In this interview series, we put a spotlight on key individuals guiding the future of Axelspace. This interview highlights Yukichi Miyagawa, Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Chief Digital Officer (CDO), as the ninth member to be featured. He talked about how he encountered and joined Axelspace after working as an engineer and consultant in the past, as well as the company’s digital transformation initiatives.
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Profile
Yukichi Miyagawa / CIO & CDO
Having overseen diverse software development at an independent system integration company. He then moved to its US branch, where he promoted various systems implementation projects, including ERP, for client companies. After becoming the branch’s CEO there, he joined Rakuten Group as a system development manager for various services such as e-commerce and online supermarkets. In this role, he led a significant system reorganization for an investee company in a retail investment project.
Career Development both in Japan and the US, starting as an Engineer
My career started as an engineer, mainly in the field of web applications. I have been engaged in building various systems for about 10 years, starting in 1992 in Japan. After that, I moved to the U.S. and worked as a consultant and engineer for 16 years. I also experienced management as CEO.
What brought me to the U.S. was an encounter with a woman whom I had met through a publication project for software-related books.
At the time, the Japanese IT industry had yet to fully establish software testing methods and was lagging behind the rest of the world. To address this situation, I collaborated with my colleagues in the Software Testing Engineers Exchange Association community to translate and publish foreign technical books to raise the industry’s level. Through this project, I met a 26-year-old Australian woman who was already working as a manager, and I was shocked to see the difference from Japan with its seniority system.
This experience made me realize the importance of experiencing a career development overseas. After negotiating with the HR department of the company I was working for at the time, as well as the branch manager of the local subsidiary, I finally got an opportunity to work in the US.
After returning to Japan to take advantage of the country’s growing inbound demand, I was also involved in building systems for the airline industry, developing EC systems, and reorganizing corporate systems.
The Reason for Joining Axelspace: Future Possibilities in Systems Construction, Not Because it is a Space Venture.
One key factor in my decision to join Axelspace was the future possibilities in system construction. Due to size and other constraints, many large companies have no choice but to replace their accounting, production, human resources, and other systems with a partially optimized approach. In contrast, at Axelspace, I could provide an optimal system environment with a more modern approach to systems for future expansion.
Industry was not a significant concern for me in choosing a company, as I was confident that I could make the most of the experience I had gained in several industries. My experience covering almost all areas of the “Order to Cash” systems has been invaluable to me in my current job.
Roles as CIO & CDO
My main role at Axelspace is twofold. One is as CIO (Chief Information Officer), working with business divisions to support the necessary areas with systems, and the other is as CDO (Chief Digital Officer), maximizing the value of the company’s data assets by connecting everything through digital technology.
Currently, CDO functions account for a large proportion of my work. For example, one of the main themes of the data infrastructure-related projects focused on now is the application of AI. AI will bring about a revolution in corporate management equal to or even more significant than the “spread of the Internet” that began in the 1990s, and its potential is not limited to improving business efficiency.
One of Axelspace’s strengths is the vast amount of data we have accumulated through the development, launch arrangement and in-orbit operation of satellites. Therefore, it is an extremely important mission to accumulate this data in a more effective form and utilize it to improve quality and productivity in the future by utilizing AI and other technologies.
Greatest Advantage of Axelspace
Many opportunities to take on new challenges are a big attraction of Axelspace. I believe that engineers are very lucky to be able to paint on a blank canvas using the data and know-how accumulated over the past 16 years in the satellite business. I particularly value “Celebrate challenges” in the Axelspace Way, the company’s three action guidelines. I expect our members to actively take on challenges, making the most of this rare environment, rather than passively performing the assigned tasks.
His Vision for the Future
In the next few years, I expect to see a rapid increase in rocket and satellite launches and various reorganizations within the space industry. Our company, which handles the entire process from satellite development to in-orbit operation and data service provision, will play an increasingly important role. As we expand our business as a holding company with new, competitively-minded colleagues, we must also integrate systems among global companies. In this context, I will draw up future growth strategies from both business and systems perspectives, while firmly supporting the company’s performance from a systems perspective.
In the future, I would like to make some of our data available to universities and other academic institutions. I believe it is very meaningful for a company to support the research and development of students who support and create the future.