CLIENT INTERVIEW
Panasonic Operational Excellence Co., Ltd.
Manager, Digital Marketing COE Section
Jitsuho Nishida
A company with outstanding problem-solving skills
What kind of project did you work on with SSS?
Nishida: Our section launched a data-driven marketing (DDM) project to support the marketing activities of each operating company in the Panasonic Group. It is a project to develop and operate a system that ingests a variety of external data and outputs target segments along with the features associated with them. This improves our understanding of customers and lets us extract the keywords closest to conversion. We did not have sufficient resources in-house to develop this system from scratch, so we set out to find an external partner.
What kind of partner were you looking for?
Nishida: At that point the project was still at the concept stage, so the requirement was a company that could participate from the initial brainstorming, build the specifications with us, and then flexibly handle the entire process of developing and implementing it. But that was not the only challenge. Since the purpose of the project is to support marketing activities, we also needed practical capabilities in advertising and content based on the output features, not just system development. The bar was so high that I worried whether such a "conveniently perfect company" even existed.
In that situation, how did you meet SSS and decide to engage them?
We understood each other's words and thinking from the very start.
Nishida: They were introduced by someone I trust. Hearing about SSS's background from that person, I recognized that they were the company that met our requirements. And at our first meeting, that recognition turned into conviction. From the very start we understood each other's words and thinking, and I had a real sense that they were "a group of professionals with both taste and expertise." That was the moment I was certain: "SSS is the only partner for this project."
How did the project progress?
They handled even difficult demands brilliantly!
Nishida: At first they were probably bewildered about what to do (laughs). The requirements were not yet fixed, so we were feeling our way, refining the specifications through repeated discussion and review from a vague starting point. Even so, they stuck with us patiently. SSS responded brilliantly to requirements that were constantly on-going and changing. Thanks to that, the team developed a sense of unity and moved in step, and despite being a from-scratch build by a small team, the system was completed in an astonishingly short time. I am proud to say it is a system on par with services launched by top-tier large corporations. I have nothing but gratitude for SSS.
How do you position SSS within the DDM project?
A reassuring, ideal partner!
Nishida: They are an extremely reassuring partner. I take the liberty of regarding them as "part of the family." From here on, we plan to consult them not only on development but also on analysis and support, and on advertising and content. They will be involved in every aspect of our marketing activities using the DDM system. Since the members who developed the system will handle the follow-on work consistently, I think they are truly an ideal partner.
What kind of company is SSS?
A company that stands by you with sincerity.
Nishida:
They are a company that works very earnestly and stands by us with a sincere attitude. Whatever the difficult problem, they never say "NO" and reject it out of hand; they consider it seriously, which is wonderful. Even when we throw an unexpected question at them, they always come back with an answer. In other words, they are always battle-ready, and they are a company with very high problem-solving ability. And because they deal with us openly and honestly, they are a company clients can be very grateful for.
I truly believe we had an ideal, almost miraculous encounter.
