Founder checklist
A practical reality check for founders expanding into Asia
NO BS is not for every company, at every moment.
This checklist helps founders decide when it makes sense to work with NO BS and when a full-time hire or different path may be more appropriate.
1. You’re still early in the market
If you’re a young company (often sub-$10m revenue), you don’t yet have:
brand pull
local proof
default credibility
Engage NO BS if you need to build judgement and trust in-market before committing to long-term headcount.
2. Your operating model can flex
Early Asia work optimises for outcomes, not internal comfort.
This only works if your company can move on:
pricing
contracts
service levels
approvals
Engage NO BS if you’re willing to adapt how you operate to learn what actually works locally.
3. Runway makes reversibility important
When runway is finite, fixed bets are risky.
Working with NO BS makes sense when:
upfront cost needs to stay contained
incentives are aligned to outcomes
urgency is shared
If speed and reversibility don’t matter, committing early is easier to justify.
4. Geography rewards experience
Asia is not one market.
Engaging NO BS is particularly useful when:
budgets and decision-makers are concentrated (e.g. Singapore hosts 4000+ regional HQs from Google to L’oreal)
being physically based in the region matters i.e. zoom calls don’t work
existing relationships with decision makers matter
language, norms, or networks matter
early credibility unlocks access faster than cold starts
Heavily regulated industries (banking, aviation, payments) are usually less suitable.
5. You are clear on the outcome
This kind of engagement fails with fuzzy goals.
A clear objective sounds like:
“$250k ACV in Malaysia within 12 months.”
“10 meetings a month with marketing directors at FMCG companies in Singapore”
“6 logos in 6 months in APAC ahead of our Series A raise”
“1 pilot a month with developers at AI companies”
“Decide whether Australia has the pipeline to support a full time sales hire”
Engage NO BS if you know what you’re trying to achieve, even if you’re unsure how to get there.
6. Your offering can adapt
Real market conversations surface real asks:
localisation
onboarding changes
compliance adjustments
pricing or payment flexibility
timezone support
Engage NO BS if your product or service can bend without weeks of internal friction.
7. This is a top-level priority
Early Asia work requires senior involvement.
For the first 3–6 months, founders and CROs need to:
stay close
make fast calls
unblock issues
review weekly
Engage NO BS if you’re prepared to stay involved
8. You need to understand how deals actually move in Asia
Enterprise deals here are rarely bottom-up.
Budgets and authority:
don’t percolate evenly
often sit with CXO / MD / GM levels
increasingly involve global HQs in the US or EU
Engage NO BS if you need senior access, top-down motion, and long-horizon relationship building — not just more activity.
9. You need help separating signal from noise
Asia expansions stall quietly.
Common friction points include:
pilots without senior sponsorship
subsidised POCs anchoring poor pricing
deal cycles stretching as decisions centralise
losses to “let’s revisit next year” and status quo, not competitors
Engage NO BS if you want experienced judgement to interpret progress in context.
10. You’re open to uncomfortable truths
Working closely in-market surfaces signal quickly.
That can mean hearing:
this buyer isn’t real
this market isn’t ready yet
this motion won’t scale
this shouldn’t be your priority right now
this setup doesn’t maximise success
Engage NO BS if you value clarity over validation.
The principle underneath it all
NO BS is not a shortcut.
It’s a time-bound way to reduce uncertainty before decisions become expensive to undo.
Sometimes that leads to a hire.
Sometimes it leads to hiring differently.
Sometimes it leads to a longer NO BS engagement
Sometimes it leads to waiting — confidently.