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高橋 裕子
IT部門Infrastructure課マネージャー SIerからAPL開発、Microsoftにて MS製品の導入コンサル、User企業でのMS製品の管理・導入を経て2015年にGABAに入社。
GABA One-to-One English Conversation School provides English conversation lessons to individuals and corporations based on clients’ goals and abilities. Since 1995, GABA has helped more than 210,000 people improve their English skills.
Although not well-known in the engineering community, GABA is actually, in part, a tech company. Since our establishment, various systems which support our English lesson services have been developed in-house. Why do we develop them in-house? In order to provide functions that meet our clients’ needs as quickly as possible. If we outsource or have to rely on other vendors, we might not be able to choose the best technology or provide solutions in a timely manner. In such a situation we can not provide our best service. So here at GABA, the operation of the IT infrastructure and development of core applications are primarily performed by in-house engineers. So here at GABA, the operation of the IT infrastructure and development of core applications are primarily performed by in-house engineers.
GABA’s IT Department currently has about 30 members and is the largest department in the head office. Compared with other English conversation schools, GABA has quite a large engineering team.
GABA's In-House Systems
For Clients
For Instructors
For Employees
GABA One-to-One English Conversation School provides English conversation lessons to individuals and corporations based on clients’ goals and abilities. Since 1995, GABA has helped more than 210,000 people improve their English skills.
Although not well-known in the engineering community, GABA is actually, in part, a tech company. Since our establishment, various systems which support our English lesson services have been developed in-house. Why do we develop them in-house? In order to provide functions that meet our clients’ needs as quickly as possible. If we outsource or have to rely on other vendors, we might not be able to choose the best technology or provide solutions in a timely manner. In such a situation we can not provide our best service. So here at GABA, the operation of the IT infrastructure and development of core applications are primarily performed by in-house engineers. So here at GABA, the operation of the IT infrastructure and development of core applications are primarily performed by in-house engineers.
GABA’s IT Department currently has about 30 members and is the largest department in the head office. Compared with other English conversation schools, GABA has quite a large engineering team.
GABA's In-House Systems
For Clients
For Instructors
For Employees
We would like you to meet the members of the IT Division who are responsible for operating and improving GABA's service infrastructure. Let's ask CTO Martin Lindner and Infrastructure Division Manager Yuko Takahashi why they want to hire a new team member.
CTO
Martin Lindner After studying at a German university, he worked at a local mobile phone company to develop network test solutions. After marrying a Japanese woman, he moved to Japan where he engaged in infrastructure and application development at the National Institute of Informatics (NII). He was recruited to work at GABA by a former NII colleague. He is GABA’s main geek.IT Division Infrastructure Division Manager
Yuko Takahashi She came to GABA after gaining experience in server requirement definition, construction, and operation, and providing consulting services at Microsoft, SIer, and user companies. Currently, she is involved in the development of GABA’s next core system while supporting the current systems infrastructure. She has the most Windows product knowledge in the company.── What is GABA's IT Department's fundamental objective?
GABA has been committed to in-house application development and system operation since it was established. We are basically responsible for everything, from IT infrastructure design to server and storage specification and procurement. This is because it is difficult to introduce new technology or add functions quickly if we have to outsource or rely on outside vendors.
── What is the current status of GABA's IT infrastructure?
From 2015 to 2017, we completed a major overhaul of the IT infrastructure. It had been used for over 15 years and gone through many expansions and renovations so maintenance had become very time-consuming. Specifically, we updated old on-site servers and virtualized platforms, reviewed the database structure, and rewrote PHP applications in Java. This project was called "GABA Next Engine (GNE) 2.0".
GNE2.0 was a success. However, if we try to improve its efficiency in the future, we will face limitations as all systems are operated on-site. So, from last year, we started to consider cloud migration of the IT infrastructure as we believe we can greatly reduce maintenance time by utilizing the various functions and managed services of the public cloud. Using the time saved to research and new technology, it might be possible to further improve our service quality. We would like to do that now, but there is one problem.
Currently, there are only four infrastructure engineers, including me. So it is difficult to work on this immediately. We do not have enough members to start a new project while operating systems for clients, instructors, and counselors. So, we are looking for a new member now.
── What is your working environment like?
GABA’s IT Division consists of four sections and the nationality of members are varied such as Japanese, German, Filipino, South Korean, French and Chinese. The engineering team working in the back works in an international environment just like the instructors working in the front.
GABA IT Division Structure
Web Solution Section
Infrastructure Section
Service Desk Section
IT Planning Section
In the case of many Japanese companies, infrastructure development policy is decided in a top-down manner by the IT department and a systems integrator. Our approach is different. Infrastructure Section members investigate new technologies, propose those they determine to be the most effective to management to get approval, and then implement them. Thus, our environment is well-suited for a person who wants to think and act independently.
As you can see from the fact that GABA committed to in-house systems development from the beginning, the IT Division holds a high position within the company and management understands the efficiency, productivity, and usability that introducing the latest technology brings.
The IT Infrastructure section is not only responsible for GABA's IT infrastructure, but also has a role in leading the introduction of the latest technologies. We excel at staying up to date on the latest technology trends, verifying technology, doing proof of concept, and revising infrastructure and operational methods.
── What do you expect from a new member?
Currently, many services are developed and operated in-house. The immediate goal is moving the current IT infrastructure to the cloud to make it simpler and more user-friendly. We are looking for an infrastructure engineer who can help us update GNE2.0 to a more modern system. You will be able to participate in the project from the conceptual stage since the specific overall design will start in the near future. We are looking for an engineer who is interested in projects that will push our IT infrastructure into the next phase.
Last time, it took two years to replace the IT infrastructure. We think the next project will be an even larger effort. In addition, infrastructure engineers may have more opportunities to write code in the future because we are thinking of moving to DevOps to improve services in conjunction with development. We would love to meet an engineer who is not only interested in operating a cloud-based IT infrastructure or building a DevOps system, but is frustrated with the limited scope of their current work.
GABA’s IT infrastructure still has a monolithic architecture even if GNE2.0 eliminated some of the accumulated technical debt. In the future, we intend to work on a cloud shift of IT infrastructure with a view to making applications microservices. I look forward to meeting the curious infrastructure engineer who will help make this happen.
<Open Position>
Infrastructure Engineer
<Expected Role>
In addition to the operation and maintenance of the current IT infrastructure, you will be involved in the design, technology selection, and implementation of the next generation infrastructure depending on your capability and suitability.
<Technologies Used>
Knowledge related to the following technologies is preferable, although it is not necessary to be familiar with all of them.
Cloud service
Infra
Repo
Configuration Management tool
hypervisor
manage
<Target Person>
As there are a variety of tasks we want you to handle, we welcome those who are full-stack engineer oriented and don’t want to be bound by the role of an infrastructure engineer. GABA’s engineering team is flat and has a culture of helping each other when they are in trouble. It is not an organization where managers micromanage by giving you detailed instructions and asking you to report about each action. It is a mature organization that respects the ideas of individual engineers. So the engineer can decide how to solve the technical problems they are assigned. It is a comfortable environment for those who are good at self-management.
<Other Points>
The monthly overtime average is 11.16 hours (FY 2018 results) so individuals can adjust their working time accordingly. You don’t have to be confident in your level of English as long as you are not resistant to communicating in English and are willing to catch up by using the employee English lesson system.
Company info
Founded on 06/2004
685 members
2-21-1, Kita Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 23F Shinjuku Front Tower