ASEAN Data Analyst eXchange (ADAX) Tour at Vertical Suite, Bangsar South
On the 31st May 2017, the Swiss Business Malaysian Association (SMBA) once again took the lead and became the host for the ADAX Tour. After months and months of thorough preparation and stringent inspection, ADAX was finally ready to open its doors for opportunists – who were eager and hungry for betterment, improvement and advancement. Located in the heart of Bangsar South, the ADAX office sits proudly on level 27 of The Vertical Suite Bangsar. Upon arrival, all invited esteemed delegates and members of the SMBA were greeted by Ms. Angelia with a very warm welcome. Knowing the venue was unfamiliar to many, Ms. Angelia offered her insurmountable assistance and guided all of us to the lift foyer that would then take us to the ADAX office. After registration, Ms. Pauline Goh, a board member of the SMBA, ushered us in to the room where the meeting was held. Prior to the commencement of the meeting, a very fruitful informal networking session was in full swing and this encounter served as the perfect opportunity for old colleagues to catch up and new acquaintances to be made.
The meeting started at 9.30 a.m. sharp and was moderated by Ms. Pauline Goh, whereby she introduced all delegates present. Without further ado, she called upon Mr. Siva Vela, the Head of Investment (Europe) from the Malaysian Digital Economy Corporation Sdn. Bhd. (MDEC) to deliver an introduction to MDEC. Launched just a little over two decades ago, MDEC is the holistic, government-owned agency to lead the transformation of Malaysia’s digital economy. Coherent with Vision 2020, MDEC was conceived and entrusted to foster and monitor the growth of local tech companies whilst creating opportunities to enhance foreign direct investments and domestic direct investments. Over the years, this effort has contributed to an increase in Malaysia’s Gross National Index. He clearly delineated that the success was attainable because MDEC operated and still operates on the basis of four key guiding principles which are; attracting investors and globalizing local tech champions, catalyzing industry-driven digital ecosystem, building critical enables of the digital economy and lastly, driving inclusive adoption of technology. An emphasis was put on MDEC’s unique offering – whereby both local and foreign investors may privilege from the bill of guarantees (BoG). The BoGs are a set of incentives, rights, and privileges that reflect the Government’s commitment to providing an environment that is conducive for companies and subsequently, boost the growth of digital economy. With the recent launch of Malaysia as the world first Digital Free Trade Zone, he hoped that the digital economy it would flourish further.
Next, Mr. Jack Lim, the Senior Manager of Innovation Capital Division of ADAX was called upon to proceed with the second session. Mr. Jack Lim enthusiastically took the delegates through a comprehensive and enlightening session. ADAX is a national big data and analytic initiative that is currently powered by MDEC. The conception of ADAX will provide a platform to grow and nurture data analytics in Malaysian and ASEAN Companies. ADAX will also provide a co-working location for BDA start-ups and accelerators. Further to the above imperative roles that ADAX plays, it too, serves to support the migration of traditional organizations into Data Driven Organization. Mr. Jack Lim highlighted that ADAX’s modus operandi mainly focuses on talent development and internships program, providing advisory services pertaining to analytics initiatives as wells assisting organizations to embark on a data driven organization journey. With a team, full of intelligent and strong leaders as its backbone, Mr. Jack Lim was very optimistic that ADAX would be a great starting point to achieving greater success in the future.
Mr. Chan Kin, Chief Executive Officer of Kasatria, was the last to take the stage. He shared useful insights on customer profiling for E-commerce, which complimented the material presented earlier by Mr. Siva Vela and Mr. Jack Lim. Mr. Chan outlined trends in E-commerce transactions and clearly explained how customer profiling translates into revenue, repurchasing, customer loyalty and engagement. As many of the terms used were foreign to most delegates, Mr. Chan gave a very useful example to help delegates to better understand the concept of online customer profiling. Using Air Asia as an example, each click made on the website upholds a meaning. A click translates into a datum, and multiple clicks translate into data. Based on preference and requirements, all data will be processed into various packages to suit the need of a customer. Mr. Chan simple yet concise explanation on customer profiling has allowed the delegates to understand how manipulating data can benefit e-businesses.
At about 10.15 a.m., all delegates were divided into three small groups for a tour of ADAX corporate headquarter. The ADAX corporate headquarter houses at least two conference rooms, a coffee station with a cozy lounging area and most importantly, a wide and colorful area for data analysts to work. Each and every room is equipped with the most advanced gadgets and IT tools to optimize employees’ productivity. All spaces have been designed in such a way that not only it is conducive for work, the spaces also allow creativity and knowledge sharing. Many were impressed with the flexibility that the workplace has to offer and certainly ADAX has shown to all the immense amount of potential it will bring once it is in full swing. At about 11.00 a.m. the tour ended and all delegates were ushered to the café to enjoy light refreshment.
