Financial Strategy Meetings to hone the strategic mindset of representatives and support long-term business growth
CyberAgent has continued to create numerous businesses through initiatives such as the Ashita Kaigi (Meeting for Tomorrow), where new business ideas are proposed. As a result, CyberAgent now has 105 consolidated subsidiaries*, including sub-subsidiaries.
We are focusing on becoming a market leader while creating a steady stream of new businesses. In this feature, we will introduce the structure that underpins the post-creation stage of business creation, which is one of the keys to our sustained growth.
*As of the end of September 2021
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Financial Strategy Meetings for honing the strategic mindset of representatives
Presentations are just as tense as an actual financial results briefing
Financial Strategy Meetings for honing the strategic mindset of representatives
At CyberAgent, we hold Financial Strategy Meetings with management to promote business growth. Each representative of subsidiaries is given an opportunity to present their strategy, and if the strategy lacks a satisfactory level of confidence or corporate value, or if it continues to underperform, changes are made to the business' content. These meetings are also used to hone the "strategic mindset" of business managers by providing a forum where they are held accountable for their business strategies.
President Susumu Fujita has previously discussed how the Financial Strategy Meetings came to be.
Fujita: Representatives are in a position where their decisions are viewed as correct if they produce results, and they are criticized if they do not, regardless of what they do. Results are everything, so they must be prepared for what comes. And if someone is committed to getting results, the ability to devise strategies is a must.
CyberAgent has been expanding its internet business for many years, and up to a certain point, saying "Let us just give it a shot" was the right thing to do. We thought that starting a business was not that expensive, and the cost of being a latecomer was too high, so let's just get the ball rolling. Then, if prospects were not looking good, we would just decide to withdraw from that business.
With our business managers in charge of so many different areas, I realized I had never truly heard much about their strategies. Meanwhile, I'm responsible for explaining the company's situation at quarterly financial results briefings, where we are asked tough questions such as "what led to these financial numbers?" or, "why did the company invest in this?" I wanted to give the presidents of subsidiaries a taste of this pressure (laughs), and this led to the creation of our Financial Strategy Meetings.
As you know, the presidents of startups are quite skilled at presenting their strategy in order to acquire funding. However, the presidents and managers of our subsidiaries never had such opportunities; therefore, we strive to hone their skills through our Financial Strategy Meetings, where we purposefully give them harsh feedback or reject their ideas.
Presentations are just as tense as an actual financial results briefing
CyberAgent has held Financial Strategy Meetings semi-annually since they were launched in 2019. These are held in a tense environment that simulates an actual financial results briefing for a listed company, with Fujita and other executives playing the role of investors. Employees of a certain company position or higher can view these presentations online and also freely ask questions via chat.
Each representative of subsidiaries is given three minutes to make its presentation. There is no set format for presentation materials, and each presenter creates their own unique materials based on the nature of their business. Following the presentation, which covers the current situation and future strategy, Fujita and directors Yusuke Hidaka and Go Nakayama ask a series of questions, to which the business managers respond.
Because the state of the business can be perceived through the presentation's speaking mannerisms, atmosphere, facial expressions and such, the representatives need to pay careful attention to every aspect. At the April 2022 meeting, roughly 50 business strategies were presented, covering not only the media, internet advertising, and game businesses but also consolidated subsidiaries and businesses.
Fujita's comment at my first presentation: "You said you're going to 'do your best' about everything."
Next, let's take a look at two business managers' perspectives on the changes and comments resulting from the Financial Strategy Meeting.
Representative Director, WinTicket Inc.
Sano: When I made my first presentation at the Financial Strategy Meeting, Fujita said to me, "You said you're going to 'do your best' about everything." At the time, there were too many factors that needed to grow, and I was unable to select and focus on specific ones. It was not a fully formed strategy.
When you are the president of a subsidiary, you are under the impression that results are everything. It was common practice to create a strategy, implement it, produce results, and then evaluate it. The Financial Strategy Meeting was launched against this backdrop, and it was extremely valuable to have an opportunity to get objective feedback on strategies before they were implemented.
Fujita's words inspired me to become conscious of the importance of developing a simple strategy. While I will continue to think things through as thoroughly as possible, I believe that ultimately, incorporating them into a simple strategy makes it easier to communicate to members in the field and improves the ability to execute the strategy.
After the presentation, I also received several comments and questions from employees who viewed it online. In terms of whether your strategy and presentation contents were a success or failure, it is very important to get feedback from multiple perspectives besides the president and executives.
President and Representative Director, CyberACE, Inc.
Nishijima: I think the presentation meetings offer an excellent opportunity to develop medium- to long-term strategies and tactics. They allow us to review the past, and plan for the future. The presentation meetings are also good training because they enable us to think more deeply about what we need to do to succeed in the market.
When I first participated three years ago, I refined my strategy presentation by bouncing ideas off the director in charge as much as possible. The day of the presentation felt enjoyable rather than tense because I had carefully prepared for questions from the president and executives, including what they would want to know and how to best communicate it. As a result, the presentation was so paired down that I wondered whether such a simple presentation was actually suitable.
At CyberACE, I have the opportunity to speak at monthly closing meetings, and my experience at the Financial Strategy Meeting was also useful. I concentrated on communicating a single message that was simple and easy to remember while also ensuring that it was a message that employees would instinctively want to mention. Each time, I am always thinking of ways to improve the words.
Another advantage of participating in Financial Strategy Meetings is that they help you to gain a better understanding of the company as a whole. It provides a simulated experience in which we can learn the strategies and tactics of each subsidiary, and also serves as a venue where we can learn about the company's assets, collaborative options, and so on.
In order to maintain growth in the fast-changing internet industry, it is important for us to respond quickly to changes in the environment and market, and continue developing new businesses.
And by creating long-term social and economic value without being focused only on continually creating new business, CyberAgent aims to contribute to the development of a more sustainable and vibrant society.
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