Roar is a digital media company that believes in the power of doing good and creating a legacy for future generations. Abdurrahman Haroon, COO at Roar Global, believes that businesses have the responsibility to make a positive contribution to society, not just to focus on profits. Roar aims to level the playing field by amplifying the voices of underrepresented people and communities, providing content and digital tools in various languages, and investing in talent and people.
Abdurrahman explains that Roar’s strategic objectives involve building business models that have a strong focus on communities, providing the best value to customers, hyper-localization, and nurturing Sri Lankan talent. The company plans to build tech products to improve customer experience, expand to new markets in South Asia, and further invest in training resources that dive deep into the strategies of digital media buying. Roar is also investing in international companies to provide Sri Lankan talent with opportunities to compete globally.
Roar is driven by its purpose to create a better world, and each member of the organization has a clear understanding of the broader vision. The company aims to bring about positive business growth across the clients it engages with and empower and support the next wave of traditional businesses in their digital transformation. Abdurrahman elaborates further in this interview with Echelon.
We also take great pride in the values we collectively hold as an organization. Integrity is non-negotiable at Roar
In our interview with CEO, Mustafa Kassim, last month, he mentioned that Roar is committed to doing good. Can you elaborate on this further?
At Roar, we have a clear vision for ourselves that goes beyond just becoming a unicorn. As Mustafa highlighted in his interview, we have a well-defined roadmap to achieve that goal, but we are also mindful of the impact our business has on the lives of those we touch, and society at large.
We strongly believe that businesses have a responsibility to do more than just focus on pure profit or growth at all costs. Every business has the potential to make a positive difference and contribute to a better world. That’s why we are committed to building a legacy of good that our team members and stakeholders can look on with pride.
We recognize that profits are fleeting, but the impact we make on people’s lives can endure for generations. This is something we hold in high regard and strive to incorporate into every aspect of our business. Our ultimate goal is to leave a lasting legacy that enriches the lives of those around us and contributes to a better world. We also take great pride in the values we collectively hold as an organization. Integrity is non-negotiable at Roar.
As a media company that works across two distinct business verticals, how do you put this into practice?
We have come to realise that our role within the digital ecosystem is to level the playing field. We do this across multiple facets; from telling untold stories and creating awareness of complex issues to helping businesses have better access to global digital platforms that help bolster their growth.
We drive impact while staying true to our growth objectives by, firstly, building business models that have a strong focus on communities. This includes producing media to amplify the voices of underrepresented people and communities, and media reselling to help businesses become more efficient and grow by leveraging the best digital tools available globally, and for small businesses to compete on a global scale. Sri Lanka has roughly 10 million internet users, of which only 500,000 (5%) consume content in English. We believe that it is vital for all communities to have equal access to the best content and digital tools, regardless of language barriers. We invest in and create high-quality, multilingual content in Sinhala, Tamil and Bangla so that our audiences are better informed and provide in-depth local language training and resources for digital media buying within an industry that is English-dominant. This opens up the doors to any business with a dream to become the next True Classic or Goli within the countries in which we operate.
We have come to realise that our role within the digital ecosystem is to level the playing field. We do this across multiple facets; from telling untold stories and creating awareness of complex issues to helping businesses have better access to global digital platforms that help bolster their growth
Second, we obsess over customers and driving value. We believe that if we do something, we need to do it to the best of our ability or not do it at all. With that in mind, we strive to provide the best value to each of the 1,000+ customers that we work with. From providing them with solutions to combat exchange rate fluctuations when buying digital media inventory to providing deep, individual consultation and support to help their businesses grow by harnessing the power of digital tools. This in turn has led to our customers growing beyond the borders of Sri Lanka, helping boost forex remittances into the country and increasing employment opportunities within their organizations.
Lastly, we invest in talent and people. Roar would not be the company that it is today without the amazing team that we are fortunate to have. This is not something that we take lightly. Each individual within the organization has a clear understanding of our goals as an organization and the role that they play to help achieve the broader vision. We equip each person with a clear growth map for themselves and provide them with the tools and resources they need, not just to do their jobs in the most efficient way possible but to grow beyond their current skill sets and evolve to become better in their fields of work. We take great pride in the fact that each person that enters the organization leaves more skilled and more accomplished than they were before joining us.
What new investments and product innovations are you pursuing to continue to drive impact, in Sri Lanka as well as internationally?
Our plans for the next five years include building and investing heavily in tech products that improve customer experience and helping our clients work with us in an efficient and streamlined manner across local languages.
We are also very focused on multi-market expansion. This year, we plan on being present in three new markets within South Asia that have very similar market dynamics to Sri Lanka, with large, underserved populations and a significant portion of their GDP driven by SMEs. Our objective is to replicate our success in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in these markets to help bring about positive business growth across the clients that we engage with.
We also plan to further our investments in content that dives deep into the how-tos of digital media buying. We will do this by creating our content as well as by partnering with like-minded content creators and publishers to share this knowledge beyond our current audience segments. With this, we want to empower and support the next wave of traditional businesses in their digital transformation and business growth.
Our plans for the next five years include building and investing heavily in tech products that improve customer experience and helping our clients work with us in an efficient and streamlined manner across local languages
What advice would you give to other companies that want to be more impact-driven?
I think it’s incredibly important for a company to focus on the ‘why’ and to be driven by what moves and motivates you and your team to do what you do, beyond just your income. Once you have identified this, each time you look to make a business decision — be it entering a new vertical or hiring new members for your team — look to bring about relativity to your ‘why’.
Also, build a deep understanding of the customers and communities that you serve. Ask yourself what core problem are you solving and how that impacts societies at large. Identify initiatives that you can undertake to further this that will not only grow your market share in the long term but also create the most amount of impact.