Creating a Sustainable Education Model that Grows through Partnerships
"Project Any" management representative
ITOI TATSUYA
Tatsuya Itoi
After graduating from Hitotsubashi University Faculty of Economics in 2018, joined the Urban Renaissance Agency. Participated in OVER20&Company. Co., Ltd. in 2020 and engaged in corporate consulting as an executive mentor. In 2022, he launched the any business and became co-representative.
We asked Itoi, the representative of Project Any, about the background to the birth of the project and the future of co-creation with co-creation partners.
How did any start?
ー An approach to the “individual” necessary to reach the vision
ー ビジョンに到達するために必要な「個」へのアプローチ
This is to accelerate the speed towards achieving the vision of OVER20&Company.
In order to achieve the vision of OVER20, "creating a world where everyone can live and shine," an approach to the organization (a transformation into a bottom-up organization that disseminates insight into the potential of people in their 20s and leads to organizational growth ), I had long envisioned that an approach to individuals in their 20s, an approach to politics, and an approach to families would be necessary. Therefore, I was always conscious of the timing of approaching individuals (starting with “any”).
For the four years since our founding, we have mainly provided consulting to corporations to promote transformation to a bottom-up organization using external interviews "MENTOR WORKOUT" as an approach to the organization. The business has achieved solid results, such as reducing the turnover rate of people in their 20s by an average of 9%, but for large organizations, it takes time and effort to introduce and expand new services. Especially when it comes to services that we in our twenties need, many of them are based on new values, and it is not easy to gain the understanding of management. For this reason, I always felt the need to increase the momentum for organizational change not only from within the organization, but also from the outside (external personnel, including pre-workers).
In addition, the know-how and skills accumulated in ``MENTOR WORKOUT for Business'' and ``MENTOR WORKOUT for J-league'' for 4 years will be shared internally, and the timing for operations and mentors to mature, and to build an internal system will coincide with 2022. We test-marketed “any” in April 2019 and officially released it on June 1st.
any is an initiative that realizes investment in human capital, which is essential for realizing a sustainable society. Looking at the trends in the Japanese market so far, it seems that there is not enough investment in internal human capital, but any is responsible for investing in next-generation human capital outside the organization. I'm here. Please tell me the reason for challenging there
ーA challenge to change the future of Japan that only we, who have the most sense of ownership, can do
ー 最も当事者意識を持っている私たちにしかできない、日本の未来を変える挑戦
The reason for taking on the challenge is, "It is the role of working adults today to create an environment where the next generation, who will lead the future, can flourish. Because you can't." I may have tried to look cool, but I simply think it would be wonderful if a society where young people could live their lives to the fullest was born. I believe that a society in which young people are lively is a society in which the people around them can also enjoy themselves. I hope that when I become a parent, my child will be able to jump out into society with excitement. However, in order to realize that, there are many things in Japan that cannot be solved by saying, "Someone will do it."
Until now, we have provided services for companies, and in that process, we have learned about the various true feelings of people in their 20s, and while listening to the challenges faced by managers and executives, we feel the disconnect between generations. People often say things like "the generation that escaped, the generation that wants to escape, the generation that can't escape", and I can really feel that even within companies. Age and career are particularly strong in the organization, and the current situation is that it is difficult for people in their 20s, who are younger, to find value and significance. However, their unconventional and flexible thinking and ideas are absolutely necessary in order to absorb new values and insights and create sustainable growth for companies and society as a whole. In other words, it is a negative factor for organizations and society that their potential insights are not picked up.
Through MENTOR WORKOUT, we face such challenges every day. At the same time, I know the weaknesses of people in their 20s, and I strongly feel that they have a lot of potential. In order to prevent the ``lost 30 years'' from becoming ``40 years'', it is necessary for them to play an active role. We are the only ones.
It may sound a little exaggerated, but with the deadline for Japan to overcome its declining birthrate and aging society approaching, we believe that this is our mission.
Any now has strong support from pioneering people called "innovators". As someone who is on the front line and feels that passion and passion, what do you feel is the point of sympathy and support for all the innovators?
ー Over 130 partners gathered in 3 months after the release, and Japan's "winning line"
ー リリース3ヶ月で集まった130名超のパートナーとみる日本の「勝ち筋」
“Investment in next-generation human capital that will carry the burden ten years from now” and “co-creation of the future of Japan with society as a whole”.
In the past, each person's life, axis, and long-term career development were left to the individual. And now, thanks to our predecessors, we can use various IT tools, and we live in an era where anyone can easily access a lot of information. However, at the same time, we are living in an era of super-aging society with a declining birthrate, and we are living in an era where there is strong concern about the collapse of social systems such as lifetime employment and pension systems that we have enjoyed as a matter of course. For us living in the age of VUCA, where we cannot predict the future ten years from now, it is more important than ever to have a personal vision and axis.
However, in today's world, which is overflowing with information and options, it is not easy to have an axis or vision that serves as a guideline for life.
And pre-working adults (high school / university students) is an important opportunity to face the axis / vision. This is because they can have their own ideas and hypotheses, come into contact with society, and flexibly decide their own direction. Of course, I think that there are few people who have a clear axis before entering society, but it is still a very important opportunity. Many of our individual partners have empathized with these points and become co-creation partners.
And one more. We have sympathized with the system of "supporting one young person with 6.9 working people". Until now, it was believed that by 2035, 1.2 people of the working generation would have to support one senior citizen. People who saw the winning line are gathering.
When any students become members of society, it is necessary to foster a social climate that can accept their individuality in order for them to make use of their individuality and demonstrate leadership. The future where any co-creates with society is a society where generations are connected and circulating. That is, "to co-create the growth of the next generation, who will be responsible for the future of Japan, and the future of society as a whole." By empowering people in their 20s, teens will increase their admiration for working adults, people in their 30s will accompany them as reliable people, and people in their 40s and beyond who have a wealth of skills and experience will lead their unconventional ideas to success. You may find it fun. In addition, I believe that watching the growth of young people and interacting with young people will lead to a social problem and a sense of purpose in life.
By creating a growth environment for the next generation throughout society, the next generation will grow, and their productivity will be returned to society for sustainable growth.
Only three months after the official release, there are 130 innovators who sympathize with this sustainable growth model.
anyに参加するプレ社会人の皆様は、一般的なプレ社会人の皆様と比べて、どのような特徴がありますか?
ー 成長意欲と他者貢献意識が強く、実際に社会に対して行動を起こしている学生が集う
There are 3 points. The first is thinking on a daily basis, the second is taking action, and the third is a strong sense of contribution to others.
As a premise, we conduct a selection interview before taking any. There, we select from the perspective of whether or not they are "human resources who act based on their own hypotheses and experience society." For this reason, we are gathering people with the above three characteristics.
The first is a person who thinks on a daily basis. Any provides an opportunity to deepen one's own thoughts on abstract questions such as "What kind of person are you?", "Values that you value", and "Where do you want to be in the future?" Students with a strong sense of curiosity who have thoughts on these questions and who want to know the thoughts of others and use them as food for their own growth gather here.
The second is the person taking action. To put it simply, they are entrepreneurs, interns, study abroad experience, and people with their own research fields. People who have taken action based on their own hypotheses experience the gap between their ideal image and the reality of society. People who are worried about that gap will have discussions with excellent people of the same generation who can not meet in normal school life, and in the one-on-one mentor program (MENTOR WORKOUT), the gap with society, personal vision, We are gathering for the purpose of raising the resolution for ourselves.
Finally, we need people who have a strong desire to contribute to other companies. Generation Z is known to have a strong interest in sustainability and environmental issues, and any students are no exception. More to say, many of the students of any are interpreting them in their own minds, taking action, already measuring the gap between themselves and society, and thinking about what to do to eliminate the gap. I think
経営戦略から見てanyは将来どのような企業評価を得られる取組みになりますか?
From the perspective of management strategy, what kind of corporate evaluation will any have in the future?
- A leading company that contributes to society by developing human resources that are essential for sustainable corporate growth
By participating in "any" as a co-creation partner, we will be recognized by society as a company that actively engages in human capital initiatives and proactively invests in education for the next generation. As our support partner, Mr. Senoo, has mentioned, we believe that entering the “any” category will play a role in influencing corporate ratings.
(any article by partner Teruo Senoo: "Naughty kids active in the world and next-generation education”)
Also, from the perspective of job-hunting students, it can be predicted that it will have a positive impact on the job popularity ranking as an advanced company. Today, 17% of people decide to work with an emphasis on SDGs initiatives.
Currently, corporate ratings in the United States emphasize "investment in human capital," and information disclosure is required. From this trend, Japanese companies will naturally be required to disclose information. And it is only a matter of time before investment in human capital becomes more important than investing in internal human capital and investing in external human capital. Because there is a limit to what one company can do. Looking at a single company, local community, Japan, and the world, it is not necessarily the 17th goal of the SDGs, but I feel that it is inevitable that we will grow through partnerships.
And from the perspective of Japan, as you know, Japan's population is shrinking, and the only way to open up new markets is to fight globally. Globally, Generation Z is the most populous. And Generation Z and the generations below it are much more conscious of contributing to society than we think. There are some interesting data, so I will introduce one here. We are conducting a questionnaire survey on Japanese companies' sustainability and SDGs initiatives for any students. Among them, more than 60% of the students answered that "companies are not able to do essential things." I think we should listen more to the opinions of the younger generation, who will be at the center of our efforts 10 or 20 years from now.
Initiatives for sustainability and SDGs are concepts that involve all stakeholders. So it's nonsense to think only about investing in human capital in-house. If you are a company aiming to be a leading company that leads society, you should discuss how to involve society and co-create a sustainable future.
Participating in "any" as a co-creation partner will lead to the gathering of "people, goods, and money" necessary for the sustainable growth of the company.