Creativity and the Entrepreneurial Spirit in the Modern World: SwagSoft LLP

Business is changing. Entrepreneurs constantly strive to make a name and a reputation in the business world, for their business and their company, and as a brand name becomes the main concern, their creativity narrows, and the company eventually strays off route, and needs to restructure. 
A business in Singapore, known as SwagSoft LLP, is currently a leader in it's field of developing applications for mobile phones and devices as such. This company, is not only reliable, but has not once strayed off the route of creativity, and the founders, Mr Aldric Chang and Mr Ngo Chee Yong, have made sure to make creativity a main reason for it to be on the charts. With its friendly attitude, creative ways and of course professional nature, SwagSoft has made a name for itself, and is currently at the top of its game. The company has been commissioned by various business giants, ranging from local clients such as "Marina Bay Sands" and "MediaCorp" to multinational giants such as BBC and Nokia.
The business is simply divine, and is now established, known for its reliable and first class service, which is possibly the number one priority in the field, as app development is an up coming professional service.
The iBusiness Times got the opportunity to have an exclusive interview with Mr Ngo Chee Yong himself, who is Chief Technical Officer & Co-Founder of SwagSoft LLP.

How did the idea of owning your very own Apps business come along?

I like to see myself as someone who doesn’t follow the herd. Having previously worked as a game developer in a company that creates mobile products and games for the international market for a good 5 years, I felt that it was time to channel my experiences into something or somewhere else. The idea of doing something on your own is a dream for many but I knew it wasn’t that simple. I was fortunate enough to meet great people along the way and one of them became my partner eventually. He suggested that we did something together because we both possessed distinctive skills that was complementary to each other – him being more business centric and me being the technical geek. There is always a risk involved in starting a business but the good match was a mitigated risk. The rest is history.

What inspired you?

Having worked in a few companies before, I know how being an employee feels like. No offence towards any of these companies but my previous experiences helped shaped me into hoping to create an organisation that everyone would love to work in and be proud to call his/her company. A company that actually listens and communicates with the team why it has to move in certain directions. The great perks of starting your own company include being able to create your own intellectual properties and at the same time, create jobs for the talented in Singapore. Personally, I always aspire to contribute back to the country. This sounds cliché but I do honestly feel that starting a company is not all about making money. It’s deeper than that. When we progress, it’s not just about my partner and myself, it’s about the entire Swag Soft team collectively.

What were the first days of Swagsoft like?

Swag Soft was entirely self-funded. How much food we could put on our table depended on how much revenue we brought in.
We formed our company with the intention of creating intellectual property eventually, but we knew that in order to get there, we needed to bring in the bread and butter and keep the company self-sustainable. 
The early days involved a lot of hard work getting our name out there. It was challenging because clients always compared quotations and did not really know how to value the worth of what they required. But I am proud to say that we are still around today, probably due to our go-getter and never-say-die attitude.

Since the app making business is an upcoming professional service, what types of employees are necessary to have in the company? (eg. Software engineers etc.)

Software engineers form the backbone of any software solutions company for sure. However if you intend to grow into a company that provides more than just application development like us, you need more than just good software engineers.

On the business side, you need people with a clear vision to drive and front the company. You find that while there are many companies that develop applications out there, you rarely know who the management are. If issues arise during the development process, who do you really go to? We put our faces out confidently to tell people that we are proud of what we do, and if ever there are any problems you can come to us directly. Our reputation is at stake. We will solve it for you. We are very personal yet professional in the way we operate.

On the creative side, you need people with design and graphical mastery as we want our clients to not only get good technical work done, but also great design to dress up their products.

Lastly, you will need people with good project management and communications skills to help manage the relationship and communications with the clients.

Do you plan to grow Swagsoft into an international app development business?

While most of Swagsoft's clients are within the local region, we do service clients from other countries occasionally. We had worked with firms from Australia, UK and even as far as the US. So yes, it seems like we are naturally evolving into a company that serves international clients. We would definitely look into growing but only if it’s organic, justified with proper agenda and a strong and sustainable business model.


As a successful and qualified entrepreneur, what advice would you have for any young and budding entrepreneurs in the business world?

Always think about sustainability as a company. Most people would not think about that because it is really easy for a person to say that he is doing this for interest’s sake or passion, or simply just to realise a dream of owning a company. Unfortunately, the harsh reality for most companies without a sustainable business model is to crash and burn. If a company is dependent solely on investments or grants but generates very little cash to self-sustain, it is likely to run out of cash, and whether you like it or not, cash is the lifeblood of any company. Setting up a company is the easy part. Keeping it going is the challenge.If a company can self-sustain, it can eventually re-channel some of the resources to explore passionate business pursuits – which more often than not – carry a certain degree of risk.
And finally, always be humble and ready to learn from others. There's no room for entrepreneurs to be proud and arrogant, thinking they are the best. I have seen many people having tunnel vision and living in ivory towers, thinking their products or games are the best. Needless to say, some of them aren't around today anymore.

 The iBusiness Times would like to thank Mr Ngo Chee Yong.

Now, this business is clearly a leader in it's field, and combines the Creativity and Entrepreneurial Spirit, to produce expert service. This is something that is needed in today's society, as businesses grow, and new products and innovative ideas are developed, thus we have an amazing example before us.