I received an e-mail from Heavid (Niigata City, 10 employees) specialized in signboard design, architectural interior planning, etc., stating <Amid the hit of the corona shock! Oda Toshihiro, President and CEO of Heavid Inc., urgently announces the management vision (policy) to employees!! (Omitted below) We are inviting participants from outside the company for this internal presentation! (Online Zoom) >

Self-renewal from a Tyrannical SME owner

Mr. Oda gave a presentation and reviewed the "company events" since the company was founded (2007) in writing every year. "(At the time of establishment) I wanted money, I only had dreams and hopes that I wanted to be popular with women" (2007). Sales were stronger than expected, but "employees repeatedly quit as soon as they entered" (2009), "Fist-law strengthened the Oda empire, always fighting with employees, and built a new home" (2010), “There was nothing scary, I didn't think about the feelings of employees, dictatorship was in great shape" (2011), "No employee but 3 core members settled in the company" (2012), "New employees did not settle in the company" (2013). Finally, I started to reflect myself, "I felt uncomfortable with the management style from around this time, and the president himself could not draw a vision. I felt that the Oda Empire, which had prospered for a long time, was about to end" (2014). "Sales that had been on the rise until then have dropped significantly" (2016). Perhaps this was the trigger, "I wanted to make a company that employees can be proud of! I wanted to build a strong management structure! I think I have decided to become a serious SME owner then!" (2017). "Decision" is not enough, "(again) seriously started thinking about the future of the company and the future of employees" (2018). That effort resulted in "Creating a 10-year vision with employees" (2019). "Two new graduates joined the company in April" (2020), to have 10 employees now. 

The <self-reliant tyrannical management →seeking to renew oneself →creating a long-term vision with employees →employing the first new graduates>, the story seen here is the "growth equation" of the founder SME owner.

"Defense"

Mr. Oda, who grew up as a business owner and was enjoying increase of sales from January to March up 30% from the previous year, was attacked by the COVID-19.  Sales in April and May fell by more than 70%, and there were no signs of recovery after June.   When he asked the accounting firm to calculate the sales from January to December this year as a 50% decrease, it was a deficit of 42.73 million yen.  Although the company had self-capital ratio of 55% and had internal financial strength, he raised a total of 42 million yen from the Japan Finance Corporation, Niigata Prefectural Institutional Loans, and Sustainable Benefits to ensure its “defense”.

"Aggression" and "Sympathy"

The focus of his presentation was the "offensive" plan and the acquisition of "sympathy" by the employees. He wanted to make a sharper company, but management resources were limited. So, he decided to withdraw from the building interior business (30% of sales) and sharpened to the signboard business where the company can demonstrate its expertise. From my point of view, the characteristic of SMEs that can avoid a big decrease in sales now is that they have multiple market fields. However, Mr. Oda turned to selection and concentration in order to promote differentiation.   Innovate the marketing of the signboard business. Shoot their own work with a drone and transmit it as a promotional video. Ask peer companies to use this method and receive orders for production. The work scene will also be photographed with a drone, and raises the company's recognition by P.V. He wants every employee to think about how to promote the idea! The source of the sign boards lies in designing. They can take the initiative with designing power. He wants each employee to create added value by strengthening themselves as a designer!  He enthusiastically appealed to employees with an average age of 33.8.

“Working conditions first"

Mr. Oda, who changed from a tyrannical owner, cited "the happiness and stability of employees and their families" as one of the reasons why the company needs to develop.  For this purpose, an appropriate level of salary and working hours is indispensable. Once he sets the level to be achieved as a management goal and clearly indicates the required value-added productivity for it, the employees will voluntarily take action to add value. It will also result in increase of productivity and profits. The implementation of "working conditions first", which raises productivity to improve working conditions, is recommended as a "winning equation" for high-profit, high-wage companies.  The vision presentation meeting welcomed 20 participants from outside the company (from Sendai to Kagoshima) with the support from the Niigata Doyukai Secretariat.  The morale of the employees has increased, and it was a new starting point for Heavid.