Echo 7: How Did RAiD’s HOW Come About?

Welcome to the 7th issue of Echo. 

In the previous editions, we have uncovered RAiD’s WHY and Just Cause, embedded in its name, its Smarts & Smiles mission and the purpose behind it all: Serving the Underserved. 

Now we turn to the HOW. 

In Simon Sinek 's Golden Circle, the HOW represents the values or principles that guide how an organisation brings its WHY to life. It is the posture, the way you go about the work, the behaviours that leave your signatures on the solveware you deliver.

Over the next few issues, we'll unpack RAiD’s HOW.

Why did we need to define our HOW? 

As a founder, I knew that if RAiD’s culture was left to chance, so too would be its longevity. Without a clear HOW, RAiD’s WHY could become fuzzy. A Just Cause is not enough; it must be turned into something tangible and actionable, through culture, structure and system.

I needed a set of behavioural principles that would give RAiD two kinds of unique values that breathe life into our mission:

• Unique Value Proposition
• Unique Core Values

Unique Value Proposition

First, I needed to clarify RAiD’s unique value proposition (UVP). UVP is often viewed as a brand differentiator, a way to position products in a crowded, competitive market.

Not for RAiD.

Our UVP isn't about standing apart from others. It's about integrating well with the broader digital ecosystem, from within the MINDEF/SAF to the rest of the world. RAiD differentiates itself precisely so that it can complement and harness the strengths of the broader digital ecosystem, maximising mission impact for the RSAF.

Because RAiD is embedded where RSAF missions are planned, controlled, and executed, and because RAiDers are RSAF airmen and airwomen, there are four unique value propositions it must deliver:

1. Speed and Agility: RAiD builds solveware for operational needs that demand high speed and agility. Its proximity to users lets it see first, learn first, act first.

2. Uncompromising mission-usability: RAiDers are airmen serving fellow airmen. You design tools that carry empathy, not just elegance, so your users can perform their missions more effectively.

3. Credible thought leadership: Being immersed in operations gives RAiD deep domain understanding. That insight, paired with tech fluency, makes RAiD a natural leader in shaping digital airpower.

4. Trusted integration partner: RAiD is the hyphen in ops-tech integration. It helps align external digital efforts with RSAF needs, amplifying outcomes beyond what RAiD itself delivers.

Unique Core Values

Second, RAiD’s HOW helps RAiDers to live the core values that are uniquely RAiD because of its context.

As an RSAF department, RAiD fully embraces the RSAF core values. That is non-negotiable. But to excel at the intersection of Air Force operations and the digital ecosystem, RAiD must also embrace other values that makes an existential difference. (Excellence and Existence are just two sides of the same coin for RAiD.)

These are the three I’ve identified:

1. Agile: Digital technology evolves fast. Warfare is becoming more complex and entangled with civilian tech. RAiD must be constructively disruptive, treating change not as a threat, but an opportunity.

2. Innovative The digital terrain is not just fast-changing; it is largely unmapped, with few road signs and fewer rules, especially in the military. RAiD must path-find, not just follow existing paths. It must imagine the solutions that don’t yet exist.

3. Collaborative. In the digital arena, RAiD can’t do it alone. Partnerships matter. RAiD must forge strong bonds. Within the RSAF, RAiD needs to partner its users and care about their missions. Within the MINDEF/SAF digital ecosystem, RAiD must be a constructive member to drive integration at the ministry level. Beyond the ministry, RAiD must harness the different strengths that the Whole of Government, academia and industry possess.

RAiD's BeHave Statements

So, based on the two unique set of values, RAiD's HOW was formulated and unveiled at its beta launch on 10 Nov 2021. The HOW is capture in five BeHave statements, so named because they begin with four “Be’s” and one “Have”. Together, these statements answer a simple but central question: How should RAiDers BeHave?

Here they are:

These are the foundations RAiD was built on: a clear WHY that calls us forward, and a lived HOW that keeps us aligned. But values alone don’t make culture. It’s how we embody them, individually and collectively, that gives them power. In the next issue, we’ll explore each BeHave statement not just as a principle, but as a strategic anchor for how RAiD delivers its unique values.

Until then, keep building with purpose, and don’t forget to BeHave.

Echo is a series of reflections from leading organisational change in the RSAF. At its core, it explores the realities of digitalisation and innovation I've faced with my fellow RAiDers. This is my way of documenting lessons learned, eventually leaving behind a RAiD playbook for its future growth.

But I don’t want to do this alone. Echo is also an experiment in crowdsourcing perspectives, because great ideas are never born in isolation. No matter your background, your insights matter to me. There is always something I can learn from you. I welcome your thoughts. Let’s build something meaningful together.

If you are interested to find out how you may join RAiDs mission in delivering Solveware that brings Smarts & Smiles to our Air Force, and our Airmen and Airwomen, please contact us through https://www.go.gov.sg/raidcareers.