NEW KIDS ON THE

You’ve mentioned that you’re branching out into crypto - tell me a little more about how you’re approaching the changing nature of HR in a Web3 and crypto environment.

I think one of the things being mentioned right now is Generation Z. We’ve come into a new generation, where these children coming of age now will be the future of today. Looking at the information that they have at their hands, it’s so different from when I was young. I had no access to technology. We’re now living in a world where the expectations this generation has for the workforce are just totally different. For me, looking at how you can engage and retain these types of people is something which is just fascinating.

I think we are moving into a new era of work. And I think to be able to look at the trends of what is going to happen and what might happen is just so exciting.

Do you find the nature of work changing? In a Web3 environment, not only do you not necessarily have so much hierarchy, you also don’t have any physical environment. I’m guessing that has a lot of effect on how you build the roadmap for HR and also how you manage teams.

When I was in Dubai for AIBC in March, the panel that I spoke on there was about remote working and its impact on culture. I think that businesses that aren’t willing to move into this new era of hybrid flexibility are just going to end up losing their staff.

I think it’s so important that businesses can be flexible because we’ve moved away from the five-days-a-week work centric model where people are expected to be in the office. I think that now we’re moving to a world where life has to fit around work and work fits around life.

I think that it’s different nowadays, particularly for the coming generations. They want to have that flexibility, they want to be able to work the hours that they want to, and for businesses to be productivity-led as opposed to a 40-hour model that requires you to be tied to your desk.

From an HR perspective it is just so exciting to be able to move to a workforce that is empowered and feel trusted to be able to do the work that they need to do.

I can’t help but wonder if this is very similar to the way developers work when you commit on Github, where it’s about contributions versus hours. How does that change from an HR point of view in terms of understanding and managing the human resources for the company, not just from management, but from a performance point of view.

I think this is such a current topic and I’m not sure that we’re even going to be able to really know the answers over the next 5 to 10 years. We’re almost all in this guinea pig phase of testing. What I always say to my clients who are looking at possibly moving from office-based to more remote or hybrid, is: you’ve got to give that level of accountability and trust.

For some owners, it’s really difficult. If they can’t see you sitting at your desk, then they wonder whether you are doing what you need to do. But by putting in OKRs, by setting up performance reviews, and managers leading by example - it can work.

I think sometimes working from an office can also be lazy management, because yes, you can see them, you know that they’re there. Does that mean that they’re delivering? No.

WHAT I ALWAYS SAY TO MY CLIENTS WHO ARE LOOKING AT POSSIBLY MOVING FROM OFFICE-BASED TO MORE REMOTE OR HYBRID, IS: YOU’VE GOT TO GIVE THAT LEVEL OF ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRUST.

FOR THE SHORT TERM WE ARE FOCUSED ON DEVELOPING STATE-OF-THEART GAMING - WHERE WE CREATED A FRICTIONLESS WEB3 GAMING EXPERIENCE

HYBRID COMPUTE

For those not in the know, can you walk us through what Boba Network has to offer as an Ethereum Layer-2 scaling solution?

With Boba Network, owning digital assets, creating smart contracts, playing games or exploring applications has never been so easy. With the help of Hybrid Compute, users can truly experience the power of Web3.

Reduced fees: Up to 100x cheaper than L1

High throughput: Improved transaction scalability

Hybrid Compute: Build smarter dApps by connecting to off-chain APIs

Multichain: Interact with Boba on your favorite settlement layer

Dual fee token: Pay network fees in BOBA or ETH

Secured: Boba is secured by Ethereum

How did you get into this space initially?

Founded by a team of Stanford faculty and alumni, Enya Labs partnered with OMG Network in February 2021, to enable nextgeneration decentralised applications that are fast, cost-effective, and private. Ultimately in September of 2022, the Boba Network was launched on its own as a Layer 2 scaling solution backed by the Boba Foundation and core contributor, Enya Labs.

Enya is a pioneer of software frameworks that simplify the construction of decentralised apps, prioritising privacy from first principles. We believe next generation L2’s will allow smart contracts to interact with outside computers and act on their responses with one transaction. We have achieved this with the creation of Hybrid Compute which allows you to build smarter dApps by connecting to off-chain APIs.

What does the road ahead look like for Boba Network - in both the short and long term?

For the short term we are focused on developing state-of-the-art gaming - where we created a frictionless Web3 gaming experience via hybrid compute. We are also looking into the development of Boba Network exclusive dApps and infrastructure solutions.

Can you tell us more about your liquidity mining program, WAGMI?

The WAGMI incentives program is Boba Network’s take on liquidity mining 2.0. Users can earn WAGMI options using their favorite dApps on Boba Network. WAGMI options are KPI (key performance indicators) options redeemable for $BOBA tokens based on metrics relating to Boba Network, such as monthly active wallets or project specific TVL.

Are there any plans to add more use cases to the BOBA token?

The only uses for the Boba Token are for gas fees, staking and governance and the Boba Foundation has no plans at the moment to add any additional use cases.

Is a multichain future the answer to scalability?

The growth of the cryptocurrency sector suggests that the future of blockchain may be multi-chain. This is why Boba has deployed to 4 Layer 1’s and is the only L2 to offer a multi chain solution to date. Departmentalization, the idea of collaborating with specialized entities for greater efficiency, has a proven track record since the industrial revolution and the same will hold true for blockchain.

You recently announced the launch of BobaBNB, tell us why this was such a big deal.

BNB Chain is one of the most successful chains outside of Ethereum, cementing a rich and innovative DeFi and NFT ecosystem. It is also a key partner for our vision, as it focuses on the average user and aligns with our goals of bringing 1 billion people to Web3 and growing the multi-chain experience.

Boba Network is quite an unusual name - is there a story behind it?

Everyone has a smile when they drink boba tea. That’s how we want our users to feel when they use Boba Network. It evokes happiness.