HANDY APP FOR GIVING BACK

Giving his time to those in need was not enough for Captain (CPT) (NS) Joe Tan, who went a step further to help others do the same.

Possessing an entrepreneurial spirit and a heart to help the needy, CPT (NS) Tan wanted a new and more convenient way for volunteers to sign up for community work.

To accomplish this, he was not afraid to take the road less travelled.

"We developed this app to make volunteering in Singapore not only easier, but cooler as well," said CPT (NS) Tan. The 33-year-old is the Battalion Operations Officer of 113th Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence Battalion.

The inspiration for the mobile application (app) came from what CPT (NS) Tan saw in Afghanistan in 2012. He was part of an Imagery Analysis Team deployed in Operation Blue Ridge, the Singapore Armed Forces' (SAF's) contribution to the multinational stabilisation and reconstruction efforts there.

He saw the contrast in the lives of Singaporeans and the Afghans, who did not even have access to a clean water supply.

"But they were happy in their own right," he noted. "It was through this experience that I was able to reflect upon what I have in Singapore and count my blessings.

"My experience in Afghanistan played a big part in what I'm doing today and, of course, in the development of Hands Up."

Hands up

CPT (NS) Tan started his volunteering journey three years ago with his first social enterprise, Love Action Project, which provides a platform for people to engage in charity work.

It was through this project that he realised there was a lack of means for Non-Profit Organisations (NPOs) to advertise their community work, as well as for the public who may not know where to look for meaningful volunteer work.

"Our objective is very simple: we want to revolutionise the volunteering landscape in Singapore, while ensuring that volunteering is made easy," said CPT (NS) Tan.

The problem was finding an easy way to do this. That's when he came up with the idea of Hands Up. Available on iOS and Android platforms, the app was launched on 3 Apr and has since garnered support from eight NPOs and about 50 users.

"We have been very fortunate to have a group of very patient NPOs and users, which has made the progress of our app development much smoother and easier."

What's up

Tired of checking email? Well, CPT (NS) Tan created a system within the Hands Up app that allows volunteers to post their concerns under the Frequently Asked Questions section of a particular event.

The organisation can then address them quickly, eliminating the trouble of sending emails.

The app also enables a volunteer to record the total number of hours he or she has volunteered for.

And on the other end, NPOs can check relevant statistics such as the number of volunteers who signed up for a particular event using the app.

In future updates, users can also expect to see new features. "We are planning to invite vendors on board to provide a reward system for volunteers through the introduction of a Goodwill points exchange system to redeem promotional offers or vouchers with vendors," explained CPT (NS) Tan.

In addition, he asked NPOs to consider revamping their existing community work programmes to ensure that they are current and suit the interests of today's youth in order to attract more volunteers.

CPT (NS) Tan's plans do not stop there. He wants to expand the app to cover volunteering events and NPOs in the region.

"We are looking to have as many as 100,000 users on board. We also want to arrange cross-border volunteering events where people from different walks of life can come together for a common cause."

Visit handsup.sg to find out more about the Hands Up app!