日本語
EdvFuture, the company behind the SaaS EdvPath that supports the growth of non-cognitive skills in junior high and high school students, turned to Solashi for development support when their business growth outpaced their internal development capacity. In this article, we talk with Mr. Hashimoto, Executive Director, and Mr. Noguchi, CTO of EdvFuture, about how they overcame challenges in product development.
Outsourcing as Development Fell Behind Business Growth
– First, could you tell us about EdvFuture’s business?
Mr. Hashimoto: At EdvFuture, we are on a mission to “eliminate information disparities for children with a future and increase those who can make their own decisions.” We offer a SaaS called “EdvPath” to support student growth at junior high and high schools.
Recently, traditional “Integrated Studies” classes have shifted toward “Inquiry-Based Learning.” To evaluate this, non-cognitive skills—such as perseverance toward goals and the ability to interact well with others—have become key indicators. There is increasing demand to measure each student’s non-cognitive abilities efficiently and support their improvement based on the results. “EdvPath” visualizes and digitizes inner qualities like character and aptitudes—things not visible through test scores—to help assess educational effectiveness and provide proper guidance and classroom management. It’s currently used in 160 schools nationwide.
– You decided to outsource to Solashi. What challenges were you facing before the partnership?
Mr. Hashimoto: From a business perspective, our biggest issue was that the speed of product development couldn’t keep up with our company’s growth.
Mr. Noguchi: At the time, we had no full-time engineers. Including myself, we had only 3–4 part-time engineers. That made it difficult to speed up development, and since each engineer could only work on specific parts, the quality was inconsistent. With such limited time, it was hard to optimize the system from a bird’s-eye view.
Because of that, we decided to outsource development. We also didn’t have a dedicated project manager back then, so working with a company that required us to prepare complete specs from scratch wasn’t realistic for us.
Confidence and Trust Backed by Technical Skills and Deep Business Understanding
– How did you end up choosing Solashi among many options?
Mr. Hashimoto: It's currently an engineer’s market, and hiring is very difficult. So external resources became necessary. There are many offshore development companies, but their quality varies. We had to be cautious when selecting engineers. So, we first used referrals and talked to potential vendors, and if we felt confident in them, we proceeded with them.
I actually went to the same university as Mr. Shimazoe from Solashi, and we’re the same age, so I figured it would be okay (laughs). Before the actual business meeting, he helped me brainstorm and listened sincerely. Knowing he was originally an engineer and now COO gave me a strong sense of trust and assurance, so we decided to go with Solashi.
Mr. Noguchi: When Mr. Shimazoe first came to talk with us, he really understood what we were asking and shared relevant examples. Since he has an engineering background himself, having someone who truly understands tech was reassuring. Also, despite being an engineer, he was able to handle sales well, which made him even more impressive to me personally.
Not Just a Client-Vendor Relationship — We Worked as One Team
– What was your experience working with Solashi like?
Mr. Noguchi: We would communicate about 70% of what we wanted to do, and then Solashi would fill in the gaps and move development forward through ongoing dialogue. I appreciated that it didn’t feel like a typical client-vendor relationship.
Many development companies have the attitude of “It’s not written in the spec, so we didn’t do it,” but Solashi filled in our gaps and even took initiative where needed. They made suggestions and consulted with us regularly, which made it a true back-and-forth process.
It felt like they had the kind of mindset we ourselves should have had. Everyone at Solashi was just a really good person. I think their combination of talent and attitude is what allowed them to work this way. A product is like a living thing, and I think thanks to their approach, they helped breathe real life into it.
Mr. Hashimoto: Between clients and development companies, the relationship tends to fall into a client-contractor dynamic. I believe there are issues on both sides. Sometimes the client gives off the attitude of "We're giving you the work," and the contractor becomes too passive. In such a relationship, I don't think it's possible to develop a product together in a collaborative, two-person team kind of way.
In that context, Solashi maintained a flat relationship where they would suggest, "Wouldn't it be better to do it this way?" and we also felt comfortable making proposals. Furthermore, it felt like Mr. Shimazoe was even more passionate than we were and was genuinely invested in the project. We heard that Mr. Shimazoe had also conducted research in education at university, and I think that shared passion added energy to the product.
Shimazoe: Ever since my university days, I’ve felt there was still room for improvement in education. I was conducting research but also feeling a bit stuck, and realizing the limitations of working alone, I transitioned into the private sector. When I encountered EdvFuture, I finally found a product that could resolve those lingering frustrations. That’s why I poured all the energy I couldn’t use back then into this project, making sure nothing was left undone.
More than ten years ago, I had the experience of implementing systems into elementary schools, and I kept those scenes in mind while expanding on concrete ideas about what kind of support would be necessary. I also regularly read educational articles, which helped me slowly build and deepen my thoughts.
And everyone at EdvFuture was really nice too. Even during meetings, they were cheerful and included laughter. Even when facing tight deadlines or insurmountable challenges, they tackled them with us. When we expressed, "This is what we think is best," or "We want to solve this issue like this," they gave us proper feedback. That moment when we realized we weren’t being treated as mere subcontractors, but equals—that's when it felt like our team shifted into a higher gear.
The forward-thinking development approach that considered Solashi's product and business growth was impressive
––From what you’ve said, it sounds like not only Mr. Shimazoe but also the engineers had a mindset to improve the product. Did you do anything specific to encourage that?
Shimazoe: Many of our team members graduated from top universities, but in Vietnam, the quality of education can vary by region. Perhaps that led them to think deeply about how to improve things, even within those limitations.
At the start of the project, we talked casually about related topics like non-cognitive skills and how to apply them at work. Existing members would also bring up those topics to new members. Through that, I think the sense of ownership toward the product gradually grew. When we were nearing deadlines and had to make it on time, team members could grit their teeth and work overtime or on holidays—that kind of drive probably stemmed from that ownership.
Mr. Noguchi: With other development companies, the conversation usually starts with “We’ll need to charge extra if you want weekend support.” But Solashi faces those challenges head-on. Their willingness to work hard for the product's growth and the delivery schedule is something you don’t often see with other companies.
Mr. Hashimoto: It was also great that Mr. Shimazoe always attended meetings. Most development companies let the on-site team members handle discussions and requirement exchanges. But when language and culture are different, there are often misunderstandings that require rework. With Solashi, we hardly had any communication issues like that.
And Solashi has a low turnover rate. Considering the Vietnamese job market, it’s understandable that turnover happens, but having the same members stay long-term makes stable, long-term development possible, which is very appreciated.
––Are there any other aspects where you felt happy to have entrusted the project to Solashi?
Mr. Hashimoto: Rather than just a development company, they gave the impression of a true product development partner. Some companies just write the code you ask for—but nowadays, ChatGPT can do that. Solashi, however, thinks ahead and suggests better designs with the product and future in mind.
Mr. Noguchi: What often happens in technical teams is that the passion gets directed toward code or systems instead of the product itself. When that happens, development becomes about just completing tasks or short-term fixes.
In development, there are many judgment calls—where to be technically rigorous, where to prioritize speed, or where to build for reusability. Solashi makes those decisions with a balance, always keeping the product and business growth in mind. It’s not just about writing code—they look ahead and develop with the whole business in view.
Mr. Hashimoto: On that note, sometimes when we request a new feature, they’ll ask, “Why are we building this? Do we really need it?” And other times they’ll jokingly say, “If you’re building this much functionality, make sure the business side brings in the revenue to match!”—giving us some pressure from their side too (laughs).
Mr. Shimazoe: Even when I say to the members, “Let’s work overtime and push through,” it becomes motivating for them if, in return, the business grows, the number of users increases, and the product's value is proven (laughs).
Growing Together in Chapter Two: Scaling Both Business and Organization
— Lastly, please tell us about your future prospects.
Mr. Hashimoto: Until now, our main users have been early adopters, and we’ve been fighting with just the bare minimum of resources. Moving forward, we want to cross the chasm and target the early majority. That means adding more strategy and advancing further feature development. We are entering a phase where both the business and the organization need to scale. We’d love it if you could continue to support us through that moment of scaling.
Mr. Hashimoto: Along with that, EdvFuture also wants to proactively hire engineers and PMs to build a strong development team. For the areas where we still have gaps, we want to continue developing together with Solashi. As we scale the product, we hope we can continue to grow alongside each other. We already trust Solashi based on their track record.
Mr. Shimazoe: It feels like Chapter One has ended and Chapter Two is about to begin. Up until now, things were handled in a somewhat personal way, but moving forward, we’ll need to strengthen our management so the organization can function as a whole. I believe that if we can shift gears properly, our development speed will skyrocket. Right now, I want to focus on preparing for that. I’m determined to do my best for this new chapter.
Supervisor Profile
Akira Shimazoe
Representative of Solashi Japan LLC. Born in April 1989 in Fukuoka Prefecture. Graduated from the Graduate School of Information and Mathematical Sciences at Osaka Prefecture University. Joined Suntory System Technology Co., Ltd., an IT subsidiary of Suntory Holdings, in 2014. Broadly responsible for the development, operation, and implementation of vending machine delivery management, efficiency improvements, and sales management systems. Founded Yper Inc. in 2017, serving as CTO and CPO. Contributed to the launch and growth of the app-linked delivery bag "OKIPPA." Selected for Toyo Keizai's prestigious "Amazing Venture 100" and Forbes' "Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia 2019."
