Posts

The Innovation Partnership Program

Can innovation and entrepreneurship be taught? Does Vietnam have the ability to produce innovative and high growth companies to take on global markets? Are there people here who have the time, talent, and commitment to make an impact in the Vietnamese ecosystem?

The governments, donors, and people behind the Innovation Partnership Program (IPP) certainly believe so and with good reason.

Well, what is the IPP?

According to the IPP website:

“Innovation Partnership Program (IPP) is an Official Development Assistance (ODA) program financed jointly by the Governments of Vietnam and Finland. IPP is in its second phase running through 2014-2018.

Working closely with key national and international partners the program aims to scale up innovation training in Vietnam and improve support mechanisms for new innovative companies targeting international markets. Besides providing seed funding and connections for the best teams in Vietnam, IPP builds the capacity of public and private stakeholders through entrepreneurship and innovation training programs.”

The IPP focuses on three different but related areas: developing people, developing companies, and developing the ecosystem.

The Fellowship Program will develop future business leaders and entrepreneurs in Vietnam who will then lead the Fast Track training for the New Innovative Companies.

The New Innovative Companies component will help high growth Vietnamese companies bring a product or service to the global marketplace via Fast Track training and expense reimbursement.

And finally, the IPP will work with Innovation System Development Teams by providing funding for organizations that will raise standards, develop new resources, and positively impact the entrepreneur ecosystem in Vietnam.

In short:

“IPP supports Vietnam’s overall goal of becoming an industrialized middle-income knowledge economy by the year 2020. The program objective is to boost sustainable economic growth in Vietnam through the increased production and export of innovative products and services.”

One can think of the IPP as a pilot program, leading the way for other actors in the local ecosystem to continue on and influence the course of Vietnam’s entrepreneur development from a global perspective. The IPP is currently in its second phase; the conceptual portion started in September and the implementation phase has been ongoing since December. The Fellowship program is scheduled to begin around April, 2015.

The Innovation Fellowship Program

The Fellowship Program will consist of 20 fellows who will be trained by top international and local talent. The fellows will focus on innovation entrepreneurship, and once trained (over the course of two months), they will lead the Fast Track Training (six months) for selected new innovative companies. Trainers from Silicon Valley and other startup communities will come to Vietnam and work with the 20 motivated young people.

In addition to the fellowship requirements, the fellows will be selected on the basis of two primary criteria:

  1. Can they learn how to be entrepreneurs and innovators?
  2. Can they take best practices from the fellowship program and teach others?

In other words, do they have the capacity and attitude to make an impact after graduating from the fellowship program?

The fellowship requires a 40 hour per week commitment and will consist of some classroom and about 80% field work. Fellows will spend most of their time figuring out what customers need and how to find/create value in fulfilling those needs. Each week, the fellows will cover a new framework and ultimately practice and reinforce the learned concepts by the end of the week. The fellows will each receive a $1,000 allowance per month for duration of the fellowship program; the goal is to focus and train a core group of people to have all the tools necessary to create successful companies in Vietnam.

The IPP is currently seeking two local trainers who, if selected, will receive two weeks of training at Stanford University in the US, in addition to a highly competitive salary for the two months of training.

New Innovative Companies

Innovation, high growth, global; these are the words used to describe the kind of companies that the IPP is looking to fund, and eventually, is looking to see created here on a consistent basis.

The New Innovative Companies to be selected will be held to milestones and operational requirements for the duration of the program. The IPP will restrict what funding is used for (which is intended to be used on salaries and training related to development) and will cover only up to 70% of total expenses incurred by the new innovative companies. If people within the new innovative company are being paid, or external consultants are used, then the fees and services must be directly related to business activities. Thus, the new innovative companies will need to show accounting records, show payroll stubs, and show that a bank transfer took place or that the fees were paid out accordingly.

Once new innovative companies are selected, they will be injected into the six-month Fast Track Program (led by the Innovation Fellows) which will culminate in a demo day with the hope that 20 or so investors will be present and ready to look at each new innovative company for potential investment. The IPP does not to take any equity share in exchange for funding (because ODA requires it). Also, there will be no corporate governance oversight by the IPP for the new innovative companies. However, the IPP will have the power to remove teams, whether it’s because of a violation or if it’s clear that a new innovative company won’t be ready to present a compelling final pitch when the fast track training is completed in December 2015 or January 2016.

Innovative System Development Team

Local or international companies that want to be involved in Vietnam’s entrepreneurship ecosystem transformation can opt to form a consortium and submit their plans for developing specific new parts or for enhancing existing parts.

According to the IPP website:

“IPP’s grants are for covering 70% of internal and external human resource costs related to the innovation project. The first phase grant is approx. €50,000 [approximately 1.2 billion VND]. The most successful teams can receive an additional grant of maximum €200,000 [approximately 4.8 billion VND].

The potential content of the projects may include, but are not limited to, development of a new incubator, creation of new services for existing incubators, planning of a new funding program in the province, adding startup services to existing technology park or initiating a regional cluster growth program.”

To that end, expansion and funding activities, and, most importantly, imagination will be critical to finding new ways to leverage the funding to provide new resources to aspiring and dedicated Vietnamese entrepreneurs.

What’s Ahead for the IPP

February 23 is the deadline to apply for the Fellowship Program, but there is no set deadline to submit an Expression of Interest for the New Innovative Company and Innovation System Developers portions. In the longterm, IPP seeks to train individual people—not just companies. The real value of IPP is in developing people–the human talent–and getting them to share their newfound knowledge with others. Building teams takes time, and even longer to reach the point of creating high-growth companies so things won’t change here overnight, but the program is a great opportunity to head in the right direction.

One huge part of the challenge ahead for all those involved with the IPP is creating a proper technical vocabulary in Vietnamese, and in the long term, a cultural shift for attitudes toward entrepreneurship and innovation within the training programs. While the IPP has a fund amount of approximately $10 million—and it will certainly go further in Vietnam than elsewhere in the west—it will be the people on the ground, in the training sessions, and taking risks to create something great who will show the world just what’s possible in Vietnam.

Setting Expectations Across Cultures

Lately, we’ve been meeting with university students from Foreign Trade University, Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam, and Banking Academy of Vietnam—and we’ve also been encountering some newcomers in Vietnam.

We’ve previously covered the youth in Vietnam, in particular how the true potential of Vietnam is embedded in its youth and in finding creative solutions to global problems, e.g., frugal innovation. Overall, we still maintain our high aspirations for the young Vietnamese that we have encountered and even higher expectations for the future of Vietnam because of them. We have also previously covered communication here in Vietnam but this week we are going to set the stage for interactions between foreigners and locals because there can be a lot of misreading and miscommunication between cultures, especially when there is a mismatch of expectations from the onset. It’s important to point out that Vietnam itself is not homogenous–there are great differences (accents, attitudes, allowance for risk) between north, south, and central areas of the country.

From an Outsider’s Perspective

Overall, there are some very traditional aspects in Vietnam to consider; it’s a patriarch society where saving face is crucial and most sensitive subjects are handled indirectly. Social events are a dance of respect, camaraderie building, and copious amount of alcohol. In the Vietnamese language, there are different ways to address the person you are speaking to, depending on if s/he is older or younger than you, your parents, and his/her position in society or environment relative to yours. Thus, a situation that would be normal between colleagues in the west would be very different here as age and relationships would come into play if there was ever a dispute.

The following are advice and suggestions for new expats (compiled from experience, anecdotes, and research)—not all of it applies to every encounter, rather these are themes that seem to permeate through interactions here and that we have reached consensus on.

Everyday and specific problems aren’t fully addressed as they are a sign of weakness (saving face); anything that is perceived as being negative is shunned. For example, we asked a client what their hardware defect rate is for their product line. Their response was, “we aim to have a hardware defect rate of 1%.” However, that response didn’t inform us what the current hardware defect rate is.

A lack of negative points in a discussion needs exposure; things will get swept under the rug. In the worst cases, problems will be actively hidden.

Figure out when yes really means yes; get a commitment from your counterpart. Trust but verify. Don’t believe it until you see it (completion or payment). Often, we find that people here are very good at going from A-Z but they miss the required steps in the middle unless questioned and, in some cases, led down a path of logic. You will have to guide many elements of scope or else they will fall through the cracks.

Don’t listen to what people say, look at what they do.

Your author worked on a project in HCMC a couple of years ago. One of our local partners missed five deadlines in a three month period which caused multiple issues with the client. Who was more foolish? Our partner for continuing to miss deadlines or us for believing him after he missed the second deadline?

If you are working on a project beware of unreasonable timelines and expectations, especially if there is a set date for delivery (such as an event). A common tactic is to give responsibilities away close to a deadline, and then assign blame when things go awry—especially for subordinates. However, those same people will take credit when things go well. Don’t do things for free or deviate outside your scope or else you will be blamed if something goes wrong.

It’s not uncommon for local managers to request an “urgent” item the night before (via text message) for a sub 12-hour turnaround or even as an employee is walking out the door at 8:00 PM before the weekend.

Many local partners will want to proceed ad hoc and may be concerned about “protecting” the end customer. Sometimes, the price of a good or service is secondary when trying to close a deal, especially through an intermediary.

The concept of “allies” and “enemies” within an organization is very prominent in local organizations; this phenomenon can be especially noticeable at the C-level in large or public organizations. Think tree trunks and roots for each position.

Give options but not more than two; there are many masters of “getting you to do work for free” here.

You will be stared at in the streets a lot. Smile back to break the ice.

Common Questions and Phrases

In the course of meeting Vietnamese, you will be bombarded with questions about your personal life and work in Vietnam. In no particular order:

Where are you from?

Are you married?

What do you think of Vietnam?

Do you have any brothers or sisters?

Where do you live in Hanoi?

How long have you been here?

Are you an English teacher?

You’ll also have to diplomatically handle some uncommon statements (in the west), such as:

“You’re handsome.”

“I’m training to be a good wife.”

“You should find a Vietnamese girlfriend or wife.”

“You would make a good wife.”

Above all, your nationality can either be an advantage or a disadvantage—but very few people here are overtly anti-American, anti-French, or anti-Chinese (although last year’s riots are an exception).

Working Effectively with Foreigners

Foreign companies will have increasingly higher requirements for local workers as FDI amounts increase. Local consumers will also demand better customer service or brand experiences as their purchasing power increases. The following advice has been compiled from students, workers, your author, and others who have worked with locals on a variety of projects at different levels—this advice is specifically for students.

Ideas without execution are delusions.

Show up five minutes early to meetings—don’t show up late; every time someone is late then s/he has to get caught up with events that already happened.

Say “I don’t know how to do that” when you actually don’t know. It’s better to ask questions before doing something than to do it wrong the first time. And you will actually save time instead of doing things over and over again.

Be focused in meetings. And be quiet when others are talking.

Listen to the one who is speaking. Again, don’t talk over others; it’s rude.

Actually give your opinion when asked for it—somebody asked you because s/he cares and you probably have insight that the person who asked you doesn’t have.

When everyone is agreeing about an issue, try to take the opposite position—groupthink is how companies are ruined.

Ask: “what can I do to help?” Follow through. The greatest shortage of resources in Southeast Asia is quality talent who can understand “glocal” requirements, i.e., global and local.

Don’t make silly excuses for whatever reason you are late or don’t feel like working (rain or traffic). Illness, a death in the family, and/or caring for an ill or injured family member are not silly excuses.

Think critically. Be skeptical; talk is cheap.

Prioritize. Write down your goals and tell someone. Most people will be happy to help or mentor.

Say no when you actually don’t agree with something.

Work in advance to meet the deadline. Organize work smartly to have time to think, plan, do, and win.

Ask for help when you need to; not the day before a deadline. Don’t wait until the last minute, it shows a lack of respect for a person’s time.

If you see a problem, mention it and try to come up with a solution for the problem.

Don’t think outside of the box, expand your box.

Don’t ever say “cannot” or “impossible” or “so sorry, please sympathize with me.” It wastes everyone’s time, including yours.

Be confident but remain humble, always. People acting like a “big boss” and shouting and screaming at others is not viewed well in the west. Steve Jobs was an exception.

Try to keep things professional; try to keep an open mind. Don’t be sexist; don’t make fun of your teammates.

Think through ideas to the end. How will you do that? And then what comes after?

Everyone has good ideas and no one has a monopoly on good ideas.

Don’t ask people outright for tangible help: money, job, free work. Try to help them first or ask what their biggest problem is and how you can help.

People who cannot follow through cannot be trusted—this goes for expats and locals.

Trust takes a long time to build and can be lost in a moment—don’t abuse someone’s trust.

The Biggest Piece

The advice offered above is non-exhaustive and has western bias according to Hofstede’s dimensions. The best thing to do is to talk to people; if you are a newly arrived expat then you should be talking to someone new every day. If you are a student and want to know more about foreign customs then ask someone from that country. Reading about it and doing it are two different things and the best way to learn something is by doing it.

The first time you do something is the hardest–eventually you’ll get the hang of it and will be more efficient and effective at it, whether it’s communicating requirements, asking to make sure something is done, or conflict resolution (or avoidance). Like the variety of photos in the gallery, Vietnam has many faces, shapes, forms, and settings. Don’t try to stereotype or label what you see, but instead try to understand why things are the way they are–that’s way more important to do than criticizing it or condemning it. Once you understand something, then you can see where the opportunities lie–even across cultures.

 

Building a Brand in Vietnam

Building a successful brand in Vietnam (or anywhere) requires having a clear idea of local consumer (and by extension, social) norms, trends, and perceptions (i.e., market in general) in addition to understanding the local, regional, and national cultures for successful positioning in a country. Yes, conspicuous consumption exists here in Vietnam but for many brands, simply copying and pasting a western marketing campaign won’t work beyond luxury brands that convey a sense of status to those around the targeted consumer. Sometimes, understanding a market means a change in mindset.

This week we are taking a look at three modern scenarios: the first, a globally known brand seeking to capture market share in Vietnam; the second, a local brand growing domestically (and which could eventually lead to the third scenario); and the third, a local brand entering foreign markets (which will most likely increase in the future). We’ll also explore some potential ways forward for Vietnamese companies in the future.

Global Brand to Local Market

Earlier this month, we were invited to the first ever AMX Seminar in Hanoi, which was followed up by a similar version a few days later in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC). The audience in Hanoi was primarily comprised of 20-30 Vietnamese Systems Integrators (SI) with less than five foreigners in the audience. After the half-day presentation, we were asked to give feedback on the potential for the AMX brand in the Vietnam market and how to improve service and support overall.

In short, the event was a solid step toward establishing the AMX brand in Vietnam but it won’t be an easy win in this market as Crestron, Savant, and Extron are all available here as well—not to mention local and/or less expensive offerings. So, there’s definitely opportunity for AMX (and any technology brand) to establish itself as a market leader and ride the growing economic wave here—but it will have to be in a personalized manner that resonates with Vietnamese stakeholders and/or expat decision makers.

These technology brands don’t have counterfeit and quality issues to deal with because their products are sold through authorized dealers and country distributors. For other industries, such as cosmetics, there exists a trust deficit: how do local consumers know the products that they are buying are authentic? Thus, consumers prefer hand-carried cosmetic items from trusted friends or associates who are traveling to Vietnam from more developed markets such as Hong Kong. After all, skin and eye products are the ones that you don’t want to be cheap on.

Local Brand to Local Market

Another company that is building a (completely) new brand here in Vietnam is Emigo, which is owned by VinFashion of Vingroup. The Emigo brand was launched earlier this year and it already has two open locations including Vincom Center Ba Trieu and Vincom Mega Mall Times City. Approximately four additional locations are slated to be opened throughout Hanoi in the near future.

The Emigo brand has the potential to make an impact on the fashion scene here since its offerings are more affordable than brand name imported clothing lines (its designs are similar to Zara or H&M) and there is always an element of national pride in buying from a Vietnamese brand. It remains to be seen how the Emigo brand will be built domestically but for sure Vietnamese shoppers will want to inspect the materials and quality of the real products for themselves before deciding whether or not to buy into the brand.

If Emigo can resonate with local consumers then it might be able to build momentum here and expand abroad—if those are indeed the plans that VinFashion has in store for the brand. Still, could we see Emigo products in western stores one day? If so, then perhaps the clothing label will read “Created in Vietnam” in addition to “Made in Vietnam.”

Local Brand to Global Market

Brands coming into Vietnam have the advantage of prestige and case studies in western markets—but what about the reverse situation? How would a Vietnamese brand fare in the global marketplace? When foreigners hear “Vietnam,” what is their impression of Vietnam, i.e., what is Vietnam to them? And, what is Vietnam known for globally? These are all questions that Vietnamese brands looking to go abroad will have to find the answers to in order to enter new markets in the most efficient way possible.

A Vietnamese client recently told us that they wanted to build a “Vietnamese iPhone” in part due to the success of Apple’s iPhone in Vietnam and the rest of the world. Instead, we suggested that they differentiate their product by creating a secure smartphone (similar to the Blackphone or Boeing Black). Given last year’s revelations by Edward Snowden and Glenn Greenwald, security conscious companies might prefer another option for secure handset communications beyond American and Chinese manufacturers, especially if the alternative price point is attractive. Or a suitable Vietnamese startup could always take a page from Xiaomi’s book (2010 wasn’t so long ago).

The growing risk for Vietnamese companies who have the technical skills to produce something for other markets is that they might create something that only Vietnamese consumers will like. For example, when Yamaha Vietnam unveiled its website redesign in a “flat design” style, the feedback they got from Vietnamese visitors was that the website had no information and was hard to navigate. Vietnamese taste and design considerations can be very unique, even in Southeast Asia. Another way to think about about going to another market is that it’s not realistic for an American company to come to Vietnam, do things the “American” way and expect to be successful. Similarly, how do you think a Vietnamese company trying to do things the “Vietnamese” way in the US (or any other country) will fare?

Choosing the Long Term

During a conversation last week with some Vietnamese/New York fashion industry insiders in Hanoi, we discussed how to create and position a future clothing brand here in Vietnam. What is Vietnam’s competitive advantage in manufacturing? Vietnam’s current advantage is its low cost of labor (in addition to other financial incentives) which has prompted giants like Samsung and Intel to setup multi-billion dollar manufacturing facilities here.

However, inexpensive labor won’t last forever nor will Vietnam’s “Golden Population Structure” remain intact. Just as investment has flowed into Vietnam from China, so too will investment flow into a location with less expensive labor costs—perhaps to another neighbor as well. So looking ahead, what product or service might Vietnam have in the future that will give it an advantage in the global marketplace?

Today, Vietnam has plenty of raw materials but they aren’t finished goods which Vietnamese manufacturers can command a premium for. Not to mention that we live in a world of limited resources, so what can Vietnam offer the world in the future? One way to answer this question is to think about the challenges that Vietnam will face in the future (and that other countries will have as well). If Vietnamese companies continue to or start working on solutions for those problems then they can be ahead of the curve. After all, there is innovation here–many Vietnamese are “professional improvisers” in their daily lives and they are quick and resilient learners, as history has shown.

In the future, Vietnam won’t be the only country that has a rising national power consumption (and therefore rising demand for coal if alternative sources don’t emerge), it won’t be the only country with more cars on the road (and therefore more air pollution), and when sea levels rise it won’t just affect a single city like Can Tho in the Mekong Delta—it’ll affect hundreds of cities and displace millions of people. The point here is that the challenges of the future won’t be exclusively Vietnamese, but Vietnamese-origin—and not uniquely Vietnamese—solutions can be used to solve the challenges of the future (if those problems are solved here first or at the very least knowledge can be shared abroad). However, it takes a long term mindset to truly tackle these transnational issues of our time in addition to investments in education, human capital, and financial resources for research and development.

Peter Drucker, the 20th century’s greatest management thinker advised to always choose the long term, because it always comes true. Focus on your long-term strategy, but take advantage of the short-term opportunities in the meantime–that’s how a future brand in Vietnam will be forged, and how Vietnam–the brand–can begin to take shape as well.

The Olympia Schools

We all remember the best and worst teachers we had growing up but what makes a school great? Is it the students, the teachers, or the environment? Is it a top-down approach, organic growth, or innovative teaching methods? Or is it simply a matter of caring and going beyond preparing students for the next stage of life?

With some exceptions, primary and secondary education in Asia doesn’t have a stellar reputation to begin with: many schools are pressure cookers that are ripe with rampant student cheating, some who freely admit to doing so. In some instances parents pay teachers to “look after” their children and teachers pay the school’s principal to get a job in the first place. Traditionally, the goal of education in large parts of Asia is to absorb and repeat as much as factual knowledge as possible (rote learning) all without questioning the wisdom and authority of teachers.

The Olympia Schools aims to change the educational mindset whereby students focus on how to learn and access information so that they are able to develop the critical thinking skills which will be essential when facing new challenges in the 21st century. The school places emphasis on the process of learning, and seeks to intersect theory and practice for each of its units throughout the school year.

Simply put, the Olympia Schools are a new breed of education in Vietnam. The school started out as Dream House 11 years ago and was the creation of four Vietnamese women who weren’t satisfied with the local kindergarten offerings in the neighborhood. So naturally, they did what anyone would do: they opened their own school. Word spread about the new school and it became a popular school with parents who wanted better alternatives for their children. It was so popular that when the co-founders’ children finished kindergarten, they started an elementary school. Finally, about four years ago the school became the Olympia Schools. Today, some students are bused to the school from up to an hour away.

Christopher McDonald, a native of Michigan, is the Head of Schools. He has played an integral part in shaping the school’s atmosphere and amenities to form the current school environment. We stopped by on a recent Friday morning to speak with Mr. McDonald about what makes the Olympia Schools unique in Vietnam and how the school is preparing its students for life (the school’s motto).

A Meteoric Rise in a Decade

The Olympia Schools is located in Trung Van, Tu Liem, Hanoi. The facilities at the school include a tennis court, a football (soccer) field, an art studio, a games area, a weight room, and even an underground swimming pool. The vast majority of the students are Vietnamese and instruction is given in both English and Vietnamese. Among one of the many notable firsts, the school was the first in Vietnam to offer the PSAT last year and currently offers AP courses. During the summer, the school is host to a camp called Utopia where participants create their own society.

The campus has a distinct international feel to it and has a wide range of easing colors throughout the halls. When we arrived, the first graders were practicing for the Winter Festival, to be held later this month. There is a good feel of school spirit, from the formal uniforms (which are worn every day except on Casual Fridays) to the country flags hanging in the entrance hall to the nice green spaces surrounding most of the school (it’s sometimes hard to find quality green space in a bustling city like Hanoi). Even Martial Arts and cooking classes are offered and the students’ photos are displayed on digital signage on their birthdays, a nice way to make the students feel even more special.

Below is the school’s mission statement:

“The Olympia Schools embrace Vietnamese values while providing an integrated experience in the study of English and global issues by developing fundamental skills, fostering creativity and problem solving, and promoting ethics that allow students to adapt, to improvise, and to overcome challenges–we prepare students for life.”

Grades 1 through 12 are offered at the campus and there are plans to bring the kindergarten classes on site in the future. The school also has partnerships with educational organizations in the United States as well as Canada—something that gives it an advantage in terms of prestige but also exposes its partner schools to resources on the other side of the world–a winning formula for all.

The school also focuses on soft skills beyond the classroom to develop all aspects of a student’s character and attitude. The faculty is a mix of local and foreign teachers and we saw several classrooms that had projectors as you would find in the US. The school currently uses a four term school year where students focus on different objectives each term. For example, Term 1 revolves around project based learning (PBL); Term 2 ends in traditional formal testing; Term 3 features Creative Learning Expression which requires the student to demonstrate what s/he has learned via any medium; and Term 4 is a portfolio review/analysis which culminates in a reflective end to the school year. For more information about the terms, please see here.

Additionally, there is a summer skills component which may include an internship, e-project, or reading assignment. As a testament to how impactful the school’s efforts are, Vietnam’s Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) has followed The Olympia School’s success in regards to using integrated studies in its curriculum. The result has been Olympia Schools graduates going on to be successful in their university careers, in large part due to the emphasis on scholarship and continuing studies.

As profiled in the Forbes piece:

“It was the first Vietnamese school with a college counselor on site like an international school—normally college counseling is offered via a separate paid center—and its graduates often attend university overseas.”

The school’s alumni in recent years have gone on to study in the US, Singapore, Australia, China, and other countries. From organizing a kindergarten class to building an entire campus and sending students off to universities within a decade; an amazing feat indeed.

A Future Model

On December 20 and 21, the Winter Festival will be held at the Olympia Schools. The Winter Festival will feature performances, a fair, and games and will include participants from other schools in Hanoi as well. This year’s theme is fairy tales of Vietnam and other countries with the purpose being to raise money for the “Seasons of Care” fund which was founded four years ago. The fund aims to build a new water supply and filtration system for Na Loc Primary School, Ban Mu, Tu Xuyen, Van Quan County in Lang Son Province, close to China. Art performances and games will be held from 2:00 PM to 9:00 PM on both days as the fair provides opportunities for the community to come together to make an impact in Vietnam all while enjoying each other’s company.

So beyond this month, what’s in store for the Olympia Schools? Well, it hopes to be the new model for schooling in Vietnam by combining learning with experiences in and out of the classroom, i.e., learning by doing and by sharing with others.

In this day and age students cannot afford to be mere bystanders or observers of history because the classroom of today will be the workplace of tomorrow in terms of diversity, culture, and foundations of excellence. The successful students will be the ones who communicate effectively, who engage with different and relatively unknown cultures from their own, who think critically, who ask thoughtful questions, who reflect upon their experiences, and who can work together with anyone to accomplish synergy.

Schools like The Olympia Schools realize the new world that we all live in–this Information Age–and seek to prepare students for a rapidly changing and volatile world by enabling them to craft and assemble the tools to understand and overcome complex global challenges that they will encounter in their lives. This task is critical because one day in the near future students will have to answer a vital question: what does this change mean for me?

Thanks to Christopher McDonald, Head of Schools for sharing his time with us and answering our questions. 

 

Long Van Group

Long Van Group, founded in 1992, is comprised of four companies: Long Van NTV, Loval, ALV, and Hondalex. Through its portfolio companies based in Vietnam and the US, the family-owned group is perhaps best known for its aluminum product manufacturing—which is how it got its start. The other companies include a trading company in Ho Chi Minh City for the domestic market, a trading company in the US for the international market, and a joint-venture with Hondalex. Recently, we sat down with Thy Van Nguyen (Vanessa), whose official title is Operational Director but she is heavily involved with the strategic vision of the group as well as integral in implementing organizational change across the companies.

Ms. Nguyen was born in Ho Chi Minh City and moved to the US when she was 16. After being based in Seattle, Washington and attending university in the US, Ms. Nguyen moved back to Ho Chi Minh City about 18 months ago in order to focus on the family business. She currently spends about 80% of her time in Vietnam between Ho Chi Minh City and Binh Duong Province, where the manufacturing  activities of Long Van Group takes place. Currently, one of Ms. Nguyen’s major initiatives is the transformation of culture in her organization, something that she has successfully done in the domestic trading arm of the group.

Changing a Culture From Within

Ms. Nguyen is a big believer in getting the people doing a task or activity to understand the purpose of it. The people on the front lines are already the best people to do to the job so they will also be in the best position to improve the process. It’s only a matter of getting them used to speaking up and contributing regularly for the reward is improved efficiency and recognition by management and their peers.

That goal is sometimes easier said than done as older managers in a company have a more traditional mindset of top-down management style. Therefore, it’s necessary to first change the managers—either their attitudes or outright replace them (however, Ms. Nguyen didn’t have to fire anybody). If the managers had not bought into her vision at the onset then the project couldn’t have worked. Having the managers on board enabled the culture at the trading company to completely change within eight months but it took six months before she began to see the fruits of her labor. It also helped that Ms. Nguyen speaks Vietnamese in addition to English, and is the daughter of the company’s owner so she did have the power to initiate and implement change. However, despite these advantages it was still tricky for her to balance the right relationship with the workers due to some strong local cultural elements.

Part of the culture in Vietnam revolves around a fear of power which has roots in the royal history of Vietnam and continues in the form of wealth and political power today. Therefore, people in positions of power might need to be more informal, more cheery, and re-emphasize what resources are available to workers who need help, guidance, or any kind of assistance. People aren’t going to ask for help on their own or tell you what problems they have. Vietnamese culture is generally not expressive; a Vietnamese son or daughter can do 1,000 things right and not receive a single compliment. However, if s/he does one thing wrong then they will hear about it to no end. Thus, a lack of a negative response is a positive step. It’s important to praise workers because no one really says compliments from an authority position so it really impacts their subordinates.

It’s interesting to note that Ms. Nguyen was able to effectively change the culture because of gaps in old culture when other senior leaders were focusing on other business lines. Her changes came at the right time because the old system was not effective for expanding beyond the original 20-30 employees since it was largely based on gut feelings.

It may also be that everybody can see the problem at hand but no one wants to do much about it–Ms. Nguyen sought to change that. The interesting thing is that the workers want to hear different perspectives but not necessarily change the old ways of doing things. So even though everyone can point out the problem, no one can suggest a solution because it may be too risky to suggest a potential solution.

This challenge of self-confidence and expression has its origins in the educations system in Vietnam. The educational culture in Vietnam revolves around being told what to do; the teacher tells you the answer and that’s the answer–end of discussion. One way to overcome this element is by tapping into the fact that Vietnamese people love to look good; they want the story to be about them. They love the credit so give them that credit when appropriate. For example, present them with a situation and ask them to help. Then you can follow up with: “I listened to you and it worked.” In these moments you will see how proud the workers are and have just established a precedent. Perhaps the most effective way to connect with workers is to tell them stories, and then get them to be part of the stories. It can be as simple as presenting a scenario to workers and asking them, “if you had to make that decision then what would you do?” Indeed, not all changes are smooth and changing a culture is perhaps one of the toughest tasks to take on but by empowering workers it increases an organization’s operational efficiency overall.

Make no mistake: an organizational transformation is not without friction and conflict—especially when dealing with the “old guard.” Some people quit in the process, in part due to wanting to change the organization in a different way than Ms. Nguyen so they left. Changing the culture required that Ms. Nguyen trust that a real foundation was in place for the company to expand upon itself. To that end, she had to let go of some of the intensive focus she had on certain processes. These days Ms. Nguyen’s 62 workers at the trading company embrace and drive towards her and their vision of change.

Training and Developing Vietnamese Workers

Improvement is a continuous process at Long Van Group. Ms. Nguyen gives training courses once or twice a week for each division in her company in an effort to better prepare them for current and future work-related tasks. She strives to get different workers to select a unit each week based on a set list and give a presentation to the other workers. In her “guide-on-the-side” role, she asks questions and draws opinions from the workers and gives feedback at the end of each session.

During her training sessions, she will also share a story about a work experience, or conduct a workshop, or present a scenario. Then the workers will split into groups and talk about what each worker would have done in the scenario or what to do in the situation in the future.

Example: Your colleague sends an email to an organizational partner who you must coordinate with on a project. In the email, your colleague states that your company is not responsible for a specific portion of scope but that there are related issues that need to be addressed for the client’s benefit. The organizational partner’s vice director simply responds: “If the scope is not your responsibility, then your opinion does not matter.”

Ms. Nguyen will then question the workers on whether or not the logic of the vice director is wrong. Thus, the workers are solving problems with real experiences (the above example is actually used in training by Ms. Nguyen and was experienced by your author in Ho Chi Minh City last year) and are thinking about how to view situations more deeply.

This analysis is important because when responding to allegations some Vietnamese tend to lash out when things start to take a dive and they can take things personally even if they aren’t meant to be from your side. So it’s vital to be mindful of not only what you say (although that is important as well), but about how they feel (and taking care to let everyone save face).

Within Vietnam, southerners rely more on gut feelings whereas northerners are more logical. The southerners present themselves at face value; they want to prove to you that they care about you when they meet you. However, northerners want to compare status levels and act accordingly. Thus, foreigners might have a better time in Hanoi compared to “common people.” Northerners tend to think more before they talk so their use of words is better and more structured which presents them as being clever. Southerners speak more from the heart since they are generally more open and expressive. It’s important to be aware of your counterpart’s feelings because in Vietnam and in life, one can never do something big or grand without building a coalition.

Human Capital in the US and in Vietnam

In the US, people and workers are proactive while in Vietnam they are largely reactive. However, foreigners can learn a lot from Vietnamese people. But first, they must stop assuming and see things in limited possibilities. Ridiculous and downright crazy (from a western perspective) things could and will be possible because it may be the only option for moving forward in Vietnam.

The social structure is more set in the US due to the developed economy and Puritan work ethic. So in the US there is freedom to choose within set choices, i.e., the illusion of freedom because everything is already structured. Life is very predictable in the US so many people want to be proactive, they want to be ahead of the curve. Thus, Americans tend to assume a lot when planning.

On the other hand, Vietnamese are “proactive by being reactive:” they expect the plans to go awry so they bypass the planning stage and when things devolve they are better equipped to salvage the situation. Thus, Vietnamese prepare for certain situations but not for all situations. In that sense, they are able to make unreasonable (or even crazy) positions seem logical because they have developed these skills. They are very adept at framing an arena and taking up defensive and offensive positions and excel when things don’t go right, in part due to the messy social structure. It may be surprising to some that Vietnamese can be very practical because oftentimes there are no other options.

So, Vietnamese are really good at changing situation into their favor but they are also good at making crazy logic sound normal. Some people may believe that if they spot an issue and bring it up, then they will need take responsibility for it. People are afraid of responsibility because of the challenge of getting the task accomplished correctly. Vietnamese people like to look good so they don’t like to put their name on a project or idea in case it fails. But if it turns out good and then they take full credit. For Ms. Nguyen, a large part of the effort to change the organization is by marketing herself through self-branding because the perceptions of the workers will make or break any initiative.

Opportunities for Expats

To Ms. Nguyen, Vietnam is the perfect country to grow something big—but it’s a double-edged sword. Everything is based on relationships, which can be good or bad depending on the perspective. To be successful in Vietnam, one needs to be flexible and open-minded since many problems in Vietnam need to be solved in unorthodox manners. Structure beyond social doesn’t really exist, so if one relies on structure to move forward then s/he is in for a rude awakening (unless those connections are present). Above all, give Vietnam a chance but know where your limits are and what is the extent of your comfort zone for (operational and legal risks).

Expats shouldn’t assume anything in Vietnam and they will have to take on more responsibility to ensure that things stay on track and don’t fall apart. Things that are taken for granted in the west simply don’t exist in Vietnam. For example, the search results of Google, and Google VN are very different. Some people in Vietnam trust the US version more than the Vietnamese version. Also, Vietnamese websites generally don’t have a “how-to” section. For western websites, the product or service offered is described in depth and it is very clearly shown what it is and how it is done.

When explaining something in Vietnam, it has to be simple, clear, and consistently explained multiple times. Then, inverse questions need to be asked in order to triangulate what the actual response is for determining if the receiver understands or not. Communicating processes, requirements, or issues to locals can be timely and frustrating, even when explaining in the Vietnamese language. One way to get Vietnamese people to understand a process or information is through infographics—and in particular, youngsters will understand it better. They like the convenience aspect and the way the information is presented so they are more likely to understand it. If a member of the older generation doesn’t understand something, then s/he will just ask someone nearby or a close friend who will be put on the spot and could just blurt out something that sounds good but isn’t necessarily accurate. Thus, a crazy feedback loop begins where most of the information is wrong as the process continues. Besides, many Vietnamese don’t believe what they read. The older generations do, but the younger (those born in the 1990s and later) ones, no. Cute infographics can help explain things succinctly—and the cuter, the better; think anime characters.

In more general terms, most work fields don’t give newcomers to the country a chance. Connections are part of status which bypasses merit in many cases. It doesn’t matter if you are the best in your field, if you don’t have a good connection then no one will work with you. When arriving in Vietnam, get the connection first. Leverage being sent by a foreign company by learning about the country and forming bonds. Another option is to wait until you have the money to buy status here. In that sense, you don’t have to be the best person in your field—you can be average but still get a piece of the action through connections.

Drinking: Bad or Good for Business?

Still, business can be too much relationship-based; that is to say too reliant on gut feelings and feelings in general. Logic is largely used to make decisions in the US but in Vietnam they need to “feel it” in order to do something. These positive feelings are usually the result of some bonding over alcohol, either bia hoi, ruou, or some imported spirits.

Ms. Nguyen points out that her male employees never get drunk enough to be inappropriate at company functions. And for those who don’t drink any alcohol, while they can sponsor a “drinking nominee,” they could be at a disadvantage with their local counterparts by them not “truly” knowing the person when s/he is drunk. Thus, the best way to establish trust with Vietnamese counterparts is to drink alcohol with them—so if you get drunk easily then you must learn how to control yourself. Vietnamese truly believe that you will be yourself when you are drunk so in a way it’s like peering into your soul.

Everything you say or do shapes their perception about you, especially when drinking. The actual message, while important, is secondary since they are judging you via a gut feeling. It can be quite dangerous since Vietnamese may perceive an offense where there was none. When doing business, Vietnamese generally won’t trust you until you drink alcohol with them and they are able to see the “true you.”

How you are as a person when drunk may be the biggest indicator of doing a deal with Vietnamese. Their perception of you while imbibing will be the baseline for judging you. Once they see you drunk, then that’s how they will perceive you and they will hold onto this image of you until the next time you drink together. If you are a bad drunk, then beware.

The Next Step

Next up for Ms. Nguyen is changing the culture at the factory since it is a special case. The entire production was in the hands of two directors but the current result didn’t turn out so well so the focus is on getting workers to take more initiative and overcome fears of failure. Indeed, Long Van Group is at the forefront of providing high-quality products and driving organizational change in order to provide a better customer experience. Vietnam is becoming an even more prominent destination for outsourcing and manufacturing and as more projects are implemented here then the technical and management skills requirements will increase as well.

Today, China produces for much of the world but in recent years some factories have migrated to Vietnam, in part due to the fact that wages in China are higher than in Vietnam. However, prices of finished goods in Vietnam can be higher than in China because of other operational costs. The disadvantage that Vietnam has is that the workforce is less skilled than China’s and the economies of scale don’t exist on par with China. Quality control remains an issue in Vietnam as well.

As more foreign companies come to the Vietnamese market, the standards for local workers’ qualifications and skills will rise. A growing trend is for Vietnamese workers to take courses at private institutes to aid in their professional development, e.g., how to be a better manager or CEO. These courses are truly development on an individual level because people are there because they want to be better. For the students, Ms. Nguyen suggests that they seek to understand on a conceptual level and learn to connect everything.

“Learning how to connect things is the tool you need to work in the real world,” Ms. Nguyen advises.

Below, Ms. Nguyen shares some of her favorite quotes:

“Do or do not, there is no try.” –Master Yoda

“If you are a good leader, when your work is done, your aim fulfilled, your people will say, ‘We did this ourselves.’” –Abraham Lincoln

“You can listen like a blank wall or like a splendid auditorium where every sound comes back fuller and richer.” – Alice Duer Mill

 

Special thanks to Vanessa Nguyen of Long Van Group who shared her time with us and greatly contributed to this week’s post.

First Impressions of Vietnam

Trying to explain Hanoi, and Vietnam in general to someone who has never been here can be quite challenging. For many expats in Southeast Asia, the region and its cultures can be difficult to understand and navigate let alone effectively explain to family and friends at home. And research, while helpful to understand settings, is not a substitute for direct experience.

This week we have a guest contributor who is with us here in Hanoi. Zdravko Tumbovski is an international businessman who has done business in Turkey, Bulgaria, his native Macedonia, and other countries. He arrived in Hanoi for the first time on Tuesday, November 18 in order to take a firsthand look at the Vietnamese market and to gauge its potential for his interest in trading with Vietnam and in Southeast Asia.

His professional experience includes an internship at an insurance company in Macedonia; a Business Analyst position at a family owned company, Info Group Ltd, which made investments in the Macedonian Stock Exchange and the Macedonian Real Estate market. Currently, Mr. Tumbovski is the founder and director of Z&Z Capital Ltd based in Bulgaria, which specializes in transport and logistics services in the European Union (EU).

Additionally, in conjunction with partners in Turkey, he is involved in import-export transactions, mainly in cooking oil, but they are also expanding to other commodities for the Turkish bazaar. His primary role is to find a suitable supplier and to negotiate the payment methods and transportation of the goods.

Zdravko shares his first impressions of Vietnam below:

After constantly moving around between the US, Europe, and the Middle East in the last seven years, I spent a considerable amount of time in Los Angeles this year. About a month ago, I reconnected with director of GKTA Group, whom I have known for several years.

GKTA Group introduced me to some of the many challenges, opportunities, and conditions faced in Vietnam. I felt attracted to learning more about this dynamic market and it didn’t take long for me to decide to come here and check out Vietnam for myself.

Even though I am still in the first week of my arrival, I must admit that I am having a very smooth transition to this country so far. I was already familiar with Asian cultures due to my friendship with Asians in my network that I have known for a long period of time, and also because GKTA Group put a lot of effort to set up at least one meeting per day with a local person where I can get his/her answers to some of my questions about his/her country’s future, his/her point of view toward foreigners, and the changes that s/he has seen the past five years in Hanoi, especially.

Hanoians and Hanoi

Vietnamese people in the capital of Hanoi are generally polite and quiet. It usually requires some time until they start to feel comfortable sharing their views, and begin to realize the goal of my questions because I see that they are not very used to foreigners who are interested in their culture, and who try to understand their values.

Vietnamese people seem to be the loudest on their motorbikes. They are honking at every cross street, and from my findings they rarely show anger with words, but only with menacing stares at the perceived wrong-doer. The amount of motorbikes and the traffic frequency for me was something unseen before; in short, outrageous.

Hanoi is a city with a long history, and it is shown on every corner. Hanoi has the street-selling spirit and it is still done traditionally and mostly inexpensively for locals. However, there is luxury consumption visibility in the younger generations and newly rich populations. For me, this is probably more visible because I was raised in a former communist country, Macedonia (Former Yugoslavia).

The Wi-Fi coverage and the use of internet are quite impressive compared to the expectation of technology in a developing country. The “drinking-coffee” habit is at large range, and the number of cafes is seemingly endless but a favorite of Vietnamese people. One new thing for me is using condensed milk (“sua dac”) in almost every cup of coffee—and I find it tasty—even if it is uncommon for me as a European.

Luckily, I am fan of Asian cuisine, and have been eating it frequently. Compared to other cuisines and the tastes of some westerners, you may remain hungry here if you are very picky with the food. The traditional street foods, or the local dishes in the very basic and not-so-modern restaurants can be tasty for people who are food enthusiasts and open to new flavors; on the other hand, it can be off-putting (even though I aim to be cautious with my language here), because I certainly know many people who would not be able to eat the local food here, and who would not be willing to be seated and served in the Hanoian or Vietnamese way of small tables and children chairs. So far, I enjoy it.

Work Ethic and Exposure

My personal view is that most of people here work hard and long hours. The basic example for that is the staff at the hotel where I stay. They are here every single day of the week, for over twelve hours per day. They are very friendly and very helpful even if there is occasional miscommunication.

When talking to waiters or other people in cafes and on the streets, I have come to realize that many of them have not had a chance to travel a lot. Actually, many have never been outside of Vietnam. The reason for that is first, money and second, time since, as mentioned before, they have to work almost every day, year-round.

There is a sense of trust that permeates through the people here. I had a very unique experience that occurred to me at the border upon arriving at the airport: I had arranged for visa upon arrival and at the bureau the visa was issued and stamped more quickly than what I had estimated, but I had no cash on me to pay. The customs officer asked me if I had any currency equal to the amount of $95 (the price of the visa), but I had none. The ATM was outside the immediate area, after the passport control, so I thought that I couldn’t consider the option to withdraw some money. As a matter of fact, the officer walked me through the immigration border without any checking and without any concern, just to withdraw the necessary money for the visa, and then led me back to her desk in order to pay. That was surprising. Actually, the border control experience in general was more liberal than in many other countries.

If I am allowed a chance or could offer some suggestions to Vietnamese who want to be successful with westerners, it would be:

  • Learn more English, the number of tourists is increasing  and you need it
  • Strive to be more comfortable with foreigners
  • Be more creative for international businesses; this land is rich
  • Act more responsible to the duties and respond to requirements efficiently and faster

Business and Understanding Vietnam Now and in The Future

I haven’t experienced any business deals in Vietnam yet, but I am most worried about the changing industry regulations, the unpredictable law amendments, unfair competition, and the guarantee of quality standards.

My advice to the expats that want to do business in Vietnam is to spend as much time as possible here, but with local people. It is essential to understand the habits of the Vietnamese before starting any sort of business, in order to prevent an organizational mismatch and communication misunderstandings. It is complex and different here indeed.

I can already see that the necessary attributes required to succeed in Vietnam are patience and simple guidelines.

What I would like to learn about Vietnam or the Vietnamese is: until what extent have the ancestors shaped today’s population, and how much is the young generation willing to keep and practice the old traditions? I hope that finding this balance will help me to predict and understand their place in the world for the next decade.

This next decade will be crucial for Vietnam as the country transitions to increased trade with more global partners, the middle class continues to grow, and more foreign investment pours into the economy. Vietnam has many natural resources, a lot of talented people, and a willingness to exceed economic indicators but it will not be without some development friction, conflict between traditional and modern Vietnam, and addressing some major investor concerns. However, the long-term benefits will be far greater than what the shortcut rewards of today will provide. After all, as Jim Rohn says, “You cannot change your destination overnight, but you can change your direction overnight.”

Thanks to Zdravko Tumbovski who contributed to this week’s post.

Currents of Creativity in Hanoi

We took off from publishing last week so we are resuming our normal schedule of Sunday posts. Keeping a schedule or routine in general helps to build structure and maintain momentum; for some that means going to the gym, for others it means traveling once a month, and for us it means writing consistently in between projects, meetings, and travels.

However, it’s good to change things up once in a while and to consume content instead of creating it—movies usually fill that role but for inspiration it’s best to turn elsewhere. While it might be hard to find unique institutions of culture in Vietnam beyond museums, a vast assortment of handicrafts, or those visible propaganda art shops in the streets, it does not mean that Vietnam is devoid of other forms of creativity and expression. Indeed, there are coursing currents of creativity in Hanoi and greater Vietnam that can be missed at first glance. This week we will take a look at some emerging sub-culture trends within the last few years.

Tuned In

Music: art for the ears. In general, many of the younger generations of Vietnamese seem to prefer western songs with romantic undertones. However, there are not many high-profile western musical acts that come through Vietnam, which is a bit surprising to consider since western culture can be heavily consumed in Vietnam at times. For example, one could make a strong case for P!nk’s Just Give Me A Reason as the 2013 unofficial theme song of Vietnam. And speaking of anthems, let’s not forget Michael Learns to Rock’s Take Me To Your Heart, which seems to be played everywhere in Vietnam (even though they are technically an Asian-branded band). Some Vietnamese children even learn the lyrics to MLTR songs while growing up—and they probably could have learned their first English words via those popular songs

Some other younger and more hip Vietnamese seem to enjoy rock music more, preferring local bands, or jazz, or rap music. Vietnamese rappers such as Su Boi and Kim (also known as Kimmese) are among two of the most popular acts. Moreover, KPOP has spread its influence to a huge numbers of followers here in Vietnam. KPOP stars have brought everything from new dance moves to novel hairstyles to nascent fashion trends in Vietnam. On a more local level, Hanoi seems to have more charm and is more music festival centric whereas Saigon experiences are more about the creativity and variety in cosmopolitan nightlife experiences in bars and clubs.

On The Move On and Off The Wall

Run, Saigon, Run! Earlier this year, the unique Color Me Run, “based on new ideas for activities” was held in Saigon for the first time. Meanwhile, in Hanoi, Viet Pride, an inclusive equality and volunteer driven parade was first held in Hanoi in 2012, and then subsequently spread to Saigon and beyond. It is interesting to see the divergence between commercial and social mission events within the host cities, especially because some of the more progressive events originate from the more traditional city.

Other than those events, street art and graffiti, in general, have been getting more popular in Vietnam. Whether it is tagging or painting intricate wall murals around West Lake, the interest in street art could bring bigger opportunities for commercial enterprises as Vietnamese youth and other thought leaders turn their attention toward alternate forms of expression beyond the traditional outlets, i.e., “rebels,” if you will.

Speaking of  rebels, Harley-Davidson, the symbol of rebels against society, finally arrived in Vietnam last year. With the opening of the first Harley-Davidson dealership in Vietnam, we can expect to see more western culture absorbed and emulated in Vietnam as more and more brands go east. With the high barrier to entry (entry-levels models like the 883 start off around $16,000), there is a premium for being a rebel leader. A complimentary first year’s membership to Saigon H.O.G. or Harley-Davidson Owner’s Group is included with each new purchase of any model. And what are bikers without tattoos? The first Tattoo Convention in Vietnam was held in Saigon last year as tattoos became even trendier and more mainstream.

Hanoi: For Local and Foreign Artists

Even on an educational level, art is becoming more popular in Vietnam. Some of the most popular majors for Vietnamese students include banking and finance. Indeed, there are institutions dedicated to a banking emphasis since it is a conventional career path option for many Vietnamese. Over the last few years, a small but growing number of Vietnamese students have opted to study abroad in an effort to pursue less “safe” subjects and have chosen to go to art schools in the US—something that would have been even more rare a few years ago.

That’s not to say that there are not any locally grown artists; for example, Nguyen Minh Son is originally from Hanoi and draws most of his inspiration from traveling throughout his home country of Vietnam. In addition to art, Mr. Son also has a passion for Kung Fu, which he has been practicing for over twenty years. Over the years, Mr. Son has experimented with various forms of expression as viewed in his gallery and on his website.

Indeed, one does not need to leave Hanoi to become an artist for there are available local art lessons for anyone to join. Knee Jerk, originally from England, came to Hanoi almost four years ago from Melbourne, Australia. Since then, he started doing graffiti in the streets of Hanoi and has been commissioned for art in retail settings. Currently, he offers classes in his studio for people of all ages; his current students include children of expats as well as adults who want to hone their artistic skills. He regularly collaborates with artists from around the world including France, Hong Kong, and Brazil.

As Knee Jerk describes in his own words:

“I am an Artist and Art teacher creating Art and also running classes from my home and studio, Not Pop Studio. My background is graphic design and illustration, which is what I studied at Salford University in England, graduating in 2003. Most of the artwork I produced before coming to Hanoi was digital based, but almost as soon as I arrived in Hanoi, I revisited an earlier love of painting using hand cut stencils and spray paint.

I quickly learned to combine my digital designs with hand cut and paint techniques and I continue to paint everyday, either working on canvas/mural commissions or more self instigated street paintings. I try to paint eye catching pieces of art that also makes people think and not to have “knee jerk reactions” regarding the subject matter of the piece.”

While these two Hanoi-based (Not Pop Studio in Tay Ho, and Minh Son Gallery in Ba Dinh district) artists have different backgrounds, styles, and inspirations, they have produced and presented art all over the world. Both artists are currently interested in having their works displayed in either New York City or San Francisco—please contact Knee Jerk or Nguyen Minh Son directly for more information. For more information on street art in Hanoi, please see here.

What will be the next step for Vietnam’s art, music, and other cultural scenes overall? It’s anyone’s guess, but if recent interest is any indication then there are exciting times for the tattoo, street art, and motorcycle communities in Vietnam. Surprisingly, to some, Vietnam is a suitable place for creation after all and Hanoi is one of its centers.

Uncharted Territory

Ebola-VientianeIn 1976 Ebola virus (EBOV or EVD) was discovered in a village in Central Africa near a river from which the virus takes its name. Prior to this year, EBOV had only been present in Africa—but that all changed as infected people in Africa headed west and brought the virus with them. Today, Ebola has reached the developed world and cases continue to grow exponentially in West Africa. According to the WHO, “the average EVD case fatality rate is around 50%.”

As of October 17, there have been 9216 confirmed cases and 4555 deaths according to the WHO and roughly every 21 days the resource requirements necessary to defeat Ebola double. Currently, the organization leading the fight against EBOV, Medicins San Frontieres (MSF), has reached their capacity to provide care for patients in West Africa. On the other side of the Atlantic there are about 1,000 people under some level of supervision or quarantine in the US.

Prime Minister Cameron has called Ebola, the “biggest health threat to our world in a generation.” Global awareness has been raised—but it still hasn’t translated into much action.The UN trust fund specifically for battling Ebola has only received $100,000 out of $20 million pledged. Yes, the US is prepared to dispatch up to 3,000 soldiers to affected areas in West Africa and Cuba has sent more than 450 medical personnel to help with the Ebola outbreak there but more resources need to be diverted to West Africa to get a leg up on the disease.

The current efforts haven’t been particularly reassuring consider that the UN has admitted that it has “botched” the initial response to the Ebola threat. And once the virus arrived in the US, the way that Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital handled Thomas Duncan’s case can be summed up in a series of missteps. There is simply too much misinformation, hubris, and dogma present in how the danger of Ebola has been communicated to the public.

Unclear Events

Let’s take a look at how information regarding the American EBOV cases came out recently:

Story #1: ABC News – 10/15 – 10:30AM

“The level of risk to people around her would be extremely low,” said Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Frieden says the health care worker traveled to Ohio before she knew that the first nurse had been diagnosed. She was undergoing self-monitoring at the time.

The unidentified nurse flew to Cleveland on Friday, the same day a colleague, nurse Nina Pham, was hospitalized. Pham’s diagnosis with Ebola was disclosed on Sunday.

The airplane’s crew said she had no symptoms of Ebola during her return flight on Monday. But Tuesday morning she developed a fever and on Tuesday night tested positive for Ebola.

Story #2: NBC – 10/15 – 4:30PM

Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told reporters that the nurse had a temperature of 99.5 degrees before she got on the plane on Monday.

Because of that reading, and because she had treated Thomas Eric Duncan, the first Ebola patient diagnosed in the United States, the nurse should not have been on the plane, he said.

“She should not have traveled on a commercial airline,” Frieden said.

Story #3: WFAA ABC – 10/15 – 9:19PM

It was later confirmed that the CDC gave Vinson permission to get on the plane because she was showing no other symptoms of the virus, and her temperature didn’t reach the threshold of 100.4 degrees.

“She wasn’t bleeding or vomiting,” Frieden said. “The level of risk around her would be extremely low, but because of the extra margin of safety, we will be contacting [all those who were on the flight].”

Story #4: The Blaze – 10/16 – 12:24AM

In a letter to employees, Frontier Airlines CEO Dave Siegel said he “was notified by the CDC that the passenger may have been symptomatic earlier than initially suspected; including the possibility of possessing symptoms while onboard the flight,”

The CDC had previously said that the nurse “exhibited no signs or symptoms of illness” while on the flight, but said they still wanted individuals who were on the flight to contact them. In a statement, Frontier had echoed that and said their crew didn’t observe any signs of illness from the patient.

Story #5: Reuters – 10/16 – 6:07PM

An Ebola-infected Texas nurse who traveled to Ohio over the weekend to plan for her wedding may have been ill as early as Friday[10/10], a spokesman for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Thursday.

Dr. Christopher Braden told a news conference in Ohio that the CDC may include people who were on a flight Amber Joy Vinson took to Cleveland from Dallas on Friday in its investigation of possible contacts.

Vinson went to a bridal shop in Akron on Saturday but otherwise spent the weekend mainly with family before taking a return flight to Dallas on Monday, the day before she was diagnosed with Ebola, according to county health official

Dr. Marguerite Erme, medical director for Summit County, told the news conference that people who visited Coming Attractions Bridal & Formal Inc in Akron from noon to 3:30 p.m. on Saturday should contact health officials.

Eight people who had confirmed contact with Vinson during her Ohio visit in Summit and Cuyahoga counties are in voluntary quarantine and have not shown symptoms of the virus, county health officials said.

Uncertain Direction Ahead

Of course, more people have died than has been officially reported due to the challenges of obtaining accurate data in the field and the scale of the outbreak. For example, there is an overwhelming flow of patients to newly established care centers as soon as they open and the untold economic effects will surely linger long after the outbreak reaches equilibrium. Co-discoverer of EBOV Peter Piot: “The three countries that are affected are being totally destabilized, not only in terms of people who are killed by Ebola — their families, the orphans that now are coming up because the parents died — but the economy has come to a standstill[.]”

In Vietnam, the extent of Ebola on the radar here was when a few rumors were spread by locals in August an attempt to raise awareness. Upon arrival at Wattay International Airport, debarking passengers are presented with an Ebola information card as they pass through a manned kiosk. While the Noi Bai (Hanoi) airport also has a kiosk, it was not manned when arriving late last month. It’s worth noting that airport officials have tightened restrictions since then.

However, all is not bleak: Liberian-American Patrick Sawyer didn’t infect anyone else on his flight to Nigeria despite having clear visible signs of the disease. Also, Thomas Duncan’s family seem to have not been infected–although the real “all-clear” threshold is 42 days instead of 21. Furthermore, the UN recently officially declared the outbreak in Senegal over and Nigeria has managed to stop the spread of Ebola beyond the few outliers that broke protocol. These are real successes and lucky breaks.

The upcoming Flu season will be a true test of healthcare systems in the US and other nations as the fear of Ebola continues to rise and more infected people span out of currently affected areas. Travel plans, daily habits, and business activities will all be altered as people attempt to minimize exposure to anyone who might be infected. Let’s hope that the mishandling of the initial cases will serve as a wake up call to governments, health organizations, and people so that a more proactive approach to combat Ebola can take shape.

Additional Resources:

An up-to-date timeline of how the Ebola virus has spread around the world.

A recent Johns Hopkins Symposium discussing what is known and unknown about Ebola.

 

Vientiane, Lao PDR

In the 1960s Vientiane had the reputation of being the wildest city in Asia. Today, Laos–with Vientiane as its “sleepy” capital–is known as one of the most underdeveloped countries in the world. Usually, people know one of two facts about Laos: that it is land-locked or that it is the most heavily-bombed country, per-capita, in the world as a result of being a battleground for 20th century ideology. However, these quick facts don’t do the beautiful country and its warm and friendly people justice–and this basic knowledge barely scratches the surface of the complex history of Southeast Asia.

Laos shares a linked history with Vietnam but this relationship was further strengthened during French colonial times, and continued through the Second Indochina War. Even today, there are strong and deep ties between the two countries; for example, earlier this year Vietnam funded an upgrade to the Kaysone Phomvihane museum in Vientiane.

Similar to Vietnam, Lao PDR began to open its economy to the world in 1986 but maintained strict controls on its political apparatus. Despite the current political and economical situation, there is foreign investment here; a significant portion of new construction projects are implemented by either Vietnamese or Chinese companies depending on the size of the project. For existing construction, the electrical wiring indoors, while exposed, is run neatly, and the wiring in the streets are bundled together in an orderly fashion. In homes, switches and outlets are grouped together in junction boxes that are dispersed at chest level in various rooms. Anecdotally, the power might go out for a few hours once a month in the capital.

The most visible element of consumption by the upper class, luxury vehicles, are somewhat common throughout the capital and there are some nicely designed houses in a westernized sort of style dotted throughout Vientiane. The Toyota Hilux is the unofficial vehicle of Laos as it is ubiquitous throughout the capital. Furthermore, a significant number of vehicles are modified from their stock origins in some way–be it hood scoops, snake eyes, or chrome accents–so there is a growing tuner culture in Vientiane.

Unfortunately, rush hour traffic fills up portions of the city quickly and traffic jams can occur for no apparent reason, e.g., lack of a traffic collision or police checkpoint. When there isn’t heavy traffic, whirring diesel engines and turbo-chargers spooling up in SUVs are common sounds (and the drivers love to careen down roads meant to be driven on no higher than 30 or 40 KPH). Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, and other luxury vehicle brands have dealer presences in the capital; considering Lao PDR’s economic rankings, it can be surprising to see the Mercedes SLS in a showroom—and even more surprising to see it on the roads of Vientiane.

Vientiane Through Foreign and Local Eyes

Chiang Mai, Thailand and Vientiane, Lao PDR are two cities that are similar despite being in different countries; in terms of population, consumer preferences, and lifestyles they are very much aligned. Additionally, there is a strong Thai influence in regards to fashion, youth culture, news, and entertainment in Laos. The Lao PDR capital is literally across the river from northern Thailand, after all.

Even though many Thailand-based expats (farong in Thai) travel to Vientiane for visa-runs, it’s surprising that there isn’t a larger presence of foreign freelancers in Vientiane and in Laos in general. From a visa perspective, it can seem quite attractive for remote workers and there exists the support for foreign freelancers in Vientiane in the form of Toh Lao co-working space. For foreign full-time professionals, the options range from EMC to Sciaroni and Associates to DFDL (the last organization having been founded in Lao PDR). Of course, there are also some foreign banks such as VietinBank and Sacombank (Vietnamese banks) that have branches in Vientiane and there are also many foreign restaurants in the capital to represent small expat-operated businesses—Istanbul Restaurant, Soul Kitchen, and Jamil Zahid to name a few.

Many Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) have a large presence in Vientiane as well so there are expat support staff who regularly work with their local counterparts. In general, locals and foreigners who might meet and develop a romantic interest in each other can’t live together and sexual relations between them are forbidden–but marriage is always an option for those who find their soul mates in Lao PDR. A good way to meet people in the Vientiane business community is via weekly events such as the meetups put on by AmChamLao. In addition to the robust expat house party scene, there are the famous get-togethers at CCC bar in downtown Vientiane. Overall, Vientiane is a small place—there is a sense of a village mentality so reputation is important since “everyone knows everyone” in both the local and expat communities.

Outside of Vientiane and into the Countryside

The youth of Lao PDR’s high-society (Hi-So) in Vientiane can be found at Mark2 or Marina wearing trendy and/or revealing clothes and dancing the night away to western style arena house music from Thursday through Saturday nights. “After hours” almost always includes karaoke in some interesting but comfortable places for all sexes (since the culture is inclusive). Yet, these experiences are so far removed from the daily lives of the average Laotian.

Outside of Vientiane things quickly become poor besides a few cities like Luang Prabang, Pakse, and Suvannahkhet. Think unpaved roads, wooden huts, shoeless children, etc. However, throughout Lao PDR there exists a deeply respectful and hospitable culture with a strong beer drinking tradition; Lao people are perhaps the most laid back in Southeast Asia. The quintessential Lao experience is singing karaoke on a nearby river or body of water while drinking Beerlao. Social gatherings are important and women and men are not always separated at these events where people are sometimes sitting on the floor and are sharing food with one another. One unique aspect of Lao culture is the use of a single glass to drink beer in addition to a personal glass, which is passed around and shared among all the guests at an special event.

Other activities that Laotians enjoy include fishing, football (there already is a healthy representation of the up-to-date Germany World Cup jerseys), and petanque. Petanque in Laos is different than petanque in France (where it originated) and government ministries usually have a petanque court on site. Half the government ministries have their signs in French, and the other half in English (besides Lao)–the same goes for the road names in Vientiane.

The three most visible brands throughout Laos are Beeline, a telecommunications company; Beerlao, a product of Lao Brewing Company—a joint-venture between Carlsberg and Lao PDR; and Johnnie Walker, which is also popular in Thailand. Beerlao is on every restaurant sign as well as restaurant equipment such as standees and cash register desks—the result is a very large market share of beer consumption in Lao PDR.

A Future Focus

Officially, the Lao PDR government actively seeks investments in agriculture, hydropower, manufacturing, and tourism, according to its investment brochure. Organically, Laos experienced its first Startup Weekend ever in Vientiane in May of this year. Last week, Nana Souannavong, president of Snap International, and co-founder of Toh Lao co-working space, was gracious enough to explain to us the state of the startup ecosystem in Vientiane.

As Nana sees it, the biggest challenge ahead of the Vientiane startup community is getting people to understand what a startup is and getting people to be more entrepreneurial because they like the stability of public sector jobs. She shared with us that a generally strong curiosity among participants and a higher proportion of female entrepreneurs are the biggest strengths of the startup community in Vientiane. Those (aspiring) entrepreneurs who are passionate are the hardcore ones who stick through the multi-day events such as Startup Weekend–and they will be the ones to get the most out of the events. It gave her hope to see so many people show up to the first Startup Weekend because if no one showed up then she knew that the community wouldn’t be ready for another five years–the fact that people showed up was a huge victory for the Vientiane startup community. Nana also revealed that the winners of the May event are still working on the concept but as a side project since the team members already had a full-time focus before winning at the Startup Weekend.

While the official Lao PDR Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) office also supports startups, there will be many challenges on the way to creating and building a suitable environment for venture capital (VC) firms and angel investors to operate in—something does not exist although there are other forms of external investments. However, the legal framework does exist for foreign investors and founders in regards to equity but only outside of the retail industry. Nana’s advice to future entrepreneurs is to “think through what you are trying to do to understand the consequences.” Along those lines, her favorite quote is “life is an investment.” She should know since her company provides financial advice in money markets for local and foreign companies.

Startup Vientiane

At the Startup Weekend, there was a mix of tech and non-tech products and services being pitched but going forward there are no obvious areas for startups to form around. Y Combinator, perhaps the most prestigious startup accelerator, has a Request for Startups (RFS) feature on its website. While the list below is not a request for startups in the strictest sense, it does provide an external view on the opportunities in Vientiane and beyond after speaking to locals and longterm residents.

Opportunities for Startups:

-Targeting tourism (perhaps first via Triip.me and then expanding on original concepts specifically for Lao PDR)

-Creating accounting controls (perhaps in the form of mobile applications) for local and/or foreign SME in Lao PDR

-Products and/or services for the many NGOs in Lao PDR, e.g., tools to train local staff or tapping into external crowd funding

-Leveraging the growing consumer communities (for example, the car tuner culture) and collecting data points on them

-Helping expats to adjust to Laos by finding housing, goods, or services more easily (a better English->Lao dictionary, for example)

Perhaps when people think of Lao PDR in the future, a third fact might enter their consciousness: a growing startup hub centered around Vientiane. The people in Lao PDR have many things to offer the world–foremost among them is their hospitality and resilient attitude–this much is apparent upon crossing the border into Lao PDR. Another Startup Weekend is scheduled for later this year at Toh Lao co-working space–hopefully, the organizers will be able to build off the success of the last event and the participants will take even bigger risks to share their ideas with the community. It will be a long road indeed, but with community leaders like Nana, anything is possible.

 

Gaming in Vietnam

A cyber cafe in Ba Dinh district, Hanoi.

A cyber cafe in Ba Dinh district, Hanoi.

A cyber cafe on Kim Ma street in Hanoi.

A cyber cafe on Kim Ma street in Hanoi.

Vietnamese people love to play games—on the street they play co tuong, a traditional chess-like game. Groups of older men will crowd around the two opposing players to comment on strategy and prior moves. In older times, the best co tuong players would travel to different villages in Vietnam to challenge other players to prove they were truly the best.

In Asia, gambling is very popular and it ranges from betting on national sports teams (like football–soccer) to betting on the winner of cock fights at the local hangout. Currently, Vietnamese people are not even allowed to enter a casino in Vietnam, although the local policies may be changing in the future. Trips abroad to Macau (for those who can afford it), and closer in Cambodia across the Moc Bai border (where casinos specifically target Vietnamese consumers) will have to satisfy the demand for lucky money–at least for now.

So while the older generations are focused on traditional elements of gaming, the youth have turned to technology in the form of video, computer, and mobile games. And recently, the world has turned to Vietnam for a massive mobile gaming hit that seemed to rise on its own. If you know anything about gaming in Vietnam then chances are that you’ve heard of Flappy Bird. If you have never heard of Flappy Bird, the mobile game took the world by storm earlier this year and propelled its creator, Nguyen Dong, to fame and fortune.

Mr. Dong’s curious tweets about the massive public interest in his game only fueled additional press inquiries and an even greater amount of demand to download and play his game. Eventually, he pulled the game off the market only to exclusively re-release it on Amazon’s Fire TV platform.

However, Vietnam’s gaming scene is comprised of more than just Flappy Bird. Besides a robust coffee and cafe culture in Vietnam there are thousands of cyber cafes where young Vietnamese gamers play DOTA 2, League of Legends, and an assortment of games distributed or developed by local and international companies. Additionally, there are a number of independent game studios in Vietnam, as well as companies like Gameloft, and VNG, Vietnam’s premier internet company (and formerly known as VinaGame–revealing its origins).

A Match Made in Heaven

Gaming in Vietnam is a $200+ million industry with very high annual growth over the last three years. Even in an economic downturn gaming isn’t very negatively affected. If anything, less business activity allows workers to spend more time playing games to get through a dreary work day. It’s common to see security guards and desk-based customer service workers take some gaming breaks to help pass the time.

App distribution spans beyond just the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store in Vietnam. Third party marketplace like Appota offer an alternative to official marketplaces. Based on conversations with Appota and MWork representatives, there are estimated to be anywhere from 5,000-12,000 developers in Vietnam, which includes big companies and independent coders across the iOS, Android, and Windows Phone platforms.

iOS devices are seemingly everywhere in Saigon and Hanoi—and they will only increase in popularity as the middle class continues to rise in Vietnam. As smartphone sales continue to increase across Vietnam and Southeast Asia, the user base for games will automatically increase as well. And as new iterations of iPhone models come out, the rich and fashionable Vietnamese consumers acquire them and gift their old phones to family—perhaps to younger cousins who otherwise would not have an iPhone.

A Closer Look: League of Legends in Vietnam

League of Legends is the most popular MOBA (Massive Online Battle Arena) game in the world and is played by millions of people; in Vietnam, Vietnam Esports, distributes the game through its Garena+ client.

MOBA is typically a top-down five-player versus five-player (5v5 PvP) match where each player controls a different “Champion” class that has special abilities. The game has a few different game modes which become available to the player as s/he “levels-up” his/her champion.

The game modes can be divided into 3 distinctions: 5v5/3v3 PvP “Classic” style; Co-op versus the computer (AI) variant; and custom, which is used for tournaments and custom game modes. The objective of the classic 5v5 game is to destroy the opposing team’s Nexus, a strategic item. This goal is accomplished by first attacking the other team’s turrets; powerful defensive structures that guard each of the corridors between opposing bases.

Players are aided in their effort by “creeps” which can be compared to a pawn piece in a game of chess. These characters are only dangerous to a player in the early portion of the game, when the players are weaker.

After destroying all the turrets leading to the enemy’s base in a lane, players continue to push forward to destroy various defensive structures until reaching and destroying the Nexus. League of Legends also has an online store where players can purchase champions, character skins, and other in-game items (these micro-transactions are how Vietnam Esports primarily earns revenue).

There are two types of in-game currency: RP (Riot Points) and IP (Influence Points). Both types can be used to purchase champions but only RP are used for skins (a way to change a character’s appearance). For players who don’t want to spend money on virtual items, characters cost from 475 IP to 6,300 IP. A dedicated player can reach Level 7 to unlock most of the maps and game modes over the course of two days.

Vietnam Esports’ Game Operations division primarily localizes international content into Vietnamese. Riot Games, the developer of League of Legends, updates the game via patches that need to be translated into Vietnamese. The division also manages two websites: http://lienminh360.vn/ which is more community focused and the official league in Vietnam website: http://lienminh.garena.vn/. Besides patch notes, players can also find guides and other content that introduce new players to the game (they are very open-ended so that players may develop their own style when learning to play).

The website also has a section for tournament information; the top tournament tier is the Garena Premier League (GPL), which consists of the best teams in Southeast Asia (SEA) and Taiwan. Below that is the Dell Championship Series A, which is for the top eight teams in Vietnam, followed by Western Digital Championship Series B (WDCS B): the semi-pro tournament circuit. A mini tournament, called the GCafe Cup, is hosted every week. The way a player rises from the amateur ranks to become a pro is by moving up through each of the tournament circuits–a very competitive process.

Mobile and Multi(player) Approaches

Mobile game developers and studios are more popular in Vietnam than traditional development houses because it is less expensive to develop an application than it is to develop a computer or video game, which often require a large amount of staff. In some cases, a good mobile development team can be made up of a team leader, a coder, and a designer (if there needs to be three people at all). Plus, technologies like Unity 3D are leveling the playing field for development teams (in terms of costs and time) which means that the game concept, game design, and game mechanics will be even more important for differentiating quality games from clones and other apps that are riding popularity waves.

If a game is not a global hit, then for it to be successful in Vietnam it has to be localized to fit Vietnamese user preferences and expectations for games. The advantage here is for Vietnamese workers who have worked in foreign brand studios in Vietnam and have left to start their own development team (and who know the culture better than foreigners). They will have lower costs across the board to bring a product to the market. The safest route is to take a successful game product in China and to localize it for Vietnam–which is partly how VNG became so successful; this is a great strategy to reduce risk, especially for new entrants into the Vietnamese market. However, being truly innovative, especially in a “fringe” space, requires taking a risk to be contrarian and right. It will be interesting to see which strategy younger Vietnamese developers choose–both in the short term and in the future.