KordaMentha - Case Study
From the Asialink Business Singapore Country Starter Pack
Establishing in any new market is a challenge for small and medium-sized businesses. It can be resource intensive, relationships have to be built from scratch, and often the strong brand name and reputation a business enjoys in its home country doesn’t carry over to the new market. Nevertheless, with the right approach and a strong support infrastructure, the opportunities can be vast. For Australian advisory firm KordaMentha, these factors were fundamental to successfully setting up their regional operations in Singapore and form the basis of the advice they offer Australian clients entering the market.
“Singapore is a great place to be a regional hub. It is easy to do business here and is positioned perfectly within Asia.
"But, be aware that the Singaporean market itself is very small – the key opportunity is to effectively use it as your base. The places you’ll get business are those you travel to from Singapore such as Vietnam and Indonesia,” says KordaMentha partner Ben de Haldevang. “You have to be willing, though, to commit to three things if you want to successfully set up in Singapore: money, your best employee to set up the operations, and dedicated support from your home office in Australia to support that resource with everything they need. It’s a team effort that occurs transnationally.”
He points out that Australians may think they can establish a strong presence in Singapore simply by organising a two-day trip and having six meetings in that period, then not returning for a few months. However, this generally only helps to make initial contacts rather than building significant relationships. “There is no quick solution to setting up in Asia. With relationships being critical to success, you have to spend a lot of time in the region. Don’t just sit in Singapore and look for business there,” he explains. “I encourage clients to learn from our experience, you need to send your best person to Singapore for a long period such as three months. In that time, target specific contacts – be smart and selective in using your time to travel around Asia to build relationships. Be analytical in your approach – get to know the opportunities, marketplaces and your competitors and what makes them successful.”
Such commitment helps build real and meaningful relationships, while also helping to pinpoint other contacts to refer future work. “Although following your Australian clients to Singapore or leveraging off them is a great starting point and helps direct traffic to your business, you also need to position yourself with local and regional clients,” reinforces de Haldevang. “This is something at KordaMentha we have to consistently consider – ‘how do we project our Australian capability to regional clients?’ ”
Relationships with law firms and banks in local Southeast Asian markets are particularly critical for KordaMentha’s referrals. “The challenge for any start up is to make yourself look more substantial than you potentially are in the region. Working with intermediaries enables you to access opportunities and promote your capabilities through the network rather than always doing so directly. Having a strategic platform of relationships helps us to know about an upcoming opportunity before our competitors do,” he says.
Recruiting appropriate talent is also an issue. “Singapore has full employment so the choice of talent is limited “ de Haldevang explains. “Our strategy is to hire referrals – it works really well in the Asian context. You get the loyalty of the candidate and the person who referred them to you."
"Singapore is a great springboard into Asia, but you need to ensure you hire the right people and develop relationships with the right people. It’s a long term game.”
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www.kordamentha.com