This article is the entry for day 16 in the KINTO Technologies Advent Calendar 2024 🎅🎄

Hi, I’m Nakanishi from the Manabi-no-Michi-no-Eki (Learning Roadside Station) team. This year, the Manabi-no-Michi-no-Eki project was officially launched and later established as a team. As part of this initiative, we're also hosting an in-house podcast, and for this year’s Advent Calendar, we’d love to share more episodes with you.

What is the Manabi-no-Michi-no-Eki (Learning Roadside Station)?

It’s a project aimed at making the frequently held in-house study sessions more accessible and effective. The initiative is led by passionate volunteers within the company, with the goal of supporting study sessions and fostering a culture of knowledge sharing across the organization.

10X Innovation Culture Program

The Learning Roadside Station Podcast features interviews with employees who organize study sessions within the company. This segment is called “A Peek into the Study Session Next Door”. For today’s podcast, we’re joined by Awata-san and HOKA-san, who are working on the 10X Innovation Culture Program being provided by Google. Usually, HOKA-san conducts the interviews, but today, Akeda-san and I will be taking on that role. So, without further delay, let's jump right into the interview.

Interview

Awata-san: Thank you for having me. My regular work focuses on platform engineering, ensuring that database-based operations are accessible to everyone. Besides that, I’m interested in corporate culture, so I’m doing a variety of activities.

HOKA-san: I usually work in the Human Resources Group’s Organizational Human Resources Team. We plan and conduct training by identifying needs and challenges through interviews with both new and existing employees.

Akeda-san: Please tell us what prompted you to hold these study sessions.

Awata-san: As part of our Google Cloud Enterprise User Group (Jagu’e’r) I took part in a subcommittee for thinking about corporate culture and innovation. As part of our activities, we decided to try the 10X Innovation Culture Program, gathered around 15 volunteers, and went ahead with it. HOKA-san was also among them, and things took off from there.

HOKA-san: Yes, that’s right. When we held our first event at the Google office in Shibuya, the reaction from the participants was extremely good. Collaborating in a workshop with people we usually had no interaction with opened up new opportunities for communication.

Akeda-san: Next, please tell us some details about the events. How did they expand after the initial session?

Awata-san: We initially held them at the Google office, then subsequently shifted to holding them in-house. The in-house events also drew a large number of participants and got an extremely positive reaction.

HOKA-san: Seeing KTC employees engage so positively, the Google team also expressed high praise. We hope to go on spreading this program further both inside and outside the company.

Akeda-san: What are the prospects for the future?

Awata-san: In the future, we’d like to become certified facilitators, and get to spread 10X to other companies as well.

HOKA-san: First, we plan to roll it out to other in-house groups and cultivate a culture of innovation across KTC.

Akeda-san: What kind of organization do you envision for KTC?

Awata-san: I want to make it a vibrant hive of thinking outside the box, flexible communication, and collaboration.

HOKA-san: I want to create a culture where people can take on challenges without fearing failure. To achieve this, I plan to utilize the 10X methods.

Akeda-san: Finally, could you share a message with all our listeners?

Awata-san: Culture isn’t something that can be imposed; it naturally emerges from people's actions. If you're interested, we’d love for you to join us.

HOKA-san: If you're interested, feel free to start by just taking a look—don’t hesitate to reach out. Through the 10X Innovation Culture Program, we aim to make KTC a more collaborative and supportive organization to work in. If you’re interested, please contact Awata-san or HOKA-san.

In this article, we shared insights into the 10X Innovation Culture Program, its background, and what the future may hold for it. We hope you’re looking forward to the next study session as well!