Business Planning Manager - Business Directorate Office, Travel & Mobility Business

Description

Business Overview

Rakuten Group operates a wide range of services including e-commerce, fintech, and digital content, with a mission to "empower people and society through innovation" and enrich lives.
Within this, Rakuten Travel stands as one of Japan's largest accommodation booking sites, offering attractive services that cater to diverse travel needs. Leveraging Rakuten Group's strong customer base and technology, Rakuten Travel's dynamic business development, bringing innovation to the travel industry, is a significant appeal.

*Rakuten's Business in Numbers

Department Overview

Business Directorate Office (BDO) plays a crucial role in supporting the continuous growth of the travel and mobility business. In terms of service types, personnel, and number of locations since the business started in 2001, it was Established in 2015 as a "defensive" department.
With total transaction value 1 trillion yen and global expansion, travel business faces increasing difficulty in making management decisions that secure profits and enable appropriate investment. The mission of the BDO is "to continuously grow the business and provide new value to users and suppliers while adapting to changes in market conditions and internal circumstances."

Among them, Business Planning Group is responsible for managing the business performance. This department involves a lot of work close to the management, such as weekly performance forecasts, P/L management by service, and creation of management reports.

Position:

Why We Hire

Currently, the team consists of 5 relatively young members who are responsible for the overall performance management of the travel business. With increasing global transaction volume, managing it has become more challenging, and the entire team is in a constant state of trial and error. However, due to internal transfers within the business, there is currently no manager.
The head of the Business Directorate Office is concurrently serving as manager while overseeing the other 3 groups. The online travel industry is currently facing intense competition, and in order to continue sustainable growth, it is urgent to strengthen forecasting and actual results management to win against global OTAs.
To be honest, there are many challenging situations, but we are looking for someone who can face these challenges together and manage the team to overcome them with a full team effort. As the head of the office, I guarantee that the environment will never be boring.

Attractiveness
- A business that continues to challenge itself despite being the No.1 OTA in Japan.
On a stable foundation, you can constantly challenge yourself to create new value and feel the dynamic influence that moves the entire industry.
- As a small organization and a department close to management, the team has significant discretion and can be involved in decision-making with a sense of speed.
An environment where the team's work directly contributes to business growth.
- You will acquire management skills beyond management accounting skills, as well as project management skills.
Your market value as a professional will increase through a wide range of tasks.
- AI is being promoted within the Rakuten Group.
It has become commonplace for all employees to use AI, allowing you to keep up with the times.

Position Details

In this position, you will manage the forecasting and actuals of the travel business and management accounting operations, leading the business to achieve its budget. This will involve a wide range of tasks, from detailed verification for precise forecasting, to internal business coordination for budget achievement, and preparing reports for business heads and the president.

Key Responsibilities
- Forecasting and actuals management (weekly) for the travel business, budget formulation, and mid-term plan formulation.
- P/L management by service and coordination with various stakeholders to achieve P/L targets.
- Team management (people management).
- Management of intercompany transactions between overseas subsidiaries.
- Preparation of management reports.
- Competitor analysis, financial analysis.
- Leading company-wide projects (e.g., cost reduction, cash flow improvement).

Work Environment

Organizational Structure
- Overall Business Directorate Office: 16 members
- Age Range: 20s - 40s
- New Graduate to Mid-Career Ratio: 80% New Graduates, 20% Mid-Career

- Business Planning Group: 5 members
- Age Range: 3 members in 20s, 2 members in 30s
- New Graduate to Mid-Career Ratio: 100% New Graduates

Background of Mid-careers
(2 Mid-Career Managers in other groups within the Business Management Office)
- Overseas individual company management at an automotive parts manufacturer
- System development project management at a SIer

Career pass example
- Appointed as manager within 1 year of joining, actively involved in a wide range of areas including governance and finance for overseas individual companies
- Completed a project to introduce an accounting system after joining, and while operating and maintaining the new system, is a leader who supports the business from various angles by also managing a team in the new field of business legal affairs

Mandatory Qualifications:

- Experience in business forecasting and actuals management (1+ years)
- Experience in managing a team of multiple people (1+ years)
- Comfortable with detailed numerical management, trial calculations, and forecasting
- Basic PC skills: Excel, PowerPoint

Desired Qualifications:

- Experience in business planning or business strategy
- Experience working in an environment close to management, such as the President's Office
- Experience managing cross-departmental projects, such as cost reduction
- Experience in the web/IT industry
- Accounting knowledge