This micro-startup, originating within a rapidly growing young Singapore-based commercial information services firm, seeks to offer individual customers and small organisations access to valid data about relationships among persons and organisations, that are relevant to well-defined specific needs and drawn from the public domain. This information will be provided at an affordable price or in some cases, in part-exchange for new data curated by the customer. Although the development team was committed to launch their mobile business intelligence application Kaypo in early 2019, they still needed insights into several key issues, including branding, the user interface for their Android app, and the evolution of their business model.
Founded by entrepreneurs from Taiwan, Spain and China, Energo Labs is a Shanghai-based international start-up that brings blockchain technology to the energy sector to enable energy producers, such as buildings equipped with solar PV panels, to buy and sell energy to neighbors or other energy consumers. The founders of this young firm found initial support from various parties, including foundations and government agencies, based on phenomenon positioned the firm for an Initial Coin Offering (ICO) in mid-2107, the timing of which turned out to be nearly optimal. Their offering was successful, finding buyers for their funding target in less than a day. When the young firm realised that barriers to entry in Asian energy trading markets were much higher than expected, they were forced to consider alternatives, such as monetizing their core blockchain technology. However, the prospect of abandoning their sustainability-focused mission did not sit well with many of the young staff that would be needed to move Energo to the next level.The potential for their value proposition to address structural imbalances in access to electrical power in Southeast Asia.
Mighty Jaxx was founded in 2012 as a S$20,000 Singapore start-up. By 2018 the firm worked with global brands, generating annual revenue approaching S$5 million. However, growing sales volume, the short product cycle for its limited production runs, and the young firm's increasingly global reach had stretched its 20 staff members, organized along a traditional sales, design, production and logistics "waterfall" model, not only up to but well beyond their limits. As the December 2017 holiday season approached, Mighty Jaxx founder Jackson Aw knew his team would miss several crucial delivery promises. Jackson posted a public apology to collectors of his products, then reorganized his studio along the lines of the popular agile software development model known as "Scrum." Three product-oriented "Sprint Teams," operating in parallel over a one-month cycle, focused on meeting schedule targets. While Jackson was hopeful this new structure would improve internal and external communications and help Mighty Jaxx achieve both its growth and service quality goals, he sensed growing signs of staff discontent.
Sembcorp Industries, a Singapore conglomerate with assets of over S$22 billion, was undergoing a change in leadership. Tang Kin Fei retired as group president and CEO in April 2017 after 30 years with the company. Overseas operations accounted for 63% of their Utilities business' net profit, which formed the bulk of group earnings in 2016. Sembcorp's global power portfolio had doubled in the last five years. Rapidly developing economies, hungry for energy to fuel growth and urbanisation, were their key targets. There were growing concerns on the execution risks of developing a project pipeline in these markets and the environmental, social and governance (ESG) challenges involved. Sustaining their growth path might not simply be a matter of building on past success and replicating their business model overseas. How would they manage the inherent risks and complexities of the emerging markets, namely India, Bangladesh, Myanmar and China, albeit ripe with opportunities?
The Nanyang Technological University's Energy Research Institute (ERI@N), which focuses on the applied research, development and commercialization of innovative energy solutions, has developed an energy controller that would act as the heart of a microgrid. A microgrid is a local source of electrical power that feeds a relatively small network of electricity users, and even when attached to a centralized regional or national grid, is able to function independently. The ERI@N team in Singapore deploys 210 research staff and 150 PhD students from 26 countries to tackle emerging challenges in the energy industry. Two ERI@N flagship programmes - EcoCampus and the Renewable Energy Integration Demonstrator Singapore (REIDS) - develop and implement working solutions for energy efficiency and renewable energy integration. By 2017, ERI@N had amassed great depth of knowledge on the delivery of distributed energy resources (DER). The immediate challenges for ERI@N are: What is the best path to introduce its microgrid controller to a rapidly evolving market for distributed energy solutions, and how would it sustain its early lead in affordable DER technology?
CBM Pte Ltd (CBM) originated as a subsidiary developed to support the facilities management (FM) needs of its property development parent, Singapore-based City Developments Ltd. Viewed as an industry, FM comprised a surprisingly large component of the GDP in mature markets such as Europe and North America, and was beginning to grow rapidly in emerging markets such as Asia and the Middle East. With the Singapore market approaching saturation, and new opportunities arising in overseas markets to which the recently reorganised firm had good access, CBM had achieved several years of double-digit growth. However, the FM market was evolving as large players began to expand their overseas networks and integrate their services to follow multinational clients around the globe. Was the trend toward service integration and environmental sustainability an opportunity for CBM, or a threat? How could they sustain their profitable growth?
In 2002, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) set up operations in China, following its major client, GE Medical Systems. TCS China operations also supported the software needs of multinational and regional companies expanding in China, while providing the company with a platform to grow its local clientele base. In 2006, TCS announced a new global business initiative which included plans for large-scale operations in China. The aim was to grow its China operations to become TCS' second global delivery centre after India, functioning as its offshore IT outsourcing hub for the Asia Pacific region. In addition, China's growing domestic software market presented attractive opportunities for IT services. TCS shifted its focus to China's financial sector, as many of China's domestic banks were then undergoing a period of major organisational transformation. Given this, in 2007, the company set a target to increase its China-based manpower strength from 800 to 6,000 by 2011. However, the tight supply of IT talent in China was a major challenge and in early 2010 TCS' manpower strength reached 1,100. The company set a new target to quadruple its manpower strength to 5,000 by 2014. Product/service innovation was an essential catalyst to sustain its growth momentum and to maintain a competitive edge in the Chinese market. What steps should the company take to tap the rising demand for outsourcing services while tackling the problems of achieving service excellence in a resource-tight situation?