What do you say about the advantages and disadvantages of Vietnamese enterprises after many years working with them?

In addition to supporting Vietnamese tech firms to deploy their business activities in overseas markets, Vinasa also brings Vietnam-made IT products and technological solutions to participate in international competitions.

Vinasa is a member of the jury board of many international awards. I personally believe that Vietnam’s products and solutions are in no way inferior to good products in the region, and they are sometimes even better.

Of course, some countries have very outstanding products developed with big money and effort. Hong Kong (China), Singapore and Taiwan (China), for example, have products related to 3D glass and personal wearables that were once thought could exist only in science-fiction films.

The weak point of Vietnamese firms when participating in international competitions is the poor foreign language and presentation skills. In principle, the content they use to attend competitions, from the approach, posing problems and presentation, should differ from that used when selling products. Vietnamese firms use the same presentation versions for both purposes.

For international companies, making a presentation for an award is like a performance. They prepare scripts, clips, demos and even wear eye-catching clothes to leave a good impression on jury members.

As Vietnamese firms are weak at presentation, they cannot get high scores at international competitions. Two years ago, the solution of a Vietnamese firm got the highest score in the first round, but it failed in the second presentation round. It was really a pity.

How about Vietnamese firms’ capability to solve problems around the world?

Foreign companies and partners have problems which are different from problems in Vietnam. Many of them are original and uncommon, but still can be solved well by Vietnamese companies.

A Vietnamese firm, for example, fulfilled an order by a Japanese partner – creating a bot for trading on bourses and exchanges. It also spent $50,000 to install the bot to play and win money with the products it creates.

In Japan, the demand for ‘virtual’ lovers is high. Japanese are willing to spend money to buy ‘lovers’ with hair, faces and clothes as they want. You might think that this only exists in Hollywood movies, but it exists in reality and Vietnam’s firm has done this for a Japanese partner. The products have been selling well.

What do you think are the opportunities for Vietnamese enterprises in the international market?

Vietnam has great opportunities in the international market. The problem is if we have enough resources and if enterprises are ready for cooperation. We need to prepare resources, especially in human resources and technological investment.

The common problem around the globe is the serious shortage of IT workers. In developed countries, students hesitate to study IT, which is a difficult major. They tend to study finance and real estate.

Meanwhile, IT applications, digital transformation and technological solution applications are booming, leading to higher demand for workers in the field of technology. As their human resources are limited, they have to hire workers from other countries. And that is an opportunity for Vietnamese businesses.

Besides, because of the influence of the US-China trade conflict, many ‘big companies’ have to seek opportunities in other countries, which explains why many big corporations have made investments in Vietnam recently.

Some years ago, west European countries mostly placed orders with east European countries, especially Ukraine. However, because of the Russia-Ukraine war, west European countries have to seek other partners and Vietnam can be a ‘candidate’ with great advantages to become a partner in Europe. 

Previously, the largest traditional markets for Vietnamese firms were America, Europe and Japan. But now, the demand for partners to develop software and services in Southeast Asia and Asia is increasing rapidly. Some markets are growing very rapidly, such as Hong Kong, South Korea and Singapore.

Vinasa, after talking with its member companies recently, can see an opportunity for cooperation among companies that provide services overseas and companies that specialize in making products in the domestic market. I think this could be an effective way to bring Vietnam’s products to the international market.

Binh Minh