Mwa mouzikatia mwzi muna muka tingперu. Manihonan mwzi minkijatia mta kwa. Haise kwa mwa mhasu tlupia wakπu TATU. Mwzi mouzikata na mndi, mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mndi Rwanyan yam h terreza m dwikfi kwa mwzi mwa. Kwa mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi mwzi. Wasilinga mwa alilinya. He natsahita mwzi mwzi mwzi nmwzi wakfu ttye. Buxing is unmerged and he wants to put in place structures to ensure that boxing gets to another level. Of course, it's Jamal, but you know, umboku. President, wipi? Sala mga bisa. Ugo witi? Na shkuru. Ume piga luku ya ki boki. Lila champion. Champion? Ya. Kidogo studio wa tu kimbi eju jab bineza. I can't do that. Ya. How you been? My name is Antonio, that's my name. Jamal jyasa, nickname. Buxing nickname? No. How did the name come about? It's a long story. Long story for another day. Yes. And we also joined by former boxer, Duncan Kurya, also known as Yugaree, wipi. Ah, president, I want to ask Maxwell. Kosala mga. Niko poka bisa. Elections, 28th, are there elections of the annual elections? Elections will be held on 28th of June 2019 at Kasarani at 10 a.m. There are other opposing forces saying that the date for elections is strongly set. Why? No, elections have been set and actually the people who set the executive members of the BAK, they called a council meeting which was held at Serena hotel. We came up with minutes. The minutes were forwarded to all the relevant government departments including the office of Madam Sports Registrar, who had stopped another election because the election was meant to be done in May, May 28th. So Madam Registrar requested us to extend the period by one month so that members can comply. And this, when I talk to members, I'm talking about county associations who are members of BAK Federation. Yes. So we were requested to extend the period by 28 days, which we did by 30 days. So by all accounts, the elections are going to go ahead on 28th, which is Friday next week. Jamal, you are on ballot. You are seeking to get elected the president. You are the favorite. But you are receiving, you know, Steve's competition from Amman, who had indicated that he's vying, but he resended his decision. That is John Kameda, the outgoing president. He says that he will be on the ballot again. But just before we get into that, I know you people have been criss-crossing several parts of the country trying to take Ndondi Machinan initiative at the grassroot. How is the reception from the locals, especially in Viga and Busia? As I can say, our team, because it's not a one-man show, we work as a team. That's called Team Jamal. We have criss-cross all over the countries. The count is which has boxing. We've done, like, giving out equipments, taking equipment to a kitchen and every club. And what we want to do to bring the change to boxing is to bring boxing to institutions, learning institutions like schools, colleges and all that. We need to nurture talent from the young age. Yes. And we have so much talent in boxing. In Busia, just the other day, there was overwhelming crowd of boxing. And you can see now boxing is coming back where it was. The reception from the locals, do you think they are passionate and looking forward to the new dawn that you are preaching as you traverse several parts of the country? Definitely. Now boxing is coming up. You see, another leadership of our outgoing, let me call it outgoing president. You need to work as one-man show. That was the problem. But now, under my leadership, because I work as a team, there are some things that I don't know, that Shuga knows. There are some things that some of you guys don't know. We have people like Nene. They have been boxing for all over the years. They advise you that you can do this and you can change the boxing. That's the only thing that we need in boxing, teamwork. So, what you are trying to say is that you will exercise inclusivity and bring like-minded stakeholders of boxing together so that they can put in place mechanisms that will restore the lost glory of the sport. Definitely. Shugare, as a former international boxer, do you think the welfare of former boxers has been addressed? Because going by the plight of former boxers Liman Bilalik and Justina are changing something must have gone wrong somewhere. What do you attribute this to? I think your question, the plight has not been addressed properly. We have had many cases, apart from the ones that you have mentioned, of former boxers who are living in abject poverty. Yes. They used to be internationals. They represented this country flu, the Kenyan flag, very high. But as time went by, I think out of not preparing for life after boxing, they ended up being miserable people in the society and they actually tanish the image of the sport because there are so many, people associate boxing with the negativity around their lifestyle. I think all this goes down to the leadership of the federation because the federation in the subsequent years never took attention of giving these people life skills. Somebody was employed probably in the armed forces or Kenya police and you see now these guys when they are employed in the forces, they don't work, they are actually on full time release most of the time. When they retire from their jobs, the only thing they knew was boxing and with new changes that are coming up every other time now there is age limit in how much boxing, where if you get to 40 years, then you stop participating in boxing. In some of the forces teams, they were not allowing their boxers to turn professional. So we had a backlog where we find our boxers are taking so much time before they graduate to professional level and that means they cannot continue earning a living out of the sport. In the process we have so many many cases of boxers who are living miserable lives but we are thinking of starting a program with Tim Jamal if he wins, not if when he wins whereby we are going to work together with him to open a welfare association we are going to call it Kenya Boxers Welfare Association where we can try and get resources and create employment opportunities for these former boxers at least to operate as coaches in different clubs which we are proposing to open because all the former social halls like here in Nairobi the social halls that were there some of them were converted to be churches and doing businesses and we want to revive the sport in the grassroot and we want to second these former boxers to go and impart knowledge to the youths in the clubs at the grassroot level At the moment we have a lot of county associations which have come up as a result of the evolution because Sports Act devolved the sport basically to the counties so formally boxing was structured in the form of the former provinces now we have to go down to the county level and Tim Jamal has gone around the country distributing resources in terms of equipment to the different clubs these clubs will require qualified coaches to impart knowledge to the youths and young boxers that are coming up within the counties and so we are thinking that will be the best way to utilize the former boxers who have got the skill of the sport but they have been left just to live miserable life they are not involved in the sport at all when you come to matters to do with the referee and judging they are also not involved there so basically the knowledge that they had which they acquired over the years is being misused or rather it's not being utilized at all and we are thinking that is a waste of resource that is very important in terms of nurturing talent in the country now your campaign manifesto revolves around don't even machinani what is this initiative all about? first we have to add up on what Sugar said not only coaching will do we need to do entrepreneurship for these guys we need to educate them about business you know me, I'm a businessman you can take some coaches and some guys after learning to the welfare so that they can do business they open small business and continue another thing we need to do is to put insurance for these boxers we have so many companies insurance we can partner with them and they can offer affordable amount you know box on the ring and after that accidentally you can get hurt so it will cater for the insurance now going back to what you said about don't even machinani don't even machinani is real something that will happen we have so many things that we are going to do after me getting through the office we have been approached with so many corporate who have said they are interested in boxing but they want to see how we participate in boxing first after that you will see for yourself transparency and accountability has been you know the main and doings in various sporting federations and several corporates have shied away from coming on board to partner with the local federations because of lack of corporate confidence do you think under your helm BAK will attract sponsorships from local corporates because I said I am a businessman accountability is the key you must account to each and every coin you see as in boxing this is not rocket science you take the boxers to the hotel and you go and play that's all and our leadership account for each and every penny that we are going to be sponsored by any organization so they are well fair their interest will be well catered for as well under your leadership it has also been claimed that most people when they are campaigning immediately decent a blueprint but immediately they get elected they change boxing fraternity for those who are watching they should not expect something of that sort from you max with my background I have been into my rocket industry before I have taken boys from a period of becoming bad guys to good guys I want you to watch this space and my leadership will be fine that's what I assure you maybe talk to us with regards to how you seek to partner with the county because I understand Suleiman Bilalifoma Boxer he went through some rehabilitation program that you spearheaded and congestion as well in partnership with the county how is the situation going to you know, pan out when now you are sent to power fissure there have been stories running out of the media congestion is not going well is in shags, taking alcohol even Bilali but let me tell you one thing right now congestion is in Mombasa at a rehab Bilali is at a rehab in Parklands we had a story on keto radio saying that Bilali is out drinking you see rehabilitation is a process it's not a one thing you need to do it gradually so it's a process we know we will revive others and there are so many people who are languishing in poverty we are going to do it slowly by slowly we will bring back the growth of boxing back to it and regard of our boxers who are not doing very well we will put a welfare as Shuga said and let me tell you one thing we will work each and every two steps of boxers who are heroes of Kenya and they will be back to where they were Shugare let's talk about now the integrities of election it's on 28th Jamal Otieno and John Kameda are the two candidates on the ballot but what are the dynamics of this poll they have attracted huge stakes and a lot of interest associated with the same considering that probably a much boxing aspect of the sport is integral part of boxing in general even it's a feeder system to pro why are the stakes too high this time round I think the stakes are very high because first I think the entry of Jamal changed the game totally when Jamal came on board he has done what many have never done ever since because before he is even elected into office he has gone across the country distributing equipments using his own resources that is something that has never been done ever we have been able to hold championships in the country for instance he was able to fund the national novices which were done at Chata Hall for the first time ever in this country he was able to fund the national intermediate which were done in Thika we did the first leg of the no before that we did Kenya Open at Chata Hall again which was very successful we were able to hold the first leg of the national league in Nakuru and at the Madison Square and then eventually we have done the second leg of the national league in Bungoma so I think the effect of Jamal is being felt across the country and I think that one is also now spreading the fear to those who are opposing him the main reason why people are being maybe it's generating a lot of interest could be because the those who the incumbents have overstayed in the office for more than two years boxing elections were supposed to be held in May 2017 we are now in 2019 June why that long extension technically somebody is in office illegally can you imagine if in this country election is supposed to be done in 2022 so 2022 imagine we don't do elections and then we overstay for two years there will be no peace in this country but in boxing it has been allowed to continue that way but at least finally now we have serious initiative whereby elections have been organized the government has sanctioned the sports registrar I have seen a communication by sports registrar confirming that she will be coming to observe the elections on 28th and so I am hoping the long period in which nothing much was happening in the federation is coming to an end because we are going to have a team which has got a clear mandate to run the sport in the country so hopefully on 28th the mass that is in boxing in the country comes to an end and we start preparing our team for all african games which are supposed to be held in moroko sometimes in august and we only have about a month and talking about all african games I understand athletics Kenya is conducting their trials this particular weekend at kasarani stadium boxing there were two concurrent events one happening at the charter hall and another one happening at the bamburi beach why the concurrents yet only one team is supposed to present the country this one is all about I told you it is all about one man show it is Kamehita who decided to bring another he says his activities are coconutized by Aiba though you are supposed to there are laws in Kenya so we made a calendar a one event calendar a unified calendar he is the one who split the calendar but let me tell you after election we are going to go to I am telling I am not showing you we are going to go to moroko we will do a good selection and you will see you will be there to witness and when this selection is conducted are you also seeking incorporating the other boxers closely associated with Kamehita who is the outgoing president boxers will not be hurt in these rangles we will incorporate each and every boxer if you are good you will go we will do a very good after the election we will sit down and do another selection a good one maybe just to add on what you have just said it needs to be understood that boxers don't vote in the boxing elections they are actually delegates that you know the leadership of their teams for instance the people you are talking about is only two which is KDF and Kenya prison and to the best of my knowledge KDF is likely to get a certificate and therefore they will qualify to participate in the election but prison they have a challenge one of the officers whom is supposed to be a delegate when seeking for registration in registrar's office retired from the service prison so they are seeking to replace that one and I think it will be at all order so probably prison might not be able to participate in the election but the boxers from those organizations are not going to suffer any harm out of the political mess by their leaders someone is asking via Twitter handle Felix Okura watching from Rungainakuru is telling me to ask Jamal as how much a wing of boxing how do you seek working with KPBC you Kenya professional boxing commission I think he meant that how do you seek working with KPBC wing for the growth of the sport because those are two wings but affiliated to boxing this is a problem now you see from how much you become a professional and for the look of things people are not participating in boxing that can match our talents to come from Mamacha to become a professional as we go on and our manifesto we will do inter clubs inter counties and even go further so after as you guys said if you reach 40 you are not supposed to be a match again and we are going to have good working relationship with the professional boxing because we already have good working relationship so I hope I know and have a leadership we will work properly with them Rock Promotions has not been closely associated with how much a boxing it is in pro but what do you make of the practice in the country do you think the rock promoters are reaping the sweat that belongs to a boxer who sweats in the ring you say a boxer I can't comment as a boxer because someone is commenting here you see for our audience they think probably it's something that cuts across I think it's a problem that has been affecting the professional sport for some time because first we don't have enough number of promoters but then the few ones who are there or who have been there have mismanaged the sport for some time we have had many cases where maybe boxers come from abroad when they come and participate here they are left stranded in their hotels they are not paid they don't know how they will go back to their respective countries so those are cases that we have heard about but we think it's just a matter of mismanagement and which I'm thinking KPBC should be able to handle going forward because when they promote bouts here those bouts are supposed to be sanctioned by KPBC so ideally KPBC should be able to regulate that kind of behavior because in an ideal setup ideally what I understand with the professional boxing they are supposed to receive the money the boxers are supposed to be paid two weeks before the event but in most cases you find some of these rock promoters they exploit that avenue whereby they don't give the money to the commission two weeks prior to such that boxers get into the ring without knowing for sure how they will get their money that's where the problem is but we are thinking if with the new team in KPBC they are introducing a sense of professionalism in the sport and going forward of course now the cases have reduced in terms of complaints of boxers being mistreated boxers getting into fights contracts that's another issue that has been happening in professional boxing but we are thinking with the new team we think that will be corrected there's something you had asked Jamal about the link between professional and amateur in an ideal setup boxers are supposed to start at the amateur level so that they grow in the sport you can grow up to the level maybe you represent Kenya but you need to go to the Olympic level once you get to the Olympic level you don't have anything much because the Olympic is the highest level you can go after the Olympic level regardless of your age you can turn professional and go on some money out of your talent which is now professional boxing ideally that's how it should be because we have cases across the world we have a boxer from Cuba who is a two times Olympic champion flyweight he is 24 years and he has won two Olympic gold medals that's how it should be but the problem in Kenya people overstaying in amateur somebody wants to go for three olympics that is 12 years you are staying at that level so you find the people who are representing the country at that level national team level our depth is not good those who are at the top level but we don't have enough numbers to replace those ones who are there so that because of this age of course it will get a time when these people will go out then you don't have others to replace or to take their place and represent effectively because the issue is not just to get numbers to represent is to take people who are going there to compete and win medals Jamal someone is asking about the facilities I don't know whether you are the relevant person because just like in other sporting discipline we've seen Nick Muendua who is the FKF boss saying that when Kenya missed out on hosting chan at ornamentment for local best players because of lack of equipped facilities someone is asking with regards to the social holes within Nairobi how do you see going about renovating them so that they can look in good shape and the relationship of Meksanku I know you'll be able to to renovate all this hall but you see in boxing we don't need things, we just need a ring and equipment but we've talked to him he said he's going to renovate all the social holes and you know they've been out of boxing so other holes have been turned to churches business premises reputation centers but we know for sure if we revive boxing they'll come back to boxing Boxing and non-demachine initiative you've been in a few counties that's the cradle land of boxing do you seek crisscrossing everywhere so that it's sort of a national outlook initiative yes we want to go we want to raise kajado after the elections there's even in Mbu there's boxing, there are coming clubs we will crisscross over the country we even go to Kariza we know there are some crazy ladies who can box why not? you are parting shorts and your final thoughts with regards to your ambition besides non-imagine and initiative, what else do you seek to do for the boxing in case elected BAK president what I need to say to the fans that will bring back the glory of boxing where it goes and we ask the boxers to keep on training because they are going for Shugare mine I think is just to urge the fans of the sport to be coming out in numbers for this period we want them to be calm we are going for elections we are hoping to have free, fair and credible elections and by the way they will be managed by IABC so we are hoping to have a claim process whereby we are going to get our leaders and then going forward we are going to roll out programs to promote this sport across the country like Jamal has just mentioned so far we have about 17 counties involved in boxing and we have seen some interest from other counties which for the time being they are not recognizing the structure of the federation for instance there is a lady who keeps coming for about from Wasengishu and we don't have a club in Wasengishu but we always encourage her whenever she comes we allow her to participate so that shows you there is an urge to have this sport in as many counties so we need to take this sport through the people so that it's just taken just like any other sport we also want to take boxing back to schools we need schools to be involved just like the way we have ball games for the schools boxing used to be at that level you know we used to hear mawego technical or kabete we used to have boxing it died and I'm thinking that's a challenge to do with leadership so we need to take boxing to the grass fruit and it goes without boxing is the second most popular sport in terms of bringing medals to the country second to athletics no any other comes close so we need to revive the sport and be as vibrant as possible and with the leadership of Tim Jamal what about sky is the limit before I let you Jamal Edson Odwar from Rongo is asking in case you get elected would you would you bring on board the other opponents that's probably meaning John Kameda so that there is inclusivity in terms of agenda for the sport because probably you also have agenda that is six to implement in case elected so would you go that route we will cooperate with him there is no problem that's all we will do you will bring him on board as well you see him to explain how on board how I don't know what he meant but probably he meant he meant the manifesto of the agenda the agenda I think I will bring him on board gentlemen thanks for coming through we are going to wind up but before we do I know football just like boxing all sports we are passionate about but Kenya is participating in the continental it will be playing at Jere in their first game tomorrow Jamal what are your thoughts on Kenya's performance and expectation we are going to play for Kenyans we are not a football fan but we are going to play for Kenyans so it's about prayers Tugare no it's not just about prayers prayers are very important I come from I grew up in the same state as the captain of our ampestas the lion of Mudurwa Dallas is in boxing called Dallas so I want to wish our ampestas all the best of course we are in a very tough pool I know we are starting with Algeria with Maris there 50-50 that's why Jamal is saying that prayer now again we meet when you meet Zerego the first match Sanya will be participating in since his band the match again is Tanzania that one is not winable to us the best you can do there may be a draw so I am not very hopeful but you know we underestimating Tanzania that is the team we need to beat by all means maybe if you can qualify as one of the best third teams in my opinion that would be good enough looking forward to that it's been a pleasure speaking to you Jamal on Bok Oteeno BAK presidential candidate in the upcoming polls for next week on 28th June and former boxer Dan Kankuria also known as Shugare joining us to dissect about boxing association of Kenya elections and what they seek to do for the sport in case they are sent to power in a few days from now to speak we are going to be looking forward to see don't emulate on politicians who promise but when it comes to execution it's another affair thank you for joining us of course it's the touchline on Y2F my name is Maxwell Waseke up next I'm being joined by Robas Dua Simon call him Simon it's Samim Muraya alongside of course Tira Zwayaki still in the building to dissect about AFKON and the build up for weekend matches don't go away stay tuned it's the touchline


Welcome to the leaders room. Today we have with us Anisha Shashindran, chief talent officer for Groupon. Anisha, we're so excited to have you here with us. I love the story you have to tell around building a creative life. Before I get into some of those details, I'd like to know a little bit more about your creative life.  Tell me a little bit about what it is you did it at, what iSEC is, and what it is you did there. All right. So iSEC is the world's largest international youth not-for-profit, and you know they are present in over like hundred and ten countries and stuff like that. And the tool that iSEC uses to impact the world is leadership development. So I was part of that movement basically. And I was in iSEC for about seven years. I did all sorts of stuff. I started from entry level right up to being part of the international headquarter team based in the Netherlands. So you started in university, right? Yeah. I basically, by third week in university, I stumbled upon this booth called iSEC. We're talking about business, management, leadership development, and I was like, hmm, okay, interesting. So I joined and it was the best decision I made. So I've done all sorts of stuff in iSEC. I was doing sales, I was doing talent management, I was doing recruitment, project management. And in the Netherlands, I was basically working with not-for-profit organizations and also like the UN agencies, European Union and all, to facilitate youth development, leadership development programs for young people. So it's not just exchange programs? Yeah, the exchange program, the workabroad program is one of the main things that iSEC does, but we also do other sort, other things like projects and conferences and stuff. Yeah, really right. So what did it do for you? I mean, here you were a Malaysian girl growing up in Malaysia. Where were you at school in Malaysia? Yeah, I studied in Malaysia. Okay, and then you stumbled across this international agency and it takes you to not just, you know, the Netherlands, but all over the place.  Yeah, because of iSEC. Yeah, because of iSEC, I developed this interest to travel and get to know different cultures and people and stuff. And so I traveled to over 40 countries, actually through iSEC. Do you have a favorite place that you've been? Oh, it's very tough. It's very tough to answer because every country is unique. Yeah. And I personally felt that I loved Africa. I loved Africa. It's just full of color and it's vibrant and the people are really amazing. Yeah. Well, we'll talk more about that later. What about Groupon? What are you doing at Groupon? Okay, in Groupon, I basically lead people's strategies. I look at how the business and people work together. And that kind of like also entails me doing recruitment for Groupon, talent management, learning and development and so on. Yeah, interesting. Now, I have to quote here from an article I read about you in the New Straits Times. This was a while ago, so I don't know if you still agree with it. But what you said in this article was, and I quote, I think Malaysian youth are highly capable, but they lack the courage to explore their options. They're unclear about their goals and allow their environments to influence their decisions. They're also comfortable where they are and do not want to go farther. Do you stand by this still? Is this still something that you're encountering when you're interviewing all those young people? To a large extent, I still do. I think it's very normal in our society today because when you grow up, your parents tell you, okay, you have three career options. You either be a doctor or an engineer or a lawyer. And then when you're in school, you need to be great at what you do. You need to be a great student. And when you finish school, you go to university. You get great grades. And after you finish uni, immediately jump into a job or a career that can pay you well. And that's what you've been told since you were young. And I think that's where a lot of Asians or Malaysians in general fall into the norm. That's normal for them. And that's what they've been told. And that's what they will do. Things like exploring or making mistakes isn't something that is very encouraged in our culture because you're always punished if you make a mistake. Punished? Yeah, punish me. How bad is it? Okay, you have the cane occasionally. Isn't that bad? It's not, it's not But there's disapproval. Yeah.  So therefore, to kind of like, you know, basically, just follow, just follow what's normal, just just do what's normal. And and normal means that don't go out of your comfort zone because then there's more a higher mistake, higher possibilities of making mistakes. So I think that's where like the mindset comes, you know, for a lot of Asians or Malaysians in general, because you just do what you've been told by your society or your family. And then you'll be okay. Then you'll never be punished. And and you'll be happy. Right. So I guess that's where like typically I find that Asians are very, very followers in general, followers in general. Though with the rise of the Gen Y community and all, I'm starting to see a little bit of difference in the way Gen Y think. And I think that I'm very happy to have found a couple of them to work with me in Groupon. So I'm curious, why do you think Gen Y is so different? Yeah. Is it the parents? Is it how they're being raised? Is it the internet? Are they getting more chance to travel? Are they reading different things? What's going on with these guys? Yeah, I think it's a couple of things. It's definitely the way that they've been brought up by the parents. Technology has played a very big part in again, you know, making sure that communication is, is, is reachable anywhere. And information is shared very, very easily. So when I was working in the Netherlands, I realized that, you know, when you reach the age of 18, people actually take a take time off school to go and travel. You know, I found this really interesting, because in Malaysia, there's no such thing.  No gap year. Yeah, you don't have gap years. It's just a process, one after another. But now because of Facebook and all, you get to see a lot of different information sharing of experiences where I feel now Gen Y is a little bit more knowledgeable and they're open to kind of like this kind of information, knowing that, hey, there's this, this, this person, same age, you know, in the Netherlands, who's, who's traveling a year after school, right? Why, why can't I do that? And again, you know, now everyone can fly. So flying isn't that expensive anymore. Thank you, Eurasia. Right. Thank you very much. Yeah. So I think all these factors have, you know, directly and indirectly shaped the way Gen Ys are thinking more and more. And I like that way of thinking. Do you think that they are more interested in pursuing their own interests, sort of learning about themselves and saying, you know, hey, I, I like, maybe I've had this experience and maybe I've just read on Facebook about somebody else's experience. But wow, that appeals to me. And suddenly these dreams my parents had for me, they're they're fading away. They're no longer relevant. Yeah. To a certain extent, I mean, to be frank, I don't think so. A lot of people that I know in Asian community, they're very respectful to what their parents, you know, have one for them or envision for them. And I think that even for myself, I mean, I'm raised up in a very traditional family where my parents told me what I need to do and what I need to be when I grow up, right? And I have a lot of respect to my parents because I'm everything that I am because of them. But I think it's also making the people that mean the most to you understand and see what you would like to kind of shape up for yourself. So I think Asian Malaysian youth are very, very respectful and they will follow whatever that parents want for them. But there's also somewhat a negotiation experience that's happening at this point of time where even in my family, you know, I told my parents, okay, I'm after university, I'm going to work for a not-for-profit, I'm going to earn 850 ringgit a month. But just allow me to do this for three years, just three years and see what becomes from that. Right? Yeah. And so that there was a negotiation process where they were probably not too happy with that. They weren't too happy. I mean, they spent quite a bit for my education and then, you know, the returns was just 850 ringgit a month, which is not very typical again, right? But again, I wanted them to know that this meant a lot for me because I'm a biotechnologist by qualification. But I know my passion is more in people development, leadership development, business management and stuff. And if I don't venture into this experience at this point of time, then I may never be able to do that later. You know, so I tried to share with them what I wanted for myself and also negotiated a timeline. So if things don't work out, at least I know that, okay, I did my best within these three years and now I can mention to something that maybe it's normal or what they want from me and stuff like that. But my three years turned out to be great. So that's great. So what advice would you give to other Malaysian youth, you know, Gen Y people in their teens and twenties, if they sort of catch wind that they can actually do things a little bit differently. What advice would you give to them to first of all perhaps figure out what it is they'd like to do and then to actually be able to do it? Yeah. So Nike is going to love me for this. But I really think you just should do it. Just do it. You know, like whatever you want to try for yourself or experience, just do it. My theory is I never want to live my life asking what if. You know, so if you have that curiosity or that interest, then just do it. You know. And when you do it, if you mention to something, you give your 110%, not 99%, not 100%. I mean, even in Groupon, we are very ambitious as a team. And we know that if we don't give our 110% attention and focus and hard work, we're not going to get there. You know what I mean? So like I think it is very important for someone to have that determination and courage to give everything that they have in order for them for them to succeed. That's great.  And she wrote a book called The Five Regrets of the Dying. Oh, I see. And actually the number one regret was that they didn't live the life that they were meant to lead that they that they gave in too much to other people's desires for them, whether it's a career or family or whatever. And it's a wonderful thing to learn that so young because you won't fall into that trap. Yeah. I always wanted to write my own story. So yeah, that's what kind of pushed me to just give my all best. And I made a lot of mistakes. I went through a lot of challenges. But what was your biggest mistake? Well, my biggest mistake is probably doing biotechnology. I mean, studying that course. I think I enjoyed my years in university. And I think that I again, it kind of shaped me to the person I am today. But it's just that at that point of time, perhaps I lacked the courage to, to, you know, venture into something that I was not comfortable. Yeah. I would have probably done better if I, not better. And I would have, it would have been a little bit more interesting and complimenting my interest if I studied something really, maybe people development or business management. Psychology or something like that. I'm, I'm very glad I mined in psychology.  But it's just that as much as I love whatever I learned in biotechnology, but it's just that it doesn't directly related to what you're actually doing. Yeah. And it just doesn't bring out the best in me, you know, like in my actions, in my thoughts and, and my energy and stuff like that. So if I could, I mean, that was perhaps a mistake. But I love mistakes because mistakes have been my greatest teachers in life. So that's good. Yeah. You mentioned that Malaysian youth, you know, have a little something to learn that they could be urged to be sort of open up and be a little more innovative and creative around their own life in all that work that you did at ISAC, or perhaps even at Groupon when you're traveling around the 40 different countries and you're meeting all these people and you're going to conferences and you're involved with the UN. Is there any particular culture that you would characterize as being that more open place where you look at the kids coming out and they are very, you know, charging ahead into the world? Maybe they don't know what they're doing, but at least they've got the energy and they're, and they're open to it. Is there a, would you characterize any place like that? Generally, I think, I think I spent quite a bit of time in Europe and just, just working with these guys, I feel that the European youth are pretty much what you've just described. They may not know everything, but then again, they're bold. They're bold to go and find out the answers. They're bold to go and experiment and explore. And I think I really like that kind of attitude and energy because eventually if you're, you just need the right attitude.  And I think that the European youth is, I mean something that I admired about them. Interesting. So I'm very curious. You're interested in this topic of leadership.  You've got all these high energy creative, independently minded, 110% energy people. What, what are the implications for leadership? What's it like to be leading people who are like that versus the more traditional workforce, which is basically saying, Hey, tell me what to do and I'll go do it. Yeah. All right. Well, I always, I'm very proud to say this. I say, you know, we are a team of rebels, young, genuine rebels. We're proud to be that because we are rebels that want to work and build one of the fastest growing companies in Malaysia. You know, so we always channel our genuine energy in a positive way. And how exactly do you do that? How do you get that direction, that, that focus? In a couple of things, we're very stringent with hiring. As you can see, 4,500 people, we've offered over 200 were very, very stringent with hiring. And when we hire at every stage of their recruitment process, we're very, very transparent as to what to expect if they join a company like ours. So unlike typical companies that tell you, hey, join us because of this, this, this, this, I usually find myself saying, don't join us because of this, this, this. You know, so I make it very, very transparent. I set the right expectations from their first interview right up to their final interview. Because you're looking for fit. If there's no good fit, it doesn't matter. Why would I be trying to trick you into coming here and then have you not work out? It's just like getting into a relationship, right? You want to start on the right note. And to start on the right note means that you have the, you're very clear expectations of what to expect or what not to expect. So I mean, working with Genwise, I feel that this is something that companies must do and we do it quite well. We set the right expectations. If you're looking for this, don't join us. If you're looking for that, then maybe group on is your place. And I think that's one. And recently, we also got, we were nominated by World Blue as one of the most democratic workplaces. How so? So what do you do that's so democratic? Yeah, exactly. So actually, we entered this competition only because we wanted to evaluate whether or not, you know, truly we are a democratic workplace. And, and when we were one of the top 50s, we were very happy to know that. And I started to think a little bit more, okay, so what are we doing? The top 50 Malaysia? No, globally. Globally? Globally, we're one of the top 50 most democratic workplaces. And I think that there are a couple of things that, you know, I would associate to being democratic. And one is we listen. It's not just about giving people the space to just talk and make decisions, but we listen. And we're very, you know, strategic with our listening. So we welcome all ideas. We have several platforms. We have anonymous platforms where people can tell us what they are not happy about or their suggestions and ideas. But in Groupon, I find people a little bit more vocal. So they're very comfortable with coming up. We have open listening. They're going to be more vocal. It's a benevolent cycle, right? Exactly. And we have open door policies where, you know, there's no hierarchy or structure who you can communicate with. So they just come up and tell you their challenges or their ideas and concerns. And we listen. And a lot of times like there are three types of things that we do when we listen. So when we receive ideas, their ideas are brilliant and we can do immediately. Then we tell them, thank you so much. This is something that we're going to do. And we always update them when we're going to do what their suggestion was. Sometimes ideas or suggestions are not something that we can do now because of the circumstance of the business and where we are and stuff like that. So then we tell them that, hey, this is a great idea. May not be able to do it now, but definitely something that we're going to look at. And eventually when we kind of like, you know, open the idea again, we always keep this person in the loop so that he or she feels really happy that he has contributed to the business. Sometimes, I mean, when it comes to democracy, yeah, listening is a big part of it. But that doesn't mean blindly just listening and doing whatever people want. So sometimes you have sometimes you have to say, great idea, I can't use it. But we always were very, very clear to explain why. Yeah. You know, and Gen Ys love that. Gen Ys love it. Like, OK, I've said it, but then there's also an explanation why it can't be done. So that's another thing. We really love, you know, being this democratic company. And another thing that supports this tool, yeah, is being, I mean, the culture of Groupon itself is very, very open. Everybody sits together with everyone. There's no leadership room or cubicle. No giant office in the corner and everybody else is in their cubes. Yeah, definitely not. So to experience high, as I always ask them this, do you want to sit in a room specifically, because if you are looking for something like that, then don't join Groupon. Because we like to keep it very, very open. We want to. Informal. I mean, I see the people walking around. So the desk is very informal. Yeah. Something else I saw that I thought was interesting. I saw your hours posted, which are 10 to 7. Yeah. So what's behind that? Yeah. So I think, well, Gen Y, anyone, people can come to Groupon anytime between 8 to 10.  But 10 is kind of like the latest someone can come in. And, well, why we have, you know, these flexible hours of 8 to 10 and then 5 to 7 is only because we've come to a point where, you know, Gen Y is again love, work-life balance and stuff. And we don't want to keep our flexibility. Just having the freedom to choose. Exactly. And also avoid the traffic. I wasn't even at that thing. That's fantastic. You're helping KL actually, taking some of the pressure off. That's true. That's true. And I like this. And I know all my people work more than what they're required to. And so we're not very nitpicky with the hours. But for us, we still have, we still have, you know, that 10 to 7 notification only because we look at timing as a sign of respect. Yeah. Yeah. So we still have... So you don't want them here till 10 at night? Oh, we don't want. In fact, sometimes I'm getting people to go back earlier. Yeah. Yeah. But, you know...   Exactly. But Gen Y these days, if you give them, you know, that big sense of ownership, they hold on strong to whatever they're responsible for. And this is something that I'm very proud to be working with some of the best Gen Ys that I've seen so far. So respect for the individual. It's wonderful that you're doing that for Gen Y, but I have to say it's something everyone should get. So anyway, thank you very much. It's been a wonderful talking to you. And I have great respect for what you're doing and I appreciate bringing out your ideas into the leaders room. Thank you very much. Thank you for joining us in the leaders room. It's a wrap.


This article discusses how cloud technologies can be used to improve STEM education. Cloud robotic systems are currently only used by a small number of experts, but they offer many advantages such as access to large amounts of data, open systems, and open environments. By making these systems more accessible, educators can take advantage of the benefits offered by cloud technology, including improved interface design and increased accessibility. Additionally, the article outlines the potential of cloud technologies for robotics and automation systems, and provides a detailed analysis of the various sources available for developing such systems. Finally, it proposes an integrated approach to knowledge acquisition as the foundation of STEM education. This article was authored by Natalia V. Vacco, Natalia O. Kushner, and Viya Cheslav V. Osadkii.


This course is physically demanding. It's important because you give your soldier another tool, another asset. In the world of conflict, you're making lethal soldiers. Preparing for every scenario is critical when a soldier puts their life on the line down range. And hand-to-hand combat is the focus for participants in the Combatives Master Trainer course. A grueling, month-long program that certifies its graduates to train other soldiers to defend themselves in close quarters. Being an NCAA, it's what you do is you train and you lead soldiers from the front. If I can teach them, you know, prior to them going to a deployment down range and if they ever get into a situation, hopefully it will save their lives. The course, which is taught by master trainers from Fort Benning, Georgia, focuses on the physical aspects while also stressing strategic elements. We've got our limited advance going from there. With the soldiers going through tactical drills like patrolling an area and clearing rooms with simulated enemy combatants and civilians, all part of a program that's designed to teach soldiers regardless of their experience or size. In a perfect world, we like to say, it'd be great to have your biggest and strongest guys up front. But in all actuality, our soldiers come in multiple sizes. This is not for the combat arms at MOS, it's not for the infantrymen. This is for the dental assistant, radar specialists, people that aren't on the front line that still have a necessity for this type of training. And while a majority of the course was taught by the trainers from Benning, part of the schedule involved learning from a well-known mixed martial arts professional, as former UFC and Bellator fighter Josh Koscek joined the class as a special guest instructor, getting to know the soldiers and using his experience in the octagon to teach the students some unique moves. In the combators program for the Army, there's a lot of similarities when it comes to mixed martial arts.  The difference between what I do, it's a sport, you know, we're in there fighting and we're getting paid to fight and compete. These guys, it's life or death, so there is no sport when it comes to combators. For more information on the course or the nation's first division, check out the big red one on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.