Hakuhodo/Hakuhodo DY Media Partners x Keio AIC workshop-type event in FY2023 Activity Report

On October 6, 13, and 27, 2023, Hakuhodo/Hakuhodo DY Media Partners Inc. and Keio AIC collaborated to hold a series of lectures on data science titled “Data Alone is Boring” at Shonan Fujisawa, Mita, and Hiyoshi campuses.

For an overview of the event, please click here.

Session 1: Data Science for the Fun of It

The first session, titled “Data Science for the Fun of It,” was held at Shonan Fujisawa Campus with two data scientists at the forefront of the industry speaking on the theme of science, technology, and design for use in media planning and creative activities.

In the first part of the lecture, they talked about “using data science to move people’s hearts and minds” using familiar products as examples. They gave an explanation on targeting, an important technique used to move people’s minds, and on how to practice generalization, which is essential to effectively share thoughts with others.

The latter half of the session went more in-depth about the specific activities of data scientists. In addition to learning about the cutting-edge work currently being carried out in the field, it was a rare opportunity to hear unique first-hand stories, such as examples of data science associated with games and manga.

During the Q&A session, the speakers responded thoughtfully to many questions from participants interested in the work of a data scientist.

Session 2: Data Science for the Serious Ones

The second session, titled “Data Science for the Serious Ones,” was held at Mita Campus and featured a data scientist who is the head of the Data Science Department of Hakuhodo’s Data Driven Planning Bureau. He gave a fascinating talk on the topic of humanities and social sciences × data science for use in advertising and marketing.

This session was held at Mita Campus, allowing participants to learn about data science from a different angle than the previous one, as the content of the lecture was centered more around psychology and econometrics, which are familiar fields among humanities students. The guest speaker also explained about market creation, data-driven marketing, and more.

It was a meaningful lecture that not only gave students a deeper appreciation of the connection between what we are learning at university and how it is used in society, but also gave them a chance to rethink their own careers.

Session 3: Data Science on the Edge

This was the final installment of the three-part Hakuhodo/Hakuhodo DY Media Partners x Keio AIC collaborative lecture series. This third session, titled “Data Science on the Edge,” was held at Hiyoshi Campus and featured four data scientists who are at the forefront of research and development, giving their thoughts on data science in relation to technology and engineering.

Hakuhodo/Hakuhodo DY Media Partners is an advertising company that uses scientific thinking and engineering to develop marketing technology to move people and society. The engineers themselves talked about how they utilize machine learning, data mining, mathematical optimization, and more, and what kind of research and development they are doing at Hakuhodo/Hakuhodo DY Media Partners, while sharing their own unique, and sometimes hilarious, life stories.

This image is of one of the speakers giving a report on the KDD CUP 2023, an international programming competition that Hakuhodo/Hakuhodo DY Media Partners participates in every year. He talked in depth about the actual strategy, process, and logic developed for this competition, which brings together world-class data analysts.

As this event was held at Hiyoshi Campus and there were many first- and second-year students in attendance, the lecturer introduced some useful books for students interested in data science and for beginner-level students, as well as movies and other works that show how exciting data analysis itself can be. He also gave some advice on how to best approach research, which was especially useful for undergraduate students.

After the commemorative photo, there was some time for questions, and the event wrapped up in a relaxed atmosphere with mingling between students and the Hakuhodo/Hakuhodo DY Media Partners employees.

The following are excerpts from the comments of the students who participated.

・I had been uninterested in what I was studying at university because I did not understand the connection between it and my future, but now I have a reason to pursue my studies.

・I was able to broaden my perspective by learning about the process of creating advertising and the role of data scientists.

・This lecture has broadened my career options considerably. I also felt that data science is something that I truly enjoy. After this, I am going to immerse myself in the field of data science.

・I really appreciate that I was able to learn such a wide range of things about data science and business in a friendly atmosphere. It really helped me to deepen my understanding of data science.

Acknowledgements

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the employees of Hakuhodo Inc. / Hakuhodo DY Media Partners for their tremendous support.

Keio AIC Representatives, Faculty, and Administrative Office

Takahiro Yakoh, Mari Kobayashi, Fumio Kohno

Management Students

Reiko Takagi, Ryusei Hotchi, Kei Katsumata, Kazuki Nagata, Nozomi Nakazawa, Yutaka Enomoto