Gearing up for the new year with the Tech in Asia School Founder’s Community

No matter what’s going on in the world, hopes and dreams always persist. People want to solve problems and achieve their goals despite the odds.

This is the thinking that’s powered many entrepreneurs through tough times. As a matter of fact, many successful companies have emerged from periods of economic uncertainty – household names like Microsoft, Netflix, and Airbnb, just to name a few.

2023 may be off to a challenging start – what with headlines announcing layoffs, rising inflation, and talks of a recession – but there’s no better time than the present to zone in on what matters and build a startup that’ll last.

To kick off the new year on an aspirational note, we asked members of the Tech in Asia School Founder’s Community to share their aspirations and some advice for 2023. The Founder’s Community is a platform for founders to connect with like-minded folks, access great resources to fuel their growth, and find support on their entrepreneurial journeys.

Here’s what the Founder’s Community is looking forward to in the year ahead.

The following responses have been edited for clarity and brevity.

Maria Li, COO, Tech in Asia

What is your #1 goal for TIA in 2023?

Get back to profitability! Financial goals are boring, but we actually hit an all-time high revenue last year. However, it was also the first time in three years that we took a small loss. I believe that financial pressure makes us better, scrappier, and more resourceful – so I’m looking forward to the renewed pressure.

What are you most excited about for TIA in 2023?

Our community-building pipeline: We have a number of initiatives planned, from a regional founders meetup series to SYNC: ClimateTech and an agritech event that allows us to get deeper within industry-specific and local startup communities.

Leave one motivational tip or piece of advice for yourself (or others) to revisit through the year!

From the Martian: “At some point, everything’s gonna go south and you’re going to say, this is it. This is how I end. Now, you can either accept that, or you can get to work. That’s all it is. You just begin. You do the math. You solve one problem and you solve the next one and then the next. And if you solve enough problems, you get to come home.”

Maurizio Raffone, CFO, Credify

Most recent TIA School program: Growth

What is your #1 goal for your startup in 2023?

Improve our go-to-market traction.

How will you leverage the Founders Community to help you?

Keep an eye out for possible providers of enabling tech.

Leave one motivational tip or piece of advice for yourself (or other founders) to revisit through the year!

Although managing your runway is crucial, sometimes you need to swing big and hope you land the punch.

Nik Muhammad Amin, CEO and founder, Moovby

Most recent TIA School program: Growth 

What is your #1 goal for your startup in 2023?

Our #1 goal is to be default alive. This goal is important to us because survivability is the prerequisite for success.

How will you leverage the Founders Community to help you?

There are few things we’re planning to leverage: seeking out mentors or advisors who have experience in areas related to Moovby’s goal and collaborating with other founders and startups to share knowledge and resources.

Leave one motivational tip or piece of advice for yourself (or other founders) to revisit through the year!

Be agile and adaptable: The business world is constantly changing, so be prepared to make changes and adjustments to your business model as you learn and grow.

Ramadhan Daulay, Founder, Flotus.id 

Most recent TIA School program: Growth

What is your #1 goal for your startup in 2023?

To optimize revenue and customer acquisition cost/lifetime value.

How will you leverage the Founders Community to help you?

I occasionally do a “sound check” with affiliate mentors in the community to see whether my firm’s upcoming experiments are aligned with our north star metric.

Leave one motivational tip or piece of advice for yourself (or other founders) to revisit through the year!

Don’t assume your target audience knows exactly what your value propositions are.

William Tanzania, CEO, Pocket Nihongo

Most recent TIA School program: Fundraising  

What is your #1 goal for your startup in 2023?

Reach 1 million app downloads.

How will you leverage the Founders Community to help you?

Seek out startup founders in the similar industry to collaborate with in order to scale together.

Leave one motivational tip or piece of advice for yourself (or other founders) to revisit through the year!

Goals should be extremely bold to be called visionary. That being said, great vision is the most important factor in creating a better world.

Ploykhwan Bumrungpun, co-founder, Snappink

Most recent TIA School program: Fundraising

What is your #1 goal for your startup in 2023?

10% growth in revenue and [app] downloads!

How will you leverage the Founders Community to help you?

Support for traction and strategy.

Leave one motivational tip or piece of advice for yourself (or other founders) to revisit through the year!

Everything can happen if you do not give up!

Natasha Syed, CEO, SkilledIn

Most recent TIA School program: Mentorship

What is your #1 goal for your startup in 2023?

[Getting] ISO 27001 certification – the leading international standard focused on information security.

Leave one motivational tip or piece of advice for yourself (or other founders) to revisit through the year!

Let the value be the keyword for the year. Provide value to your customers and the team, and find value in mistakes so they can be the propellers of new beginnings.

Taking on 2023

There are certainly some exciting times ahead for our Tech in Asia School Founder’s Community, and we’re glad to be playing a part in their story, providing access to great resources such as founder tips, networking events, mentorship, and more!

If you’re a founder looking to take 2023 by storm, Tech in Asia School is the place for you. We here at Tech in Asia are bringing together all the resources we have to create content, curriculum, community, and mentorship opportunities tailored for the most critical stages of the startup journey to help founders succeed.

From six-week programs centered around specific startup goals, such as fundraising and growth, to founder meetups and Ask-Me-Anything sessions with startup leaders, we’ve got your back no matter where you are in your entrepreneurial journey.

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