Nicholas Chan
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| Chan Chiang Joo, Nicholas 曾长裕 | |
 Nicholas Chan at i.Jam Evening, MICA Building in Singapore (July 2007)
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| Born | November 14, 1978 KKH, Singapore |
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| Nationality | Singaporean |
| Education | Diploma in Film, Sound and Video, Ngee Ann Polytechnic, Singapore |
| Occupation | Executive Director, Azione Capital Pte Ltd Coordinator (2007/08), Project:Senso Ltd |
| Known for | Volunteer, Social Entrepreneur, Serial Entrepreneur, Venture Capitalist |
| Board member of | i.Jam Council, Asia-Pacific Student Entrepreneurship Society (Singapore), Young ChangeMakers |
| Religious beliefs | Roman Catholic |
Nicholas Chan (full name: Chan Chiang Joo, Nicholas; simplified Chinese: 曾长裕; Pinyin: Zeng Zhangyu) is a Singapore serial entrepreneur turned venture capitalist focusing in assisting young, passionate startups in Asia. Nicholas's first successful venture was at age 17[1] on May 21, 1996, when he and Benjamin Soon, his secondary school classmate first set up an IT solutions company called S.C.N. Technologies with S$500 in seed capital and a small storeroom in Sim Lim Tower. He then set up iFoundries (Asia Pacific) Pte Ltd on January 7, 2005 with Andy Lim, his army camp mate. Today, he is the Executive Director of Azione Capital Pte Ltd, a Venture Capital firm and startup Business Incubator.
Nicholas is known for his frequent contributions to the startup community-at-large in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam since 2003, of which one of his most recognised contribution was his role as a co-founder of Project:Senso Ltd[2], one of Singapore's first grassroots level non-profit startup-centric entrepreneur volunteer organization. Nicholas regularly speaks on the areas of startups and social enterprises, and has given keynote speechs in the ACE Bluesky Carnival (2004), the Singapore Institute of Management (2004, 2005), the National University of Singapore (2004, 2005), Nakhon Pathom Rajabhat University of Thailand (2006), Temasek Polytechnic (2008), Singapore Management University (2008), Multimedia University - Cyberjaya campus of Malaysia (2008) and in various other venues. Nicholas is regularly invited as a judge in business and startup competitions held in Singapore and Malaysia.
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[edit] Biography
[edit] Early life
Nicholas Chan was born on November 14, 1978 in Singapore to Francis Chan and Susanna Kuan. He attended De La Salle School (1984 - 1990). Due to his lackluster results in the PSLE, he was assigned to complete his GCE N Level (followed by GCE 'O' Level) in Monk's Hill Secondary School (1991 - 1995). Nicholas excelled in non-curricular activities, particularly in science competitions, mathematics olympiads, English debating and computing. He was particularly active in the underground BBS scene in Singapore, rapidly introducing the concept to his peers and was an ardent advocate for IBM's OS/2.
In 1992, Nicholas met Benjamin Soon, a schoolmate from a better class, who was to become his first business partner after the completion of his GCE O Level exams. In 1993, Nicholas was officially banned from the school computer labs for having repeatedly circumvented the security systems put in place; in 1995, a deal was struck by Nicholas and a team made up of Benjamin Soon and Tan Kian Song to represent Monk's Hill Secondary School[3] in the National Creative - Ngee Ann Multimedia competition in exchange for the lifting of the ban.
[edit] Work and entrepreneurial life
| “ | I rather start young and make my errors now. Better to suffer minor losses now than face worse situations later, unprepared. | ” |
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—– Nicholas Chan |
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In 1995, Nicholas graduated from Monk's Hill Secondary School and briefly worked with AT&T GIS as a systems migration consultant before setting up S.C.N. Technologies[4] with Benjamin Soon on May 21, 1996; the company was registered in Benjamin's father name as both Nicholas and Benjamin was below 21 years of age. Both Nicholas and Benjamin has a history of dabbling in the local Demo scene, having submitting the first 3D rendered entry for "The Scene 1995 Singapore Demo Party" during their first month of starting up. This kickstarted their fledging startup by gaining recognition and providing much-needed awareness within the local hacker community.
Barely a month after S.C.N. Technologies was formed, both Nicholas and Benjamin enrolled into full time diploma courses in Singapore Polytechnic, of which Nicholas stayed only for a year in the School of Electrical & Electronics Engineering (1996 - 1997) before transferring to the School of Film & Media Studies in Ngee Ann Polytechnic (1997 - 2000). In 1998, Benjamin Soon stepped down from S.C.N. Technologies in preparation for his future career as a Republic of Singapore Air Force pilot. Thomas Tan, a former classmate of both Nicholas and Benjamin, was then invited into the partnership. During the period from August 22, 2000 to February 21, 2003, Nicholas was enlisted into the Singapore Armed Forces Armoured Regiment. In his absence, Thomas Tan continued running S.C.N. Technologies until it was wound down shortly after Nicholas was released from the army in light of prevailing unfavourable market conditions. On March 19, 2005, Nicholas was nominated into the Spirit of Enterprise awards for S.C.N. Technologies[5].
While S.C.N. Technologies was being wound down, Nicholas worked for K.S.Lee & Associates (Asia) Pte Ltd, an engineering firm specializing in the areas of energy efficiency, power quality and alternative energy from May 2003 to May 2006, of which the President of K.S.Lee & Associates (Asia) Pte Ltd, Mr. Lee Keh Sai would eventually become one of the Directors on-board Azione Capital Pte Ltd. During his 3 year stay, Nicholas was personally mentored in the fields of electrical and mechanical engineering by Mr. Lee Keh Sai and spearheaded large scale foreign expansion projects into Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and China.
In October 2004, Nicholas and Andy Lim Yi, an army camp mate from the Singapore Armed Forces and a co-founder of Project:Senso Ltd decided to come together in October 2004 to form iFoundries (Asia Pacific) Pte Ltd[6] on January 7, 2005. Within the first year, Nicholas worked to acquire 2 companies, growing iFoundries clientele exponentially; he completed the acquisition of an additional 5 companies before leaving the firm on December 29, 2006.
Nicholas formed Azione Capital Pte Ltd on December 29, 2006 as a result of an invitation from the Media Development Authority of Singapore (Interactive Digital Media Programme Office) to Project:Senso Ltd for the management and disbursement of its newly created Microfunding scheme for Individuals; the decision to keep Project:Senso Ltd a non-profit organization and the decision to form a separate for-profit organization was chosen.
[edit] Social initiatives and contributions
[edit] Formation of Project:Senso
| “ | What differentiates the normal man from a successful man? One simple word. Aspiration. To never let circumstances dictate his life, to take responsibility for his actions and his choices. | ” |
Nicholas was involved in a Cashflow Game get-together group consisting of fellow army mates during his army days. Having saw the benefits of gathering like-minded individuals and sharing knowledge and expertise about entrepreneurship and financial literacy, Nicholas worked with 7 other co-founders after passing out from the Singapore Armed Forces to form Project:Senso Ltd as a common, neutral platform for both aspiring and existing entrepreneurs to gather, volunteer and assist each other. Project:Senso Ltd, a non-profit entrepreneur volunteer organization registered in Singapore, was officially launched on August 9, 2003 in conjunction with the Singapore National Day. Nicholas is serving as the co-ordinator for the organization for 2007 and 2008.
[edit] Grassroots activities
During the formation of Project:Senso Ltd, Nicholas requested the assistance of Andy Lim Yi, his camp mate and future business partner in iFoundries (Asia Pacific) Pte Ltd. In the course of working together shortly after Andy's passing out from the Singapore Armed Forces in December 2003, Andy invited Nicholas to assist him in the Meet-the-People Sessions in the Bishan-Toa Payoh Group Representation Constituency, Toa Payoh Central Branch in January 2004.
| “ | They (Singapore youths) are too complacent and naive, lacking the experience and desire to work for others, they desire only to open a business "to be my own boss" without first realizing that being "on your own" is not as simple as "hire people, they work for me, I earn money" or "buy cheap sell expensive". What they do not realize is that entrepreneurs started in the trenches and it all begins with the desire to do their best in whatever they are doing, not the desire to slack and be called boss/CEO. | ” |
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—Nicholas Chan |
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While volunteering in Project:Senso Ltd, Michael Cheng, a cadre in the Young PAP and Chairman of the Aljunied-Kembangan Youth Executive Committee under the Aljunied Group Representation Constituency approached Nicholas in August 2004 to assist the committee in encouraging the spirit of enterprise within the youth residents.
On January 29, 2008, Nicholas was invited into the Board of Directors and Executive Committee of the Asia-Pacific Student Entrepreneurship Society (Singapore) as an Advisory Director with the objective of better engaging and encouraging students to explore entrepreneurship as a future career choice.
On January 30, 2008, Nicholas was one of fifty (reduced to thirty two as at February 21, 2008, further reduced to thirty as at March 07, 2008) outstanding Singaporean youth leaders selected to the inaugural YOUTHS Lead leadership programme by the National Youth Council of Singapore in recognition of his active service within the Singapore community.
On February 1, 2008, Singapore Management University-Initiative for Social Enterprise invited Nicholas as a business mentor to assist in reviewing and assisting in the various social enterprise initiatives started by its members.
On February 3, 2008, the SIFE-SAGESG National Junior College chapter invited Nicholas to be a mentor and business advisor on the Business Advisory Board in the National Junior College Leadership Symposium 2008.
On February 12, 2008, Nicholas was appointed into the National Youth Council of Singapore Young ChangeMakers Panel for 2008/09 charged with reviewing and disbursing seed grants to new youth initiatives in Singapore.
On February 29, 2008, Nanyang Technological University-Students in Free Enterprise invited Nicholas as a business mentor to assist in reviewing and assisting in the various social enterprise initiatives started by its members.
On March 19, 2008, the SIFE-SAGESG Catholic Junior College chapter invited Nicholas to be a mentor and business advisor on the Business Advisory Board.
[edit] Corporate social responsibility initiatives
| “ | Nicholas's philosophical nature makes him a critical thinker and someone with a vision. His desire to serve society makes him a true social entrepreneur. Hope his goals will come true! | ” |
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—Lai Kar Wai (Interviewer), Spirit of Enterprise, 19 March 2005 |
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From the period of January 7, 2005 to December 29, 2006, Nicholas spearheaded the establishment of the corporate social responsibility programme in iFoundries (Asia Pacific) Pte Ltd with beneficiaries such as the VIVA Foundation for children with cancer[7], Project:Senso Ltd, St Mary of the Angels Catholic Church, Amplify Youth Ministry, National University of Singapore Air Weapons Club[8] and the People’s Action Party Post-65 committee.
On July 27, 2007, Nicholas initiated the Help Humanity Project[9] within Azione Capital's portfolio startup companies as a simple way to introduce the budding entrepreneurs into incorporating corporate social responsibility initiatives within their startups and encouraging them to further develop their own programmes in the future.
[edit] Startup history
| “ | I fail to see how an increasingly run-to-mummy parenting style can aid in the character building of our future generations. | „ |
Nicholas has been actively involved in the formation and running of both for-profit and non-profit organizations as listed below.
[edit] Direct Involvement
| Name | Industry | Date Started | Date Exited | Status |
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| S.C.N. Technologies | IT Hardware/Software | May 21, 1996 | 2006 | Wind down company |
| Project:Senso Ltd | Non-profit organization | August 9, 2003 | Till present | Co-founder, co-ordinator (2007/08) |
| iFoundries (Asia Pacific) Pte Ltd | Business consulting | January 7, 2005 | December 29, 2006 | Resigned from company |
| Azione Capital Pte Ltd | Private Equity Investments, Business Incubation | December 29, 2006 | Till present | Executive Director |
| Executive Publishing Pte Ltd | Maritime InfoCommunications | August 2, 2007 | Till present | Executive Director, takeover of company |
[edit] Indirect Involvement
| Name | Industry | Date Started | Date Exited | Status |
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| Who Works Around You Pte Ltd | Mobile LBS Dating | January 30, 2007 | October 3, 2007 | Spokesperson, Director |
| LocAsian Networks | Mobile LBS Infrastructure Provider | March 20, 2007 | Till present | GIS Specialist, Investor |
[edit] See also
- Azione Capital
- Project Senso
[edit] References
- ^ Michelle Ho. "NP student entrepreneurs break through", Ngee Ann Tribune, September 1998
- ^ Surekha A Yadav. "Hard knocks within a sandbox", Today, 1 October 2004
- ^ Ho May May. "Computer Literacy Club", The Monkshillian '95, 1995
- ^ Lai Kar Wai. Spirit of Enterprise, Spirit of Enterprise 2005 nomination interview, March 19, 2005
- ^ Cheong, Colin (2005). it's my life! passion, faith, action, will.. SNP International Pte Ltd. ISBN 981-248-105-2.
- ^ *O Yes! Hot Seat InterviewPDF (937.77 KiB), 17 August 2006
- ^ List of Benefactors for VIVA Foundation for children with cancer
- ^ NUS Air Weapons Club sponsored website
- ^ Team Azione on the World Community Grid
