Pioneering a Department of Digital Specialists in a Traditional Trading Company

──Marubeni established its Digital Innovation Department dedicated to implementing digital technology in 2017 (originally named the IoT and Big Data Strategy Office). It is uncommon for a trading company to set up a specialized digital technology division. What prompted this initiative?

Kounosuke Okura:The mission of the department is twofold: generating new business opportunities and driving corporate growth through digital technology. At the outset, we were a small team of six. However, by bringing in outside experts in AI and data analysis, we’ve built a unique organization that blends traditional trading company practices with a new culture.

Image: Kounosuke Okura

Genki Yoshida:Before joining in 2019, I worked in data analysis consulting at an IT company. Typically, consulting and system development roles are predicated on responding to client needs. Here in the Digital Innovation Department, we can adopt a more proactive stance in shaping business opportunities, which is both intriguing and advantageous.

Okura:The benefits of having a dedicated in-house department are substantial. Implementing a new digital initiative through external partners often involves high costs and a lengthy approval process that can delay progress. With everything managed internally, we can bypass these hurdles and swiftly proceed with research and testing. Initiatives that would traditionally require a year can now be executed in just two to three months.

Image: Genki Yoshida

Accelerating Digital Transformation Across and Beyond Marubeni

──It seems that the need for digital technology across many sectors has only accelerated since the establishment of the Digital Innovation Department.

Yoshida:Technology and business, once often treated as separate domains, are now rapidly converging. For instance, we’ve worked on initiatives across a diverse range of industries, such as a platform to facilitate the reuse and recycling of solar panels, digital transformation in the publishing industry, and the launch of a food delivery service.

Okura:We are also pushing forward digital innovation internally, such as developing the Marubeni Chatbot using OpenAI’s GPT-4 and other large language models (LLMs). A young team in our division developed a prototype in a few weeks, and the service was deployed company-wide within three months of GPT-4’s release.

Marubeni Chatbot is updated as much as three times a week, ensuring it stays at the cutting edge of technological advancements like GPT-4o. Given the numerous regulations a trading company must navigate, integrating hundreds of documents into the chatbot has significantly enhanced operational efficiency. The security for internal documents is very tight, so this is an example of how in-house development allowed for rapid deployment.

Cultivating Digital Specialists Through Hands-on Programs

──It seems that the Digital Innovation Department is at the forefront of fostering Marubeni’s digital specialists, and pushing for organizational change such as welcoming interns.

Okura:For the past four years, we’ve run a hands-on program called the “Marubeni Digital Challenge” (or Digichare), where participants use digital tools to address actual internal challenges. To date, 350 employees have participated, and it has become so popular that we now have to hold a lottery for entry.

Yoshida:We’ve also been actively recruiting undergraduate and graduate student interns, some of whom have gone on to join the company. These interns are deeply involved in projects, from defining requirements to prototyping, and gain valuable, hands-on experience.

Okura:Often a simple consultation on data analysis or streamlining evolves into the development of a new service or other significant project. We’ve created an environment where members with different expertise can engage in cross-disciplinary discussions.

Mastering the Intersection of Business and Technology

──The Digital Innovation Department is poised to strengthen its recruitment efforts moving forward.

Yoshida:The department is an ideal environment for the intellectually curious. We take the lead in harnessing new technologies for business, so people eager to explore uncharted challenges feel right at home. Many of these fields are still very much in flux, so we are always looking for team members who enjoy a trial-and-error approach.

Okura:For our team members, it is essential to think deeply about both technology and business. While advanced skills in programming, digital marketing, and other specialized fields are crucial, what truly sets someone apart is the ability to synthesize these skills with strategic business insight. This dual competency is a hallmark of our department.

Yoshida:Because Marubeni is a trading company, there are unique opportunities to engage with real business information—something less accessible to IT companies and consulting firms. As a trading company, we span a vast range of industries, creating a stimulating environment for those who want to drive business growth through technology.

Okura:Recently, members of the Digital Innovation Department have been appointed to roles such as Chief Technology Officer or Chief Marketing Officer at subsidiaries or affiliates, allowing them to gain diverse business experience while remaining within the company. We often refer to ourselves as “digital consultant,” diving deep to uncover our clients’ true needs.

Supporting Company-wide Business Through Digital Innovation

──What initiatives does the Digital Innovation Department plan to expand upon in the future?

Yoshida:A lot of what we do now is bespoke solutions for individual departments, but as we accumulate experience, we aim to broaden our scope to support business and investment decision-making across the company. Advances in LLMs have made it easier to handle the vast amounts of document data that are typical in our industry. We hope this will allow us to contribute to business and investment decisions, which is a strength that gives trading companies an edge.

Okura:Our ultimate goal is to empower every Marubeni employee, beyond just the Digital Innovation Department, to confidently make business proposals rooted in robust digital knowledge. To this end, we offer a variety of training programs and seminars beyond Digichare to raise the level of digital literacy and skills. We also promote hands-on learning through personnel exchanges between the Digital Innovation Department and the Sales Department. We want these members to serve as evangelists who disseminate digital knowledge and skills. This is something we want to build on going forward.

While it’s crucial to develop services with the latest technology, the most important thing for Marubeni is strengthening our business through targeted solutions for specific situations. Giving our colleagues in various departments the support necessary to maximize their potential will contribute to Marubeni’s overall growth.