Base.vn CEO Pham Kim Hung: "FPT leaders still talk about growth targets of several dozen percent, I am very inspired"

Base.vn founder Pham Kim Hung welcomed us at his office with a slight limp from intense training, ahead of the Dalat Ultra Trail 55km trail race taking place the next day.

Participating in the marathon is the CEO's way of investing in his health, something he has seriously prioritized over the past two years and is a preparation for the 20-30 years ahead.

At the age of 35, Pham Kim Hung still regularly stays up all night working like before, with two things that have not changed in this character: "Passion for the product" and "Love for work".

Looking back on your nearly 7-year journey with Base, what achievement makes you feel most proud of your business?

Looking back over the past 7 years, to talk about pride, I want to share two things.

First is the teammates.

If people only look at the current picture of Base, it is difficult to imagine the early days when we had no customers, and the SaaS market in Vietnam was still very new. The founding members at that time all had many job opportunities outside, while Base had nothing but "dreams". However, everyone was still committed and attached to Base, all the key personnel of the company are still intact today. That attachment is something I feel partly proud of, and mostly appreciate.

Second, Base is an organization with very strong beliefs.

On the path to entrepreneurship, most startups fail. What keeps the employees in startups is a strong belief in what the company and they can do. In the early days, we thought that doing business in Vietnam with our own efforts and sweat was very difficult. It was difficult because we couldn't find a persona that you could learn from or copy, it was difficult because the SaaS market at that time almost didn't exist, it was difficult because everyone was very young. Everyone wondered if a startup could sell SaaS products? For the first 12-18 months, Base only focused on the product, with no revenue. It was a very long, challenging and harsh period. On that journey, any moment you thought about stopping, you definitely stopped. You have to have a very strong belief and not give up.

This story is like running a marathon, there will be a time when we ask: "Why do I have to run this harsh road?", but at the same time, let's ask the opposite question: "Why do we choose to start?". Startups can only try to go fast, but there are no shortcuts. People often want to take a shortcut from A to Z, but if we try to take a shortcut, there will be times when we have to pay the price with other things.

What I feel very proud of is that Base never gives up, is always ready to commit.

In the early days, how did Base sell to businesses when, as you said, the SaaS market almost didn't exist?

The first members of Base only made products, with very little experience in business. At that time, we thought that just a sales team that could make phone calls and find ways to appear in front of businesses could sell products. We thought that every business did that, so why couldn’t we? But in the end, this method completely failed. After that, we realized that businesses only buy products when they have a need and we can’t create a need for them.

We have met companies that have invested millions of dollars to build technology systems, using foreign products but still not satisfied. That is our opportunity, at all costs must create better products.

Later, when selling, Base has two main goals. First, the product must really bring value to customers, so sales people need to understand the product very well. Second, Base values ​​building long-term relationships and considers the success or failure of customers as their own success or failure. This is something that many foreign SaaS companies following the "product-lead sales" model cannot do: they only sell products, businesses use them as they please, there is no natural connection between people. We focus on how customers use the product, both mechanically, technically and humanly. I want Base to really go a long way with the business, and the interesting thing is that HR people also love this. Talking, working and exchanging with business leaders brings a lot of inspiration to you.

According to you, what convinced businesses to buy Base products at that time?

In the early days, the only thing that made businesses choose Base was the passion we saw in the way we talked about the product. In the first two years, my colleagues and I worked directly with most of the customers, from small to large. At that time, the product was not as perfect as it is now, but they said they were sure that Base would create a better product one day. That is something I always deeply appreciate and am grateful for those first customers.

Now that Base has more than 100 sales staff and 8,000 customers, we often ask ourselves: What are the differences between the best and the most average sales people? People often think that a good sales professional is someone who is good at communication, negotiation and persuasion. But based on actual annual revenue results, that is not true at Base. The top best people are always those who are passionate about the product and most committed to the company. Indeed, the most valuable thing for a business is the team's love for the product and belief in the path they are taking, everything else can be learned.

After nearly 2 years since Base officially joined FPT Corporation, what advantages or opportunities do you think Base has had?

As a result, in the past 2 years, Base has tripled its revenue and expanded its scale by 200 employees, currently at 400 people.

Along with that, I was very inspired by the story of FPT and understood why FPT is great and the most powerful IT corporation in Vietnam. FPT leaders are all very talented and enthusiastic people, there are businessmen who, although not young, are still passionate about their work, still talk about strategies and growth targets of several dozen percent each year. I do not see any signs of age in their passion. They are all leaders of businesses with revenues of thousands of billions of VND each year! I always ask myself: "When I reach the age of 70, will I be able to maintain such a passion?".

You have to meet them in person to feel it and how moved they are. That's why I feel that Base and I still have a lot to try. Compared to FPT's member companies - which bring in a revenue of several thousand billion VND each year, Base, despite having a certain position and market share in the market, is still very small. Base is also very small compared to the potential that can be done in Vietnam. And to build a sustainable, everlasting company requires many things, not just stopping at the story of management, products, or the things we used to talk about when we were startups.

You talk about building a company that lasts. For Base, what do you think it takes to make it to 30, 50, or beyond?

That is a question that I have to think about a lot every day. The whole organization must be more mature, better managed, not always satisfied, and continuously learn. However, I believe there are two core elements that Base really needs to do, which are to maintain love for the product and to maintain sincerity and dedication to customers.

In your opinion, the cooperation between FPT and Base is a win-win cooperation? However, outsiders think that this is a takeover and the good things of Base have been lost. What do you think about that opinion?

Base still maintains its belief, which is the love for the product and continues to launch new products every year. When we joined FPT, we became more and more focused. We focused a lot on the internal and the customers, giving more priority to the core. I think that when a business reaches a certain scale, it all converges at one point, which is the customer.

Now people can see less stories about Base, but actually, there are many stories inside. At the same time, it is important that the company continues to grow. I think that is the meaning of a partnership.

Base has many young employees, belonging to the GenZ generation. They are considered to have many differences compared to previous generations, rarely staying with the company for more than 3 years. Does Base encounter that difficulty, sir?

It is true that on a macro level, there is a big change in Gen Z. You were born into much better conditions than previous generations. You have more opportunities, but because there are so many, it is harder to develop deeply in a certain field. Many of you are under peer pressure, wanting to get results and earn a good income right away.

At Base, we often say the hardest thing to learn is persistence. Sometimes it takes years to build something. It took Base 18 months to generate revenue. If we had given up early, we wouldn’t have made it.

If there is one thing to share with young people, I would talk about love of work . Love of work lies in knowing what you are doing, truly wanting to do it well, and only accepting what you deserve, directly making it. Looking at the world , any rich and powerful country, they have at least a few generations who love work, work very hard and persistently, thereby creating a huge accumulation of both awareness and material.

I always teach my children to only accept what they deserve and to deserve it, they must do it with their own hands. This requires perseverance and a little "stubbornness". I have never invested or put money into any asset just to wait for it to increase in value. You have to work directly to create value, money should only be a measure of value.

You highly value the love of work. You yourself have an excellent academic record and are strong in technology. If you put talent and hard work on the scale, how would you divide the proportions?

I think talent only counts for 3 points, and hard work and perseverance account for 10 points. But maybe talent only counts for less than 1 point. I have met many talented people, but luckily I have also met people who are both talented and hard-working. At Stanford, the students are very good, but also extremely hard-working. I think the word "hard work" in Vietnamese is sometimes a bit difficult to convey the meaning of the story. In English, "hard work" should be understood as hard-working, persistent, and having strong aspirations.

The reason I give "hard working" 10 points is because it is really "hard". Everyone wants to rest, only when you find a very strong belief can you "work hard". And usually, when you "work hard", you have also surpassed the level of talent. Of course, talented people do not necessarily "work hard".

Working so hard, how do you overcome fatigue and pressure?

If there is one thing that motivates me, it is my teammates, the more than 400 people who are accompanying me. The role of a leader is to always "work harder", it is both a responsibility and a pride, and simply there is no other choice. Because for me, a startup will succeed by the things they consider "must do at all costs", not when they feel they have too many choices or when the leader embarks on a journey to experience.

Many young people like to experience, sometimes hardship is also an experience, happiness is also an experience. Some people consider "working hard" as an experience. But experience can also make us give up easily. This reminds me of the Trail Marathon in Da Lat: my colleagues really like this race because the Da Lat route is very beautiful, with majestic mountains and endless hills. However, this is a harsh race with a very high DNF (did not finish) rate. Most of the experiences people thought they would get before the race were replaced by pain, injury, and many people who gave up asked themselves: "Why try to run from early morning to late at night?".

For me, the experience is not as important as the path. Only when you try your best to reach the destination, you will not regret the path you have taken and have the most complete experience. Startups must always be like that, and so is life.

So is diligence and love of work a priority when you recruit staff at Base? How do you retain talent?

No, we don't require that when recruiting, because it takes time. In fact, Base always has very dedicated employees who love the company. They see that their efforts bring great value to customers and the company, so they really want to work. People can only "love their work" when they feel the value they are creating and how important it is to the whole company. I always appreciate and thank them!

In today’s world, people have many choices and trying to “retain people” is difficult. What should be done is for the organization to be steadfast in its path, to hold tight to that path, that mission. Then the people, or at least the right people, will stick to that path.

I often tell my colleagues that I am not a businessman, Base is not just a business. Base needs to strive not only for revenue and profit, but also for a much bigger dream. But leaders must always "take care" of their teammates. In the early days, the company had no money, if it was only for money, Base would not have gathered so many talented people. Those who come to you in difficult times will always be the most valuable people.

Over the past four years, Base has also implemented ESOP programs (Employee Stock Ownership Plan - PV) for more than 50 key employees. I think that is a healthy development, when we work together, and when we achieve success, we own it together. If only the company succeeds but the employees do not, it is an incomplete success. If Base becomes a public company, it can be considered an initial "success", to continue on the path we have taken and bring happiness to many employees.

What are your plans for Base in 2023?

Base has two main plans this year. One is to re-organize SaaS Day, an annual event that has been interrupted in recent years due to the pandemic. Two is to launch a new finance-related product and complete the Base ecosystem.

2023 is a year of unpredictable economic changes, but it is also a period of training for courage, the best time to learn. Customers will buy more difficultly, have higher requirements for products, requiring each individual to make more efforts. To ensure growth targets, Base plans to expand its staff by about 20%.

Recently, we opened an office in Da Nang, with the desire to connect more with businesses in the Central region.

Thank you! I wish you and Base will achieve the goals set.

Article: Ky Anh - Thuy Duong; Design: Ha My

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