Introduction

Hello, I am yuki.n. I join the company in January this year! I interviewed those who joined in December 2023 and in January this year about their immediate impressions of the company! I hope this content will be useful for those who are interested in KINTO Technologies, and serve as a reflection for the members who participated in the interview.

Hoshino

• Self-introduction My name is Hoshino, and I joined the company as Deputy General Manager of the Mobility Product Development Division, a newly established division in January. I have been working to create and operate services from a technical perspective.

• How is your team structured? There are 4 teams: (1) in charge of in-house media, (2) in charge of incubation projects, (3) in charge of tool development for dealers, and (4) in charge of tool planning for dealers. As of February 2024, we have 23 members, mostly software developers, but we also have producers, directors, and designers. We are a team with the capability to run a business holistically.

• What was your first impression of KINTO Technologies when you joined? Were there any surprises? Yes, indeed! I think it is wonderful that the company provides not only explanations of the divisions, but also a full orientation that includes explanations of the business flow, vision, and medium- to long-term plans, so that mid-career employees can move in the same direction.

• What is the atmosphere like on site? Despite the wide age range of the members, who are in their 20s to 40s, everyone seems to be in harmony with each other. I initially assumed that many of the members had been with the company for a long time, but a lot of employees had been here for only six months or less. I felt the company's openness to welcoming new people. Work styles are diverse, and remote work seems to be more frequent than in other divisions. I think this team is ideal for those seeking challenges, thanks to the diverse backgrounds of its members. If you are interested, please contact our HR!

• How did you feel about writing a blog post? I think it is a very good initiative as organizations capable of sharing information will gain a competitive edge in recruitment.

• [Question from Romie] I feel like hitting roadblocks in the early stages of launching and running a service can pose significant challenges for recovery down the line. What do you think are the crucial aspects and important mindsets one shouldn't overlook when starting out? It is important to understand that services truly begin when customers start using them and their value begins from that moment onward. And that they also require continuous nurturing. Taking the above into consideration and put simply: ‘aim to establish operations that are sustainable over time’. However, since new services may not be fully adopted from launch, I think it is important to discern what are its core requirements to be maintained first and start small. I think that once a service starts, the most important thing is to avoid discontinuation to the users, rather than any troubleshooting. As for its sustainability/ continuity, establishing a strong relationship with the product owner would be beneficial.

Choi

• Self-introduction I'm Choi from the New Vehicle Subscription Development Group within the KINTO ONE Development Division. I joined the company in December. I have been working in frontend and backend development for various web services.

• How is your team structured? As a content development team, we have nine members including myself. Most of them are frontend engineers.

• What was your first impression of KINTO Technologies when you joined? Were there any surprises? I felt the system was well-organized, due to the comprehensive orientation provided upon joining the company. I was impressed by the company's blend of characteristics from both a major company and an IT startup. What struck me the most was how experienced engineers were and how they keep exploring and studying new technologies.

• What is the atmosphere like on site? There were many things I didn't understand during my first month after joining the company, but everyone on the team was kind and helpful in answering any work-related questions. The Osaka office where I work is still a small group of about 30 people, and we can communicate well with people from other divisions. Once a month, we hold lightning talks with office members at our “info-sharing meeting” and we also share ideas to improve our office environment.

• How did you feel about writing a blog post? I was a little worried because I am not good at writing Japanese, but I think it went well as I was able to reflect on my past two months.

• [Question from Hoshino] Please tell us if there is any app that you thought "This is excellent!" as a frontend engineer. The pace of technological advancement in frontend development seems fast these days. Many sites are also user-friendly in terms of UI/UX. While I don't have a particular app that I think is the best, I have experience in backend and app development as well as frontend development, and from this perspective, I've recently been interested in Flutter and React Native, which allow me to create without platform restrictions. It has been a few years since they were released, but when I first started developing apps, I had to create Android, iOS, and web apps separately, so eliminating that workload has been a huge help to me as an engineer!

YI

• Self-introduction I am YI from the Operation System Development Group in Project Development Division. My previous job was being a systems integrator (SIer), mainly engaged in B2B system implementation projects for various development projects regardless of industry, as well as frontend and backend. Currently, I am developing a system to handle back office operations related to KINTO ONE used vehicles.

• How is your team structured? There are 5 people as a used car system team, and about 10 other service providers.

• What was your first impression of KINTO Technologies when you joined? Were there any surprises? I was surprised that the purchase of expensive software licenses proceeded with only Kageyama-san's (our VPs) approval via Slack, and it was ready for use the next day."

• What is the atmosphere like on site? I have the impression that there are many people in my age group with diverse backgrounds.

• How did you feel about writing a blog post? Actually, I had been reading the Tech Blog before joining the company, so I knew about this project somehow, but when I came to write it myself, I thought, "Is it really my turn now?!"That’s how I felt.

• [Question from Choi] What activities would you like to do outside of work within the company (hobbies, sports, etc.)? I played tennis in high school so I'd like to play with the members of "ktc-tennis club," and also join the activities from the "Golf club" and "Car club" channels in our Slack. I find it really valuable to be able to build connections “horizontally” with colleagues who aren't directly involved in my daily work. So I am looking forward to participate in different activities!

HaKo

• Self-introduction I am HaKo from the Analysis Produce Team, Data Analysis Group. I've worked as a researcher and analyst for research companies and retail companies. I find it interesting to know how people use services and what goes through their mind when they do.

• How is your team structured? We are a team of nine, including my manager and me. We are formed by teams that were subdivided into smaller teams that were then consolidated into a single one.

• What was your first impression of KINTO Technologies when you joined?　Were there any surprises? I have often worked in environments with older age groups, so I was moved by the lack of rigid "protocols".

• What is the atmosphere like on site? I feel that everyone has their own specialties and areas of expertise and is very inspiring to see.

• How did you feel about writing a blog post? It's my first time writing a blog post, but it reminded me of the days when I used to keep a diary on mixi, long time ago.

• [Question from YI] What has changed since joining KINTO Technologies? There were many projects that I took over soon after joining the company. They are more centered around technical tasks such as creating the email newsletter distribution system, rather than focusing on sales promotion planning or analysis, which had been my main focus until then.

yuki.n

• Self-introduction I'm yuki.n from the New Vehicle Subscription Development Group in the KINTO ONE Development Division. I joined the company in January this year as a frontend engineer. I was assigned to Osaka. I would be happy to be involved in a diverse range of tasks, not only limited to frontend.

• How is your team structured? As a newly established team, we currently are four including myself, comprising both internal and external members.

• What was your first impression of KINTO Technologies when you joined? Were there any surprises? I was surprised at how solid the company is in many areas, such as the orientation, company rules, and so on. It was a very new experience for me, partly because it was rare in my past.

• What is the atmosphere like on site? I gives me a sense of comfort and tranquility in a positive way. All other team members are in Tokyo except myself, but I feel no particular communication barriers. I feel comfortable interacting with them. I am also grateful that I am allowed to do things quite freely, such as being given the chance to try out my own initiatives.

• How did you feel about writing a blog post? This is my first time writing a blog post for work so I was nervous, but I thought it was a great initiative.

• [Question from HaKo] Please tell us what surprised or impressed you when you joined KINTO Technologies. It overlaps with what I mentioned before, but even though I just joined the company, I am pleased that the team have accepted my concepts and "what I want to do." I was surprised and impressed at the same time.

Kiyuno

• Self-introduction I am Kiyuno from the Project Promotion Division, Project Development Division. I was assigned to the frontend development of KINTO FACTORY. I work at the Muromachi Office.

• How is your team structured? We are six, including myself, all working on frontend development. I want to keep the title of the youngest engineer in the team. I might even be one of the youngest in the company.

• What was your first impression of KINTO Technologies when you joined? Were there any surprises? I had the impression that it was laid-back in a good way. There were no surprises in particular, I am happy with the looseness I expected. It is wonderful that they are so accepting of me wanting to try something!

• What is the atmosphere like on site? I’d say our team is like a cozy little island. While communication within the team is active and individual opinions are respected, the team is introverted and has room for improvement in exerting more external influence. We found this out through the StrengthsFinder assessment. I was also warmly welcomed after joining the company, making it easy for me to quickly get used to the atmosphere.

• How did you feel about writing a blog post? I had been tasked with posting tech blogs in my previous job, so I wasn't too concerned about it. Since I'm a naturally shy person, I feel anxious about self-disclosure, but I would be happy if this article sparks your interest in our organization.

• [Question from yuki.n] Please tell us about what you are currently interested in or pursuing in terms of technology! I am delving into the field of 'prompting skills' to optimize output in tools like ChatGPT. This also comes in handy when using "Sherpa," which is the ChatGPT-based AI language model that we use internally at KINTO Technologies.

K

• Self-introduction I am K from the Project Promotion Division, Project Development Division. I am in charge of Salesforce development and work at the Muromachi Office. My previous job was being a systems integrator (SIer), and I was involved in multi-cloud system implementations regardless of industry.

• How is your team structured? There are 4 people as a Salesforce team, and about 10 other business partners.

• What was your first impression of KINTO Technologies when you joined? Were there any surprises? My first impression was that there were many technical study sessions.

• What is the atmosphere like on site? There are a lot of experienced engineers, and I noticed that they are actively learning new technologies.

• How did you feel about writing a blog post? I believe that writing for the KINTO Technologies' Tech Blog will be a valuable experience.

• [Question from Kiyuno] What is the most important mindset in development? I think it is important to be flexible in order to adapt to new situations and deal with evolving technology and changing project requirements. It requires the ability to calmly deal with issues as they arise and find effective solutions. I believe it's important to pursue both creative solutions and routine problem-solving

Mukai (mt_takao)

• Self-introduction My name is Mukai (mt_takao). I joined the company in December. In my previous job, I was primarily a (digital) product designer and product manager for a BtoB product for a taxi dispatch application. At KINTO Technologies, as in my previous job as product designer, I am in charge of the overall design development of products for Toyota dealers.

• How is your team structured? I am part of the DX Planning Team, Owned Media & Incubation Development Group, Mobility Product Development Division. Our mission every day is to use the power of digital technology to solve the challenges and difficulties faced by Toyota dealers.

• What was your first impression of KINTO Technologies when you joined? Were there any surprises? My impression is that the onboarding process at the time of joining the company, including orientation, was much more organized than I expected. I had several opportunities to learn about organizational challenges before joining the company. I made my decision to join after fully understanding them, so there were no major surprises.

• What is the atmosphere like on site? The DX Planning team where I belong is relatively young and many members have recently joined the company. Despite this, we all share the same attitude of moving forward by drawing upon our individual experiences.

• How did you feel about writing a blog post? I see strengthening our communication ability as a challenge, both on an individual and organizational level, and I am grateful for the opportunity to do so.

• [Question from K] Was there a particular design that you considered the best in terms of UI/UX? It is quite difficult to call it the best design, but I've been paying attention lately to the Apple Vision Pro. It appears that technologies expanding into the real world with AR and VR have already started to emerge, and I'm thrilled that this tech has finally become a reality.

  • Reference

    • Review of actual Apple Vision Pro: The world of "using the whole space for work" has come (in Japanese)

  It seems that it is only available in the U.S. now. I would like to experience it when it becomes available in Japan. As a side note, Productivity Future Vision, which describes the future of Microsoft Corporation, is also similar to the world that Apple Vision Pro envisions. If you're interested, please feel free to take a look.

Romie

• Self-introductionI am Romie. I joined the company in December 2023. I belong to the Mobile App Development Group, Platform Development Division. I began working with embedded systems, moved on to the web, and am currently developing mobile applications. In the field of creating mobile apps, I still have a lot to learn.

• How is your team structured? It is separated into iOS and Android, and I am on the Android team. We are five including me! Three of us are foreign nationals. We are an international team.

• What was your first impression of KINTO Technologies when you joined? Were there any surprises? I was amazed by everyone’s speed to proactively catch up with the latest technologies. I was impressed by the robust support provided by the company, and pleasantly surprised to find its corporate culture more liberal than I had expected.

• What is the atmosphere like on site? I feel that we can talk to each other without hesitation and work at ease. Despite our diverse backgrounds, I feel that we form a well-balanced team with a collaborative dynamic without hierarchies.

• How did you feel about writing a blog post? Output leads to daily reflection, and the more you transmit information, the more attention you get, so I'd like to continue doing it!

• [Question from Mukai] What do you want to achieve in KINTO Technologies or in the mobility field? I am in charge of mobile app development, so I want to contribute to KINTO Technologies and the mobility field through the app I am entrusted with. To achieve that, I aim to continuously catch up with the latest technology and work on the growth and development of the products in front of me.

Conclusion

Thank you all for sharing your impressions of after joining the company!

The number of new members of KINTO Technologies is increasing day by day! I hope you look forward to more posts introducing our new members joining us to various divisions.

Moreover, A is actively seeking professionals who can collaborate across different divisions and fields! For more information, click here!