Insurance and Pension Firm

Client needs: A newly established joint venture between an insurance and pension company planned to enter the soon-to-be-deregulated Japan pension market and offer a defined contribution 401(k) scheme for small- to medium-sized companies. Outside consultants were required to establish their technology systems. Requirements included establishing a complete office network including server systems for up to 50 staff, a secure network to the US head office, and a Wide Area Network to 5 remote offices throughout Japan.

Solution: Joho Technology engineers quickly established the office LAN, along with network printing and Internet access functionality. A multi-point Frame Relay system and leased lines connected all the Japan locations to the Tokyo office, while the link back to the US head office was established using a point-to-point Frame Relay circuit with an international provider. A Cisco firewall was installed. And a Cisco router, together with an RSA Authentication Server, was commissioned to provide secure remote access to the servers using SecureID hardware tokens.

Results: By interfacing closely with the US head office, a solution based in Japan could be developed that met specifications and minimized the dependency on head office resources. A highly stable network infrastructure kept the IT staffing requirements to a minimum, reducing running costs. And a scalable base of IT assets allowed the firm to expand without incurring additional major IT purchases.

Primary Benefit
  • Industry-standard kit: easy to install
  • inexpensive to maintain
  • Price/performance optimized for your business
  • State-of-the-art system design
  • Focus on data integrity and security
The Joho Approach
  1. Client Assessment
    • Investigate requirements
    • List current assets
    • Written report of findings
  1. Solution Design
    • Research latest products
    • Choose most suitable products
    • Source additional vendors
    • Provide pricing and specifications
    • Presentation/feedback
  2. Implementation
    • Project management
    • Equipment configuration/installation
    • Software installation/customization
    • Data migration/OS migration
    • Network troubleshooting
    • Documentation of new system
  3. Upkeep and Reporting
    • Security updates
    • Antivirus signature updates
    • Hardware repairs
    • Adding/updating users/permissions
    • Bug fixes/troubleshooting
    • User support (phone and on-site)
    • Maintenance log
    • Ongoing recommendations for optimization