ISHIZAKA Kizuna Juku October: Training tour to Ina Food Industry Co., Ltd.

“ISHIZAKA Kizuna Juku” is an initiative where CEO Ishizaka and employees learn together and deepen their bonds through company tours, overnight training, etc.
Through this training, we aim to increase the sense of unity among employees from different departments and age groups.

The two-day “ISHIZAKA Kizuna Juku” program, held on October 19th and 20th, focused on “Learning from the Practices of Good Companies,” and
included a company tour of Ina Food Industry Co., Ltd. in Ina City, Nagano Prefecture, Japan’s number one agar manufacturer, a company visited by numerous corporate executives.
Ina Food Industry Co., Ltd. places employee happiness at the center of its management and is committed to education. Its philosophy of “annual ring management” pursues steady growth into the future, and it is a company beloved by the local community.
We have a connection with Ina Food Industry, and in April 2016, we hosted a discussion between Ina Food Industry Co., Ltd. Chairman and Representative Director Hiroshi Tsukagoshi and our company president, Masaaki Ishizaka. This time, 16 people, including the president, participated in a facility tour to learn about Ina Food Industry’s outstanding initiatives.

The group began with a lecture by Professor Hiroshi Okubo, Director of the People and Management Research Institute. This was followed by a joint session featuring Ina Food Industry Vice President Hidehiro Tsukagoshi, Professor Okubo, and our company’s CEO, Noriko Ishizaka. The session
included several Ina Food Industry employees, and included an exchange of opinions. It was a great opportunity to discuss and inspire each other about work styles, including how to create a positive work atmosphere and build teamwork.
The next day, we began early in the morning with a morning assembly and a tour of the facility. Through the tour, we were able to see firsthand how employees are proactively and happily engaged in their work.
At the end of the tour, Chairman Tsukagoshi delivered a speech. He places the utmost importance on employee happiness, not profit, and he said, “Both home and work are important parts of life, and creating a comfortable workplace leads to a more fulfilling life.”

After the tour of Ina Food Industry, Professor Okubo introduced us to Kasho Shimizu, a popular confectionery shop in southern Shinshu, where we spoke with President Shimizu Shinichi and oven chief Nibo Kazutoshi. They gave us
practical examples of how to foster trust to improve teamwork and how to keep employees highly motivated.
“The Japanese word for working is ‘byaku’ (relaxed). Working means making things easier for those around you.”
“Being trusted to do work changed the way I approach my work, and it was the catalyst for a major change for me personally.”
The story of these two people, who share a strong bond of trust, was so moving that it moved some employees to tears.

The two-day training session provided a great opportunity for employees to learn a lot, and by observing the efforts of leading companies in other industries, each employee was able to think about their own work style.