Page 23 - Kirin Holdings Teaching Note

A5 In 2014 Kirin had purchased a prominent stake in a

Japanese craft Brewer and it had also formed

international partnerships including one with a major

Brewer from New York. In Japan craft beer only

accounted for about 1% of the beer market whilst in

the US it was over 10%. Isozaki saw an opportunity

where in Japan craft beer could be just as big. In the

next five years he wanted to grow it to about 3% and
develop its overseas markets.

Q6 “There are three kinds of intelligence: one kind

understands things for itself, the other appreciates what
others can understand, the third understands neither for
itself nor through others. This first kind is excellent, the

second good, and the third kind useless.”

In the above quote, and in terms of business

intelligence, where does Yoshinori Isozaki fit in the

directing of Kirin Holdings?

A6 Isozaki is a change agent. He is attempting to build a

structure that redirects the company’s focus from a

quasi-single product company dependent upon mass

produced beer to a modern highly diversified company

operating in multiple market segments (both product

and geographic) underpinned by a philosophy of

created shared value. Part of his vision is to drive

innovation through developing the Business Creations

Division that draws on all aspects of the Group (R&D)
but bridges the applications between Food & Beverages

and Pharmaceuticals.