Startups should work with corporates to achieve balance between social impact, sustainability: Arcadis

In October 2019, Arcadis, the Amsterdam-based global design and consultancy for natural and built assets, conducted a roadshow in Singapore to introduce its Arcadis City of 2030 Accelerator – the result of its partnership with Techstars.

The purpose of the roadshow was to find the first Asian startup to join the second year of the program, which is scheduled to begin in March in Amsterdam. The program will culminate in a demo day event in May.

“Arcadis is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life and is always interested in individuals who are willing to devote themselves to that cause. We appreciate that startups are more adaptable, flexible, and willing to take risks. They also offer us fresh perspectives on how to address some of the challenges our cities face by seeking unconventional solutions,” says Stephen Uhr, Executive Director Asia Pacific – Clients, Innovation and Strategy, Arcadis.

“We are currently collaborating with startups to address some of the most urgent issues in Asian cities such as mobility, climate change resilience, and depleting resources,” he adds.

In an interview with e27, Uhr discusses the Southeast Asian (SEA) and European startup ecosystems – and why collaboration between startups and corporations is essential for balancing innovation and profitability.

Can you highlight the most significant difference between the Netherlands and SEA startup ecosystems? How can each ecosystem learn from and collaborate with the other?

Europe boasts a well-established and accessible market with a diverse talent pool. The European Union (EU) provides tax incentives to facilitate investments in startups. It is an attractive market not only for European startups but also for Asian startups seeking expansion. The Dutch startup culture, along with the rest of Europe, is mature, and its success lies in its ability to attract talent, with the Netherlands being one of the largest startup hubs in Europe.

SEA has a burgeoning startup scene supported by government interest and fueled by the rapid growth in digital adoption. Indonesia has experienced one of the largest growth rates in digital adoption globally – a 99% increase between 2013-2018 – prompting global players to enhance infrastructure capacity such as data centers to meet this demand.

It can be challenging for companies in Southeast Asia to attract international talent, which is why many countries are encouraging their overseas communities to return home with promises of investments in their startups.

China leads the way in fully integrating digital services into everyday life, as evident to anyone who has attempted to pay for a taxi in mainland China with cash.

When it comes to tackling the challenges of climate change, how advanced are startups in SEA? What opportunities can we seize, and what obstacles must we overcome?

Many startups are focused on addressing climate change. We have witnessed how technology can be utilized to clean up ocean plastic, develop zero-carbon vehicles, enhance building energy efficiency, and much more. The challenge now is to scale this technology and make it the norm rather than the exception.

We have partnered with BlueSG, a company offering an environmentally friendly EV sharing service in Singapore. With plans for 500 charging stations and 2,000 charging points by 2020, BlueSG differs from existing car-sharing services as drivers are not required to return the vehicle to its original location. This flexibility reduces the need for individuals to own a physical car. BlueSG’s charging stations necessitate specialized civil engineering work to connect to local electrical grids and telecommunications networks crucial for EV deployment.

Arcadis’ project management expertise ensured that this development adhered to Singapore’s utility providers’ technical guidelines as well as BlueSG’s requirements.

Europe is more advanced in terms of sustainability and decarbonizing its economy, and we are seeing many intriguing startups in this field.

One example of a startup we have collaborated with in this space in Asia is Sensity, a company dedicated to collecting real-time climatic data through IoT sensors. This technology is ideal for asset owners seeking to understand the actual environmental impacts of their operations.

As a business, how can startups strike a balance between creating a sustainable company and making a social impact?

Startups often evolve and innovate quickly and create social impact because of their smaller size. However, as they grow and become successful rapidly, their internal operations struggle to keep up.

This is where larger businesses can assist startups by providing access to markets, clients, and scale while staying focused on the core mission.

It is crucial not to lose that innovative mindset and ‘can-do’ bootstrapping attitude, which many startups have lost as they expanded.

The SEA startup ecosystem is gaining popularity among global investors and accelerator programs, even for social enterprises. What do you believe is the strength of this market that attracts global interest?

In Southeast Asia, we see vibrant economies, making investment opportunities highly appealing to global investors. In countries like Thailand and Vietnam, a young population and a growing middle class have become pivotal to global growth. Governments are increasingly supportive of startups – for example, in Singapore, the government actively encourages startups with tax incentives.

The rapid growth and urbanization, however, present cities with new challenges compared to ten or twenty years ago, prompting them to seek innovative ways to address these challenges, fostering a startup culture.

How do you envision your position in the SEA tech ecosystem in the next five years?

As citizens’ challenges continue to evolve and multiply, and our lives become increasingly digitalized, Arcadis is adapting its business to meet this new digital reality through automation within its core business and the growth of new technologies to enhance the quality of life in SEA.

The construction industry, as an example, has been relatively slow to adopt new technology compared to other sectors. However, we are beginning to see a shift in this trend. Not only will we be able to offer new solutions to our clients, but we are also involved in various initiatives to bolster our digital transformation.

We are expanding our digital and data expertise continuously; for instance, we recently acquired the software and analytics firm SEAMS. Additionally, we are promoting digital leadership across the company through a knowledge partnership with Vlerick Business School. All these initiatives will drive Arcadis’ city-centric vision and strategy of ongoing digital innovation and growth.

Image Credit: Mike Enerio on Unsplash

This post was originally published on January 6, 2020

The post Startups should work with corporates to achieve balance between social impact, sustainability: Arcadis appeared first on e27.

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