By Philip Stanfield

Kicking off at the very spot where Malaysia proclaimed independence in 1957, the Kuala Lumpur (KL) Marathon is a powerful and mesmerising showcase for modern life in South East Asia.

The gruelling 26 mile route winds through the capital’s diverse patchwork of historical landmarks, tourist-friendly thoroughfares and state-of-the-art corporate towers. It effortlessly captures the essence of a city reaching forward but remaining fully connected to its past.

Spurred on by hundreds of thousands of roaring supporters lining every inch of the sun-bleached streets of KL the 18,000 thousand runners in last month’s event battled exhaustion, stifling humidity and the distraction of a few well-known Asian celebrities as they raised more than 500,000 Malaysian Ringgits (RM) for a host of worthy causes. We, at SLA Mobile, were proud to be running with them.

Attracting the backing of a host of companies – including Liverpool Football Club’s new sponsor Standard Chartered – the marathon’s ‘Run for a Cause’ initiative was a great way for firms to get involved and raise funds for five major local charitable initiatives including the Children’s Environmental Heritage Foundation and the Malaysian Association for the Blind.

Led by our fearless internet guru, Richard Barnes Webb, SLA Mobile’s team of four amateur athletes not only raised an amazing RM40,000, approximately £8,000, for good causes but also managed to set the fastest time in the Corporate Challenge category.

The opportunity to run alongside Malaysia’s Miss World winner, Thanuja Tnanthan, may have provided just a little extra encouragement as the team paced through stifling temperatures, but of course the main reason we were taking part was to help make a difference and support the communities in which we work.

Similar to Belfast, it is generally recognised in KL that an organisation’s responsibilities should extend beyond business hours and Corporate Social Responsibility is a key part of the fabric of doing business here and something we take very seriously. Business isn’t just about making money; it’s also about giving something back to society wherever you are.

Social responsibility is in the very DNA of SLA Mobile and in fact was written into its mission statement when the company was founded in 2003.

As we’ve grown locally in Belfast and internationally in Dusseldorf, London and here in Kuala Lumpur, we’ve been proud to lend our support to helping worthy causes through special fund-raising events, donations and partnerships. Last year, for example, we took to the skies with a staff skydive in aid of Action MS in Northern Ireland.

Malaysia and KL have benefited enormously from Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the last decade particularly in the high-tech sector with the Multimedia Super Corridor (MSC) providing encouragement and incentives for firms to locate on its shores. But it is reassuring to see that the majority of companies that are flourishing here, including SLA Mobile, are still actively supporting the communities which produce our pool of employees.

Like many South East Asian countries, poverty is a controversial issue in Malaysia and even in KL – which has benefited from strong economic growth – about a quarter of the six million plus population is estimated to live in squatter settlements. For local charities working to pull thousands of people out of poverty, international businesses and their zany fund-raising activities are vital.

As for our involvement, in spite of a few aching legs and throbbing feet we’re proud of the team’s achievements and the generous support given across the entire organisation towards their endeavours. The date for the 2011 KL Marathon, 26th June, has already been ring-fenced in the diaries. Maybe by then our feet will have cooled off just enough for our second race. But before that, it’s time for a little well deserved summer break in Puerto Banus and a chance to watch the world go by with the family.

By Philip Stanfield

Published in the Belfast Newsletter as part of the East meets West series, part three of five.

Ask any seasoned traveller, people are largely the same wherever you go. Some things need time for adjustment and understanding like local laws and odd delicacies, equally attempts at humour are best left to the brave and the bold – at least until you’re well settled in. My motto is ‘be polite, speak slow, and smile.’

Wherever you are, the people around you are usually working, living, loving and generally wanting for the same things as folks back home.

My journeys to Malaysia are an example of great people-focused service. It all kicks off with a chat, coffee and haircut by Cathy in Donaghadee-based Kelly Cowans, Northern Ireland’s L’Oreal award-winning salon, before my wife Joanne takes me the airport.  Some twenty four hours later I walk into my accommodation in downtown Kaula Lumpur (KL) to be greeted by the concierge saying “Welcome back Mr Philip”.  Whether Donaghadee or KL it’s the little touches count.

Customer services are driving the mobile market too as consumers across the globe demand the latest technology and data services quickly and at the lowest prices. The pace of the sector is creating new opportunities for hi-tech Northern Ireland firms as global operators scramble to satisfy consumers from Strabane to Singapore or Seattle.

Local staff at SLA Mobile’s Centre of Excellence, based in the Malaysian capital of KL, are quick to remind us that until only recently Asian consumers had to look on enviously as their European cousins worked and grappled with the latest technology trends. Boy has that changed. IPhones and smartphones are now just as common on the streets of KL as they are in the leafy suburbs of Belfast.

Helped by recent price declines, smartphones are within reach of the growing middle-classes in Southeast Asia’s top six economies; Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines Indonesia and Vietnam.  That’s a market of nearly 500 million people.

Manufacturers are rising to the challenge and shipments of smartphones this year are forecast to rise to 9.7 million units in Southeast Asia, more than three times the forecast level of growth for mobile phones in the region.

The boon in availability is good news for consumers, operators and manufacturers, but it is also providing a wealth of opportunities for mobile data and service providers in a position to reach the growing markets.

In Indonesia, for example, we recently unveiled a new mobile advertising service for mobile operators. Designed by our team in KL, it is now in use in Indonesia enabling our customer to offer its 25 million mobile customers cheaper internet access in return for receiving targeted adverts.

With almost all countries in Southeast Asia boasting 3G, services and delivery here are largely similar to that in Europe and is often back by familiar global brands such as Vodafone. Indigenous  providers, although not widely know in Northern Ireland, also command a lion’s share of the market with firms like Indonesia-based Indo XL and SingTel, representing two of Southeast Asia’s largest telecoms operators.

Mirroring established consumer markets in Europe and USA, each anticipated launch, handset unveiling or new service offering is watched and gossiped on intensely by trade and consumers alike. For example, excitement is already building here for the forthcoming Communicasia expo in June and the 2010 Mobile Asia Congress (MAC) which takes place in November.

For firms like SLA Mobile, it represents an opportunity to get to understand more about our markets, establish new contacts and reconnect with old ones. Importantly it gives us a chance to review the technology and opportunities that are coming down the line.

Drawing a lot of early excitement is the Mac’s first-ever App Planet event which features app developer conferences with top mobile providers, app exhibitions and networking. But whether you’re a fan or not, there’s no denying that the Apple iPhone and its ‘apps store’ reins supreme here just as it does at home.

With stylish good looks and game-changing functionality, the iPhone is the most talked about and most wanted handset in Malaysia. Mind you there are lots of cheap knock-off imitations flooding the market too. Most of the fakes lack basic functionality, in fact some cannot even make calls, but the eerie aesthetic similarities make them notoriously difficult to tell apart from the original and fool thousands of bargain-hunters.

With consumers constantly wanting to increase their street credibility, access to the latest technology and save some cash there will probably always be a demand for cheap imitations and not just in KL. In Northern Ireland you’ve probably seen one or two suspicious vendors at the open air markets or designer goods with prices that really are too good to be true.

It just underlines what we already know; people and demands for bargains really are the same wherever you go.