Meet the Sabahan with the power to edit the way you see Malaysian roads on Waze
To those not in the know, Yusmizan bin Ag Kirah is just another lecturer you would see walking down the hallways of Kolej Teknikal Yayasan Sabah. Unbeknown to Malaysians, the lecturer in the Automotive Technology Programme, and a former engineer, is one of the highest ranking Waze map editors in Malaysia.
Yus, as he is fondly known, was promoted on May 2017 to a Level 6 Country Manager for Waze map editors in Malaysia and Brunei, one of the top titles Waze editors can earn. Despite having his hands full as a father of four children and a full-time lecturer, Yus volunteers his time, along with 300 fellow map editors in Malaysia, to play a great part in how Malaysians experience Waze. The Malaysian map editors regularly update, edit, fix and manage the maps in the Northern, Central, Southern, East Coast and Borneo region of the country.
Yus is currently teaching Diploma students in engineering/technical courses in subjects Materials Technology, Hydraulics, Pneumatics & AutoCAD, a job in which he performs from 8am to 5pm. However, that does not stop him from making time before and after work to check Waze on the various community social media platforms to help unlock requests from the community to update the maps while doing some light editing in his area, Kota Kinabalu. While his work for the Waze community is important, he also values spending time to watch cartoons with his kids after they finish school.
Yus always makes time for his family on top of being a full-time lecturer and Malaysia’s top Waze map editor.
A community of friends from Waze to real life
Not limited to just editing maps in the app, Yus also manages community engagements for Waze map editors by planning local meetups where they can share expertise and build friendships. He also commits time to motivate and empower map editors to help them earn promotions to higher editing ranks, such as assigning editors to Area Manager roles, in order to encourage regular map editing that keeps the Waze app up-to-date.
Reflective of the Malaysian culture of friendliness and acceptance, Yus has made close friends in the Waze community that span across the whole country. Simple visits to different states can suddenly turn into full fledge road trips as his fellow Wazers would take him around to explore and unlock new unmapped areas together.
When Yus joined Waze in 2013, he did it because he felt the app made navigation very informative and fun. He never expected that Waze would have such a great influence on his life. Since the introduction of Waze in Malaysia, the country has now become amongst the biggest Waze community in the world with 5.9 million monthly active users and 300 map editors.
Yus, along with 3 other Malaysian users recently met up with Waze beta testers and staff in Berlin’s Waze Betalization Meetup event that was held from 12 to 15 October 2018.
The Waze Community in Malaysia
The Waze community is one filled with talent. From map editors, translators to beta testers, Waze users passionately volunteer their skills and time to make everyone’s driving experience a pleasant one. While these volunteers can gain in-app points for their efforts, the community is strongly united by the shared goal of ensuring that the Malaysian road experience is cared for by providing the most updated road information and map details. They also help to make the app more inclusive by ensuring that the community is active and welcoming.
Would you like to join the Waze Community? Become a map editor by heading to https://www.waze.com/editor! Learn how to start editing in our Community Wiki and get in touch with our community of editors in the forums.
