Introduction and Summary

Hi, I'm Iwamoto. Last month, I had the opportunity to write an introductory post as the group manager of the My route Development Group. As it happens, I also serve as the manager of the Mobile App Development Group. In this article, I'd like to introduce the group and share a bit about how I came to manage both.

About the Mobile App Development Group

What is the Mobile App Development Group?

Formed in early 2022, the Mobile App Development Group is a relatively new team made up of engineers who, as the name implies, specialize in mobile app development. With pride as a mobile app development specialist, we take full ownership of all mobile app projects involving KINTO Technologies, transcending the boundaries between individual services. Basically, we create mobile apps in collaboration with the development groups in charge of each service (mainly those responsible for backend API development), but our involvement doesn't end at delivery. We stay actively involved in post-launch development and enhancements, working closely with each service group to take shared responsibility in driving the service forward.

Our Journey So Far

Let’s explore how the Mobile App Development Group was formed.

The Early Days of KINTO Technologies

KINTO Technologies has its roots in the development department of KINTO Corporation. At the time, the service primarily handled applications via the web and had no mobile app. So, the engineering team was made up almost entirely of web engineers, with very few members having any experience in mobile app development.

my route Development

Amid these circumstances, KINTO Technologies was assigned to develop my route, a MaaS app that originally began as a pilot project by Toyota Motor Corporation. At the time, My Route was being developed under contract by a partner company, and our first mission was to bring that development in-house. Although the in-house development of backend APIs progressed smoothly, mobile app development remained heavily reliant on partner companies for quite some time due to a shortage of specialized engineers. To turn things around, we gradually built up in-house expertise by reassigning engineers with mobile app experience and actively hiring new talent. By fall 2021, we had a solid internal foundation in place and were ready to kick off our in-house mobile app development project.

Development of Apps Other Than my route

As the mobile app engineering team within the My Route Development Group grew more capable, we started receiving an increasing number of inquiries about mobile app development from teams outside of My Route. By that time, KINTO Technologies had started handling several mobile apps besides my route. However, due to the ongoing shortage of mobile app engineers, much of the development work was still outsourced to partner companies. I wouldn't say that was the sole reason, but it's true that many of those projects faced challenges and didn't go very well. As we continued offering support and assisting with these external projects, our involvement in services beyond my route gradually increased, even though we were still technically part of the my route Development Group.

The Birth of Mobile App Development Group

Before we knew it, nearly half of our members were working on services other than my route. At that point, it no longer made sense from an organizational or operational perspective for us to remain a team within the my route Development Group. As a result, the Mobile App Development Group was established as an independent team in January 2022. We also considered embedding mobile app engineers directly into the development teams for each individual service. However, since the team had only just been formed—bringing together engineers with diverse backgrounds and skill sets—there were concerns that spreading them out too soon would make it difficult for KINTO Technologies to establish a consistent standard for mobile app development. This led to the decision to create a dedicated mobile app development group. Thanks to that, about a year later, we have established a number of development standards, and the group has grown into an organization of engineers capable of delivering high-quality mobile applications.

Features of the Mobile App Development Group

Team Composition

As of the end of 2022, the group's size has grown to about 25 people. The number of Android and iOS engineers is roughly half and half, and some members are skilled in both platforms or have multi-platform experience using tools like Flutter and Unity. We also have a few members called "producers," who take on PM-like roles. Currently, our development work is centered on native apps, so the team is broadly divided into Android and iOS groups. However, we are considering reorganizing into service-based teams in the future. This would allow us to strengthen ties to each service and make better use of engineers who have the skills to work across both operating systems.

International Diversity

Compared to other groups, our team has a notably high ratio of non-Japanese members. In particular, around 80% of our Android specialists are global talent. Our group includes members from a wide range of countries, including Korea, China, Taiwan, Myanmar, Poland, and Germany, making for a truly international environment. Many of our members are fluent in English, but since English has not yet been adopted as the company's official language, all members are able to communicate in Japanese well enough to perform their daily work. With people from many different cultural backgrounds, the team enjoys a lively atmosphere and open, energetic communication on a daily basis. The communication style can feel much more direct compared to all-Japanese teams, which can be surprising at times. Even so, we aim to be an organization that embraces and enjoys these differences.

What kind of People Work Here?

When it comes to hiring, technical skills in mobile app development are a given. What we value even more is a strong interest in the field and a proactive mindset toward staying up to date with the latest trends. That's because the mobile app development landscape is constantly evolving, with new technologies and techniques emerging every day. Relying solely on existing knowledge quickly leads to obsolescence in such a fast-paced environment. As a result, the team is made up of members who are truly passionate about mobile app development. Many go beyond their daily work to improve their skills, and study sessions are held regularly.

To Our Future Members

If you're looking to grow as a mobile app specialist and want to work with the latest technologies, this is the perfect environment for you. Even if you don't have much hands-on experience yet, we warmly welcome those who bring passion and a willingness to learn. Let's work together to create mobile applications that support Toyota Group!