Supporting "Diverse Work Styles" of Childcare Workers! ikuzeee" (Raveley Co., Ltd.)

Key Points of this Service

Matching "childcare workers" and "people who want to ask for childcare services" in three simple steps.
Supporting the realization of "diverse work styles" required by "childcare workers
Individuals and corporations who wish to request childcare services pay for the service. No charge for the "childcare provider" to use the service.

When we recently visited daycare centers for interviews, we found that they are all suffering from a severe "nursery teacher shortage. According to Mr. Yuya Sakumae, CEO of Raveley Corporation (honorifics omitted), who interviewed us for this report, although there are 1.2 million qualified nursery school teachers in Japan, only one-third of them actually work at nursery schools. Therefore, he believes that the recent serious shortage of child care workers is due to the "lack of an environment in which qualified child care workers can play an active role.

To address this issue, Raveley Corporation, which Sakumae manages, has developed ikuzeee, a smartphone app that matches childcare professionals with daycare centers. The app will complete beta testing from March to May 2019, with the aim of an official release in September 2019. The BabyTech.jp editorial team visited Raveley Inc. to learn more about the app, how it was developed, and what the future holds.

(We spoke to...)
Raveley Corporation Representative Director and CEO
Yuya Sakumae

Renewed from "just" an app that matches childcare workers with daycare centers.

Editorial:Quickly, please give us an overview of the "ikuzeee" application.

Before production:ikuzeee, in its closed beta testing phase from March to May 2019, was an app that "matches childcare workers with childcare centers. Childcare workers registered on the app are proposed by the daycare centers to request childcare work on this date and time, and if the childcare worker gives the OK, the job is done. Details could be discussed via chat on the app, and after the job was completed, the completion report was also made via the app. On the screen that daycare centers can view, registered childcare workers are displayed in a list format, and can also be searched by qualifications (childcare worker, nurse, nutritionist, etc.) and region.

Operation screen of ikuzeee (closed beta test version)

Before production:In this way, "ikuzeee" was able to complete the matching process in three steps of "search, request, and approval," and also enabled payment of fees paid by nursery schools to childcare workers within the app. Based on the results of this demonstration test, the system will be substantially renewed and officially released with a new structure in September 2019 The system is scheduled for official release in September 2019.

Editorial:How will "ikuzeee" be renewed?

Before production:There were two reasons for the renewal of the service. The first was the legal issue of the business model being considered a "temporary staffing business," and the second was the feedback from the childcare workers who participated in the demonstration test. We were particularly motivated to renew our service by the voices of childcare workers, who strongly expressed their desire to have more options in the way they work and to get out of the situation where they are only allowed to work at daycare centers. We wanted to fulfill that wish.

Renewed "ikuzeee" encourages "diverse work styles of childcare workers

Editorial:What would you say are the working options for childcare workers?

Before production:For example, a general company may request a childcare worker to provide temporary childcare services at an event venue. Individuals may also request babysitters, and writing articles or giving lectures on topics such as childcare and child rearing would also be included in the work style of childcare workers. The renewal of the application is intended to connect not only "work at daycare centers" but also "various jobs outside of daycare centers" and "childcare workers".

Editorial:It would certainly be helpful to have a "temporary storage service" at events!

Before production:We would like to work on "expanding the possibilities of working as a childcare worker", which is what we are trying to do. In fact, it is said that there are "1.2 million" qualified child care workers in Japan, but only one-third of them work in daycare centers, and two-thirds, or 800,000 people, are called "potential child care workers" and do not work in childcare. This is one of the reasons for the recent shortage of child care workers, but these potential child care workers would like to work as child care workers if they can work only on weekends or at home. Therefore, we believe that if we can create an environment in which they can accept jobs outside of daycare centers, we may be able to help the childcare industry, which is in need of more childcare workers.

The business model for the beta test was to receive commissions from fees paid to childcare workers, but the renewed business model will be to receive fees for the use of the application from "individuals and corporations who wish to request work". This will clear the legal issue of "temporary staffing business," and the application itself will be simple, specializing in "childcare worker search" and "job requests.

Schematic diagram of business model after renewal

Providing services from the "childcare worker's point of view" by leveraging experience in the IT industry.

Editorial:What was the impetus for the development of "ikuzeee"?

Before production:In January 2018, I got acquainted with a manager of a daycare center and asked him about various issues related to the management of daycare centers. coming from the IT industry, I felt that IT technology was not well utilized in the world of childcare. So I thought that I could propose a solution using my experience and knowledge, and in June 2018, I founded Raveley Inc. and started developing "ikuzeee".

Editorial:It is true that many nursery schools use analog methods.

Before production:Since a number of tools have already been developed to "improve the work efficiency of childcare workers," we intend to focus not on that area, but on "diversifying the work styles of childcare workers," an area that has not yet progressed. The current "job sites for childcare workers" are created from the "perspective of the business," which is the "daycare center." We would like to provide services from the "perspective of childcare workers," offering a variety of options so that they can work as childcare workers even as a side job.

Editorial:In addition to the September 2019 renewal, can you tell us about future developments?

Before production:During the closed beta test phase, people who were not qualified as childcare workers were able to register for the application as "childcare assistants," but after the renewal, we plan to allow only those who are qualified as childcare workers to register. In the future, we also plan to make the app available to "nutritionists" and "nurses," whose qualifications are needed in daycare centers.

<After the interview

According to Sakumae, some of the nursery schools that participated in the beta test said that they would still like to request work for a certain period of time ...... rather than a one-time increase in support. However, the needs of those childcare workers who are not currently working at a daycare center would still want to work in a way that fits their own lifestyles. This gap between the needs of day-care centers and child-care workers also makes us feel that a new style of job matching service called "ikuzeee" may be in demand. We look forward to its official release in September 2019 as a valuable venue for connecting childcare workers with general companies and individuals.

ikuzeee" Official Web Site
https://www.ikuzeee.com/