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COVER STORY

Capable women we would indeed place more focus on helping
Women around the country continue to our portfolio companies adapt to the rap- SOUTHEAST ASIAN COUNTRIES WITH HIGHEST
RATIO OF WOMEN BUSINESS OWNERSHIP
make admirable progress in the business idly-evolving reality and think ahead in times 2020
world, as Vietnam, along with Thailand and of greater uncertainty.”
the Philippines (as the only three Southeast In a world influenced by VUCA (volatility, Philippines
Asian countries) ranked ninth, sixth, and sec- uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity), any
ond, respectively, in the MIWE report’s business that wants to survive and grow will Vietnam
Women’s Advancement Outcome category, need a DNA marked by high adaptability and
which measures women’s progress and the endless creativity to secure breakthroughs. Singapore
degree of marginalization economically and “MindX will keep protecting its DNA and
professionally as business leaders, professionals, promises to continue our efforts to create Thailand
entrepreneurs, and workforce participants. high-value, flexible, highly convertible models,
“The pandemic has adversely impacted building a business culture in which every Indonesia
every individual, business, and economy,” said employee has the ability to innovate and cre-
Ms. Wong. “Yet women entrepreneurs have ate,” Ms. Ha said. “This road will be long, Malaysia
shown their resilience by promptly adapting arduous, and challenging, but the harder it
to new and digital ways of working, reimagining is, the more excited and ready we are to enter Percentage of total business owners
existing models, and tapping into new business this new stage of society.” Source: Mastercard, 2020
opportunities. Mastercard is committed to
supporting governments and financial insti- Skills for success
tutions to create initiatives and programs that In Vietnam, Ms. Wong sees positive levels members and key stakeholders are important.
will empower women entrepreneurs to help of inclusion and recognition of the important Collaboration and working alongside these
drive Vietnam’s economic recovery.” role women play in society. According to two groups will create an inclusive and coop-
Along with the Mastercard Center for MIWE 2020, Vietnam has the second-highest erative environment that will yield better
Inclusive Growth, Mastercard is cooperating percentage of women-owned businesses (26.5 results. This new normal of relational leadership
with CARE to provide both funds and expertise per cent) in Southeast Asia. It also ranks an is considered to have more feminine qualities,
to 1,000 women microentrepreneurs in Hanoi impressive 25th worldwide in female business so I think women leaders can excel in this
and Ho Chi Minh City to drive a robust recov- ownership. “In my interactions with the busi- and recover their business in the post-pandemic

ery followed by sustained long-term inclusive ness community here, I’ve come across several period and lead it along the road to success.”
growth. Just last month, to help small and women leaders who have pivotal roles to play Ms. Vy has faced the same pressure as
medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) recover in leading conglomerates and corporations, other business leaders during these trying

from the pandemic and prepare for the future, banks, SMEs, and the public sector,” she noted. times, as the fund is determining how to

Mastercard launched the Digital Acceleration However, the pandemic has raised ques- ensure business performance while connecting

for Small Businesses microsite across most tions about whether the female leadership with staff and other stakeholders. In moments
of its Asia-Pacific websites, with information style is more effective than the traditional of frustration and discouragement, the

and resources on how to digitalize and run autocratic male leadership style. In Ms. Teo’s resilience of leaders allows them to reframe

businesses more efficiently. opinion, though, fewer people like top-down the situation in a positive way and give strength

The pandemic has proven women’s leaders these days, preferring to be “taken to the people around them, she believes. As
strength and endurance in coping with adver- care of” rather than “instructed”. most things appear unpredictable in the near
sity. Amid such an outbreak, a leader’s primary “The key matter is around empathy, sen- term, it is also imperative to act decisively,
responsibility is to keep team members safe, sitivity, warmth, and understanding,” she sug- express a clear vision, and communicate well
unified, and productive. Compassionate lead- gested. “Building relationships with team with employees and stakeholders. %
ership results in greater productivity, better

engagement, and improved well-being of
team members. Leadership during the pan-
demic aimed at ensuring safety for all team THE MASTERCARD INDEX OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS 2020

members, being compassionate and flexible,
and possessing the ability to reorganize work- New Zealand Tracking the progress of women entrepreneurs
loads while exceeding clients’ expectations and business owners representing 80 per cent
during what was a particularly difficult period, 1 Australia of the world's female workforce across 58 economies,
including 15 in the Asia Paci!c region.
according to Ms. Teo from Grant Thornton. 2 Thailand
“Do Ventures’ investment approach has 3 Chinese Taipei
not been affected by the pandemic” Ms. Vy 4 Hong Kong (China)
said. “We believe that the ability to invest 5 Philippines
early and make follow-on investments is crit- 6 Indonesia
ical to our portfolio companies’ success. 7 China
Therefore, we developed a comprehensive 8 Singapore
investment approach by investing in startups 9 Vietnam
throughout various stages, from Seed to Series 10 Malaysia Japan
B. In the process, we aim to lead the seed 11
round investment, then make follow-on invest- 12 South Korea
ments up to the B round, and at the same 13 India
time invite other reputable investors to co- Asia Paci!c Ranking 14 Bangladesh
invest in order to add additional value for 15
startups. Considering the current situation, Source: Mastercard, 2020
MARCH 2021 | VIETNAM ECONOMIC TIMES | 15