ENTREPRENEURSHIP STARTUPS Launch of the first ever Franchise Quality Mark (FQM) by the Singapore Franchise Training School (SFTS) LAUNCH OF THE FRANCHISE QUALITY MARK (FQM) BY SINGAPORE FRANCHISE TRAINING SCHOOL (SFTS) AND SUPPORTED BY ASTREEM CONSULTING Singapore Franchise Training School (SFTS) has launched the Franchise Quality Mark (FQM), a seal of quality awarded to franchisors after being assessed and evaluated based on a set of Franchise Management Excellence Criteria. It is the first […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
BUSINESS & ECONOMICS ENTREPRENEURSHIP STARTUPS 6 Reasons Why Your Startup Will Fail When starting a new business, the last thing one wants to focus on is the failure. But addressing reasons for failures up front could minimize the odds of failure. “But that will not happen to me. I have a brilliant idea and everybody in the market needs it!” You’re probably saying this to yourself. Unfortunately, […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
ENTREPRENEURSHIP Good is the Enemy of Great Yun Ta Ming learnt early in life the consequences of failure. Perhaps, it is that first failure at a tender age that spurred him on to become the Group CEO of CHASSasia. As a child, the Singaporean, was a slow learner and never did manage to speak till he turned five. This naturally, slowed him […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
ENTREPRENEURSHIP The Risk of Our Obsession with Technology In the spring of 2013, Nobel prize-winning physicist James Cronin was awarded the Alumni Medal for lifetime achievement as a professor at the University of Chicago, where I went to college. In his remarks, Mr. Cronin stated that his greatest concern about the future of America was our emphasis on science and technology education. He […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
ENTREPRENEURSHIP STARTUPS What I Learnt From Quitting My Job and Starting A Company I’ve been earning to give as a software developer for the past several years, and it started to become clear that I could make more money in a different job. But I was torn between a finance career which put my math skills to use and founding a company where I might achieve the vocational […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
CALLUM CONNECTS ENTREPRENEURSHIP INTERVIEWS Nick Gan, Co-Founder of ApexPeak According to entrepreneur, Nick Gan, “we’re at the cusp of a multi-year fintech wave in Asia..” Find out more here… What’s your story? I started my career in finance and spent many years in the corporate world in a number of roles within credit, equities and investments. However, I always had a deep longing to […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
EDITOR'S PICK Success a Journey of the Heart with Datuk Nelson Balang Rining SUCCESS IS A JOURNEY AND NOT A DESTINATION. IT IS KNOWING YOUR PURPOSE IN LIFE. Oceancare Corporation Sdn Bhd was established in 2001 by Datuk Balang Rining (Nelson) together with Dato’ Jonathan Loh Jack Yung. Since its inception, Oceancare has been actively engaged as an oil and gas services contractor in Sarawak, Malaysia. Oceancare has […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
ENTREPRENEURSHIP “What motivates a Gen Y to work for a startup” – Marion Neubronner with Hamzah Hassan (Perx) (This is part of the series “What are Gen Ys looking for at Work?”, in which I interview Gen Ys, Gen Xs, and others regarding multi-generational issues in the workplace.) Perx (www.getperx.com) is a Singapore-based startup that was originally launched to provide a replacement for traditional paper loyalty cards. Over the years, it has evolved into a […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
CALLUM CONNECTS ENTREPRENEURSHIP INTERVIEWS Leroy Tan, CEO of BizGrow Interested in scaling your SME with working capital? What’s your story? I was born into a poor family together with a disabled younger brother; disfigured due to psoriasis at the age of 29. I have always been a misfit and have failed both in schooling and businesses. I have all the reasons and excuses anyone […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
ENTREPRENEURSHIP Franchising in India A survey by global consultancy firm Ernst & Young (E&Y) sees India as the world’s most attractive investment destination. With the opening up of foreign direct investment (FDI) in several sectors, India is today an eye-catching destination for overseas investors. 2014–15 GDP growth is expected to be 5.4%. Franchise Glance “Franchising in India has […] Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
How To Tell If Conspiracy Theory Is False Key Takeaway: Conspiracy theories are prevalent and can involve various factors. People believe false conspiracy theories for various reasons, such as the existence of real conspiracies. However, unfounded conspiracy theories often lack evidence and substitute elements that should be red flags for skeptics. To vet a claim, one should seek out evidence, test the allegation, […] Written by H. Colleen Sinclair May 10, 2024May 10, 2024 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Surprising Discoveries About The Origin Of Life Key Takeaway: Recent research has focused on replicating the chemical reactions that constitute life as we know it in conditions plausible for early Earth around 4 billion years ago. However, the rise of experimental work has led to many contradictory theories. Some scientists believe that life emerged in deep-sea hydrothermal vents, where the conditions provided […] Written by Louise Gillet de Chalonge May 9, 2024May 9, 2024 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
NASA’s Search For Life On Mars Key Takeaway: NASA’s Curiosity and Perseverance rover missions are investigating the planet’s evidence for life, known as its “biosignatures,” in unprecedented detail. The rovers are acting as extraterrestrial detectives, hunting for clues that life may have existed eons ago, including evidence of long-gone liquid surface water, life-sustaining minerals, and organic molecules. The Mars of today […] Written by Amy Williams April 30, 2024April 30, 2024 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Smartphones & The Source Of Our Anxiety Key Takeaway: Jonathan Haidt’s book, The Anxious Generation, calls for action to limit teenagers’ smartphone access and address the mental health crisis caused by the widespread use of smartphones. Haidt cites the “great rewiring” period from 2010 to 2015 as a time when adolescents’ neural systems were primed for anxiety and depression by daily smartphone […] Written by Hugh Breakey April 29, 2024April 29, 2024 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Should TikTok Be Banned? Key Takeaway: President Biden signed a US$95 billion foreign aid bill in April 2024, allowing TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, to sell the app. If the law stands, TikTok will be blocked from any US app store or web-hosting service, affecting over 170 million US users, including 62% of Americans aged 18 to 29. Critics argue […] Written by Sarah Florini April 26, 2024April 26, 2024 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Being Thoughtful In The Age Of A.I. Key Takeaway: Concerns about AI’s potential roguehood and potential harm to privacy and dignity are a significant concern. AI’s algorithms, programmed by humans, are also biased and discriminatory. However, a psychologist’s research suggests that AI is a threat to making people less disciplined and skilled in making thoughtful decisions. Making thoughtful decisions involves understanding the […] Written by Joe Arvai April 24, 2024April 24, 2024 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Are Single People Happier? The Science Of Being Single Key Takeaway: A study published in the Journal of Personality suggests that long-term single people can be secure and thriving, possibly due to their attachment style. The research found that 78% of singles were insecure, with 22% being secure. Secure singles are comfortable with intimacy and closeness in relationships, while anxious singles worry about rejection […] Written by Yuthika Girme April 23, 2024April 23, 2024 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Rethinking Education Key Takeaways: The Industrial model of education that fueled the modern era and its dizzying reach did its job incredibly well. In his writing, Flynn illustrates study after study, spanning nations and decades, in which modern educational gift of abstraction — a transcendent sign of intelligence, as we saw in Raven’s Matrices — has been […] Written by Anthony Fieldman March 2, 2022October 19, 2022 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
How China Is Transforming Its Economy Through Learning I highly recommend reading the McKinsey Global Institute’s new report, “Reskilling China: Transforming The World’s Largest Workforce Into Lifelong Learners”, which focuses on the country’s biggest employment challenge, re-training its workforce and the adoption of practices such as lifelong learning to address the growing digital transformation of its productive fabric. How to transform the country […] Written by Enrique Dans February 1, 2021February 1, 2021 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
Why You’re Not Seeing Success With Influencer Marketing With the new year around the corner, now is a good time to re-evaluate your past marketing strategies and gear up for the year ahead. For some businesses, influencer marketing has simply not seemed to live up to its lofty promises of genuine engagement, credibility, and transparency. Some have claimed that it has been failing […] Written by Michael Tan January 14, 2021January 15, 2021 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked
A New Philosophy of Business I’m about to ask you to take a mental leap. For the next 8 minutes, suspend your notions of what a business is, and I’ll propose a new lens for you to look through. There are a lot of questions asked around what “community” means for business. “Where should community fit in my organization?” and […] Written by Empirics Asia September 5, 2018September 5, 2018 Saving Bookmark this article Bookmarked