INTERVIEW 03
What we are advancing is the commonization of the membership base.
Making Aeon "the center of daily life" with technology
Director, Digital Technology Division
Hajime Kitagawa
Promoting the Group's Digital Shift through a Trinity of Businesses.
Aeon Smart Technology (AST) is a company established in 2020 to advance Aeon's digital shift strategy. AST's goal is to maximize the customer experience provided by iAeon through digital technology. To achieve this goal, we will realize a valuable system by utilizing the knowledge, technology, and experience related to system development and cutting - edge technology.
Our strength is that we are not a stand - alone IT company, but can promote business by integrating business promotion (sales), marketing, and IT. It will be very interesting to combine digital functions with marketing and sales activities, such as implementing sales promotions, using iAEON coupons and participating in campaigns tied up with TV stations. I feel that the ability to make decisions as an operating company on the investments needed to solve problems and to advance the business with a sense of ownership, which is different from system development by a group function company or a supplier.
Realize the common use of the membership base of each group and promote the utilization of AEON data.
While on the front side, the Data Technology Division is considering what kind of sales promotion activities should be conducted through iAEON and how customers can best use the application, on the back side, in order to utilize AEON's huge amount of data, the division is expanding container technologies such as Kubernetes, CI/ CD maintenance, and the use of Hadoop, Databricks, Snowflake, and other technologies for large - scale data analysis to create customer interfaces and data infrastructures.
We are expanding our business in all directions to promote the Group's DX, but we are particularly focusing on increasing new member registrations for iAEON and developing the AEON common membership (iAEON membership).
The AEON Group is comprised of more than 300 operating companies, but up until now the membership information of each company has not been integrated. If this information can be standardized as iAEON members, it will provide a foundation for data analysis that will lead to a variety of future services.
Each operating company has different perspective, such as "what they want to achieve with the application" and "the direction of their business". It is important to provide iAEON functions that firmly capture such demands and that do not become a disadvantage for each company while standardizing membership and services. Although there are still many challenges to be overcome, we will continue to adjust and take the initiative to meet the challenges in the future.
Toward an organization that realizes quick system development with cutting - edge technology
Our value is quick and simple system development with cutting - edge technology. Regularly updating iAEON, which provides services to customers. In addition to adding functionality with an agile approach, it is equally important to ensure the integrity of application information security and to create systems that do not overburden members. We are working on a balanced approach to ensure that the short time frame for modifications does not lead to distrust from customers.
While team members come from a variety of backgrounds, including transfers and secondments from group companies, an increasing number are being recruited from outside the company, and about half of the team members are mid - career hires.
We are beginning to have members who can not only write program code, but also communicate with the internal promotion team to understand what is needed, and are making progress in acquiring specialized knowledge. We intend to continue to provide generous support tailored to the skills of our members by holding our own seminars in cooperation within the group, participating in technical seminars held by outside IT companies, and offering certification exams.
In May 2022, we opened a Tokyo satellite office to create an environment that will attract even more members. What we are aiming for is an organization that can think independently about how to realize our vision "to make AEON the center of our customers' lives through the power of technology. I would like to create a team where you can actively talk about what kind of future you would like to realize in your own life.
