Speech by MOS Teo Ser Luck at the Official Opening of Zendesk Regional Office

Mr Mikkel Svane, Chief Executive Officer, Zendesk

Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good Morning.

Introduction

It gives me great pleasure to be here this morning at the official opening of the Zendesk regional office in Singapore; Zendesk’s first major outpost in Asia.

This is a momentous milestone in your company’s development as you expand your reach in the Asian market. And if I may say so, you have chosen an auspicious period to officially launch your presence. Congratulations, and gong xi fa cai to all.

Zendesk’s Presence in Singapore

Zendesk’s presence here is a testament to Singapore’s value proposition for high tech companies. The Global Information Technology Report’s Networked Readiness Index, which ranks countries based on ICT readiness, usage, and impact, ranks Singapore first in Asia, and second in the world.  Companies that focus on ICT and data, like Zendesk, find Singapore an excellent location for basing their activities in Asia.

Zendesk & Zopim

For Zendesk, Singapore is a natural location to base your activities in Asia for another reason. Besides excellent infrastructure, you also have close working relationships in Singapore. Zendesk’s acquisition of local start-up Zopim was one of Singapore’s landmark deals in 2014.

Both Zendesk and Zopim demonstrate the entrepreneurial spirit that we would like to see more of in Singapore. While Zendesk and Zopim are relatively young companies formed in 2007, both companies have grown tremendously to become market leaders in the online customer service space. This success has come about because of the hard work, optimism and vision of both companies.

Before their first taste of success, the team at Zopim survived on a meagre salary of $500, and put in 16 hour work days for 2 years. Similarly, the founders of Zendesk left their full-time jobs, used an old kitchen door as a desk in a Copenhagen loft, and took on part-time consulting jobs on the side to make ends meet. For both companies, success did not come immediately, but their hard work and perseverance in developing elegant customer service solutions helped to deliver the success that they enjoy today.

Building a conducive entrepreneurship landscape in Singapore

The role of an entrepreneur is not for the faint-hearted. Translating ideas into reality, scaling the business quickly, and convincing customers to keep coming back are not easy tasks. Entrepreneurs need perseverance, tenacity and to be prepared to put in sheer hard work to have a shot at success.

Where the Singapore government has come in to help, is to create a conducive environment that facilitates the success of our local start-ups. We have put in place a suite of mentorship and incubation programmes so that new entrepreneurs have access to guidance on how to start and grow their businesses. We have also put in place the necessary physical infrastructure for our start-ups. The recently opened JTC LaunchPad @ one-north, with space for over 500 start-ups and 35 incubators, marks an important milestone in this regard.

We have also improved the availability of financing for start-ups. Government agencies such as the National Research Foundation and SPRING Singapore offer assistance schemes for commercialisation, and co-financing to help start-ups raise investment from the private sector. Zopim was a beneficiary of such a programme. It received funding in 2010 from the SPRING Startup Enterprise Development Scheme or SPRING SEEDS, an equity-based co-financing programme. This investment helped Zopim attract new talent and build up their business development, engineering and marketing capabilities, which contributed to the success of the company.

Contributing to the entrepreneurship community

As we continue to develop the entrepreneurial community in Singapore, we need successful entrepreneurs to also give back, both in terms of time, and in sharing their expertise and experience. I am glad that this is a growing phenomenon here. In this regard, I am happy to learn that Zendesk and Zopim have committed their time and effort to volunteer with local community organisations.

Conclusion

In closing, I would like to wish Zendesk all the very best as you embark on this exciting new phase in the development of your company, and welcome your active participation as a member of the vibrant start-up community in Singapore.

Thank you.