M4JAM appoints WeChat, Tencent big guns to board of directors

South African micro-jobbing service M4JAM has appointed a couple of big hitters — in the shape of Brett Loubser, head of WeChat Africa, and Poshu Yeung, general manager of international business at Tencent — to its board of directors.

In a press release issued to Ventureburn by the company, it says that the two “will work closely with other board members to bolster M4JAM’s disruptive business model to be a global success”.

Involving both does make sense, given that M4JAM’s service is predominantly WeChat-based. Being able to tap directly into the mind of a Tencent executive (the company owns WeChat) is also useful. The app is, after all, the most popular instant messaging app to come out of Asia and one of the few to successfully expand beyond its original product offering with games, stickers, and other ecommerce offerings.

Add in the fact that Yeung has overseen Tencent’s international business operations for more than seven years and it becomes clear that M4JAM is serious about international expansion.

“We’re thrilled to have Brett and Poshu on our board as we continue gathering real-time data for brands from our 80 000 plus jobber community who are disrupting traditional business processes one micro job at a time. With Poshu’s international business experience in the mobile space, and Brett’s extensive industry knowledge, we’re confident that M4JAM will soon be disrupting markets far beyond our shores. We look forward to working with them to grow the platform,” says Andre Hugo, Director and Co-Founder of M4JAM.

Loubser meanwhile is a veteran of the South African mobile space. Prior to joining WeChat in 2013, having worked for the likes of Nokia, MTN, and Samsung.

“I am excited about M4JAM because it creates real, sustainable value for jobbers and businesses that use the service. By putting simple task-oriented jobs in the hands of anyone, M4JAM is enabling a giant workforce to complete jobs in a fraction of the time and at a fraction of the cost of what it would have taken if businesses had to hire dedicated staff. It is a powerful story that showcases the flexibility of WeChat as a platform,” says Loubser.

“M4JAM has had an exciting start with their unique approach, mobilising the crowd to deliver value for businesses. It has global relevance and an exciting future. I believe that my international outlook and experience will allow me to assist the M4JAM team in their efforts to roll out into new territories” says Yeung.

This is not the first time M4JAM has engaged to the services of heavy hitters to help it take the next big step in its business either. The company went from concept to operational in around 100 days, thanks to a challenge from former FNB CEO Michael Jordaan. Earlier this year meanwhile it brought on Brett StClair, the former Google for Work Regional Manager Sub Sahara Africa.