Koji Suzuki, President and CEO of En Japan Co., Ltd.

Changing the mindset of workers will change companies and society!

President and CEO of En Japan Co., Ltd.
Takatsugu Suzuki

Born in Ehime Prefecture in 1971. After graduating from university, he joined Japan Brain Center Co., Ltd., the predecessor of En Japan, where he worked as a consultant in the fields of recruitment, education and evaluation. In January 2000, he was appointed Director and Head of Sales at the same time as En Japan Co., Ltd. was founded. He has been at the forefront of the company's rapid growth, leading to its listing on the stock market within a year and a half of its founding and its record-breaking increase in revenue and profits since its founding. In March 2008, he became Managing Director, and has held his current position since June of the same year.

En Japan strives to enrich the working lives of many job seekers and improve the business performance of client companies by promoting and retaining talented people. Suzuki, the company's representative director, says, "If more people can work with a sense of fulfillment, society will change." We spoke to Suzuki, who said he decided to join the company after a powerful personal experience, about human resources.

The fun of ingenuity in work that I discovered at university

The fun of being creative at work that I discovered at university During my university days, I spent all my time watching movies and working part-time jobs. I watched hundreds of movies a year. I especially loved French movies, and at that time I even thought about becoming a film director.
I was thinking.
I worked very seriously at my part-time job at a restaurant. I would try to come up with my own ideas for my work. For example, I would check the weather forecast to change the amount of beer I stocked, or figure out the right timing to ask for refills... Rather than just doing my work, I thought to myself every day, "Let's set a sales record!" and tried to provide excellent service down to the smallest details. As a result, the number of repeat customers increased, the restaurant's sales rose, and I was recognized by the other employees.
Even though my salary didn't change, I felt a sense of accomplishment knowing that the things I tried were reflected in the smiles of customers and the sales of the store. This experience still informs the mindset of my current work.

"A job that changes society" that I encountered during my job hunt

At first, I wanted to work in the media. I focused my job search on newspapers and other places, but it was difficult and I struggled. Then, I received an invitation from the Japan Brain Center, the predecessor of En Japan. When I attended, Ochi, who was the president at the time (currently En Japan's chairman), personally spoke to me about his big vision. I was so moved by what he said that I decided to join the company. Another big reason was that I was attracted to the idea of ​​working in the human resources field.
I'm from a shipbuilding town, and at one point, the shipbuilding industry went into decline due to the effects of the recession. Many adults lost their jobs, and the entire town fell into disrepair. Because of this powerful experience, Ochi's story struck me as particularly moving. If more adults find their work rewarding, the children who grow up watching them will also change their attitude toward work. And that will lead to a better society. This remains my motto to this day.

Changing consciousness changes life and society

I am often asked, "I don't know what kind of work is right for me." I believe that what's important is not what you do, but the mindset with which you approach it.
For example, at our company, we have two values ​​that we value in our work.
"Calling." To achieve this, we work hard. This value is actually reflected in our services.
That's the "Contribution Search" feature on the job-hunting website "En-Tenshoku." It's a feature that lets you search for jobs based on who you want to help and how. Industry trends and social movements change rapidly. That's why it's important to think about work based on what you would be happy to provide to others. Even when job hunting, I think it's best to look at as many companies as possible rather than narrowing down your industry from the start.
Our company wants to make the human resources industry a more respected one. To that end, we have adopted the phrase "success after joining the company." Rather than increasing the number of people who change jobs repeatedly, we want to match people who can truly thrive at a company, supporting the fulfillment of many people's working lives and the development of companies. To achieve this, we want to continue to provide society with higher quality services, while also utilizing technology.

＊message＊
I believe that today's young people, among the digital natives, have the ideas to create new things without being bound by the values ​​of the past.
I think that in a sense it is an opportunity. We are living in an era with such an advanced foundation, so I hope that young people will take on challenges with the ideas and thoughts that only young people can come up with. It would be a waste to decide on a job because "it seems stable" or "there are lots of holidays." The world is big, and there are many amazing people out there. Don't think that your current world is all there is, and try to gain a variety of experiences while you are a student, such as going abroad.

From the October 31, 2019 issue of the Student Newspaper (by Yoshio Ogawa, a fourth-year student at Keio University)