THE YEAR AHEAD - Association of Consulting Engineers Singapore

Interview Interv
Inter
Mr Prakash Somosundram, Chair of the ACE Communications Subcommittee, speaks to SPRINGnews
in the final instalment of a seven-part Q&A series with the Action Community for Entrepreneurship (ACE).
14
Q&A withACE
BuIldINg FoR ThE FuTuRE
SPRINgnews: what were some of
the key initiatives undertaken in
2012 to raise awareness of Ace and
entrepreneurship in Singapore?
Mr Somosundram: 2012 was a year
when we laid the foundation for the
future. We began our foray into social
media, establishing our presence
on platforms such as Facebook and
Youtube. Another initiative was the
ACE starter Kit, an online collection
of discounts and free subscriptions
for start-up related products and
services.
to support more entrepreneurshiprelated
events, we set up the Feed
the Founders Programme, which
encourages start-up networking events
by providing the social lubricant – the
all-important food and drinks. the
new ACE Booster Pack is a bag full of
goodies and toiletries to give start-ups
a morale boost for the long hours that
they have to put in.
SPRINgnews: what has the response
been to these efforts?
Mr Somosundram: i think ACE’s
profile as a friend and supporter of
entrepreneurs in singapore has grown.
By engaging the entrepreneurship
community, we have gained
greater insights into the challenges
entrepreneurs are facing. this allows us
to further develop our online platforms
so that we can go beyond the traditional
model of supporting events to one
where support is available anywhere
and anytime.
SPRINgnews: what is in the
pipeline for the communications
Subcommittee in 2013?
Mr Somosundram: Building on
the momentum in 2012, we are
developing a new initiative
called ACE Conversations. this
will be an engaging series of
interactions with start-ups to
look at how they can contribute
to a more vibrant start-up
community in singapore.
SPRINgnews: 2013 marks the 10th
year since Ace was set up. how do
you plan to celebrate Ace’s 10th
anniversary?
Mr Somosundram: this will definitely
be an exciting year, both for ACE and for
me. i started as a participant in the early
years and moved on to contribute as an
EXCO member. ten years is an amazing
milestone and i am proud to say that
ACE has played a key role in shaping the
dynamic entrepreneurship ecosystem
we have today. We are planning a month
of entrepreneurship events to mark
the anniversary.
We are also working towards launching
ACE’s new branding in conjunction with
this key milestone. While we will retain
the heritage and brand equity of ACE,
we also want to add more dynamism to
depict the new direction that ACE will
be heading towards in the next 10 years
and beyond.
SPRINgnews: what are your wishes
for Ace and Singapore’s start-up
scene over the next 10 years, and
how can they be realised?
Mr Somosundram: My wish is for
ACE to continue working closely with
singapore’s entrepreneurs, to serve
them in the best way possible. to achieve
this, we need to have both the private
and public sectors striving towards the
common goal of building and sustaining
a vibrant, exciting entrepreneurial
community in singapore.
“ACE’s profile as a friend and supporter of
entrepreneurs in Singapore has grown.
By engaging the entrepreneurship community,
we have gained greater insights into the challenges
entrepreneurs are facing.” Mr Prakash somosundram