Chapter 8: Projects Rolling On

This chapter told us about Skali for the first project NeoFission at year 2000. Trinity Network is first customer was using NeoFission where is basic information website for small company. After one year, they have got high-profile project from OIC Networks in OIC Exchange website. The purpose of the website was to bridge the Muslim communities within the Organisation of Islamic Conference countries, hence increasing interconnectivity among OIC individuals, corporations and government bodies. The reason why Skali choose was they have everything what OIC Networks want. Besides that, they have proposition unique.

Another customer is Malaysian Airports. Malaysian Airports are the most important customer because Malaysian Airports is shareholder. At year 2002, Skali won a RM3 million contract to build a website for the Employees Provident Fund (EPF). That was a tough one to tender for because there were about 30 other competitors bidding for the same project. But Skali have a big problem because EPF don’t want a basic website. EPF want to be interactive where members could log on to make changes to their addresses and other personal details.

But Skali can solve a problem. It is because they have experience about Malaysian Airports before it . But Skali have a big problem where they have don’t enough money. They have try approached a few commercial banks for the loan but the banks didn’t gave that loan. But Skali have lucky. It is because the Ministry of Finance had come up with Malaysian Debt Ventures (MDV), a project funded by the Japanese government to help local technology projects gain access to project financing capital. They have got it.

One project that Skali lost is Malaysian Airlines. Skali didn’t have the project because it involved building many components that Skali didn’t specialize in. Another project that Skali lost out on was the Putrajaya website.

Chapter 7: Finding a Solution

This chapter explained about Tengku Farith finds out the solution for Skali. First, he tell about Skali have developed their own portal at 1997. They have needed Content Management System (CMS). The CMS can be easy all of data from various content partners. At the same time, they have a financial problem where they have must good decision. The decision are they have using Open Source platform for develop that system. Exactly, the decision is very good for their company. It is because they have accepted deal from the government and private company.

They have also suggested a deal to Media Digital Alliance (MDA), the CMS project who is handle by Ivan Hoo and Megat Husni. The early version of CMS who developed by Ivan and Megat was using for Skali.com. When the product developed and improved, Skali have combined new features in their portal. Skali.com is a trial for new CMS program which branded NeoFission.

In the middle year 1999, they have got a pretty mature project. At the August of 1999,they entered into the payment gateway business via a joint venture with a company called Camtech Asia IT&T. Their contract with AltaVista has been ending at March 2000 and they did not to renew it.

But this chapter, I’ve learned something. It is sound like “One of the things any business owner must learn is to let go of ties that are no longer working. I know this sounds very ruthless, but it is the most practical way to get on in life and career. Like a romance gone sour, we had to look deep within us to see where we had gone “wrong”, and in the end we parted ways.”

Skali are one of leader for Open Source. The portal first in Malaysia are using PHP programming for Skali also. At the 2001, they have a detail report about Open Source industry to government and they have good luck. It is because the government who is leader by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohammad received their report.