Entrepreneurship: Nature or Nurture?

Life Sciences alumnus Shamir RAHIM (right), Founder of VersaFleet, together with other NUS alumni entrepreneurs share their personal motivations, tribulations and insights on navigating the start-up ecosystem.

Q: What are key qualities entrepreneurs should ideally possess?

Shamir: One thing often not talked about is that the role of the founder changes as the company grows. You might be a product manager at the start, and then an engineer; and when you restructure with growth, the way you do things has to change. It is not a ‘one-trick pirate ship captain’ thing, because one day the sole pirate ship needs to turn into a naval force.

Q: In your opinion, then, are entrepreneurs made or born?

Shamir: To use a scientific analogy: a bacterial system might randomly have a gene for antibiotic resistance, but you need the right conditions for the gene to express itself. I liken this to entrepreneurship: you need the right conditions to bring out what might be within you — and NOC did that for me.

Q: What was the biggest challenge in your entrepreneurship journey, and how did you overcome it?

Shamir: One of the biggest challenges during our first five years was the change of staff. For example, you start the company with your first few team members who follow you for years and believe in your vision. Their departure can be painful, and you also develop a survivor’s guilt. But you just have to wrap your head around it, wish them well and prop them up if need be.

Q: Do you think entrepreneurs by choice have the same kind of drive as those who do it out of necessity? 

Shamir: The ‘educated entrepreneur’ is a recent phenomenon. In our parents’ time, you started a business if you couldn’t find a job. But we live in a time of abundance, and many entrepreneurs are doing it by choice. That doesn’t make them any less driven. Those who are propelled by necessity might be hungry for success, but they might also be a bit raw and make knee-jerk decisions. Those who start companies by choice might have the benefit of clarity of thought to make better long-term decisions – so it kind of balances off.

Q: Entrepreneurship is seen as a national agenda — what more do you feel can be done to grow the start-up sector? 

Shamir: There are quite a lot of barriers to getting a government contracts, especially when a lot of the sectors are state-invested. My first big contract was from a German MNC, followed by a Swiss MNC – I am still waiting for my Singapore contract!

Q: What would be your advice for aspiring entrepreneurs?

Shamir: Entrepreneurship might seem like the flavour of the moment, but it isn’t for everybody. You might feel a social pressure to start something, or put on your resume that you founded this, that and other. I am a very pragmatic guy, I have my study loans to settle, my parents’ expectations to manage. So, I started only five years after graduation. If your moment comes earlier, such as when you are an undergraduate — great. But it is never too late to start your own business when you find your passion.

The article first appeared in the October to December 2019 issue of The AlumNUS magazine. Shamir’s part was extracted for this article with permission from the NUS Office of Alumni Relations.

Read the full article at bit.ly/NatureorNurture.