Global Open Innovation Case Study | Interview with Shawn Shih, President of NextDrive

I had an opportunity to interview Mr. Shawn Shih, President of NextDrive, prior to my keynote presentation at the Feb 19 event of Tokyo Metropolitan Government. The interview intended to study a successful case of “global open innovation,” the theme of my presentation. The interview took place at the stylish office of NextDrive close to Roppongi Station.

NextDrive is a start up with IoT technology, established in 2013 and headquartered in Taiwan. The company provides smart energy management solutions to homes and businesses. NextDrive partnered with UME, a Japanese company in smart home business utilizing IoT. They co-developed the gateway that works in sync with a smart lock solution called LINKEY, launching the service in just three months. As a success factor, Shawn cited partners’ mutual contribution capitalizing on their strengths, and as a roadblock Japanese companies’ slow decision making. He also mentioned that mutual respect for each other’s culture as a key to building a win-win relationship.

My presentation introduced NextDrive case study in the beginning. The audience seemed to be impressed with the speed of innovation by NextDrive and partners.

I would like to express thanks to Shawn for gladly accepting the interview, and to Pasona Inc. – the TMG event organizer – who arranged the valuable interview.

Ken Kasegawa, CustomerPerspective, Inc.