At Hitotsubashi ICS, students are genuinely at the center of our activities. Every year we have a mid-year feedback session with students and have an open-door policy. For example, as a result of feedback from some of the MBA class of 2018 students, the MBA team and Career Services partnered up to develop Japanese Business Economics 2 and 3 (JBE 2 & 3) a 2-module 4-credit class that equipped students with practical Japanese business skills that they can apply when working at Japanese companies.
Among courses taught at Hitotsubashi ICS, JBE 2 & 3 offer students practical and immersive experiences. Specifically, JBE 3 integrates a one-week internship at an SME in the prefecture of Tokushima. Read about JBE3 MBA students' final presentations (AY 2020-2021), about their Tokushima internship here.
One of the highlights of JBE 3 is joining a one-week intensive problem-solving internship in Tokushima Prefecture. For which, students of this course were divided into five groups. Each group was assigned to work with different local companies and government agencies: the Dried Sweet Potato Product Company Hoichi, the Advertising Agency Nakagawa Ad, the group formed by local volunteers for Traditional Japanese Umbrellas Mima Wagasa, Mima City Office, and the Hotel Paysage Moriguchi. During the four months, each student group developed a solution to issues of each organization and executed the action plan. The students also needed to conduct this internship, all in Japanese.
After having many nights-long discussions with each institution, the students conducted their final presentation session on May 26.
Here are summaries of the session.
Hoichi
Creating a new e-commerce sales strategy for their dried potato product Hoshi Imo
Hantao and Lyvia suggested new approaches to promote their carefully hand-made Hoshi Imo. They pointed out two new stories they can use for PR: the product owner, Mr. Yamakawa’s own story, and the product as an SDG-friendly item. In addition to optimizing Hoichi’s Instagram and translating their website into English and Chinese, they shared concrete ideas about utilizing social media more and their thoughts about other potential business ideas. Mr. Yamakawa liked their two proposals. At the end of the session, Mr. and Mrs. Yamakawa told Hantao and Lyvia that they wanted to continue this relationship even after this internship. This result demonstrates that the students built a genuinely satisfying relationship with Hoichi.
Nakagawa Ad
Creating a sales branding strategy for “Shitorasuko,” a local Sudachi citrus seasoning
Jane and Jin, deciding to target tourists who come to Shikoku, proposed this for the product’s slogan: “Awa (a local historical name) Sudachi with no preservatives or chemical ingredients goes well with any type of food.” The students also suggested specific platforms and how they should convey this message. However, they mainly focused on complex ideas about how Shitorasuku could be promoted on Instagram, including stories and posts. Mr. Nakagawa shared his thoughts on using Instagram based on the students’ proposal at the end of the session.
Japanese Umbrella Mima Wagasa
Finding a way to preserve art heritage
Using the benchmark of cases in Britain, Alex suggested two angles to appeal to the public: the beauty of Wagasa itself and the fun experience of making things by hand. To provide people with the fun experience of making the product, he suggested making a trial kit set of Wagasa so that many people can make it by themselves easily.
At the end of the session, Mr. Emoto and Mr. Sumitomo were happy to know that the idea of making kits is also popular outside of Japan.
They had already created a lampshade kit that replicates the experience of creating a traditional lampshade using a similar technique as the Wagasa. However, they didn’t know if people in other countries would appreciate those kits. They said it was good to learn from overseeing people’s perspectives toward their business.
Mima City Office
Recording corporations and individuals who relocate to Mima City
Ahrum, David, and Sai listed 31 companies that may be interested in relocating to Mima City. The list was made based on three criteria: a company from an IT or an IT-related industry has over 10 % of cash flow compared to their sales and needs a local branch office.
In the Q&A session, Mr. Fujimoto and Mr. Ishida asked how Mima City could approach the public differently. Each local place has relatively similar features, including much beautiful nature. The students’ answer was to feature the voices of the people and company employees who have relocated to Mima City and communicate with the public in video form.
The inn Paysage Moriguchi
Generating potential guests during this pandemic situation
Ben, Pum, and Tina suggested three different plans to approach the new target: nurture partnerships with local partners and provide a more localized unique experience to the guests. They also offered a new strategy of digital marketing. Tina presented possible improvement plans for the current website, such as publishing Chinese versions of the site, including guest reviews. Pum gave practical ideas to utilize social media, like creating a design manual and quickly creating quality posts and other content. After their presentation, people from Paysage Moriguchi asked questions about the implementation of the suggested plans.
After this valuable four-month intensive internship, the students grasped what it’s like working in Japan and creating good relationships with each institution. We want to express our sincere appreciation to the five institutions that gave such great opportunities to the students.