[This is a sponsored article with Grab.]

“This is not the typical tech or startup networking event that we usually go to,” Dennis Lee, CEO and co-founder of CloudJoi, told us when we met him at one of Scale Up by Endeavor’s (Scale Up) sessions.

To Dennis, people typically attend business events to connect with industry peers or to source for funding. 

But he found that the exclusive nature of Scale Up makes it a more curated experience for founders who are focused on seeking guidance, like himself. He joined the recent Cohort 5.

To better understand how Scale Up works, we also spoke to Endeavor and its recent programme partners, Grab Malaysia and GXBank.

Scaling up emerging startups

Initially from New York City, Endeavor is an organisation that supports a global community of entrepreneurs. Its core mission is to build thriving entrepreneurial ecosystems in emerging and underserved markets around the world.

One way Endeavor achieves this is through its Scale Up programme. A four-month programme, Scale Up is designed to boost the trajectory of early-stage and high-potential entrepreneurs.  

It offers curated mentorship, fosters an entrepreneur-to-entrepreneur community, and equips founders with the resources to develop and execute long-term growth strategies.

“At Endeavor, what we do is basically help the growth stage startups, [but] we realised that there are a lot of startups that don’t fit that criteria quite yet, they’re just at the cusp, so that’s what this [Scale Up] programme is created for,” Ammar Afzar, a representative from Endeavor, explained.

“We want to take these people who have the potential [and] help push them, nudge them over the line.”

So far, Endeavor has successfully guided five cohorts for its Scale Up programme. The most recent one just ended in October.

Grab Malaysia Managing Director Adelene Foo and her colleague, Fadrizul Hasani, CTO of GXBank, joined as mentors for Cohort 5 of Scale Up. 

Since Grab’s inception in 2012, both Adelene and Fadrizul have played different roles in the organisation to achieve Grab’s aim of creating a positive impact in Malaysia. Some ways they’ve been doing this are by helping startups sharpen leadership skills, expand business strategies, and leverage tech and data for growth. 

As for why Grab Malaysia and GXBank came on as partners this round?

“Working with Endeavor gives us the meaningful opportunity to give back, sharing our knowledge and experiences to assist our country’s burgeoning start-ups in realising their full potential.”

“With physical presence regionally and global R&D centres, we bring a wealth of experience in identifying and addressing hyperlocal needs whilst navigating various regulatory, socio-economic and technological terrains,” said Adelene.

For her, one of the key lessons she learnt while being a part of Grab is learning to let go and trust others. As the company size grew, she found that creating the right structures that work for Grab’s team made letting go easier.

“The idea is you still empower your team to be the best version of themselves, [then] the team can scale. [They’ll] have the right autonomy and trust to also build and develop their teams downwards,” Adelene shared.

Fadzrizul, who is also the first software engineer at Grab (onboarded back in 2011), highlighted a key lesson he learned from his mentor: passion cannot be taught. 

“You can’t instil in someone a genuine love for what they do, and that kind of enthusiasm and belief in a cause makes a tremendous difference.” He shared how experiences with unaligned team members taught him the importance of early detection and mission alignment. 

“Being a mentor aligns deeply with my own passion and vision to reignite the technology start-up scene in Malaysia. My goal is to contribute to a vibrant ecosystem where innovation thrives and start-ups are energised to make a significant impact,” he added. 

How is this startup programme really different?

Having learnt from previous cohorts, Endeavor Malaysia organised this year’s programme to be a more intimate learning experience with industry leaders. 

Take its demo day, for instance. Instead of the usual pitch presentations in front of a crowd, Scale Up changed it to one-on-one or one-to-four mentorship sessions. This format allowed participants to gain tailored feedback and have more in-depth discussions with seasoned mentors.

While the programme doesn’t promise funding, it delivered something arguably more valuable—key insights and real-world lessons on scaling a business. 

Over 70 mentors, including some of Malaysia’s most accomplished entrepreneurs like Eric Cheng of Carsome and Loi Tuan Ee of Farm Fresh, have shared their expertise with participants through Scale Up. 

Endeavor also takes the extra step to assign entrepreneurs with a dedicated Endeavor Account Manager. 

These account managers curate a list of suitable mentors according to a mix of factors, like industry, company size, challenges, and scaling approaches. The team ensures compatibility by conducting conflict of interest checks, with the aim of setting up productive matches.

Tailored guidance for ambitious startups

Thanks to Scale Up’s mentor matching feature, CloudJoi found itself paired with this year’s new mentors—Adelene Foo from Grab and Fadrizul Hasani from GXBank.

As a ticketing platform for performing arts, culture, and live entertainment shows, CloudJoi learnt a number of relevant insights from its tech giant mentors.

One lesson that particularly struck a chord with Dennis was Grab’s focus on word-of-mouth marketing. 

Adelene shared how every new feature or product at Grab is designed with the goal of sparking customer referrals, which helps reduce marketing costs while growing the brand organically.

This strategy resonated with Dennis as CloudJoi also relies on referrals. “We’re trying to repackage it and we’re trying to see where it fits us. Refer a friend or pay it forward, buy one more ticket for the underprivileged, all these kinds of things,” he explained.  

Fadrizul, too, brought a wealth of guidance to the table and mentored CloudJoi with a hands-on approach.

“I think he sees us as the younger version of himself, like he knows the struggle, so he always reminds us to not go overhead when we try something.”

Empowering local entrepreneurs and businesses

While we weren’t part of the cohort, Adelene and Fadrizul still divulged some core takeaways for founders in an interview with us. They were:

1. Never be afraid to ask for help.
2. Focus on people and strengthen the passion in your team.
3. Don’t focus on blame, instead look at how to solve the problem.
4. Find ways to raise the bar.

Looking at it from a wider lens, the importance of mentorship and collaboration is undeniable. By connecting with key industry players like Adelene and Fadrizul, startups like CloudJoi are gaining more than just business advice.

More of a hands-on approach from mentors who are invested in the growth of these startups might be just what Malaysia’s entrepreneurial ecosystem needs to advance further.

That’s why for entrepreneurs looking to turn their ideas into a thriving business, Scale Up could be the catalyst you need to accelerate your journey.

• Learn more about Endeavor Malaysia here.
• Learn more about Grab here, and GXBank here.
• Read about other Malaysian startups here.

Featured Image Credit: ChunChieh Keong