“On the Frontlines” is a series that takes a closer look at SoftBank Corp. (TOKYO: 9434) employees in the field, or behind the scenes, to showcase their expertise, passion and dedication to their work. In this installment, we followed Daisuke Sugita, an employee based in Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture, who is working to improve efficiency in network construction operations.
SoftBank News asked him about his current responsibilities, the appeal of working at a regional location and what motivates him.
Daisuke Sugita
Tokai IoT Technology Department
IoT Technology Division
Technology Unit
SoftBank Corp.
Sugita grew up in Aichi Prefecture and joined SoftBank in 2020 after graduating from university. He works as a solutions engineer and enjoys going to saunas and operating drones in his spare time.
Learning about operational challenges and driving efficiency while aiming for “overall optimization”
Tell us about your background and place of work.
I joined SoftBank after graduating from university in 2020. I was assigned to a department in the Tokai region (the area between Kyoto and Tokyo) responsible for exploring new businesses using emerging technologies and improving operational efficiencies. My organization is promoting AI-driven efficiency initiatives and creating internal success stories with the goal of commercializing AI-based businesses. As part of this effort, our department works closely with teams responsible for network construction to streamline operations. In network construction, one major task I have involves contract work related to leasing buildings and land for base station installations.
A typical day for me is as follows.
A day in the life
9:00 Arriving at office / checking project progress
The office provides a great environment for focused work, and in-person communication makes discussions with team members faster, so I usually work at the office. At the start of the day, I often update the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) for the team I lead and prepare for upcoming meetings.
10:00 Final preparations for afternoon meetings
I did a final check before an afternoon meeting with the department responsible for operational efficiency. I checked in advance what topics we’d cover during the business process interviews. I also reviewed and organized our progress against the goals set at the beginning of the fiscal year.To ensure smooth discussions with other departments, I always try to organize the agenda ahead of time and align understanding within the team.
12:00 Lunch break
I usually buy a “kaisendon” (rice bowl with seafood on top) from my favorite spot, about a five-minute walk from the office and eat at my desk. It’s affordable, low in calories, and delicious, so I go there almost every day they’re open.
13:00 Internal business process discussions
We’re working to reduce operating hours at our assigned department by 10% by the end of the fiscal year. Improving operational efficiency starts with identifying all tasks, breaking them down and visualizing the workflows. From there, we summarize potential efficiency measures and improvement proposals. Then we implement them by using AI and other technologies.
Visualizing workflows means breaking tasks down into very small units—including who does what, using which system, and in what order—to clarify and structure the tacit knowledge embedded in daily operations. Eliminating tacit knowledge or creating manuals is not the goal in itself, however. I try to keep a balance by not overanalyzing tasks that account for a small portion of the total workload or where it’s unlikely we’ll get efficiency gains.
When considering efficiency improvements, it’s also essential to avoid “compartmentalized optimization” and instead aim for “overall optimization.” On this day, our focus was on visualizing renewal procedures within contract operations. Rather than immediately jumping to the optimization stage, I started by visualizing the entire contract process, including new contracts and cancellations, before moving ahead to improvement initiatives.
15:00 Section meeting
I joined a regular meeting where all members of our section gather. The section manager shares decisions and updates from management meetings, and team members also share relevant information. On this day, in addition to getting updates from our manager, we listened to a presentation about an AI agent developed by a student intern. Whenever I attend events or training sessions, I also prepare materials and report back at the next section meeting.
16:00 Meeting on progress and issue-sharing
This meeting brings together team leaders and those who rank higher to review project progress and challenges. Since all teams completed their business interviews and workflow diagrams, we used this session to reflect and share know-how in document form. We also discussed an issue: if each team creates improvement plans differently, quality can vary. To address this, we used “Improvement Plan Creation Guidelines” developed by my team as a basis for discussion.
In addition to leading my own team, I also play a cross-functional support role, helping multiple teams. I prepare in advance to raise my team’s challenges at these meetings and facilitate discussions with a strong focus on how to guide issues so they can be resolved.
17:00 Developing AI agents through an internal side job program
I also take advantage of SoftBank’s internal side job program, which allows employees to participate in the projects of other departments while continuing their main duties. The program offers opportunities to gain new skills and experience. Our division’s mission is to create new businesses that contribute to next-generation social infrastructure. In line with that, my side project involves researching AI agents as part of a technical investigation and prototyping. Specifically, I’m exploring what AI agents can do now and how they might interact with one another, with a view to where they can negotiate contracts and handle payments on their own. I build and test AI agents myself and share my findings with the department hosting me for this side job.
Becoming a Solutions Engineer Capable of Both Business Planning and Product Development
What kind of work have you been doing since you joined SoftBank?
In my first year, I consulted for companies in the community and municipalities, proposing operational improvements through the introduction of IoT and ICT. In my second year, I joined the project to launch STATION Ai, one of Japan’s largest open innovation hubs. I worked on business planning for services such as parking, hotels and gyms within the facility, and as a PMO, I managed overall project progress and issues while coordinating with Aichi Prefecture, the client. Since the fall of 2024, when STATION Ai officially opened, I’ve been involved in planning new businesses related to next-generation social infrastructure, including business planning for drone-based infrastructure inspection and monitoring.
How are your past experiences helping you in your current role?
The experience of consulting for municipalities in my first year was extremely valuable. I’m comfortable listening to customers’ needs, organizing their challenges, and proposing improvement ideas—that’s one of my strengths. Operational efficiency projects also take a relatively long time from conducting hearings to execution, and my experience managing progress and issues as a PMO at STATION Ai has been very helpful in that regard.
Why did you decide to take on a side project that’s completely different from your main work?
A solutions engineer’s role goes beyond product development. It also involves identifying solutions to customer challenges and securing budgets to turn those solutions into products while driving projects forward. I realized I needed to strengthen three skills: business planning, project management and engineering skills for building products. Through my experience at STATION Ai, I believe I developed solid skills in business planning and project management. However, I felt my engineering and coding skills were still insufficient, so I decided to challenge myself with an internal side project. The biggest appeal of this program is being able to develop skills that aren’t accessible in your own department.
What do you keep in mind when approaching your work?
I always plan my work by working backward from a goal. To deliver results as a team on a deadline, a solid plan is essential. During the STATION Ai project, there were times when the lack of a clear plan caused bottlenecks or uncertainty about next steps. That experience taught me the importance of thorough planning. I also place importance on a customer-oriented mindset. If the outcomes aren’t useful to the departments we support, the work has no meaning. I always try to keep the customer in mind.
What do you find appealing about working in your hometown?
Compared to headquarters in Tokyo, there are fewer people, which makes it easier to build close relationships and communicate internally. The relative ease of commuting is also a big plus. Lower living costs compared to major urban centers are another advantage.
How do you spend your time off?
Since I’ve always lived here, I still hang out with friends I’ve known since elementary school. We get together at someone’s house to play games sometimes. It’s almost like we’re in junior high school again (laughs). I also enjoy going to saunas and playing tennis with friends when our schedules align. Sometimes I also join company colleagues in relay marathons on weekends.
What are your future career goals?
My goal is to become a solutions engineer who can make a true impact. Through my internal side project, I’m working to strengthen my engineering skills, but I still have a lot to learn before I can fully develop products on my own. Ultimately, I want to grow into someone who can plan and develop products independently and lead end-to-end business initiatives.
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(Posted on February 6, 2026)
by SoftBank News Editors
