The millennial women are courageously chasing their dreams! Business is no more a new deal to them, not just in conventional sectors like handicrafts, food, fashion, and entertainment, but also in the socioeconomics, finance, commerce & trade realms, and technology. The 21st-century women can be found everywhere, displaying a statement to the world that they are second to none. Especially, the technology sector which is perceived to be ruled by men have also started witnessing great women in the Board Rooms. Indeed, there are only a handful of women in the sector, but they never fail to bring something different to the table and stand as an inspiration. Among such praiseworthy personalities in technology, Sabina Shaikh is a name we can never miss.

With the ability to work with determination, critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and strong technical skills, today, she is a successful entrepreneur in Malaysia. We believe that leaders like Sabina will empower the budding generation to fiercely face the hurdles and pursue their passion. Women Entrepreneur India engages in an insightful conversation with her to deduce more about her inspirational journey.

Take us through your early educational journey and industry experience.

Despite hailing from a family that is into the travel and hospitality business, I was intrigued by the amazing potential of technology. Innovations and advancements never failed to fascinate me, therefore, I decided to pursue my bachelor’s degree in Computer Science. My professional journey began as an IT Analyst at Hewlett Packard Enterprise. My career witnessed growth and I got an opportunity to work with large technology firms such as FIS Global (erstwhile SunGard) and Ribbon Communications (Malaysia) before venturing into entrepreneurship.

Give a brief on your brainchild. What important factors make MPower a preferred IT partner for your clients?

As an IT Services, Consulting, and Staffing firm, MPower focuses on cutting-edge technologies such as Data Engineering, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Thing (IoT), and Robotics Process Automation. We offer end-to-end tech services to our customers ranging from Consulting to Product Engineering and Hiring/Deploying IT resources with the right skills and expertise.

Headquartered in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, we partner with global organizations across industries to simplify, strengthen and transform their businesses. Since 2019, we have been working with global clients from Banking, Insurance, Oil & Gas, and Manufacturing industries in Malaysia, India, the US, and Thailand.

Speaking of why businesses choose us, we are proudly a result-driven firm. Our success is defined by the results we deliver to our clients. We listen to them and understand their needs to not only meet their requirements but also to diligently exceed expectations.

What motivated you to establish MPower? What are the various responsibilities that you shoulder as the CEO?

While I decided to take a break from my career to look after my little daughter, I had enough time to explore my interests. I began focusing on the future and wanted to start something of my own. It was not an overnight decision, but after several months of brainstorming, I chose to stick to my expertise and pursue my entrepreneurial journey in Technology. Although this is a competitive sector, it is ever-changing; there is always room for improvement and opportunities for new ideas.

“Trying and failing is better than not trying at all, you only learn from these experiences”

As the CEO of MPower, my prime responsibility is to focus on business growth and customer acquisition. I primarily handle Customer Engagements, Consulting, and Project Management in my current capacity. I mostly spend time talking to customers, understanding their pain points, their vision, and offering realistic solutions to achieve the desired result.

What industrial gap are you striving to address with your company?

Today, organizations are embarking on Emerging Technologies to transform their businesses, increase productivity, and make their business processes more efficient with the goal of adding value to their consumers. However, one of the biggest challenges faced by these organizations to executive emerging tech projects is to find the right talent with the desired skills. There are many tech innovations today, but the skill gap is also much higher.

Apart from lack of right talent, often times organizations goals, procedures and processes are unclear. MPower was ideated to address these existing challenges for our clients. Our primary goal is to solve these complex problems for organizations.

What are some of the most challenging aspects of your role as the Founder? How do you overcome them?

The pandemic has casted a gloomy cloud of doubt and uncertainty in all industries. For us, it was hiring the right talent for our projects in Malaysia, Thailand and the US. We adopted permanent work-from-home lifestyles and Agile Methodologies, invested in smarter project management tools, hired, and trained self-starters. Having a fun environment and keeping open culture where each employee feels confident and comfortable has helped us bring innovations in business processes and meet customer requirements.

Another daunting challenge was to acquire new customers as their budgets were frozen due to the outbreak. Taking one day at a time, we decided to offer free services to customers with pressing needs. Eventually, we were able to sign 10 new clients in our first year, 50 percent of these customers were fortune 500 companies.

Sabina Shaikh, Founder & CEO, Mpower

As a leader in the dynamic tech industry, Sabina emphasizes that we have to be updated with the market trends to succeed in any field. She loves reading and meeting successful people to stay aligned with the periodic evolutions in the industry.