WHAT does it take for a Malaysian technology company to go global? What are the challenges involved and how does one get there? These were among the topics discussed during a panel of Malaysian technology company chief executive officers at the recent What’s Next conference in Kuala Lumpur, moderated by Digital News Asia’s Karamjit Singh.
Panelist and KAT Technologies founder and CEO Khairol Anuar Mohamad Tawi believes that what man dreams, man can realise. As the biggest prepaid distributor in the country, he has realised that the solution they built is about saving money and giving visibility to the corporation using the solution.
The company, which is currently present in Malaysia and Nepal, has received strong enquiries from other Asean markets, he said. He also opined that while Malaysian companies are not inferior to their international counterparts, the key issue about them is marketability and visibility.
“Success breeds success if have the right proposition to the market and I thank MDEC [Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation] for bringing this visibility for us,” he said. Khairol noted that for as long as any company has the capability and the hunger to perform, visibility is the next important thing.
“I have dealt with people of all continents, more often than not people over-pitch and can’t deliver,” he added. “I started this company and knew that to be visible, I offered to join The Star Outstanding Business Awards.
We went in and got the best for technical. Next year we won a special mention for entrepreneur of the year award. We have also won an innovation award in the services business. If you can position your company given such opportunities, this helps make your company more visible,” he concluded. Article by: Sharmila Ganapathy