Business Strategy Specialist - Energy Business Department

Job Description:

Business Overview

Rakuten is Japan's largest marketplace and Internet ecosystem, offering a wide range of more than 70 services, including e-commerce, travel, banking, fintech, food delivery, golf, insurance, instant messaging, and mobile networking. Rakuten offers more than 140 services worldwide, of which Communications & Energy Company is the division that operates the cell phone business and other telecommunications and electric energy-related businesses.

Please see below for a list of Communications & Energy Company's services*.

https://corp.rakuten.co.jp/about/company/communications_energy.html

Department Overview

As a retail electricity provider of the Rakuten Group, Rakuten Electricity provides "Rakuten Denki," an electricity service for general households, and "Rakuten Gas," a city gas service. Rakuten Electricity is expanding its services to become the No. 1 new electric power company by providing a safe, convenient, and affordable experience close to its users.

The service features a simple design with a basic charge of zero yen and a single metered charge based on the amount of electricity used, instead of the complicated and difficult electricity rate plans of the past. The service allows customers to receive Rakuten points based on their electricity bills and to pay their electricity bills with the points.

Furthermore, the digitization of the energy field is expected to continue in the future, including the digitization of electricity meters, the development of mobile communication technology, and the spread of IoT and AI. With the spread of distributed power resources such as solar power generation, storage batteries, and electric vehicles, virtual power plants (VPPs) can be used to control and optimize power supply and demand, bundle power sources generated by each household, and mutually trade power. I can also imagine a future where this is done. Against this backdrop, we aim to establish a new power platform by leveraging Rakuten Group's IT technology and big data.

Position:

Why We Hire

This is an opening for team expansion. Backed by steady revenue growth, we are looking to accelerate our next phase of business expansion.

Position Details

- This is a high-visibility, mission-critical position where you will seamlessly drive business strategy formulation, financial optimization, and advanced data analytics—all of which serve as the very foundation of Rakuten’s energy business.

In this role, you will operate at the intersection of high-level corporate planning (strategic formulation) and data science (predictive modeling and analytics). By leveraging Rakuten’s massive ecosystem, you will lead the charge as a next-generation leader to further accelerate the growth of our multi-billion yen energy business.

Key Responsibilities

- Growth Strategy Formulation & Execution

Design and execute data-driven, mid-to-long-term business strategies aimed at aggressively expanding Rakuten’s market share in the energy sector.

- Core Business & Value Chain Optimization

Analyze existing business architectures and value chains to identify operational bottlenecks, improve profitability, and implement optimization initiatives.

- New Service & Product Incubation

Conceive, pitch, and launch innovative retail electricity services from the ground up to accelerate customer acquisition and rapidly scale sales channels.

- Market Intelligence & Regulatory Analysis

Conduct multi-dimensional research on market trends, competitive movements, and regulatory/legal shifts to formulate proactive, forward-looking solutions.

- Maximizing Rakuten Ecosystem Synergies

Strategize and execute high-impact cross-selling initiatives by seamlessly integrating the energy business with other Rakuten Group services (e.g., Rakuten Mobile, Rakuten Card).

- Executive-Level Material Development

Synthesize complex data into high-impact business proposals, financial models, and strategic briefs to enable rapid, critical decision-making by C-level executives.

- Sample Daily Schedule

09:00 Arrive at work; check tasks (review prepared materials)

09:30 Gather and share information on systems and competitors

10:30 Business strategy and supply-demand planning meeting

11:00 Draft planning materials; prepare data for internal approval

12:00 Lunch break

13:00 Coordination meeting with other departments regarding plans

14:00 Internal meeting

15:00 Draft planning proposals and P&L statements

17:00 Meeting with business partners or collaborators

18:00 Leave work

Work Environment

Business Strategy Team

Number of people: 5 people

Composition: men and women in their 30s-40s

All are mid-career hires, some with no experience in the energy industry.

Mandatory Qualifications:

- At least 3 years of practical experience in areas such as strategy, planning, data analysis, and consulting

Desired Qualifications:

- Business level English

#business #strategyplanning

#serviceplanner #communicationsandenergy

Languages:

Japanese (Overall - 4 - Fluent)