As a consulting firm, Nomura Research Institute (NRI) has a mission to “dream up the future,” building a sustainable society through value co-creation with customers. NRI helps energy companies develop environmentally responsive systems, healthcare organizations navigate digital transformation, and the supply chain develop frameworks that move goods in sustainable, efficient ways. Frequently in the news for winning sustainability and innovation awards, NRI is highly invested in “enriching lives of people through businesses,” in the words of President Kaga Yanagisawa.
That lofty goal is only possible with the right technology approach to work. Since adopting Box in 2019 as its secure collaboration platform across subsidiaries, NRI has steadily expanded its use of Intelligent Content Management — ultimately becoming the first company in Japan to implement Box's Enterprise Advanced plan.
Key takeaways:
- After implementing Box Enterprise Advanced, NRI transformed manual workflows into AI-powered processes that freed staff from repetitive tasks like data entry and IT support tickets
- Custom AI agents built through Box AI Studio now automate compliance-heavy document creation, enabling teams to generate initial drafts of sustainability reports while maintaining security for sensitive pre-disclosure information
- The integration of AI with secure content management fundamentally transformed how NRI creates business value, moving beyond isolated efficiency gains to organization-wide productivity improvements aligned with their mission
The hidden cost of manual workflows
Before implementing Box Enterprise Advanced, NRI faced challenges familiar to any large enterprise. Teams spent countless hours on manual data entry, and creating compliance-heavy documents like sustainability reports required painstaking cross-referencing of multiple sources. Meanwhile, the IT help desk fielded the same repetitive questions day after day, draining valuable staff time.
We recognized these inefficiencies were holding us back from our vision of creating new business value through technology.
The company had already begun experimenting with Box AI for Documents and Box AI for Notes for basic summarization and notetaking. But as NRI’s AI ambitions grew from improving individual tasks to embedding AI-driven workflows across departments, the company needed more sophisticated capabilities. It needed agentic AI.
Custom AI solutions for real business challenges
NRI's adoption of Enterprise Advanced unlocked three game-changing features:
- Box AI Studio for building custom AI agents tailored to specific needs
- Box Appsfor automated metadata extraction and visualization
- Enhanced security controlsessential for handling confidential information
We are very pleased to be pioneers in Japan by adopting Enterprise Advanced, enabling us to challenge ourselves with transformative workstyles powered by AI.
She gives three specific examples of how MRI has capitalized on Box Enterprise Advanced.
Streamlining compliance-heavy document creation with a custom AI agent
Creating PR materials like sustainability reports used to require labor-intensive due diligence. Now, an AI agent built through Box AI Studio drafts initial versions while ensuring compliance — even when working with sensitive pre-disclosure documents securely stored within Box.
Automating data entry with metadata extraction
Through automated metadata extraction using Box Apps, contract data entry shifted from manual burden to automated insight. By linking metadata directly with files inside Box, stakeholders at NRI can visualize contract progress on dashboards — providing instant visibility into negotiation risks and revealing hidden business insights.
Automating IT support via AI agents
Customized Box Hubs, combined with dedicated Box AI Agents, now handle common IT help desk inquiries that used to be managed manually. This shift freed staff members to focus on strategic problem-solving rather than routine ticket processing.
From efficiency gains to organizational transformation
For NRI, these AI innovations represent more than isolated improvements. They're building blocks of a larger transformation. Murata explained,
By centralizing dispersed internal information assets and integrating data with workflows through advanced, seamlessly connected AI capabilities, we aim to boost productivity across our entire organization.
NRI plans continued expansion of Box tools, including deeper workflow automation integration, to drive both operational efficiency and new business value creation throughout their enterprise ecosystem. Their journey illustrates a crucial lesson for enterprises everywhere: Combining secure cloud platforms with cutting-edge AI doesn't just automate tasks — it fundamentally transforms how organizations create value from their content.
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