Jennie M. Xue

National Productivity and Post-Industrialism in 2013

  

[Read the article directly on TheJakartaPost.com.]

by Jennie S. Bev

For the first time after 15 years abroad, I am spending New Year’s Eve in Jakarta, my hometown. I recall how different things were during my childhood. Born and raised in the Menteng district around Cikini, Gondangdia, Sabang and Jl. Gereja Theresia, I would have been called an “inner city kid” in the US. Here, skyscrapers, businesses, embassies and government offices were everywhere. It was a convenient place to do business, but not to have a “normal” childhood.

Despite the child-unfriendly environment, it allowed me to ponder upon the meanings of many unanswered things, which helped me develop the mindset and skills required to survive in the diaspora. 

Unlike most of my friends who resided in the suburbs or other outer parts of Jakarta, I could not ride a bicycle. My parents said it was not safe for a fair-skinned little girl like me to ride a bike in the midst of heavy traffic. Other than this, I was also shielded from “inner city” crimes, so I stayed at home a lot. 

Books were my only friends, as I did not have any sibling to play with. I stayed in my room reading, studying and writing. Early on, I learned to be critical of things around me. I would search for meanings and debate. I would develop my own opinions and philosophize. 

When I was in sixth grade, I would type on my orange Brother typewriter pages of “what I think”. And as a member of the Cathay Pacific frequent flyer club for children, I handwrote letters to pen pals around the world. I had been a bilingual writer for as long as I could remember, which taught me to relate to people from faraway lands, some of which were pretty progressive.

They showed me how large the world was, far beyond the suffocating and chaotic atmosphere of inner-city Jakarta. After graduating from the University of Indonesia, I chose to follow my dream: merantau.

Now that I reside in Silicon Valley without an IT-related degree, I rely on critical thinking skills, creativity, entrepreneurship and a very strong urge to innovate. These traits were cultivated when I was in my room reading, studying and writing. Through books on various subjects, I entered a very different realm: A domain of highly intellectual and driven individuals who could make things happen with their bare hands and strong minds. 

Through books, I gained a faith in my own mind and an ability to create something out of nothing. In solitude, skill sets required in a post-industrialist world were developed.

Unitasking, Kunci Fokus Berkreasi

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oleh Jennie S. Bev

Saya termasuk pekerja multitasker, artinya dalam waktu yang sama saya mempunyai beberapa proyek yang perlu diselesaikan. Misalnya, disamping memulai sebuah perusahaan startup, saya juga menulis memoar dan mengisi beberapa media sebagai kolumnis tetap bulanan dan mingguan. Belum lagi beberapa organisasi non-profit yang membutuhkan advis-advis saya dari waktu ke waktu dan menyampaikan presentasi-presentasi berdasarkan undangan dari rekan-rekan bisnis dan akademik.

Di tahun yang baru, saya sudah tidak lagi mempunyai new year’s resolution seperti tahun-tahun yang lampau. Prioritasnya adalah fokus dan menyelesaikan hal-hal yang tertinggal dari tahun yang lampau. Ini bukan berarti mengerjakan tugas dengan lambat dan lemah lembut, namun  berfokus sepenuhnya dengan konsentrasi pikiran dan holistik mind-body-heart keseluruhan. Be mindful.

Multitasking is obsolete, sudah kuno. Sekarang waktunya untuk unitasking. Hanya mengerjakan satu hal saja sampai selesai, baru beralih. 

Sesungguhnya dengan multitasking, kita “mengejar” waktu yang terasa demikian singkat dan kurang. Dua puluh empat jam masih terasa belum cukup. Dan bagi mereka yang merasa “dikejar-kejar” waktu, ini sebenarnya adalah limiting belief dan bisa menjadi mental block.

Ide bahwa “waktu adalah uang” juga bisa menjadi bumerang. Ide ini dibawa oleh Benjamin Franklin yang ketika itu masih terkesima dengan Revolusi Industri, di mana waktu dan uang mempunyai hubungan yang searah: semakin banyak waktu yang digunakan untuk mengerjakan sesuatu, maka semakin banyak uang yang akan terkumpul.

Will a Financial Bubble Pop in 2013?

Download the article in Forbes January 2013

by Jennie S. Bev

The economic implosion of 2008, tech bubble bursting in early 2000s and the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis are popped financial bubbles. Yet such bubbles go back to the tulip mania in 1600s and the origins of the Great Depression of the1930s are two other such bubbles, further back in time.

Yale University lecturer and global equity investor Vikram Mansharamani in “Boombustology: Spotting Financial Bubbles Before They Burst” proposed five lenses to spot financial bubbles and make the necessary moves before it’s too late: microeconomics, macroeconomics, psychology, politics and biology. Every lens provides some insights into how bubbles are created and any combination of those lenses spells trouble. 

The two elements of microeconomics are supply and demand, which always find a way to achieve the so-called “equilibrium.” However, monetary policies often come into picture, which can tip the balance. Thus, both Milton Friedman and John Maynard Keynes’ arguments have their own strengths and weaknesses in the creation of financial bubbles.

Luar Biasa: Membangun Istana Pasir

Artikel terbaru yang dimuat di LUAR BIASA Januari 2013.

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Indonesia, India and Silicon Valley Diaspora

 

[Read Directly at TheJakartaPost.com.]

by Jennie S. Bev

A bill allowing dual citizenship for Indonesians living abroad is currently being mulled. I strongly support it for it provides ease for transnationalism to occur between nations so we can benefit from each other’s existence. As a Silicon Valley resident, I have come to observe Indonesian, Indian and Silicon Valley diasporas worldwide.

The First Congress of Indonesian Diaspora held in Los Angeles last July aimed to bridge Indonesia and the US with human capital. With 150,000 Indonesians and Americans with ties to Indonesia , both Indonesia and the US have a lot to gain from such a connection.

What is “diaspora” per se? Etymologically speaking, it is derived from the Greek words dia (across) and spreien (to sow or scatter seeds). It was first used in third century BC in a Hebrew scripture for Hellenic Jewish in Alexandria and was popularized in the 16th century with “black African diaspora” with slave trade from West Africa to the New World.

Colonially speaking, it is about dislocation from native homelands through migration, immigration and exile. Post-colonially speaking, it is transnational mobility and a hybrid between and within nations and cities.

Diaspora is often mistaken with “transnationalism”. The former is about the people, the subject of movement, while the latter is the force of the movement, which can be globalization or globalized capitalism. Transnationalism is not limited to the movement of people, but also movement of knowledge, technology and other cultural elements.

Entrepreneur Pasca Industri yang Sederhana

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oleh Jennie S. Bev

Bagi yang belum pernah ke Silicon Valley, mungkin membayangkan wilayah psikologis di California Utara ini sebagai tempat glamor dengan millionaire IT berseliweran sana-sini mengendarai mobil-mobil mewah. Tempat tinggal saya Santa Clara merupakan salah satu dari 37 kota di wilayah ini, di mana para raksasa IT ber-neksus: Adobe, Agilent, Apple, Cisco, eBay, Google, HP, Intel, Intuit, Nvidia, Oracle, Sandisk, Western Digital, Yahoo! dan masih banyak lagi.

Yang menarik bagi saya yang dilahirkan, dibesarkan dan menjadi dewasa di kota Jakarta, para milionaire Silicon Valley jauh lebih rendah hati dan mawas diri dalam soal gaya. Seharga satu tas Hermes, mereka bisa dirikan satu perusahaan dari kertas kosong. Tidak mengherankan jika kemewahan yang sia-sia merupakan “kebodohan” di mata mereka.

Almarhum Steve Jobs, yang pernah saya kunjungi kantornya di Cupertino sendiri hanya mengendarai Mercedes Benz. Mark Zuckerberg pendiri Facebook hanya mengendarai Acura. Dustin Moskovitz yang berusia 27 tahun adalah milyarder USD termuda di dunia menurut Forbes, dan ia hanya menetap di kondominium mungil dan mengendarai sepeda kayuh setiap hari ke kantor. 

Target Marketing

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oleh Jennie S. Bev

Pemasaran yang ditarget secara spesifik dikenal dengan nama “target marketing” (TM). Ini mirip namun tidak sama dengan “niche marketing” (NM). NM jauh lebih spesifik dan memfokuskan kepada ceruk spesifik dari suatu ceruk. TM lebih umum namun relevan, berbeda dari yang lain, dan dipasarkan dengan repetisi. Saya lebih condong menyebut TM sebagai “focused marketing,” namun istilah TM digunakan karena ini lebih popular.

Target marketing intinya merupakan fondasi setiap kegiatan perusahaan yang mengenali tujuan bottom line dengan menyamakan visi. Visi ini diterjemahkan sebagai “brand” dalam salah satu bentuk strateginya. Selain itu, TM sangat streamlined (“fat free marketing”) berdasarkan profil customer yang dituju.

Dari profil target customer, dua elemen utama yang harus diperhatikan adalah informasi selengkap mungkin mengenai profil customer dan kemampuan Anda untuk memenangkan mereka. Demografi dan psikografi tentu bisa diperoleh dari polling, survei dan berbagai focus group. Namun jangan sampai terbenam oleh data yang berlebihan. Simple is beautiful.

Analisis Strategis dan Efektif

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oleh Jennie S. Bev

Seorang manager mempunyai makna bagi organisasi dan subordinat apabila ia mempunyai kemampuan menganalisa yang strategis dan efektif. Ini artinya ia mempunyai keahlian (skill) metodologi dan kognitif yang memadai serta dibarengi dengan kemampuan memilah-milahkan data set yang sahih dan reliable. Dalam era serba instan dan global ini, ketepatan dan kecepatan serta rendah biaya merupakan kunci keberhasilan.

“Strategi” sendiri mempunyai arti yang berbeda bagi setiap orang. Strategi bisnis yang dianggap “baik” adalah strategi yang menghasilkan peningkatan, baik bottom line maupun kualitas. Strategi sendiri sesungguhnya adalah bagaimana menempatkan competitive advantage secara unik dan original di pasar sehingga mempunyai kelebihan dibandingkan dengan kompetitor.

Strategic planning process sendiri bisa dibedakan dalam beberapa kontinuum: ruang lingkup organisasi dan aktivitasnya, menemukan aktivitas yang sesuai dalam lingkungan organisasi, menemukan kesesuaian aktivitas dalam organisasi dengan kapasitas sumber daya, menerapkan perubahan di dalam organisasi, mengalokasikan sumber daya perusahaan, mempengaruhi strategi dengan nilai-nilai, ekspektasi, dan tujuan, dan mengenali arah organisasi dalam jangka panjang. Seorang manager sadar akan proses yang perlu dijalankan terlepas dari level manajerialnya.

Investment Grade for Indonesia?

by Jennie S. Bev

The recent Indonesia Investment Summit in Jakarta was a party filled with euphoria. Vice President Boediono, Indonesia Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) Chairman Chatib Basri, Minister of Trade Gita Wirjawan, Minister of Tourism and Creative Industry Mari Elka Pangestu, economists and investors in Indonesia all showed a positive attitude towards Indonesia’s potential. While both Fitch Ratings and Moody’s raised Indonesia’s credit rating to investment grade, Standard and Poor’s (S&P) hasn’t done this yet.

Economists are optimistic that next year’s growth would remain at 6.5% or even more, despite the global recession. With such a large domestic market, of which 53% live in urban areas, we can expect to see more ripple effects of the global economy in this growth market. The large population of 240 million people, of which 60% are under 39 years old, provide a ready workforce and the costs of doing business in Indonesia are competitive with other countries.

 Indonesia has many alluring factors, of course, but at the same time one has to strike a note of caution—can it be that good? For the challenges are also prevalent: lack of reliable infrastructure in between cities and islands, lack of reliable local suppliers, and lack of skills in this large labor pool.

Memoir: Diaspora, Love and Equality

 

[Read directly at TheJakartaPost.com.]

by Jennie S. Bev, Santa Clara 

I shared with a good friend that I don’t really know where I belong now. And I might always feel this way throughout my lifetime. He said, “You are lucky, Jen, because you have two homes. Many people don’t even have a home.”

How true.

I am blessed for having two diasporas: Indonesian and overseas Chinese in America. I have a home in the United States, a home I made for myself as an adult woman. I also have a childhood home in Indonesia, a home my parents made for me as a child and a young college student. China is another place I consider home, as it is the land of my ancestors where they left their footsteps and eventually left their legacy.

I have choices and I can choose one, two, or all three of them. Or, I can choose none of them. Sometimes it is dizzying, sometimes it is empowering. Most of the time, they are parts of me.

 The on-going foreclosure crisis in the United States, which started in 2007, has caused 13.5 million homes shattered, one of which was mine. I am now starting over with a positive balance sheet, as the negative equity resulting from the on-going economic crisis is now a history. Something bad turns out to be a blessing in disguise.

There is a silver lining in every cloud.  

Luar Biasa: Manajemen Waktu

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