Commentary

Approaching the era of e-wallets in Singapore

As in many markets around the globe, retailers in Singapore now face a rapidly shifting landscape. Sales are declining, consumer demands are soaring, and new disrupters are altering the very nature of what it means to be a retail business today. Perhaps no event is more emblematic of these changes than the arrival of Amazon Prime Now earlier this summer. Offering more than 20,000 products, with doorstep delivery in just two hours, shoppers in Singapore are eagerly embracing this new way to shop – while retailers work fast to differentiate their offerings as the competition heats up.

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Approaching the era of e-wallets in Singapore

Commentary

Why learning is going viral in the digital age

There’s a revolution taking place in Singapore. It’s not one that’s being screamed from rooftops, but it’s catching like wildfire throughout businesses everywhere, cutting costs, increasing productivity and driving employee engagement.

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From USPs to universe: a necessary evolution for Singapore brands

Recently, I was invited to join a speaking panel at a marketing summit in Singapore to deliver on the theme: “Branding: How to make your brand ‘a verb’”. As an avid student of brand building, I leapt at the opportunity to take a stab at what seemed to be the Holy Grail of what all brands should aspire to.

Commentary

Why is Singapore the technical analysis capital of the world?

The world of finance is huge and complex. There doesn’t seem to be an easy way to convey how the mechanics of the markets work, much less how the man on the street can profit from it. Or is there? If we were to discount the need to know the mechanics, in order to profit from it, and focus on the resulting price moves, we could actually consider Technical Analysis as the perfect tool for reading the markets.

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Digital transformation drives Singapore businesses in 2017

We are well and truly into the year 2017 and many of my peers have been asked similar questions when chatting at forums and industry conferences: what will drive the technology sector in 2017?

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Top challenges faced by SEA manufacturers today

Forecasted to reach a total of 70 million people by the year 2035, Southeast Asia’s comparatively young population is fuelling a growing consumer economy. According to a McKinsey report, the region’s accelerated young population growth will contribute 34% to consumption growth by 2030, compared to the global figure of 25%.

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50 years of ASEAN and 5 years of Facebook show the expansion path out of Singapore

ASEAN celebrated its 50th anniversary with a grand parade in the Philippines which represented the different cultures of its 10-member states on August 8, 2017. No one expected ASEAN to survive past 10 years, let alone 50, when there was intense conflict between its founding members in 1967.

Commentary

Employment shift: who will "go" with Amazon Go?

I would contend that in the context of retail, the aptly named store in Seattle, Amazon Go, means “Go,” not just for the customer but for thousands of people employed in the retail industry. Singapore will not be immune.

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How good interior design helps elevate the hotel experience

In Singapore (and the world), the business strategy of hotels is changing—because the way people use hotels is changing. With the rising popularity of the sharing economy, growth of millennials, and digital disruption, travellers are increasingly savvy today.

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Robots, AI, and VR: pushing the frontiers for Singaporean businesses

As a business, you would need to be highly productive to succeed in Singapore’s competitive environment. Time is money and the less time spent on a task means you can do more work with less employees. The business makes more money and every employee gets paid more. This is a win-win situation that leaves everyone happy.

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Revolutionising Singapore's retail experience: physical stores are not doomed yet

“Physical retail is dead!”—open any news publication and you’re likely to find a similar headline. The reasons for such fears are aplenty.

Commentary

Are Singaporean businesses still trapped by past perception of cloud computing?

According to the Infocomm Media Development Authority of Singapore (IMDA), only 30% of Singaporean businesses are on the cloud and they reported higher productivity growth. Over the next 3 to 10 years, IMDA expects to see growing adoption of cloud computing given its elasticity over traditional IT solutions.

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Is the U.S.A. the new tax haven?

What exactly is a tax haven? As far as we are aware, there is no universally accepted definition. Typically, the term is used to describe a jurisdiction that offers favorable tax or other conditions. It is therefore a relative term. So relative to Indonesia, Singapore appears to be a tax haven. Relative to Singapore, the BVI appears to be a tax haven.

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Does digital currency have a future in Singapore?

As things get disrupted within the Singaporean financial world with new tech, it’s no surprise that the way we use currency is being affected as well. In February, it was reported that Numerai— a new kind of hedge fund built by a network of data scientists—started issuing a new digital currency. Its aim? To turn Wall Street into a place where everyone's on the same team. Could the same come to Singapore?

Commentary

Singapore graduates facing creativity gap

Singapore is competing in a dynamic global economy in which two assets—a skilled and versatile workforce—as well as the capacity for creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship, would provide a competitive edge. Our economic growth as a nation depends very much on our ability to generate new ideas and translate those novel ideas into concrete, worthwhile innovations. To succeed in today’s innovation-driven economy, Singapore will need well-educated and technically proficient workers who possess the ability to think analytically, communicate effectively, and work collaboratively.

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Here's why you should stay in the Singapore market—even if you're afraid of a correction

Every day, investors are becoming more and more nervous.

Commentary

Closing the gap between virtual and reality in Singapore

We know, we know. You’ve been hearing how virtual and augmented reality (AR/VR) will “change our lives” since 2009. Since then, we’ve witnessed the quiet failure of Google Glass, the somewhat controversial Magic Leap, and the slow but steady demise of the QR code.

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