The Borderless Podcast

The Borderless Podcast

By BorderlessBusinessEntrepreneurship
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The Borderless Podcast episodes

  • Quiet Leaders & Asian Australians: Brad Chan (Banna Property Group & Haymarket HQ) *RE-UPLOAD*

    Re-upload from the PDF Podcast for archival purposes. Find out more about PDF here: https://professionaldevelopmentforum.org/

    Episode Themes (timestamps below)

    • The impact of COVID-19 on Chinatown, retail property & startups
    • Brad’s upbringing & struggles to fit in as an Asian-Australian
    • Haymarket HQ & helping startups expand to Asia
    • The challenges of running a family business
    • The importance of self-awareness & the strengths of introversion
      • 58 min
    • From Refugee to Venture Capitalist: Shelli Trung *RE-UPLOAD*

      Re-upload from the PDF Podcast for archival purposes. Find out more about PDF here: https://professionaldevelopmentforum.org/

      Episode Themes

      • Shelli’s upbringing in Australia as a refugee
      • Her non-linear career path (Scientist → Real Estate → Venture Capitalist)\
      • The importance of networking & taking chances
      • Proptech investment themes across APAC & impact of COVID-19 on startups
      • Thoughts on cultural & gender barriers in the workplace
        • 1 hr 13 min
      • Pursuing Meaning Over Money & Understanding Asia: Su-Lin Tan (SCMP) *RE-UPLOAD*

        Re-upload from the PDF Podcast for archival purposes. Find out more about PDF here: https://professionaldevelopmentforum.org/

        Episode Themes

        • Losing a job during the GFC and pivoting careers. Advice for others in similar situations.
        • Diversity and racism in Australia.
        • The Australia-China relationship.
        • The lack of understanding about Asia.
        • The journalism industry in Australia, HK and advice for young journalists.
        • Pushing your comfort zone and being curious.


          • From Accounting to Journalism

          Born in Malaysia, Su-Lin came to Australia in her early teens. After losing her finance job during the 2008 Global Financial Crisis (GFC), Su-Lin embarked on a journey to pursue meaning over money. Over 2 years, Su-Lin sampled a variety of potential careers such as law, child-care, chemistry, and at one point, wanted to be a concert pianist. Eventually, she settled on journalism and hasn’t looked back.

          Timestamps

          • 1:20 – Su-Lin’s introduction, life in Malaysia, moving to Australia.
          • 3:45 – Why she chose accounting as a career.
          • 4:40 – Losing her job during the 2008 Financial Crisis. How and why she pursued journalism.
          • 7:40 – Advice for others who may be affected by COVID-19 and in similar positions as Su-Lin was.
          • 10:25 – how she got her break in journalism.
          • 11:30 – her time at the Australian Financial Review.
          • 13:00 – the bamboo ceiling in Australia, how her Asian background was an advantage in the newsroom.
          • 14:25 – thoughts on the lack of diversity in journalism.
          • 17:20 – how she got stories, what was her favourite piece?
          • 20:25 – why she moved to the SCMP. Differences between journalism in HK and Australia.
          • 22:15 – about her stories on racism in Australia.
          • 27:20 – thoughts on the Aus-China relationship.
          • 35:00 – Australia and its relationship with Asia. Lack of grassroots education about Asia in Australia.
          • 38:25 – is Australia multicultural or multi-cultures?
          • 39:50 – how do we build better relations between countries and within our own societies? Be curious, be uncomfortable, explore the world.
          • 43:35 – thoughts on journalism in Australia, revenue models, the impact of social media, South China Morning Post & Alibaba.
          • 50:20 – advice for young journalists.
          • 51:50 – biggest challenges in Su-Lin’s career. How she pushed on.54:30 – closing thoughts.
            • 57 min
          • Helping Women Succeed in Australia, Japan & Asia: Sarah Liu (Founder of The Dream Collective) *RE-UPLOAD*

            Re-upload from the PDF Podcast for archival purposes. Find out more about PDF here: https://professionaldevelopmentforum.org/


            Episode Themes

            • Cultural & gender barriers in Australia & what we can do to improve these,
            • Diversity in Australia vs Japan,
            • Her entrepreneurial journey & advice for others on a similar journey,
            • Why COVID has unfairly impacted women in their careers and what she’s doing to help them,
            • The opportunities for women in the tech industry,
            • Having a positive mindset and turning your obstacles into opportunities.


              • About The Dream Collective

              The Dream Collective was founded in 2012 by Sarah Liu, a passionate advocate for women in leadership and furthering diversity and inclusivity practises in corporate culture to transform the way we work.Sarah was named one of the “40 under 40: Most Influential Asian-Australians” in the Entrepreneurship category at the 2019 Asian-Australian Leadership Summit.The Dream Collective is a global leadership consultancy, helping businesses across Sydney, Shanghai, Melbourne, Tokyo & Singapore build diverse and inclusive workplaces: https://www.thedreamcollective.com.au/our-story/


              Timestamps

              1:20 – Introduction

              3:50 – Cultural & diversity barriers in the workplace.
              6:00 – Advice for others…career journey, upbringing, entrepreneurship.
              9:25 – How did the Dream Collective start?
              12:00 – Sarah’s transition from corporate to startup. Thoughts on having a “safety net” & taking risk.
              12:40 – Seeing a gap in the market for mid-career level women
              13:55 – What exactly are the barriers for women in the workplace?
              15:40 – How is Sarah & The Dream Collective solving the lack of female leaders?
              17:25 – thoughts around diversity & inclusion quotas in the workplace. The importance of having measurable targets. The lack of meritocracy in the workplace.
              21:40 – utilising cultural & gender barriers to your advantage, addressing cultural barriers.
              24:35 – why women have been unfairly impacted by COVID? What is the ShePivots program? How is it addressing this problem?
              26:40 – opportunities for women in tech. You don’t need a technical/coding background to succeed. Using your diversity as a strength
              28:25 – thoughts around entrepreneurship, advice for others on a similar journey, understand your “why”, impacts of COVID.
              31:00 – Expanding globally to expand into other markets, differences in diversity & inclusion between countries.
              34:10 – Using Japan vs Australia as an example
              36:10 – COVID impacts and how to turn obstacles into opportunities
              38:15 – Wrapping up, final thoughts, the launch of 50/50 in 100 days
              41:15 – how to find out more about The Dream Collective, ShePivots, other programs & initiatives.

              44 min
            • Helping Startup Founders Succeed in Asia via Taiwan: Elisa Chiu (Anchor Taiwan) *RE-UPLOAD*

              Re-upload from the PDF Podcast for archival purposes. Find out more about PDF here: https://professionaldevelopmentforum.org/ 

              Listen to this episode if you want to find out more about Taiwan’s startup ecosystem or if you simply want to hear about Elisa’s unique journey.  We talk about:

              • Elisa’s story about building a career in high finance, then giving it all up to pursue her passion.
              • The cultural & gender barriers she faced and other struggles along the way.
              • Advice for young professionals in building their careers.
              • Overview of the Taiwan startup scene (VC players + accelerators).
              • Reasons to consider Taiwan as a place to build or grow your startup.


                • Show Notes: https://bordersless.com/business/elisa-chiu-anchor-taiwan/


                Timestamps

                1:00 – Introduction

                2:35 – Journey from Taiwan to Canada. Navigating a new environment and cultural barriers. 
                6:10 – Working as a junior trader.
                6:40 – Was this your passion? Why did you go down the finance path?
                10:45 – Navigating cultural and gender barriers in a male dominant environment.
                13:20 – Importance of finding a mentor and support systems. Turning bad situations into an advantage and bring value to others.
                17:30 – Are there gender barriers in Taiwan?
                18:50 – Working at a Hedge Fund, living in a bubble, resigning from a comfortable life, throwing yourself into the unknown.
                22:45 – The motivation for living a different life. Overcoming fears and perceived limitations. Pursuing your passion, finding fulfilment, why you should give things a try.
                30:20 – Experiencing Silicon Valley, getting into innovation + technology, impact investing and the startup world, moving back to Taiwan to setup Anchor Taiwan.
                36:15 – Reasons for setting up Anchor Taiwan.
                38:00 – The beginning of Anchor Taiwan.
                40:10 – Tackling challenges and the unknowns. The difficulty of marketing Taiwan. 
                43:50 – Thoughts around leaving and returning to Taiwan. Gaining perspective.
                45:30 – What is Anchor Taiwan + Anchor Venture Partners?
                50:40 – Overview of Taiwan market – VCs + Accelerators (AppWorks, Cherubic Ventures, Cornerstone Ventures).
                55:35 – Government initiatives for foreign startups.
                57:20 – Corporate Venture  Capital in Taiwan.
                59:20 – Why should I go to Taiwan over Singapore or HK? What sort of startups should go to Taiwan?
                1:01:30 – Google expansion into Taiwan.
                1:05:00 – Impacts of Coronavirus on the startup space in Taiwan. Initiatives to help startups.
                1:08:00 – How can startups navigate this tough period?
                1:10:00 – Investment trends and opportunities in this period?
                1:14:25 – Would you have done anything differently? Career advice for young professionals?
                1:17:45 – Overseas born Taiwanese coming to Taiwan. E.g. the co-founders of YouTube and Rotten Tomatoes.
                1:19:05 – Thoughts on young Taiwanese + how Taiwan can stay competitive.
                1:21:40 – Last words + how to contact Elisa.

                1 hr 25 min
              • Career & Life Advice from my Podcast Guests (Part 1)

                A selection of career & life advice from some of my Podcast Guests from various industries. Snippets from both the BordersLess and the Professional Development Forum podcast. Timestamps are as follows:  

                • 0:00 - Franco Varona (Managing Partner of Foxmont Capital Partners) 
                • 1:50 - Tanveer Ahmed (Psychiatrist, Journalist, Author & Television Presenter) 
                • 6:42 - Su-Lin Tan (Ex-Accountant, now Senior Correspondent) 
                • 14:55 - Sarah Liu (Founder of the Dream Collective) 
                • 19:31 - Brad Chan (CEO of Banna Property Group & Founder of Haymarket HQ) 
                • 20:58 - Asami Koike (Founder of the Dream Collective)
                  • 24 min
                • Invest your money in Asia - China, Indonesia & Inflation: Dr Joseph Lai (Ox Capital)

                  [This episode is adapted from my recent YouTube upload]: Dr Joseph Lai is the Founder & Chief Investment Officer of Ox Capital, an Australian-based boutique investment manager specialising in emerging market stocks & equities. We interview him about the investment opportunities in Asia for making money (with a focus on China & Indonesia) and his thoughts on the recent recession & inflation news (timestamps & topics below).   

                  Born in Hong Kong, Dr Joseph Lai came to Australia at a young age. After becoming a medical doctor, he realised that a career in investing was much more exciting and made the career change to finance.   

                  Prior to founding Ox Capital in 2021, Dr Lai was the Portfolio Manager for Platinum's Asia Funds (one of the biggest Asia-focused funds in Australia with $~8bn AUM across multiple products) and has a successful track record of investing in Asia. 

                  You can find out more about Dr Joseph Lai and Ox Capital here: https://www.oxcapm.com/ 

                  Topics & timestamps: 

                  • 0:00 - Introduction 
                  • 2:23 - Current state of China (slowing growth?) 
                  • 5:35 - The nuances of investing in China & crackdowns 
                  • 7:40 - The Indonesia opportunity 
                  • 8:35 - Stock Highlight Indonesia - Mitra Adiperkasa (IDX: MAPI) 10:15 - 
                  • Stock Highlight China - AK Medical (HKG: 1789) 
                  • 12:43 - Are Semiconductor Stocks overhyped? 
                  • 14:02 - On Energy stocks (ESG, Natural Gas, Carbon Neutral) 
                  • 15:30 - Inflation, Interest Rates & Recession  
                  • 16:52 - Dr Lai's Career (from Doctor to Finance) 
                  • 20:13 - Is a career in investing for you? Advice for young people
                    • 23 min
                  • Helping Overseas Born Chinese Find Their Roots In China - Huihan Lie (Founder of My China Roots)

                    [Subtitles available on YouTube) Born in the Netherlands, Huihan started to ask questions about his Indonesian-Chinese ancestry & heritage. Knowing nothing about the language or culture, he moved to China 18 years ago to find out more about his roots and experience life working & living in China. In the process, he found many others on the same journey and so he founded My China Roots to help other Overseas Chinese reconnect with their roots & families.   

                    Essentially aiming to be the Ancestry.com of Asia, My China Roots offers a wide variety of services to help Overseas Chinese find out more about their ancestry. They have an extensive database of records both in China and overseas (simply create an account and answer a few questions to start building your family tree) and also provide investigative, research and translation services if you run into any brick walls (or if you simply have no idea where to start).    

                    Find out more about My China Roots here & and join their Discord community! 

                    • https://www.mychinaroots.com/ 
                    • https://www.mychinaroots.com/community      

                      • The Zoom audio was a bit glitchy and the conversation was a bit rushed at the end as we realised we were running out of time. But feel free to reach out to Huihan directly if you want to find out more.  

                      Timestamps: 

                      • 0:00 - Intro 
                      • 1:25 - Huihan's Introduction (Netherlands to China)  
                      • 4:50 - Why Huihan decided to stay in China over the last 18 years 
                      • 6:55 - Is it harder for foreigners / overseas Chinese to find a job in China now? 
                      • 9:42 - Advice for Chinese Diaspora looking to find a job in China 
                      • 10:52 - What if you don't speak English? 
                      • 14:34 - Is there discrimination if you don't speak Chinese? 
                      • 18:50 - The importance of exploring and having an open mind 
                      • 20:30 - Any disadvantages for Overseas Chinese returning to China? 
                      • 23:45 - How did Huihan make friends in China? Advice for others  
                      • 25:50 - Best way to learn Chinese? 
                      • 28:00 - Huihan's life in the Netherlands 
                      • 33:25 - Huihan's journey finding his roots 
                      • 41:15 - What is My China Roots? Services? 
                      • 50:00 - Unique cases that My China Roots has solved? 
                      • 56:30 - Some Overseas Born Chinese discover their roots too late 
                      • 1:00:45 - Customer base of My China Roots? Is it growing? Final words and advice  
                        • 1 hr 8 min

                      About The Borderless Podcast

                      From the publisher's feed

                      The Borderless Podcast explores global Asian diaspora stories and perspectives from East & SE Asia, highlighting multicultural individuals who have taken a different path in their careers and…