Rakuten aims to become the world's largest internet company and is expanding its global business. As part of this strategy, Rakuten plans to adopt English as the official internal language by the end of 2012. This will allow the company to better serve its growing international customer base and 400 non-Japanese employees. However, making English the primary language also presents risks, as many Japanese employees may have difficulties communicating and providing high quality service in English.

1. How Rakuten is planning to run
their entire business in English?
s1170178 Yuya Ito

2. Rakuten's Global Business
● Rakuten's goal is to become the world's
biggest Internet service company, so
Rakuten sets up global business.
● Currently with the rapidly declining
birthrate and aging population, Japan faces
a difficult future in which it is predicted
the market will continue shrinking in the
long term, thus, not apply only to Rakuten,
company directs attention to global market.
● Rakuten is coming to market of U.S.,
France, China and so on continuously.

3. Rakuten's English Strategy
● Rakuten is that English will be the
company's official internal language by
the end of 2012.
● The Rakuten groups has 6,000 employees
in the world, 400 employees of them are
non-Japanese.
● Rakuten's president Hiroshi Mikitani
got an MBA from Havard University, so
he speaks English very well.

4. Rakuten's English Strategy
● If corporate officer cannot master
English during two years time, corporate
officer will be fired.
● Rakuten intends to conduct executive
meetings in English and eventually have
all internal documents in English.
● All menus of company cafeteria are
already available in English.
● Mikitani says that English widely used in
cyberspace and IT.

5. The Other Company's
English Strategy
● Fast Retailing will make English an
official language starting in March
2012, if only Japanese employees, these
employees can use Japanese in email and
meeting.
● In Nidec case determines whether
employees can advance or not by foreign
language skills of employees.

6. Risk to Rakuten's All English
● Between Japanese employees and non-
Japanese employees who speak English
fluently have language barrier.
● Rakuten's importance of English is
lower than companies like Nissan and
Nomura.

7. Risk to Rakuten's All English
● Company cannot supply a high-quality
service because English language skills
of employees are poor.
● There are unique expression in only
native language.
● Between Japanese and English have quite
different structure.
● The language culture in Japan may
disappear.

8. Improvement Plan to
Rakuten's All English
● Japan should reform English education.
– English education in Japan should spend
more time such as starting to educate in
English in primary school.
– English education in Japan should make
strong effort of English speaking skills
because English education in Japan is
almost reading section.
● Above improvement plan may be
minimally-effective.

9. Conclusion
● Rakuten increases internationalization
for becoming the world's biggest Internet
service company.
● Official in-house language of Rakuten
will be English by the end of 2012.
● Above Rakuten's English strategy have
various risks attached.
– Between Japanese and non-Japanese have
language barrier.
– Japanese may be not able to provide high-
quality service.

10. References
● JAPANTODAY, Rakuten's decision on English not
welcomed by everyone,
http://www.japantoday.com/category/kuchikomi/view/ra
kutens-decision-on-english-not-welcomed-by-everyone
● DAILY YOMIURI ONLINE, English as an official
language: Is it necessary?,
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/columns/commentary/T1009
17003018.htm
● Rakuten Careers, Rakuten Business Model,
http://global.rakuten.com/careers/business/
● The Japan Times, Rakuten's all-English edict a bold
move, but risky too,
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/nn20100716f1.html