1Malaysia EnTrepreneur (1MET)
in conjunction with
the 4th Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES)
in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
First and foremost, I would like to express how grateful and fortunate I feel for being one of the participants for the very first batch of 1MET.
1MET is an initiative by Malaysia's Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with Startup Malaysia, that aims to cultivate the innovative culture of entrepreneurship among Malaysians, especially the youngsters. Any Malaysian between the age of 18 to 40 could register until the slots were full. With "Unleash your potential" being its motto, it is clear that a big reason behind the government's effort to govern such a programme is to encourage citizens to be bold in turning their ideas into reality without being so afraid of the unknown future outcomes. As a developing country, Malaysia certainly needs more creative and diligent people to not only talk the talk, but also walk the walk. In fact, the more, the better!
So, here is the account of things that the first batch of participants of 1MET went through. I'm going to write from the perspective of a participant from Sarawak. For most parts, all participants went through pretty much similar things, though.
Tag with participant's state so that no one got left behind
September 21st, 2013 (Saturday) or September 22nd, 2013 (Sunday)
- Bootcamp -
A series of half-day bootcamps were conducted from state to state. For this first batch, the seven states involved were Kuala Lumpur, Pahang, Pulau Pinang, Johor, Sabah, Sarawak, and Kelantan. What needed to be done in order to be part of this bootcamp was simply to register online at http://www.1met.org/ for free. Each participant could choose which session he or she wanted to attend. For Sarawak, there were three available sessions - the morning of September 21st, the afternoon of September 21st, or the morning of September 22nd.
When the day of the bootcamp session arrived, registered participants needed to be present at the allocated venues. My venue was INTAN Sarawak, located at Kota Samarahan. Before the bootcamp session started, participants were required to go through a quick attendance check and snap a photo right away. The purpose of the photo-taking was for a follow-up event in Kuala Lumpur, known as 1MET launching, held in October 2013. Only the earliest participants who registered online and attended the bootcamp session would be chosen, but at the time of the bootcamp in September 2013, the list of selected participants was still unknown because the bootcamp series was still taking place.
During the bootcamp session, greetings and introduction were made by representatives from the Ministry of Finance and Startup Malaysia. Several existing entrepreneurs shared their stories and offered some advice to participants who were aspiring entrepreneurs. Some of the participants were already entrepreneurs, by the way. Apart from talks and presentations, group activities were also carried out. Participants were randomly divided into groups. During my session, there were two group activities. The first activity was to come up with a business plan as a group. Whether it was based on an existing business enterprise or based on a yet-to-be-realised idea, each group needed to identify its business products or services, tagline, marketing strategies, and things alike. Then, a representative would need to briefly present what the group had discussed. The second group activity was to specify different segments related to the business enterprise such as target market, technology, production, distribution, marketing, and so on.
Bootcamp session at INTAN Sarawak, Kota Samarahan
Group activity
For the morning session, breakfast, brunch, and lunch were prepared. As for the afternoon session, lunch, tea break, and dinner were prepared.
Early October 2013
- Announcement of Selected Participants -
The selected participants were notified that we were chosen to attend the launching of 1MET, in conjunction with the 4th GES in Kuala Lumpur, via e-mail and the official 1MET website. I don't know about the other states, but for Sabah and Sarawak, 200 participants from Sabah and 200 participants from Sarawak were chosen. As long as the travel period did not coincide with other personal or work-related schedules, the selected participants could gleefully accept the invitation and be on our way to the launching event. Round trip flight fares, accommodation, transportation, and meals were part of the provided package.
Notification e-mail to selected participants
The follow-up event at KLCC was an invitation-only event.
Participants from Sabah and Sarawak were given flight booking numbers for check in.
October 10th, 2013 (Thursday)
- Departure to Kuala Lumpur -
There were three back-to-back AirAsia flights used by Sarawak participants from Kuching International Airport. The same went with Sabah participants from Kota Kinabalu International Airport. Based on the name list, I was in the third flight from Kuching. A few days before the departure date, participants were given flight booking numbers so that we could check in and print our boarding passes.
Upon arrival at Low Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT) in Selangor, each batch of participants was greeted by representatives holding sign boards with "1MET" name on them. Once all participants from the particular batch of flight came out of the arrival hall, we were given tags with our state name on them and were led to the buses waiting outside.
Before being sent to our accommodation place, we were brought to Bukit Jalil Sports Complex for registration purpose. At the registration venue, each participant identified himself or herself to the one behind the counter (There were a number of open counters available.) by showing his or her identity card (IC). Participants were also required to give their bank account number so that an allowance reimbursement could be done later on. Once registered, each participant was given a security tag (with the participant's pre-taken photo, full name, and barcode on it) and a woven bag containing a T-shirt, booklet, pen, and notice. After registration, participants were treated to coffee/ tea and local kuih-muih for a tea break. A representative from the Ministry of Finance welcomed us and gave us a briefing. Then, participants went back to the same buses that brought us from the airport.
Greeting and briefing from a representative of the Ministry of Finance
Our next destination was our accommodation place. For Sabah and Sarawak participants, we were placed at Pusat Latihan Polis (PULAPOL) Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Semarak. Once we arrived at PULAPOL KL, we checked in by writing our name and contact details at the check in desk. We were then given keys to our hostel rooms. At PULAPOL KL, each room can accommodate two residents. I'm not sure about the other blocks, but for the block that I was given, each room was equipped with two beds with mattresses, two closets, two desks with chairs, a washroom, lights, and a fan. It was really 'hostel-style'. Dinner was provided for all participants at the cafeteria. After dinner, another briefing was carried out, along with a Q&A session. The briefing focused on what was going to happen on the next morning, which was the morning of the Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Kuala Lumpur. We were informed that the security would be tight due to the involvement of Malaysia's and the United States of America's (USA) VIPs and delegates.
Important notice for participants
Security tag and 1MET T-shirt for every participant
October 11th, 2013 (Friday)
- The 4th Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) & 1MET Launching -
1MET participants were required to be ready early in the morning. Buses were ready to bring us from our hostel to Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC). As informed to us, a number of policemen with motorbikes escorted our buses from our hostel to KLCC for security reason. Throughout our route to KLCC, other traffic users needed to momentarily stop and give way to our buses.
Being escorted by the police force on the way to KLCC and back from KLCC
1MET marquee tent was set up not far from Petronas Twin Towers.
Once we arrived at KLCC, a quick briefing was given to keep us informed on the timing for departure back to hostel. The Muslims then made their way to a surau in KLCC for their prayer. For non-Muslims, we freely yet cautiously dilly-dallied around the area. Breakfast was provided for participants. After breakfast, we could enter the 1MET marquee tent. Upon entering the tent, crew members scanned our security tags for attendance. We walked through a security scanning machine (like the ones used at airports) and had our seats on the carpeted floor.
Inside the 1MET marquee tent
Once all participants were in, the moderator who came all the way from Texas, the USA, entrepreneur-author EJ Carrion, greeted all participants and shared his "skydiving" story as an introduction. Then, a number of speakers, consisting of entrepreneurs from the USA, went on stage to talk about their entrepreneurial journeys. The speakers were Sarah Green, co-founder of Empact, and Shama Kabani, founder of The Marketing Zen Group. They were very engaging and motivating in their speeches. Having them as speakers at the launching event was an honour.
When the official Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) commenced in the convention hall of KLCC, we could watch it through live broadcast on a number of big screens in the 1MET tent. We listened to the speeches by John Kerry, the USA's Secretary of State, as well as Dato' Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak, Malaysia's Prime Minister. While the convention was being broadcasted, local and international media started to set up their cameras in front of the stage. Not too long after that, John Kerry and Dato' Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak came over to 1MET tent and went up on stage. With their waving and greetings, the audience members were hyped. Each of the two delivered a short speech. Then, a quick Q&A session was carried out.
Live broadcast of the 4th Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) that was happening in the convention hall nearby
A visit by Malaysia's Prime Minister and the USA's Secretary of the State
After the two guests of honour went back, a sharing session by Norman Abdul Halim from KRU Group (once a music band, now also an entrepreneurial brand) was conducted. After his sharing session, a panel of entrepreneurs from different countries went up on stage for an open Q&A session. The audience members were very much receptive and the panel of entrepreneurs were helpful and informative enough. Lastly, the launching event was concluded with a bow from the organising team from the Ministry of Finance.
Lunch was provided for all participants. Everyone was then free to wander about but those who wished to go back to hostel via provided buses were informed to be ready at the drop point by 2:15PM. On our way back to the hostel, our buses were once again escorted by the police force. A few hours later, tea break was prepared for participants. Later on in the evening, dinner was also provided. After dinner, the last briefing was carried out to inform participants about the departure to the airport the next morning.
Wandering around after the programme ended while waiting for buses
October 12th, 2013 (Saturday)
- Back Home -
In the morning, all participants from Sabah and Sarawak checked out of our hostel and returned our room keys. Before getting on the buses, we had a wholesome breakfast at the cafeteria. We then bid goodbye to those who were going on separate buses and flights. The buses brought us all to LCCT.....and that marked the end of our 1MET in KL 2013 journey.
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So, to all existing and aspiring entrepreneurs, especially the young ones,
stay alert of the next batch of 1MET bootcamp series.
When the registration is opened,
sign up right away and tell your friends, family, or relatives about it.
At the end of the programme,
you'll get a great deal of inspiration, motivation, and knowledge
that can boost your entrepreneurial potential.
Don't miss it!
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To the organisers and those involved in this programme, either directly or indirectly,
thank you very much for this initiative.
I think you did great with the execution and more importantly,
the motive of this programme is nothing short of noble
as it intrigues innovation and encourages Malaysians to be the best that we can be.
Thank you for taking good care of us!
All the best!
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