1.
Opportunities and Challenges for
Young People in the Digital Age
Guest Speaker
Elliot Leung, Founder and CEO, Gaifong App
Oct 16, 2015
Institute of Education, Hong Kong

2.
A little about
me
Finding my way
Sa Pa, Vietnam (2015)

3.
One of the first video-conferences in HK! (1994)

4.
One of the first video-conferences in HK! (1994)

5.
• After Form 5, went to “United
Nations” school
• 200 students, 90 countries
• “UWC makes education a force
to unite people, nations and
cultures for peace and a
sustainable future"
• FREE! http://uwc.org
United World College (Italy)

6.
United World College (Italy)
• Living out my passion
(piano,
travel, art)
• Learned Italian
• Brought choir to UN
headquarters

7.
Academia
• MA Sociology and
Anthropology, University
of Edinburgh
• Learned Latin and Greek
• Research Assistant (Prof.
Chan)
• Tutor (HKU)
Last tutorial, Dec 2011

8.
Fung Global Institute
• Learning via Writing
• Circular Economy
• Sustainable Lifestyles
• Low-Carbon Financing
http://www.asiaglobalinstitute.hku.hk/en/publications/books-reports/

9.
Entrepreneur
• Learning by doing
• Founded Gaifong App
http://gaifongapp.com
• App for resource-sharing
with friends and
neighbours:
• Together we have
everything we need
@HKIRC Digital Marketplace 2015

10.
Spreading the message
Clockwise from left: Apple Daily, RTHK, unwire.hk

11.
“If you’ve got 1 year left in
your life, is this what you’ll
be doing?”
(Once-upon-a-time an
interview question at
AirBnb)
Linking Self and Society
Brian Chesky, AirBnb

12.
YOU are
different
Jobs are
different
Workplaces are
different
Understand:
= a successful, fulfilling life
(at least, more likely!)

13.
1. YOU are different

14.
Know this word: Millennials
Mille latin. = thousand; annus latin. = years

15.
Your first computerMy first computer
Macintosh Plus iPhone 3GS

16.
Millennials rising
• Millennial population
overtook boomer in 2014 (US)
• versus: Gen X (1960s - 80s);
Baby Boomers (post-WWII);
Silent (1920s-1940s)
• Population dynamics shape
consumer markets, politics,
work cultures.
No more gerontocracy

17.
Digital Natives - Connectedness
• 2.5 more Facebook friends
than our parents
• In HK: Average 3.5hrs on
mobile devices; 9.7%
“cannot bear
spending a day without
mobile device (HKFYG YRC,
2013)
• 71.3% use mobile devices
before they sleep (HKFYG
YRC, 2013)

18.
Search for Meaning
Scan here:
or: goo.gl/PEJCuZ

19.
Search for Meaning
Global Perspectives Barometer, 2015

20.
Specifically, products sharing:
• 42 percent (ages ~15-34) are likely to rent products from
others in (digital) sharing economy
• vs.
17 percent of global Generation X (ages 35 – 49) and
7 percent of global Baby Boomer (ages 50 – 64)
• Electronic devices, power tools, bicycles, clothing,
household items, sports equipment, cars, outdoor camping
gear, furniture, and homes.
Nielsen, Global Consumers Embrace the Sharing Economy, 2014

21.
World Economic Forum
Young Global Leaders Position Paper 2013
What makes millennials special:
• Not wish to inhabit a world which is depleted of value
• Want to own less, be more connected with others and
part of something bigger than their individual selves

22.
In sum:
• Embrace your difference
• Respect others’ differences as well

23.
2. Jobs are different
Economic growth will
come from very different
places

24.
Peter Thiel, CS183b, Stanford

25.
“K-waves” - Innovation Cycle

26.
Facebook, 2005

27.
The age of infinite scalability
• Jan 2004, launched in Harvard
• After one month, half of
undergrads in Harvard signed
up
• Two months: Stanford,
Columbia, Yale (Uni. email
address)
• Ten months: 1 million users
• Ten years: 1,500 million users

28.
Cover photo of Mark Zuckerberg
Map of all FB friends

29.
Look forward to 2025,
what do you see?

30.
Driverless Cars
Image: Mercedes-Benz

31.
Delivery Drones
image: shutterstock

32.
Solar Panels on every Roof
Mario Goebbels, CC 2.0

33.
Jobs you’ll be doing probably
don’t even exist today
• Sharability
Auditors
• Privacy
guardians
• Personality
engineers
• University
designers
• Aging
specialists
• Robot
trainers
• Cultural
architect
• Air tester

34.
Even today,
Only 27% work in a related field

35.
That’s not all…
Amazon launches Amazon Flex

36.
Rise of the “gig economy”
• Jobs separated into minutes,
rather than years
• “This on-demand, or so-called
gig, economy is creating
exciting economies and
unleashing innovation. But it
is also raising hard questions
about workplace protections
and what a good job will look
like in the future.”
Hilary Clinton

37.
Taskrabbit -
Get someone to pick up your dry-cleaning/wrap gifts

38.
DogVacay - babysit pets!

39.
Guess how
much I paid for
this video?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5HmCcjchX4

40.
Fiverr - Professional services in small units

41.
Fiverr - some examples

42.
Karl Marx
He is a hunter, a fisherman, a herdsman, or a critical critic, and must
remain so if he does not want to lose his means of livelihood; while in
communist society, where nobody has one exclusive sphere of activity but
each can become accomplished in any branch he wishes […] and thus
makes it possible for me to do one thing today and another tomorrow, to
hunt in the morning, fish in the afternoon, rear cattle in the evening,
criticise after dinner, just as I have a mind, without ever becoming hunter,
fisherman, herdsman or critic. This fixation of social activity […] is one of
the chief factors in historical development up till now.
German Ideology, 1845

43.
In sum:
• Broaden your horizons: the jobs you’ll be
doing probably don’t even exist yet
• Don’t be caught off-guard and end up in a
dying industry

44.
3. Workplaces are
Different

45.
1960 - factories

46.
1990 - cubicles

47.
2015 - Gaifong’s office… sort of
Cyberport Hong Kong, Co-working space

48.
CUHK report
• Number of co-working spaces in Hong Kong
0
10
20
30
40
50
2010 2015
43
3
Kowejko & Au, 2015, Crouching Tigers, Hidden Dragons

49.
A different Work Culture
• Annual Leave?
• Free lunch
• Free working
hours
• Emphasis on
“serious play”
and
“creative
confidence”
Corus Entertainment Offices

50.
Rise of the “Digital Nomad”
Remote workspace in Bali

51.
Stuart McDonald, travelfish.org
“I can run most of the business
from my iPhone, though in
practice I normally use my
laptop. This gives me a
tremendous amount of
flexibility, so it’s easy to jump
on my bicycle, ride down to the
beach 10 minutes away and
work away to the background
thunder of surf.”

52.
“Digital Nomads are individuals that leverage
technology in order to work remotely and live an
independent and nomadic lifestyle.”

53.
No wi-fi, no king
Clockwise from left: Zion National Park, Cyberport, Pacific Coffee

54.
Something to
think about?
Variation on the 80/20 rule
•Define tangible goals
•Eliminate distractions
•Automate simple tasks
•Liberate yourself from
traditional baggage

55.
In sum:
•Embrace your millennial
identity and difference
•Keep an open mind when
planning; things change
rapidly
•Look forward to the world
out there: it’s great

56.
Enjoy.
Questions/comments:
elliot@gaifongapp.com

57.
Recommended Reading.
Dowejko, M. and Au, K., 2015, Crouching Tigers, Hidden Dragons
http://entrepreneurship.bschool.cuhk.edu.hk/sites/default/files/
page/research-crouching-tigers-hidden-dragons/
dowejkoau2015crouchingtigershiddendragonshkstartupreport.pdf
Graham, P., 2012, How to Get Startup Ideas
http://www.paulgraham.com/startupideas.html
Botsman, R., 2010, What’s Mine is Yours: The Rise of Collaborative
Consumption
Available on Gaifong or from your school library