Y.K.: We started right after Google had initially announced Google Apps, immediately adopting both Google Apps and the iPod touch as well as setting up an environment in which E-mail and calendars were always accessible; our starting point was from a communication service. Since information is shared in real-time with Google Apps, we were able to make quick decisions. As a result, Gulliver was able to become the first foreign-owned, independently funded company in the world to obtain a secondhand car business license in China within just six months of the establishment of the Chinese business.

Y.K.: I gave feedback about my experiences in Shanghai to headquarters, and Gulliver's Cloud Project is our attempt at revolutionizing the traditional working style. In addition to integrating Google Apps and the iPad, we've begun developing professional apps. Our first task was to turn our reception survey and field appraisal sheets into apps. Both of these tasks required information to be entered into a computer after the exact same data had been filled out on a form; it was an unnecessary, redundant task and we set out to improve our work flow. In doing so, we used i³ Systems' framework library “Yubizo Engine” as an app development tool. We were able to develop incredibly quickly, progressing as we improved the fundamentals of app development itself (i.e. detailed repeat review and user experience [“UX” below]). While we believed that each app needed a clear purpose and a simple UX in order to narrow down its functions, being able to use a large screen that would give our staff the unprecedented experience of being able to “touch” data was also attractive. You could say that a sophisticated UX is the value of these mobile apps, and that its improvement improved work flow itself. Yubizo Engine made all of this possible.

Y.K.: With Apple's announcement of the iPad in 2010, we temporarily suspended a plan we'd been considering to adopt iPhones and decided to issue every employee an iPad. On a side note, our president (Mr. Kenichi Hatori) says that every employee should have two iPads, one for themselves and one for the customer. As the Cloud project leader, that is an overwhelming number!!

F.K.: How did you do the kitting for 1,500 devices?

Y.K.: Within roughly a year of the iPad's commercial release, we'd made most of the preparations (including app development) necessary for integrating them, and finally finished distributing iPad 2s to our entire Sales Division in August of 2011. The kitting work for each of the 1500 devices involved setting up a CLOMO MDM account for every part-time employee and was finished in 10 business days. Since we'd clarified in advance the configuration requirements (which only took a few minutes to set up) for the “profile” we distributed as a functional restriction and security policy, the operation of MDM itself didn't require any specialized knowledge. Compared to integrations at other companies, I felt we were able to largely reduce the amount of integration / operation work necessary and achieve significant cost savings simply by utilizing our part-time employee resources (who aren't IT experts). iOS devices are widely used by consumers, and I think it would go against Apple's agenda if there were huge hassles or costs associated with the adoption and operation of its devices. Here at Gulliver, employees' personal iOS, Android, and other such smart devices can also be used in their work; apparently, we're the forerunner of the domestic Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) initiative. These personal smart devices are also managed with CLOMO MDM. In addition to being capable of managing multiple OSs, I think that as a maker on the Japanese domestic market, i³ Systems may have an edge over overseas MDM solutions since CLOMO MDM is also compliant with domestic Android smartphones and devices. 

Revolutionizing Working Style with iPad Apps

K.F.: Would you tell me about the app project Gulliver is currently pursuing?

Y.K.: Society in general (including us here at Gulliver) is still in the exploration phase when it comes to a truly historic, revolutionary device like the iPad. Up until now, we treated computers as integrated processing devices, mobile phones as communication devices, and iPads as something in between the two; we've been searching for an essential way of utilizing them. In the future, we plan to develop the five core elements of our daily tasks (including sales and purchasing work, sales support, and survey input) into individual iPad apps, building them as an infrastructure for a working style revolution. For example, we're planning a “Customer Device Ledger”-type app in which individual sales reps would register and could then reference or display on a map information about customers with whom they've done business in the past.

K.F.: It must be difficult to state indicators of cost effectiveness like your ROI definitively.

Y. K.: It is, but we're a company that has built a new business model with the latest IT, so we believe in taking on challenges. I'm confident that the sales rep app I mentioned will bring about positive changes in our communication with customers, since we'll be able to visualize our own standing as well as our standing with them (which we can't visualize now). How will previously non-existent smart devices like the iPad revolutionize business? Or how should we use such devices to start a revolution? How can we reap the greatest benefit from the iPad? We at Gulliver would like to stay on top of new technology, and continue to explore the possibilities of new business and working styles that it creates.

Expectations of an IT Venture in Fukuoka

K.F.: We've signed an all-inclusive contract in the area of app development with Gulliver; could you tell me what you expect from this partnership?

Y.K.: There were a variety of factors that went into our decision (including the fact that i³ Systems has a HTML5-based enterprise app development platform, the consideration that went into its UX, and their abundant know-how), but the fact that you're a tech-oriented IT venture in Fukuoka was a big one. This of course wasn't simply because we were partial to Fukuoka as a location. Naturally, the business hub of Japan is Tokyo, but by using Cloud services like Google Docs and video conferencing, we were able to sufficiently bridge the distance gap and establish a cooperative relationship. I also think the fact that you continually included and updated our on-site feedback as well as discoveries we made during the development process into app development work was a distinguishing factor that no other company came close to. The reason we decided to sign an all-inclusive contract was because we wanted to focus on development and improvement, and defining every requirement or quoting / ordering separate apps for each version would have been a waste of lead time. Apps need to be simple; because they are simple, they have a clear purpose, and users remember and utilize them. We shouldn't follow in the footsteps of the many companies whose IT departments are struggling due to complicated systems that users avoid or the cost of training / help desk services. We took special care not to create a “hotchpotch” app that was crammed so full of this and that that it was practically spilling over, but rather one that was simple and had a superior UX. i³ Systems stands out when it comes to next-generation IT centered around HTML5 and the “clean” feel surrounding it. As is evident from President Sasaki's message, in response to the questions "What will new technology bring about?", "What is it trying to change?", and "How will it contribute to business?", i³ Systems has a clear answer and is now taking on the world with that answer; these are some of the qualities that we at Gulliver can most strongly identify with. We live in an era where if you have the power to give shape to an idea via superb technology, you can compete on the global market, regardless of your location or scale. Gulliver got a strong sense of that “venture spirit” in i³ Systems, which was another reason why we signed a comprehensive contract with you.

K.F.: Thank you for your time.

Interviewer: Keisuke Fukano (Marketing Head Office, i³ Systems)