver on our mandate.

I am truly proud of the MaGIC team and the empowering and transparent culture we’ve established. While I’m sad to leave my MaGIC family behind, I am privileged to have worked with each individual who will continue to give their all so passionately because they believe in elevating their beloved country and pushing boundaries for positive change in Malaysia.

And for true change to happen, we should have the courage to be comfortable with the uncomfortable, and be familiar with the unfamiliar.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank my chairman Tan Sri Dr Mohd Irwan for convincing me to return to Malaysia to be the founding CEO of MaGIC, to all our ecosystem partners who’ve collaborated with us, to the mentors, instructors and investors who’ve generously stepped forth to give back to the community, to the entrepreneurs who believed in MaGIC, and last but not least, the MaGIC family who’ve worked so hard to make sure we create a sustainable and impactful ecosystem for entrepreneurs to thrive in, especially my first 10 hires who believed in me and my vision back when I had nothing.

I am ever so grateful to the Ministry of Finance for entrusting me to set up MaGIC and steer it in the right direction where it will benefit entrepreneurs not only within Malaysia but the larger Southeast Asia, and to truly put Malaysia on the map.

By Cheryl Yeoh

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