The “Working at Rapyuta” series celebrates some of the best minds at Rapyuta Robotics. Through interviews with employees, we bring you the real story that you won’t find elsewhere. 

Working at Rapyuta  
James Ya Chou – VP of Project Management

Joined in June 2024. With approximately 18 years of experience in consulting and delivery projects at a leading global consulting firm (Accenture) and Chinese fintech and ICT companies, including 12 years in project management roles. Leveraging extensive expertise while serving as a bridge between Japan and China. Since joining Rapyuta Robotics, continues to demonstrate exceptional capabilities as VP of Project Management, overseeing project management and revenue realization. A key person supporting Rapyuta’s value delivery, constantly envisioning new possibilities and challenging the potential for value creation.

Seeking Something Beyond “Ordinary” – Joining Japan’s Leading Robotics Company

Since becoming a working professional, I’ve been consistently involved in DX (Digital Transformation). My first job was at a major Chinese systems integrator, where I worked as a system application development engineer. I experienced all aspects of the field – from Systems Engineer (SE) to Project Leader (PL) to Project Manager (PM) – including about four years working in Tokyo. 

Leveraging that career experience, I transitioned to Accenture, where I led consulting and delivery of data utilization and AIOps solutions for leading companies in Japan and China. There, I established the AIOps CoE team (Artificial Intelligence for IT Operations Centre of Excellence) and successfully expanded it to over 100 members within five years, achieving significant sales results. 

After that, I joined a leading Chinese fintech company specializing in digital insurance business. As the delivery management director for the Japanese market, I managed a portfolio of projects providing Insurtech platform solutions to top Japanese property and casualty insurance companies, with total annual sales in the tens billions of yen. Through these three companies, I was able to accumulate extensive expertise and joined Rapyuta Robotics seeking further career advancement. 

The reason I joined Rapyuta was my desire to take on challenges in an environment with room for development, unlike the scale of my previous companies. From my experience at my previous company, I discovered the excitement of exploring possibilities with new technologies, and I remember feeling excited wondering “what kind of value creation could I achieve” in the still-maturing robotics industry. For someone like me who finds excitement in challenges that aren’t bound by conventional wisdom, Rapyuta Robotics’ free and open company culture appeared very attractive, and I genuinely felt “I want to work here.” 

Turning Ideal Plans into Reality and Securing Revenue in Exchange for Value 

When I first joined, I was responsible for integration work with the team handling Rapyuta AFL. As the lead there, I worked on strengthening product delivery quality, creating systems, and standardizing implementation processes. During the initial operational phase, there were various challenges before achieving stable operation, but we addressed each one and repeated improvements. We were eventually able to systematize and standardize everything properly, and by expanding that experience to other products, I now serve as operations manager for both Rapyuta ASRS and AFL solutions while also overseeing company-wide project management. 

The primary role of a PM (Project Manager) is to create specific product implementation proposals for projects that sales has received orders for, and ensure completion through acceptance and Go-Live (production operation). 

The difficulty of PM work lies in the fact that even when customers have a clear ideal image when placing orders, technical and operational constraints often make it challenging to realize everything, and we must coordinate this gap with both our team and customers. Balancing both sides and shaping it into a feasible plan is not simple. We must examine from every angle and resolve issues one by one. 

For this purpose, we need to collaborate with internal staff members, external stakeholders, and customers, working together toward the success of Go-Live. Only when we reach Go-Live do the business results take shape, so we play a very important role directly related to company revenue. And projects don’t end with Go-Live. Our ultimate goal is to complete system implementation according to the proposal, achieve stable operations, and provide customers with definitive business value. 

This requires not only logical proposal capabilities but also communication skills to convey ideas clearly and coordination skills with stakeholders. To achieve results, understanding and perspective beyond just your own area of responsibility and business knowledge—beyond what you can control—is essential. That’s exactly why it’s challenging, but also why it’s so rewarding. 

When You Work with Rapyuta, Not Just Companies but Individual Staff Members Become Happy Too⁉ The Real Sense of Delivering Value Beyond Customer Expectations 

What I value most in PM work is building WIN-WIN relationships with customers. In other words, how much value we can deliver to customers. Our Go-live criteria are becoming increasingly refined, and we’re working to make truly valuable proposals without being bound by existing processes or short-term results. 

Also, since “introducing robots” itself is a new initiative for many customers, I’m always conscious of building trust relationships so they can feel confident entrusting us with their projects. We often visit sites during requirements definition and early implementation phases, sometimes up to three days a week. I make it a point to visit warehouses, observe operations, and have direct conversations with customers about “what difficulties they’re currently facing.” 

In this context, I’m happy to frequently receive reports from customer representatives saying “I got promoted thanks to introducing robots.” While our purpose was to deliver value to the customer’s “company,” it also connected to individual staff members’ evaluations and value. Conversely, this also means we’re entrusted with such significant work, so I feel the weight of responsibility to make each decision carefully. 

Breaking Fixed Concepts and Creating New Value Yourself 

I feel most fulfilled at work when I can sense that I’m creating value through my own thinking. The company has established a style of “acting autonomously and freely while following basic rules,” and I’m very grateful for this creative environment. (About Rapyuta’s core values)  The “Openness” value particularly encourages me. It’s easy to express opinions, and decision-making is quick. Of course, we can’t do everything, but if something is rational considering the company’s profitability, we can actively move toward realization. 

What I’m conscious of in this environment is how to break fixed concepts. Rather than being bound by existing frameworks, I try to explore all unknown possibilities while considering the entire market. I believe this unconventional perspective and thinking supports Rapyuta Robotics’ growth. 

In my previous companies, daily work involved executing tasks within somewhat predetermined processes, so capturing things from such a broad perspective was a fresh experience for me. Being able to flexibly consider things with approaches that match market changes is extremely interesting. 

Regarding management, my perspective has changed significantly compared to my previous job. Since everyone approaches their work with ownership, I try to respect individual intentions as much as possible, trust and delegate where appropriate, and never forget to provide detailed attention. We often finish work together and go out for meals, so communication among members is good. I feel it’s great that we can be closely involved with each individual. 

To Create Truly Valuable Things – Logical Thinking, Ownership, and Toughness for Work You Can Feel Good About 

My future vision is to steadily shape Rapyuta Robotics into a ‘leading company in logistics robot solutions.’ Both the robotics industry and our company still have tremendous room for growth and are full of possibilities. As a PM, I want to secure revenue reliably and elevate the entire market. 

For this purpose, I’d love the opportunity to collaborate with more colleagues who can work toward this vision together. From my position, I hope for three things: toughness to tackle difficulties positively, ownership to advance things as your own responsibility, and the ability to think logically and systematically. As I mentioned earlier, both the industry and company are still developing, so I feel there are opportunities for challenges and room for growth everywhere. 

Can you find excitement and possibilities in this and dive in? Do you have the toughness to face difficulties positively and enjoy moving forward? And to fill this growth potential and go even further, ownership is essential. Can you approach work with the consciousness that you are the business owner and it’s your product? Additionally, can you grasp the whole picture, understand things through logical thinking, and act with conviction? I look forward to meeting colleagues who can challenge together while valuing such attitudes. 

I’ve decided to “do any job only after I’m convinced myself.” This might be the secret to producing valuable results. That said, I’ve also acquired this through accumulated experience, so I’d be happy to work with people who want to grow together. We have a wonderful environment and colleagues. Let’s challenge together! 

Rapyuta Robotics is looking for new team members! 

[Visit the Careers Page Here]