There were three primary driving forces behind the design evolution and form of the Nimble So we started with a clean sheet and a list of things that could not be changed and a list of what had to be improved. We listened to our customers to understand what they liked and what needed to be improved. Made the breech easier to open and close.Improved the strength of our parts and heat deflection temperature.Increased the ease of installation and use.We have kept all the nice features of the original Nimble. With the Flex you can position the drive cable where you need it for your printer. Introducing the Nimble V3 or better known as the Flex.īased on the same principles that made the Nimble and Sidewinder so great, the Flex does away with the need of two separate models. The Nimble is a response to this frustration. We looked at the existing options, there was nothing suitable. Bowden tubes came along but must be banned. Grab could also see its business affected as its customers grapple with inflation and rising interest rates, Assoc Prof Pangarkar said.Īcross its operations, Grab’s foray into the digital banking space will remain its “weakest link” with capital likely required to keep the new venture going, said Mr Tiruchelvam.In the beginning, there were direct drive extruders, they were heavy. While Southeast Asia remains a bright spot, growth could slow with the ongoing Ukraine war and declining demand from the United States, said Ms Yau. Grab is also not immune to an economic downturn in its key markets. “Human resource is a key component of costs, and it is important to manage them to achieve profits,” said Associate Professor Nitin Pangarkar from the National University of Singapore Business School. The company's aggressive hiring during the pandemic boom and rapidly rising salaries for tech roles also meant it had to be more judicious with staff costs, other experts said. “Grab’s management may have viewed its headcount as bloated,” said Mr Nirgunan Tiruchelvam, head of consumer and internet at investment advisory firm Aletheia Capital. The Singapore-based ride-hailing and food delivery giant said last September it had no plans for mass layoffs. But in December, it put a freeze on hiring and pay raises for senior managers, and slashed travel and expense budgets. One area that Grab needed to be leaner is in its staff count.Īs other technology firms axed jobs in the thousands, Grab added more than 3,000 employees last year, largely because of its acquisition of Malaysian supermarket chain Jaya Grocer. “There is a long journey ahead after breakeven.” “I actually think that Grab is confident about its breakeven target but as the fourth quarter approaches, they will need to think about what happens afterwards,” said Ms Yau. Rather, the firm is mulling over the route to take after turning a profit. In Grab’s case, the latest job cuts are unlikely to be due to investor pressure for profitability given how the firm has “a very healthy” net cash liquidity of US$5 billion at the end of the first quarter, Ms Yau told CNA. “Essentially they serve similar objectives – to make organisations leaner, more efficient and more adaptable to the changing market.” For tech companies, it happens on an even shorter cycle,” said Ms Vion Yau, insights lead at venture builder Momentum Works. “Corporate restructuring, cost-cutting and layoffs happen once every few years for large, established companies. That said, challenges lie ahead in the form of still-rising interest rates, a souring economic environment and the rise of artificial intelligence, they added. In a letter sent to employees, chief executive Anthony Tan said the cuts were a strategic reorganisation to adapt to the operating environment, and not “a shortcut to profitability”.Īnalysts agreed, noting that the company is “firmly” on the path to profitability, especially as demand for ride-hailing continues to recover across the region. It is targeting to hit adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) breakeven in the fourth quarter of this year. The retrenchments came as Grab is fighting to turn a profit and win back investors. The Nasdaq-listed technology firm said on Tuesday (Jun 20) it would be shedding 11 per cent of its workforce, its biggest round of job cuts since the pandemic. SINGAPORE: Grab’s decision to slash more than 1,000 jobs stems from the need to address a “bloated” headcount and remain nimble for challenges ahead, analysts told CNA.
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