In August 2005, Euglena was born with three founding members. In December of the same year, we succeeded in mass culturing Euglena outdoors for the first time in the world, and are currently expanding our business areas such as food, cosmetics, and biofuels. The size of the company has grown, and now there are more than 400 members in the group.
As the company continues to grow, the way it is managed has changed. Akihiko Nagata, Executive Vice President, talks about the difference between "team" and "organization" and how the company should be managed.
"Team" has the same aspirations and spiritual equality
-Mr. Nagata has been involved in Our Please tell us about the major changes in management compared to that time and now.
Nagata: I think the company has changed from a "team" to an "organization." The difference between "team" and "organization". I think that the size of the group has a lot to do with that.
Euglena as an outside director in 2008, I was still a small company with dozens of people. We work closely with each member through our work, and we can clearly see each other's personality. There was a relationship in which communication occurs on a daily basis among the members. In this way, a state in which human relationships are close or have high human resolution is called a "team."
In other words, a "team" is a group of like-minded people with high spiritual equality. The "team" of sports such as baseball, soccer, and rugby is perfect for that image.
Each player in a flat relationship chooses the best action toward the goal of victory. That is a "good team". If some of the players don't win the team and stick to their own performance, it will be difficult to win because of the lack of unity as a team.
-What is important to put together a "team"?
Nagata: Isn't it possible for members to voluntarily move in the same direction through close communication? There was a phase in which we also managed the company as a "team."
What only an "organization" can do
-Did you change from the "team" phase to the "organization" phase?
Nagata: That's right. As the size of a group grows, the relationships that are involved in daily life become biased even within the same group. It is practically difficult to see all the members of a group at the same human resolution. Communication will occur on a daily basis with people in the same department or with people who are physically close to each other, but relationships with people who do not will inevitably become distant.
When that happens, the group changes from a "team" to an "organization." Rather, I think it is necessary for people in a management position to change their consciousness from a "team" to an "organization."
-How has the management method changed concretely?
Nagata: When I was running the company as a "team," I wanted all the members to act based on 100% the same philosophy. In daily communication, "listen to one and know ten." I wanted the members to do that, and I was building relationships to do so.
However, as the size of the company grew, it became unrealistic to expect this feeling from everyone. With a large number of members, it is difficult for everyone to share the company's philosophy and goals with exactly the same strength. There may be a certain number of members in the company who do not agree with the company's philosophy and goals.
Based on such a dry premise, we will consider various measures so that we can still reach the goal that the company should aim for. I think that is the management of an "organization."
-Is there a limit to the "team"?
Nagata: That's right. I think it is necessary to create a group of appropriate size in order to achieve the big goal. It's difficult to draw a line, but it's difficult to maintain close communication with more than 400 members.
It is also important for many members with diverse values and skills to come together and consider the possibilities of various options.
I want to aim for a "big team" from an "organization"
―I see, Euglena has changed from a “team” to an “organization”. What kind of group do you aim for in the future?
Nagata: I'm thinking about managing an "organization" like a "team." I think that it is realistic to manage a group of 400 people as an "organization", but I think that if we can build a close relationship like a "team", the company should be stronger. I will.
To that end, we have begun various initiatives through trial and error. For example, when we relocated our headquarters in 2018, we turned part of our office into a cafe space. I feel that communication across departments has been created, and that human relationships that have been becoming fixed have become more fluid.
We also hold a lunch party where different members have lunch every week. From the perspective of employees who have been in the company for the first year, Izumo, the president, and I, the vice president, may be far away and difficult to talk to. One of the purposes is to eliminate that sense of distance.
Now, through these efforts, we aim to make the company like a "big team".
～ Continue to the second part ～
Sentence: Masatsugu Kayahara
Euglena Co., Ltd. Vice President / Representative of Real Tech Fund
Akihiko Nagata
Graduated from Keio University Faculty of Commerce. Joined an independent private equity fund and belongs to the private equity and consulting departments.
In 2008, he Our Ltd., and has been in charge of business strategy, M & A, financing, capital tie-up, public relations / IR, and management departments since the unlisted period of Our He is familiar with the strategy and finance fields that support technology, and is responsible for business development of Our Currently, he is appointed vice president and also serves as the representative of Japan's largest technical VC "Real Tech Fund".