Mikitani (Rakuten): “The fact that the company’s language is English has helped us internationalise”
“There are three key drivers of Rakuten's growth: our commitment to innovation through entrepreneurship; our intent since our early days to globalise our business; and, thirdly, making English the company's common language, an initiative unusual for a company headquartered in Japan that allowed us to do business across national borders and source the best talent from around the world.” This was the message given by Hiroshi “Mickey” Mikitani, founder, Chairman and CEO of Rakuten Inc. He has been awarded the ESADE Prize for successfully leading Rakuten's global expansion strategy for over a decade. The award was made before almost 2,000 ESADE alumni at the Palau de Congressos de Catalunya (The Catalonia Convention Centre) during the Annual Congress in Barcelona.
The company is a giant in the e-Commerce field and what sets it apart from other on-line sales sites is the “diversity and nature of its customers”. Mikitani, in conversation with Pedro Parada, Professor of ESADE's Department of Management and Strategy, explained that his founding idea for the e-commerce business was one in which Rakuten would have all the energy and hustle-and-bustle of the city's old open-air markets, adding, “That is why we give sellers their own web pages so that they can communicate directly with their customers”. He said that “the lines between online purchases and off-line ones are currently becoming ever more blurred. For example, in Japan, our users win points for shopping in physical outlets and they can spend these points on-line or not, as they please”. “Cashless payment will soon be the norm”, he predicted.
Rakuten's CEO foresaw “a bright future for traditional brick-and-mortar businesses”. “As part of Rakuten's growth and expansion strategy, we have always focused on partnering with retailers and other businesses, to support their growth now and in the future”, he stressed. Mikitani added: “We work with sellers to help them implement the loyalty points programme, the payment options and ways to integrate data. We can digitalise the physical business to make it more convenient for purchasers”.
Values and innovation
Asked by Professor Parada about the company's values, Mikitani stressed that one of the things that most impressed him was when Rakuten began talks with FC Barcelona on the scope for collaboration. He said “FC Barcelona has forged deep, long-lasting links with the community”, and he stressed the importance of the Club's home-grown talents. “Working with local communities and the owners of small business is at the heart of Rakuten's corporate philosophy”, he emphasised.
With regard to the company's approach to innovation, Mikitani said that “Rakuten not only sees innovation as a strategy” but also enshrines a philosophy “that fostering innovation within the firm means constantly talking about the subject, providing incentives for new ideas. We never punish failure, given that this can create valuable information that leads to successes later on”.
The ESADE Prize
Hiroshi Mikitani has received the ESADE Prize for successfully leading Rakuten's global expansion strategy for over a decade, turning the company into a world leader in services as diverse as e-Commerce, fintech, travel, messaging, telecommunications, and sports. The Prize recognises Mikitani's brilliant career, his ability to manage leaders and motivate them with his vision of offering a first-rate financial service.
The award was made as part of the ESADE Alumni Annual Conference. The purpose of the ESADE Alumni Prize is to distinguish those individuals and companies whose track record, activities, or services enshrine the foundational values of the ESADE Business School and that set a shining example for others to follow.
