Hiroyuki Ogawa, Senior Managing Director, SBI Securities Co., Ltd.

To bring joy and peace of mind to our customers, we first make those closest to us happy.

Senior Managing Director, SBI Securities Co., Ltd.　Hiroyuki Ogawa(Hiroyuki Ogawa)

■ Profile
He joined Sanwa Bank (now Mitsubishi UFJ Bank) in 1998. While seconded to NTT Docomo, he was involved in the launch of a new mobile phone payment service. In 2005, he joined Itochu Corporation. After working at GMO Click Holdings, he joined SBI Securities in 2013. After serving as head of the corporate planning department and executive officer, he became a director at the company in 2017. He became a managing director in 2020 and a senior managing director in 2021, his current position.

SBI Securities Co., Ltd. boasts the highest number of users in the securities industry. Since its founding in 1999, the company has adhered to a customer-centric approach, earning the support of many investors. Managing Director Ogawa says, "To bring joy and peace of mind to our customers, we first make those closest to us happy." We spoke to him about his career journey and his approach to work.

I majored in physics in university. It was a strict department with a low rate of progression to the next grade, so I remember really struggling to focus solely on my studies. On the other hand, in high school I focused on extracurricular activities and served as student council president and leader of the cheerleading squad. In the cheerleading squad, I devoted myself to practice every day. Cheerleading practice was strict and difficult, but it taught me good manners and courage.
While working as a cheerleader, I felt a strong desire to leave something behind for my peers and juniors, and creating a cheer song became a successful experience that led to my current business style. Up until then, there had been cheer songs, but they had not been passed down properly.
So I thought hard about how I could pass this song on to future generations, and I came to the conclusion that "if it's self-satisfying, it won't survive into the future. If I get other people involved and make it my own, it will connect to the future."

■The important thing is the connection between people

The biggest worry I had as a student was job hunting. Not knowing what I wanted to do, I met with people from around 200 companies to see a variety of industries. Ultimately, I chose a sales position, hoping to interact with people and get them involved in creating something, just like when I wrote a cheer song in high school. I particularly wanted to meet a variety of companies and people in the banking industry, which does business with many companies, so by chance I joined Sanwa Bank (now Mitsubishi UFJ Bank). After three years, I was seconded to NTT Docomo, which was in the early stages of launching i-mode, and was involved in launching a major business alliance. When I returned to Sanwa Bank, I was in charge of new business ventures, wondering if I could do something that combined mobile phones and finance.
A few years later, the merger of UFJ Bank and Tokyo Mitsubishi Bank meant that I was no longer able to launch new businesses, which was my area of ​​expertise. This prompted me to change jobs to Itochu Corporation, but my desire to be involved in online retailing grew, so I moved to GMO Click Securities. After that, I met our company president, Takamura, and have been with him ever since. I believe that I have been able to gain a variety of experiences through my connections with people.

■ Approach with an honest and humble attitude

Within a company, it's the young people who understand the situation best because they're the ones most familiar with the field, so I strive to create an environment where they can provide accurate information. We don't have an executive office, and we work in a physically close, open environment where it's easy to talk. This environment allows me to see my subordinates' growth, and I feel as happy for their growth and success as if it were my own, which makes my job more rewarding. I also encourage them to always strive to be honest and humble. By carefully studying the hints on the SBI Group's strategy and direction provided by Group President Kitao, I can absorb knowledge in new fields and broaden my horizons, both in business and myself. By seeing these as opportunities and taking advantage of them, I can become a leader in that business. Honesty and humility directly lead to hints and opportunities at work, which in turn helps the company grow as a whole.

■ Keep your ears open to various directions

The SBI Group is highly sensitive to new things, and it is part of our culture to listen to the opinions of young people and actively incorporate them. I also keep my ears open in various directions, but simply having an ear open is meaningless. The source of value lies in how we utilize the information we obtain.
In particular, in alliances, our customers are not only general consumers but also business partners, so we are always thinking about how we can output the information we have obtained from the perspective of whether we can provide our customers with some added value.
The SBI Group promotes "open alliances" that partner with companies in various industries to build win-win relationships. As a customer-centric company, SBI Securities wants to provide everything that will make our customers happy.
Through my involvement in the online retail business, I have seen an increase in the number of people close to me using the products and services I have created. I believe that if I cannot make the people close to me happy, I will not be able to make more customers happy, so I would like to first provide products and services that will make the people close to me happy.

＊message＊

It's important to think hard for yourself, not only when you're studying, but also when you're spending time on hobbies and leisure. If you experience a variety of things while you're a student and think about how you can use them in the future, even your failures will become a source of nourishment for your life. It's a waste of time to spend your student life without thinking about anything. It's important to have your own opinions and interact with a variety of people. Think hard about what you can do while you're a student to grow yourself and connect to your future.

Student Newspaper April 1, 2022 Issue Meiji University 10th Year Student Sakai Yaku