Now, an app developed in Malaysia promises to relieve them of this headache. Known as “WorqApp”, it helps the man in charge delegate tasks and monitor progress, and even serves as a communications platform on which employees can exchange messages and organise meetings.
In short, it is a tool to help top-level management turn their plans into actionable items. Packed with intuitive reminders and nudges, the app can act as an electronic personal assistant (PA) for everyone in the office.
WorqApp has already attracted the attention of investors in Sweden, according to Hassan Mehmood, one of the three partners of Nib Technologies, the company that developed the app.
The company recently secured a pre-seed fund of US$1 million (RM4.2 million) through a funding round led by MegaDeals Advisory, a unit of MegaDeals Invest, to underwrite the cost of taking WorqApp to the next level — making it a super app.
Nib Technologies had received its first round of funding, a modest sum of US$200,000, shortly after it was set up in 2018 to work on a prototype based on a brainchild of Hassan.
The core team of Nib Technologies are Hassan, who hails from Pakistan, Jonas Lind, who is from Sweden and Malaysian Teh Chee Hoe. All of them were senior executives at local IT firm HeiTech when they quit to pursue their dream for WorqApp.
Each has his own area of expertise. Hassan cut his teeth in software development, Teh is in sales and Lind came in with management and consulting experience.
It was the difficulty Hassan faced in mobilising his team to execute HeiTech’s overall strategy that got him started on finding a solution.
Hassan sold his idea for a meeting management platform to Lind, who then roped in Teh.
The trio realised early that meetings were only a part of the productivity puzzle. They went for a bigger challenge — solving problems that managers faced when they tried to put a new strategy in place.
Funding the dream
Just like any startup, funding was a challenge.
“We realised that we needed a unique selling point,” Hassan told FMT Business. That came with the completion of their first functioning prototype, helping them secure the initial investment of US$200,000.
“This lent us additional credibility when we pitched it (our app) to other investors later,” he added.
MegaDeals Invest, a top-tier fund in itself, recently stepped in with the additional million. It has worked with Fortune 100 companies and has played a role in more than 400 scaling up efforts across the world.
A dime a dozen
There already are many “strategy execution” apps competing to help top-level management achieve its goals.
WorqApp’s unique proposition is its ability to combine all the many variations into a single “super app” with scalability features.
“It’s similar to WhatsApp with many work-related tools to ensure effective execution,” Hassan explained. At the same time, it is a platform that is familiar and easy to use.
“It’s like a plug-and-play. It can be deployed in a private cloud. This makes it suitable for companies with up to 8,000 staff,” he added.
The good news for Nib Technologies is that WorqApp is now ready to be deployed.
The team is working on adding new features such as an integration with ChatGPT that will enable users to utilise the AI chatbot through the app.
Such advances are expected to support penetration into markets in Europe, the Middle East and Asia. The team hopes to have 1,000 companies using their software in three years time.