< The 2016 All-Japan Research Team

Total appearances: 2

Team debut: 2015

Notching his first top-three showing, Chikai Tanaka rises from runner-up to third place. He has worked at Nomura for more than a decade, joining upon completion of his master’s degree in economics at Tokyo’s Hitotsubashi University in 2005, and now reports on 13 Japanese software names. The 35-year-old researcher “delivers great analysis on the [information technology] services sector backed by highly detailed research,” attests one backer, who also praises his coverage of SCSK Corp. Headquartered in Tokyo, the company provides communication network management and data center services, as well as software development and system solutions. He projects that it will be a standout in a strong group. “The major issues the companies in this sector will face are the shift to cloud computing, the utilization of the Internet of Things and big data, and security concerns,” says Tanaka. “I think SCSK will be the best-performing stock based on its high business stability, abundant system know-how about strategic IT investments — such as big data and omnichannel retailing — margin improvement by development efficiency and good prospects for expansion of the automotive systems segment over the medium term.”