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Secrets of Success

Matsue National College of Technology

A: Welcome to our world
B: Shimane
C: Land of mist and shadows
A: The Chugoku Mountains have always been a barrier between Shimane and the rest
of Japan
C: In the past, communication was difficult, so it was an easy place to forget
B: But it was a popular place for exile.
A: Believe me, Shimane is really not so bad.
C: In fact Shimane is great!
B: We're all Shimane born and bred.
A: And we can tell you that Shimane has everything!
C: Wonderful scenery and a beautiful coastline
B: Great food and great people
A: An incomprehensible local dialect
B: Yes, Shimane has everything
A: Except a growing economy and enough job opportunities for young people.
B: Shimane is one of the poorest prefectures in Japan.
A: It has one of the highest rates of young people leaving to find jobs
C: And the thing is -that young people don't really want to leave.
A: You mightn't believe it but it's true. We did a survey of 250 students at our school.
C: An amazing 76% said they really wanted to live and work in Shimane.
Even if they left for a while to get experience, they would still want to come back.
A: But the reality is that there is not so much to come back to.
Outside the major cities, the countryside is almost empty - only older people are left. Community services are being lost.
B: So, how can we make Shimane a place where young people can stay?
A place you can go back to.
A: It's not exactly a secret.
C: It's simple - more industry, more jobs -
B: Sure, but if it's that simple, why isn't it happening?
A: Saying it is simple.
C: Making it happen is something else.
B: OK – so it's a simple solution but the big question is how to make it happen.
A: How can we create more industry and jobs in Shimane?
C: To find the answer, we set ourselves a mission.
A: The mission objective was to identify the secrets to creating and growing small
businesses in Shimane.
B: This was important – we needed ideas that would work in Shimane.
A: Mission Phase 1 was investigation.
B: We used the Internet, read brochures and reports
A: And talked to people.
C: We talked to people in local government, to Technoforum and the Entrepreneurs Association.
C: The results were amazing. There are so many energetic people committed to doing
good business in Shimane.
B: People who have already created successful businesses in Shimane
A: There are also a lot of people who would like to start a business.
C: But success needs more than interest. It can be tough.
A: What are the factors that make the difference between success and failure?
B: Mission Phase 2 was to locate some success stories and find out what we could learn
from them.
A: Based on what we had learned so far we created a profile.
This was the type of business we thought we could learn most from.
C: We had a lot of choice but chose just three.
A: We asked these companies what it takes to create and grow a small family business.
C: Kiguchi Technics. This is in a small town, has more than 100 employees, internationally recognized, very successful. So I asked Mr. Kiguchi what it takes. This is his advice. Believe in yourself, customer satisfaction, run towards challenges not away from them and believe in your staff.
B: Nakamura Brace is in a tiny mountain town. It was started in a room of Mr. Nakamura's family home. These days, it employs 65 people. They make orthotics and sell them all over the world. Mr. Nakamura's comments on business success were: you can work anywhere; niche markets are best; think internationally and set big goals.
A: I talked to Mr. Kishi at Kishi Engineering. They have six employees and they make very specialized robots and equipment for the disabled. This is his philosophy. Keep it simple. Sincerity is your biggest asset. Be fair to everyone and support other local companies.
B: So what conclusions could we draw?
C: These businessmen were all very different but there was a pattern.
A: All the companies were highly specialized, high technology, niche marketers, quality and innovation driven.
C: So if you were planning a new business in a remote prefecture, the best approach might be to specialize in quality, innovative, high tech products for niche markets.
A: So that tells us the kind of company that might be successful.
C: But a good idea is just that – unless you can turn it into something that makes money and creates jobs.
B: There had to be more to business success than just creativity.
A: I thought the difference was the people. Sure they had these great ideas but they had more than that.
B: They were impressive.
C: We were inspired by talking to these people. They made us believe that anything was possible – anywhere; that age had very little to do with it. They had mostly started when they were not much older than us.
B: But the big thing was that they really cared about making a difference.
C: They were driven by more than profit.
A: You really got the feeling that their motivations were all about people and community.
Visions like making it possible for people to stay in their hometowns.
B: A better life for severely brain damaged children.
C: Revitalizing rural economies.
B: This was a great project for us. We learnt so much.
A: What can we say in summary?
B: There's no simple answer to the issues of Shimane's future.
C: Certain types of businesses have more chance of success.
A: But the ultimate secret of success is the people who will drive those businesses.
C: They could be people like us.
B: People like us?
C: People like us.
B: And if you come from a small town in a poor rural prefecture – then the economic success of the future depends on people like you.