概要及び教育体系 主要講義科目 ワークショップ 課題研究・修了論文演習 課外活動

2003年度（2003.4～2004.3）　ワークショップ講演

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Workshop (June 12)
Entrepreneurship Study, Graduate School for Creative Cities, Osaka City University
Guest Speaker: Ms. Kaori Sasaki, CEO of ewoman, Inc. and
President of UNICUL International, Inc.

In charge: Nobuko Hiramatsu, Hisao Inoue

1. Lecturer Profile
Ms. Kaori Sasaki is an entrepreneur who founded the consultancy UNICUL International, Inc., dedicated to editing, design, oral translation and other communication measures, in 1987, and a community website, ewoman, in 2003. She has also served as president of the International Conference for Women in Business, a network for working women, since 1996, and as a member of the Council for Regulatory Reform of the Cabinet Office of Japan. In addition to translating many books, this mother of two children has experience as a reporter on the TV news program News Station.

2. Summary of the Lecture: Challenges for Entrepreneurs-Think, Choose and Act on Your Own
1) UNICUL’s Endeavors to Activate a Human Network
In her 20s, Ms. Sasaki worked generally as a freelance interpreter. Since mobile phones and answering machines were rare at the time, she sometimes missed chances for jobs because she was not home to answer the phone. Even when she was home to catch the phone, she had to turn down a job if her schedule was full. These circumstances led her to think of organizing a group of freelancers to exchange information, so that one could introduce his/her clients to another when unavailable. The concepts underlying Ms. Sasaki’s founding of UNICUL were to create an organization to provide benefits through meeting other freelancers and to connect individuals so they could work as a single organization. The word network was rare in those days. She did not know how to write a business plan, or even what a venture was.
Entering its 17th year, UNICUL is flourishing as a consultancy under the keywords “Connect, Communicate.” Under its corporate motto, “The Right People at the Right Time for the Right Project,” the company chooses the best people from its registry of 2,300, skilled not only in languages but also in other fields, including current affairs news, medicine, civil engineering and marketing, to provide its clients with project teams for catalogue development, event planning, editing, design and other projects. Ms. Sasaki insists that she is not in the business of dispatching interpreters. The difference lies in that dispatched interpreters are directed by the clients, but UNICUL’s project teams are directed by UNICUL, reflecting the company’s policy of taking responsibility for a project until it is completed.

2) From Masses to Individuals- ewoman’s Endeavors
Ms. Sasaki gave birth to her second child at the age of 39 years 11 months. Gazing at her baby’s face, she reflected on her future business career. She had never undertaken any large-scale projects while operating UNICUL, tending to turn her back on projects that she would have liked to undertake. One such large-scale project(One of her big theme?) was “from masses to individuals.” As the age of mass production/consumption came to a close, consumer behavioral patterns, as well as the values of individuals, varied significantly. Ms. Sasaki questioned whether conventional business models directed at the general public were still acceptable, and thought of establishing a community website, ewoman, where people could share their values related to their goals and lifestyles. Previous portal sites sought to attract large numbers of people, that is, “the general public.” The founding of ewoman, however, aimed at providing a place where “fellows” could gather, a community for smart consumers/citizens with specific lifestyles.
One of ewoman’s activities is the “ewoman survey,” where a survey conductor raises a question and collects answers from the members of the site. For each question, the survey conductor communicates interactively with respondents four times. For example, if Masaharu Ikuta, president of Japan Post, wants to know whether there is any dissatisfaction with the post office, he can gather replies from the members. This survey has been used by corporate members to improve product design and development. One food company asked about one of its products that was repeatedly purchased but poorly recognized, and found a problem with its packaging. The company changed the packaging, and sales increased by 3.5 times. Nissan Motor, seeking communication with smart consumers, became a corporate member of ewoman. Dues for corporate members are 50,000 yen per month.

3) International Conference for Women in Business
Since its establishment in 1996, the International Conference for Women in Business has been presented annually, with 732 people attending in 2002. This conference was born from the philosophy of Ms. Sasaki that supporting each other in a human network is important to the growth of individuals. She feels strongly that she owes the founding of her business in her 20s and its subsequent survival to the support of her colleagues. The conference provides participants with opportunities to help each other move forward and chances to find mentors, not only in business but also in such varied life stages as courtship, marriage and pregnancy.

4) Common Points in the Activities of Ms. Sasaki
Ms. Sasaki is always aware of the importance of communication in human networks and thinks about activities through which people who are linked together can help each other grow and benefit each other. Communication methods vary with the passage of time. Providing people with solutions that address such variations is the road Ms. Sasaki has chosen.

5) Three Messages for Would-be Entrepreneurs
Ms. Sasaki provided us with three messages from her experiences in her own businesses and organizations.
The first is that a vision is fuel and the goal is the ruler. A vision makes one burn with desire. Specific activities based on that vision are, however, quantified and measured. Quantified measurements are useful for evaluating how much one has grown. The second is to build win-win relationships. It is important when starting something to consider whether it is also beneficial for the people who will work at it together. What is essential is not winning or losing but growing together.
The third is to make the best effort. “I’ll do as much as I can” should be avoided. “As much as I can” implies “Forgive me if I can’t.” Constantly striving to do one’s best and break one’s own record contributes to one’s own growth.

6) Answers to questions from graduate students,
such as on the future development of Ms. Sasaki’s activities and who her mentor was
Ms. Sasaki does not do anything that is not in accord with her philosophy. However, while she always looks back on her beginnings to do things that reflect her own path, she also feels that one of her challenges is to find ways to accept what does not reflect her own path. She had various mentors who supported her, along with Chairman Shindo. She says everyone has something to offer that she can learn from.

 

 

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