Asahi Net Bringing Innovation To Education Case Solution

2. Analysis

ASAHI Net met change during the lead of Yamamoto’s. He revived the concept of creating communication with potential clients. He focused on the ISP development and internet improvement. Long term strategic goals were brought to light. The new CEO saved budgets from advertisements and cross selling. The remaining funds were invested service development. Hence, the core competency of the company became the service quality. Moreover, the tactic was to satisfy the existing customer base, rather than penetrating into new markets. Yamamoto also practiced decentralized decision making. The democratic approach helped employee empowerment to foster. Yamamoto trained the IT staff with a marketing sense. IT personnel were practically guided through working at an ice cream parlor. By 2003, the company aimed well renowned name in terms of customer care and after sales service. The business formed its vision on affordability, stability and customer equity. All these unique selling points were addressed by Yamamoto. The plans needed further extension. The core competences were touched in respect of marketing, development, support and hiring.

ASAHI Net shunned the approach of aggressive promotions because it meant resource wastage. The unconventional means were used that included new target market’s participation. The business also developed its operations internally. It saved costs for the business as subcontracts charge fees. Outsourcing also means to disclose private information to external third parties. ASAHI Net further employed the method to directly employee workers, rather than hiring temporary employees. The business focused and spent much on employee training and could not afford to lose the costs of apprenticeship by foregoing temporary workers.

The business decided to launch its Learning Management System (LMS)- Manaba that  involved cloud computing systems technology. Manaba was designed by Morita from Sega. The company had much expertise in software engineering and hired excellent IT professionals. It was confident to launch the version in Japanese schools and colleges. It helped students to collaborate and communication speedily and conveniently. The corporate clients also contributed to a major lucrative market. The joint venture of Ritsumeikan inculcated hope for cloud technology to expand beyond Japan.

3. Strategic Alternative 1

Manaba gained popularity in the field of education. Expansion in Japan constituted as one of the strategic alternatives. The increasing growth of junior colleges and private schools opened opportunities for the business to grow its existing market share. National universities, local public universities and private universities are all avenues where Manaba can actually enter. A fall in the birth rate already has stressed the adult Japanese population to join professional degrees. Manaba also terminates the cost of physical server presence. It allows the user to privately manage information. Upgrading of the service by the start of every new Japanese semester increased favor of the system integration. Seminars conducted in Tokyo and Kyoto in 2010 proved Manaba's fame. The hype for Manaba gradually superseded. The choice of Japanese selection indicates that further expansion within Japan will prove fruitful.

4. Strategic Alternative 2

Yamamoto believed that Manaba can make a name in the world. The number of educational institutions in U.S increased by large compared to that of Japan’s. Increased numbers of institutions mean increased purchases of Manaba. U.S government’s budget also constituted majorly to the education sector. Hence, the US market is in a stage of incorporating e-learning. Although, competitors like Moodel, Sakai and Backboard exist. The presence of rivals means threat and opportunity. Healthy competition leads to efficiency, whereby every firm tries to lower per unit costs. The goal is to give best of services to customers. Other open software platforms also provide for a cut throat competition in the industry. However at the graduate level, open site platforms do not work optimally. Moreover, the expansion of social networking services also was initiated for the US market. Platforms like Facebook, Twitter and, LinkedIn helped students work but also posed privacy and hacking issues.

5. Strategic Alternative 3

ASAHI NET’s could simply decide to expand the Manaba project internationally. ASAHI Net has an experience of many years. It has developed a trusted name in the areas of cloud technology, social networking platforms and communication. Joint ventures and foreign appreciation have also appraised the former limited position of the business. ASAHI Net aims to bring innovation to education. In developed countries, like the US, major investment is reserved for the education sector. The hefty amounts of investment indicate prospects for technology to grow in favor of student’s assistance. Manaba can be launched in famous universities like Harvard and Stanford so that a premium image of the business is sustained. Small universities should not be targeted directly. ASAHI Net can gain access to universities to increase familiarity with its service. It can build testing program sessions for Manaba. The business can distribute feedback cards to extract information. The collected information should be interpreted for analysis. The analysis needs to be the primary base for customer relationship management systems.