2324T2 Silicon Valley/Participant Information/ Kendrick Teo Tze Yu
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About Me
SMU email: kendrickteo.2021@scis.smu.edu.sg
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kendricktty/
Academic Year: Year 3 (2021)
Degree: BSc Computer Science (Major in AI & CPS with 2nd Major in Legal Studies)
Why Virtual TSM?
- What motivates you to join TSM?
We're used to hearing stories about the successes of startups like Facebook (now Meta) and are interested in learning about their best practices (particularly in the aspects of collaborative development and DevOps, to name a few), but behind each success lies a number of failures and learning lessons (I mean, even the brightest startup founder is human after all). I hope to go into this course learning more about what motivates startup founders and their employees to keep going, how they pick themselves up from failure, how they encourage others to learn and recover from mistakes, and continue to further their business and its vision. I also hope to use this course to clarify/debunk common misconceptions about startups and the people who decide to dive headlong into them. Not only is this knowledge useful for someone who wants to work in tech or start their own business, but I strongly believe that I can take away some good life lessons on adaptability and perseverance, applicable to many other aspects beyond entrepreneurship.
Additionally, while I am interested in learning from the big tech firms like Google and Meta, I am also interested in exploring smaller Silicon Valley startups and their motivations and practices - why they are doing what they're doing, how they have adapted to challenges and how they intend to adapt and grow in response to future changes in the world. If possible, I hope to explore non-US companies that have decided to set up their offices in Silicon Valley/the US, and learn about their reasons for doing so, their challenges adapting to the way of life in Silicon Valley/the US, and how they have overcome them. (One such company, as I've listed below, is Haier, who is a smart appliance pioneer, has adopted an interesting microenterprise culture to good results, and acquired GE Appliances in 2016).
Finally, of course, I hope to clear global exposure through this course. :))
- Where would you like to visit?
Silicon Valley: Amazon (for their cloud service and to understand why they switched back to monolithic architecture), Apple (for their beliefs on UI/UX design and why they don't seem to be that "innovative" anymore), Google (for their post-mortem culture), Meta (for Oculus!), Netflix (for their DevOps practices...how many monkeys do they have in their Simian army?)
Other US firms: UiPath, Etsy (for their continuous deployment pipeline and turning it into a cultural thing within the company)
Non-US firm: GE Appliances/Haier (for their internet of things ecosystem and microenterprises culture), Kone
Starting a business
- What types of business interest you?
Companies specialising in IoT, adding internet capability to everyday objects to make our interactions with such objects faster and easier
- What plans do you have in starting a business?
None at the moment
Past Experiences (optional)
Startup:
- NIL
Internships:
- NCS - RPA Intern: Years May '23 - Aug '23
CCA:
- SMU Ivory Keys - Logistics & Music Director: Years Jan '22 - Dec '22
- SMU Ivory Keys - Vice President: Years Jan '23 - Present
