Singapore – For the first time, Amazon will be hosting a seller summit in Southeast Asia for small and medium-sized enterprises, which will be a two-day complimentary virtual event. 

The event, which carries the theme ‘Start Local, Go Global’, will focus on empowering SMEs to develop strategies and skills and reach more customers locally and globally. It will be held on January 28 and 29, 2021 at 10 am onwards, Singapore Time. 

Amazon said the summit was brought about by the increase of preference for digital-first shopping among consumers. The event will be discussing the impact of e-commerce trends and how local businesses can sell online on Amazon’s 18 markets to expand internationally. 

Singapore’s Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing will grace the virtual event on the first day as the guest of honor. He will be joined by leaders of Amazon Singapore, industry experts, and local business owners selling on Amazon Singapore.  

The event aims to make online cross-border selling more accessible to SMEs by equipping them with the insights and resources to address rapidly evolving consumer demands and expectations. 

“Supporting small and medium-sized businesses has been a fundamental part of the work we do at Amazon and we are excited to continue expanding our support for sellers in Singapore and Southeast Asia,” said Henry Low, country manager of Amazon Singapore. 

“I believe that everything big starts with something small. With our growing resources and support for local sellers here, we want to empower them to seize the huge opportunities in selling online and across shores — helping them start local, go global. The Amazon Southeast Asia Online Seller Summit 2021 is another milestone for us to bring more sellers online, support their growth journey, and connect them with customers everywhere,” added Low. 

The Summit will also include one-on-one sessions with third-party service providers such as the logistics and payment companies from Amazon’s Service Provider Network, to share best practices for businesses to bounce back quicker from the impact of COVID-19 and expand their retail presence. 

Participating SMEs can also access professional training courses and programs to sell with Amazon, with workshop sessions hosted all throughout the summit.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Malaysian food recipes website and app Kuali has launched a new in-app game “It’s Raining Cheese”, in partnership with Anchor Food Professionals.

The in-app game’s premise features falling cheese within the game, reminiscent of what players would imagine to be their first experience of snowfall. Players then must catch as many as they can within a minute, giving them the chance to win voucher prizes from Anchor Food Professionals, and cash vouchers from Kuali.

“We wanted to end the year with a light hearted game so we could ‘shower’ Kuali users with Anchor’s products when everyone’s shopping for holiday dinners and kick start the New Year with a grand prize featuring cash vouchers when the game’s period ends,” said Jack Tan, food service director at Fonterra Brands.

Furthermore, the app’s game development is in retrospect with Kuali Anchor partnership back in May 2020, as they helped in building a community of small and micro enterprises in the baking industry, collectively known to be as Kuali Bakers. Through the partnership, Kuali Bakers have launched new activities such as sending out monthly newsletters to enhance knowledge for entrepreneurial bakers and patissiers, bi-monthly baking contests and challenges, quarterly FB Live streams of cooking demos by Anchor Professional Chefs and a half yearly entrepreneur workshop called ‘Bake and Make’, presented by industry experts and notable influencers.

“The partnership with Kuali Bakers unlocked multiple potentials. It helps drive aspiring home bakers whilst supporting the SME industry through skill enhancement and recipes sharing,” Tan added.

The Kuali app is available for download on Google Play, the Apple App Store and Huawei AppGallery.

Malaysia – Continuing to help businesses accelerate digital transformation in the country, Maxis has officially launched the Digital Readiness Index (DRI), which is a first-of-its-kind online and interactive self-assessment tool that helps companies of all sizes across industries assess their level of digital readiness. 

At the virtual launch, Maxis’ Chief Enterprise Business Officer Paul McManus said the telco’s studies and continuous engagement with SMEs over the years have made clear the segment needs strong support to adapt to a rapidly changing landscape and to accelerate digitalization.

The DRI has the potential to generate actionable insights on the state of digital transformation of businesses and industries in the nation, including for government, particularly as a consideration for policy implementation and best practices for digital adoption

Paul McManus, Chief Enterprise Business Officer at Maxis

YB Dato Sri Dr. Haji Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, the Minister of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives (MEDAC) commented, “For SMEs and entrepreneurs to grow in the domestic market and even expand into international markets, digital readiness will be imperative. Going digital is not an option but a necessity for survival. We, therefore, welcome the DRI initiative, which is in line with the Ministry’s vision to foster a holistic and conducive ecosystem of entrepreneurship in the country.”

Maxis’ collaboration with MEDAC

In conjunction with the launch, Maxis and MEDAC will be collaborating on several initiatives through the Ministry’s agencies – National Entrepreneurship Institute (INSKEN), TEKUN Nasional, and Co-operative Institute of Malaysia (IKKM).

These include incorporating the DRI into INSKEN’s ongoing targeted modules and trainings, exploring collaboration on Maxis’ Digital Entrepreneurship Workshop, and digital solutions for the Micro and SME segments. In addition, Maxis will also be sharing yearly updates of digital readiness in the country with the agencies through insights generated from the DRI to help them measure digital adoption rates in the country.

The DRI, which can be accessed through Maxis’ business website, analyzes three key pillars in business: customer satisfaction, employee productivity, and operational efficiency. A formula then determines the score for each pillar that tabulates a total score to gauge digital readiness – ranging from “Ready”, “Nearly Ready”to “Not Ready” and “At Risk”.

Alongside the general rating, the final report also provides competitor analysis, industry benchmarking as well as recommendations on the most suitable digital solutions for their needs. Companies can also opt to follow up with guidance from dedicated Maxis consultants. 

The tool had been piloted among 2,000 SMEs across industries retail, manufacturing, and transportation among others, where early insights showed that 58% of Malaysian SMEs are categorized as “Not Ready” in reaching its full potential in embracing digital technologies.

It also found that most SMEs are at the basic level when it comes to their customer engagement, where 61% are using email, while 40% use the holy grail social media as main communication channels. Meanwhile, only 26% of SMEs in the transportation, manufacturing, trade, and oil and gas sector track their company’s vehicles digitally.

Maxis earlier launched its “Retransformation” campaign in September, which calls on organizations in Malaysia to rethink and reevaluate their digital transformation strategies.

On the DRI, Maxis collaborated with multinational telecom company Vodafone which launched a similar Index in Europe. 

Manila Philippines – GrabPay, Grab’s e-wallet cashless solution, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Region 2, and fast-growing agri-eCommerce platform, Mayani has announced its tripartite partnership to create broader market access and seamless e-payments solutions to farming communities and agripreneurs across Region 2, or the Cagayan Valley Region of the Philippines.

With the transport of fresh produce being a key challenge throughout the pandemic, farming communities and agripreneurs across the region were left unable to market and sell their fresh produce to a wider customer base, causing an oversupply. Through this partnership, the three parties will work together to promote a safe, seamless, and cashless farm-to-table e-commerce experience to more Filipinos to help boost rural incomes among thousands of farmers, farming communities, and agripreneurs across the Cagayan Valley Region.

With the partnership, Mayani will consolidate and activate a whole range of produce from 4,761 farmers in Region 2 and manage orders through its e-commerce platform with GrabPay as its digital payments solution. Likewise, GrabPay will also be providing wider market access to Mayani’s farming communities through a five-day campaign on the Grab app starting November 5, 2020, and users can also earn GrabRewards points whenever they use GrabPay to shop for fresh produce on-site.

In order to ensure broad inclusivity within the farming communities, DTI Region 2 will facilitate region-wide linkage of Cagayan Valley Region’s farmers cooperatives and agri-MSMEs to the Mayani platform.

“Even in these uncertain times, our mission in Mayani has stayed the same; help thousands of smallholder farmers lead better lives by changing how people buy their food through e-commerce. This partnership is another step in our efforts to bridge the gap between our own agro-entrepreneurs and potential customers in Metro Manila and eventually, all around the nation,” said JT Solis, co-founder, and CEO of Mayani.

Serving as the conduit for facilitating private sector relations with farmer cooperatives, DTI Region 2 will continue to provide the necessary support for tech-enabled, multi-stakeholder initiatives in agro-entrepreneurship. 

“Region 2 has always been known as one of the country’s top food providers, playing an integral role in the food supply chain of millions of Filipinos. Creating better access to quality produce from all around the country continues to be our priority, and we hope to expand our service by replicating the partnership we’ve established here in more areas,” said Leah Pulido Ocampo, DTI Region 2 regional director

Meanwhile, Head of GrabPay Philippines Jonny Bates said that the birth of the partnership comes at a time when many MSMEs are looking to digital means to recover economically.

“Our partnership with DTI Region 2 and Mayani is a wonderful example of how GrabPay can help farmers and farming communities recover from the crisis, and grow sustainably. We’re thankful to have this opportunity to work alongside Mayani and DTI Region 2, and we encourage more farmers,  farming communities, and agripreneurs to continue to embrace digitalization and cashless payments to better serve our kababayans,” said Bates. 

Singapore – Singapore small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are afforded another aid towards digitalization through the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA)-approved workforce management system King of Time. The tech is from Singapore-based HR solutions provider Huubap. 

By the approval of IMDA, the cloud-based attendance management system is offered under the Productivity Solutions grant with a maximum of 70% funding support. 

King of Time digitalizes and streamlines the process of HR tasks such as leave application, rostering, and approvals. Features also include flexible work hours management, staggered shifts, employee tracking, and overtime requests, with them customizable to industry and company-specific needs. 

Through the system, managing global locations through one centralized master account is also made possible. Access to the system would require only a PC and an internet connection, which includes all stakeholders such as HR, managers, and employees. 

Kazuyuki Okuhata, co-founder and CEO of Huubap said, “SMEs are key drivers of the Singapore economy and they need to be well-equipped to improve operations, especially for industries that are harder hit by the pandemic. We hope that the adoption of King of Time as part of their innovation initiatives will help them to optimize workflow in the face of limited resources and manpower.”

The Productivity Solutions grant by IMDA was put up to help companies adopt technology solutions to improve productivity and enhance business processes.

For the King of Time, five versions are available for subsidy, catering to 20 up to 150 users. The subsidized rates cover the most expensive and time-consuming phase of the adoption such as the training, set-up, and hardware. 

The initial set-up fee for the system is from S$500 with the monthly fee standing at S$3 per user.

Huubap is offering a 30-day free trial of King of Time with full features available. Companies can apply for the trial on the website and receive assistance from the support team with set-up and operation.

Australia – Insurance provider QBE Australia (QBE) has joined forces with workplace safety technology platform SafetyCulture, to launch a new insurance market entrant Mitti, a technology-first company that combines the provision of risk management insights and insurance.

The formation of Mitti aims to disrupt the traditional insurance model for small to medium businesses (SMEs) focused on risk mitigation to reduce the likelihood of needing to make a claim. By adopting SafetyCulture’s iAuditor digital inspection app, businesses are given access to its technology that enables them to enlist employees – the ones who are in direct contact with a company’s assets – to help maintain a workplace’s safety.

Through the iAuditor app, employees are able to capture through their mobile phones any spotted damages within a property and share the report across their teams. In addition to the access to the app, Mitti will grant rewards to policyholders that are able to effectively manage risk.

Mitti’s insurance packages include protection from property damages, business interruption, broadform liability, and damage on motor vehicles and portable contents, as well as machinery breakdown.

QBE said that with the new venture, it aims to demonstrate its intent to become a more digitally-enabled business.

QBE Ventures CEO James Orchard said that the ways in which customers interact with technology have evolved considerably, which presents a big opportunity for the insurance industry.

“QBE’s joint venture with SafetyCulture has created a unique and compelling proposition that responds to the needs and ambitions of small and medium businesses in Australia. By leveraging big data, AI, and machine learning, we can deliver more tailored solutions that don’t just assess risk but help customers avoid risks altogether and the losses that come with these,” said Orchard.

Meanwhile, SafetyCulture founder Luke Anear said, “Our partnership with Mitti propels our mission to empower businesses to build a genuine safety culture in their workplace. We’re eager to help more Australian
companies improve their risk management and reap the rewards.”

Mitti joins the portfolio of companies sitting within QBE Ventures such as insurance underwriting platform Cytora, and climate change risk management analytics services Jupiter.

Hong Kong – HSBC Hong Kong has rolled out a new business-to-business (B2B) digital community platform HSBC VisionGo. The platform will serve as an ecosystem for SMEs, startups, and prospective entrepreneurs where they can exchange dialogue for business insights as well as a place for networking. 

The platform is built on the company’s cloud computing platform Microsoft Azure. It employs machine learning technologies to offer personalized professional insights and networking opportunities through an AI-enhanced interface, along with new interactive features designed to further foster conversations and collaboration. 

The platform also enables SME operators to follow each other. Business topics can also be discussed among the community through interactive polling. In addition, SMEs can promote their own offers to create new business leads, or redeem available offers as added benefits. 

According to a recent HSBC report, 95% of Hong Kong businesses have extended support to, or have received support from other businesses they work with by exchanging expertise and sharing premises (50%), enabling others to get their products to customers (46%), or relaxing payment terms for their smaller partners (35%).

Terence Chiu, head of commercial banking at HSBC Hong Kong said, “HSBC is committed to investing in digital innovation to help Hong Kong’s SME sector. We are a connector in the business community, and we aim to use our strength to build a collaborative business ecosystem that will help businesses get through these challenging times and position themselves to make the most of the opportunities when they come.” 

A beta version of the platform was unveiled in March 2020. As the platform continues to develop, HSBC will be introducing features such as integration with its mobile payment service PayMe. 

Singapore  – Dream Career Builder, a job portal with a dedication to Singapore and Malaysia, has integrated a new “Work from Home” feature in its search function. The company said the new feature is its response to meet employment needs in the middle of the growing gig economy as well as the continuous job cuts in both countries.

Aside from connecting job seekers and employers, the new feature will provide ranking signals that amplify rankings of remote and work from home opportunities for more conversion of leads.

Further, for a small sum, prospective employers can opt to have job posts boosted on the job portal, improving the chances of finding a suitable candidate. 

The company said in a press statement, “As the economy goes through major restructuring, and industries are reshaped, Dream Career Builder seeks to understand employment needs compounded by the global pandemic.”

It added, “By tapping on the growing gig economy, it has established a platform of mutualism, enabling the direct solicitation for employment without geographical restrictions.”

Australia – News Corp Australia’s digital marketing service News Xtend has struck a partnership with Singapore’s news and publishing company Singapore Press Holdings (SPH), to target the island state’s small and medium enterprise market.

The digital marketing agency provides expert advice and know-how to SMEs to market themselves digitally, and this is the first time the agency has ventured into an overseas market.

The partnership is said to last for three years and will see the Singaporean publishing group reselling the agency’s services.

Executive chairman for Newscorp Australasia Michael Miller said that partnering with like-minded companies is the space that News Xtend has been eyeing to play in.

“We’re now exporting our know-how by partnering with another media company that, like ours, has successfully transitioned to the digital landscape,” said Miller.

He added, “It’s a great acknowledgement that the investment we’ve made to grow and diversify our business is now being deployed by another media business in another region.”

Aside from its publishing business, Singapore Press Holdings houses a number of digital businesses such as marketing communication services, an SaaS platform, and a mobile job portal.

The agency will be providing to SPH’s customers services such as search engine marketing, social media advertising, and video and display advertising.

The agency will also be offering a call tracking service, which will be packaged into simple, outcome-focused solutions, designed to make easy for customers to achieve meaningful business results that they can measure.

SPH’s Deputy CEO Anthony Tan thinks the partnership is well-timed, as the country’s current digital penetration is at almost 90%.

“SPH is excited to provide businesses with an affordable and convenient digital marketing solution to help them achieve their desired results. With this new partnership, we are well-positioned to support SMBs by bridging the gap in the solutions available in our domestic market,” said Tan.

Meanwhile, Emma Fawcett, News Corp Australia’s managing director for commercial product and platforms shared that Singapore has been an obvious choice for the expansion.

The company cites a PwC data which shows that SMEs generate almost half of Singapore’s gross domestic product and accounts for 72% of employment, where much of the sector is family-owned.

“Singapore’s explicit digital agenda places it among the region’s most digital savvy nations, which is something that extends to its small to medium business sector and is highly attractive to a business such as ours,” Fawcett said.

She added, “The fact Singapore has important synergies to Australia in terms of industries and digital habits, language and a highly supportive environment for foreign investment are wonderful extras and, of course, Singapore’s status as a critical commercial hub for the entire region is an added bonus.”

News Xtend’s parent company Newscorp Australia owns a portfolio of both national and regional newspapers, and a number of magazine brands. It is also a majority shareholder of merged entities Foxtel and FOX SPORTS Australia.

Singapore – Aon, a global professional services firm which provides a broad range of risk, retirement, and health solutions, and Singapore-headquartered Doerscircle, an all-in-one services platform dedicated for startups, have entered into a collaboration to provide insurance solutions to the often underserved workforce of entrepreneurs, startuppers, and freelancers. The partnership will initially target Asia, and solutions will be offered through Doerscircle’s platform.

According to the information by the companies, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Singapore account for two-thirds of all employment and contribute to close to S$200 billion to the Singaporean economy. 

Meanwhile, on a global scale, despite the World Bank’s recent findings that almost 50% of the global workforce is self-employed, access and affordability continue to be a challenge as traditional insurance plans are not usually designed to fit the needs of the self-employed.

Aon and Doerscircle aim to address these pain points and at the same time, leverage the economical contribution of this demographic of workers. The collaboration will see the development of commercial, risk, and health insurance solutions to answer the needs of smaller enterprises and independent workers, enabling them to focus on growing their business instead of spending time and energy on understanding and managing insurance issues.

Members of Doerscircle will be able to have access to tailored insurance solutions through a streamlined online process on the Doerscircle platform.

Over time, Doerscircle aims to extend these offerings to include more products and countries, leveraging Aon’s broad network, risk management expertise, and global capabilities.

“The current business and economic environment are changing the way people work. We are excited to collaborate with Doerscircle to address the specific insurance needs of this key segment of independent workers,” said Tobias Schneider, head of financial institutions and SME of Affinity Asia unit at Aon.

Meanwhile, Doerscircle founder Helle Priess said, “Doerscircle aims to challenge the status quo and reshape the world for independent doers – entrepreneurs, startuppers and freelancers. We strongly believe that insurance solutions should be accessible, relevant, easy to understand, and transparent. We’re thrilled that Aon has the same vision. We’re confident that together, we will set new standards in insurance offerings for independent doers.”