Open innovation in an era without correct answers
—— From the perspective of Mr. Sawada, who has been involved in the launch of Future Design Shibuya (FDS), what does the FDS look like from that time to the present?
Sawada FDS was established in April 2018, isn't it? It's been four years ago.
In October 2015, I was appointed as Deputy Mayor from the private sector, and since I got a public job for the first time, I felt uncomfortable at first. In particular, I strongly felt at that time why I didn't make better use of local and external forces. I thought it was a waste, and what I came up with to break it down was to have a hub function as a so-called affiliated organization outside of ourselves. Open innovation was just beginning to be talked about in the world, but FDS was launched to solve regional and social issues and create a new future by using the power of the private sector.
Since the social environment has changed significantly since the establishment, I think that what we expect and what we can and cannot do has changed. Under such circumstances, the difficult part of an organization such as FDS for creating innovation is whether it is really correct to proceed toward the goal of "I wish this happened" or "It should be like this". about it.
In other words, we are living in an era where there is no answer, as it is said to be the era of VUCA, so even innovation does not have an answer such as "If you do this, you will get 100 points." In the sense that FDS does not go to ask for the 100 answers, but starts by asking questions, I think it should be the same as it is now.
I think that the goodness of FDS will disappear at the moment when it is stipulated that "this is what it should be". The only thing that has been decided is to "design the future", and whether it is right or wrong will surely be decided by the people in the future. With that in mind, I think it's important to have a stance of pursuing what you are interested in.
Instead of making an answer, we stand on the side of making a question and throw that question into society and the market. Furthermore, I would like the organization to continue to pursue the question of how to recreate that question.
Now that "Purpose Driven" is taking root
——How about Secretary General Osada looking back on the last four years?
Osada Shortly before I retired from my previous job, I met Mr. Sawada in September 2017, and at that time I heard that Mr. Sawada still said "open innovation" and "open innovation." It was a story of "public-private partnership". Since I had only experience working at a company, I was wondering what I could do, but on the contrary, I was involved in this launch with the desire to take on various challenges that I could not do because I was in the position of a company.
I've been crazy since the first year, but since the slogan of FDS was "THINK & ACTION", I'm not just saying it, I'm continuing to do something and experiment, even if it's small. Then, there was something that gradually came into view.
First of all, I felt once again that the city of Shibuya is an attractive city for everyone, and that the organization called Shibuya Ward is positive for some new challenges, both the mayor and the deputy mayor. thing.
I've been wondering if it is our characteristic and what we should do to change the feeling of wanting to make a city that is attractive to everyone better and to take on challenges for that purpose.
Sawada: I think it was difficult to fumble for the first three years, but it's also because the market and society haven't kept up with the idea of FDS to push forward with new things. However, society and companies have finally begun to resonate with various activities of FDS. I feel that the times have finally caught up.
Nowadays, various companies are beginning to call it "purpose driven", but FDS was purpose driven in the first place. For that purpose, it is an idea bank that cooperates with the public and private sectors to solve problems with new ideas.
How to deal with the brand "Shibuya"
Osada But when I was on the side of a company, I was conscious of selling things and the immediate performance from the perspective of the company or brand. That came to FDS, and the way of thinking changed drastically. After all, it is very important for companies to do something for society.
澤田 僕も同じです。お互いに民間企業でマーケティングサイドの仕事をしていると、必ず利益や売上がKPIになっていました。
Osada That's right, but since I can understand the feelings of the people in the company, I have been thinking about an approach toward the goal of improving society, taking into account the feelings of the company. However, nowadays, companies are gradually becoming more and more able to respond flexibly to that.
Sawada That's right. In that sense, society and the market are finally approaching the direction that FDS is aiming for. There is no doubt that great opportunities are being created now, and marketing to sell products is not just about short-term sales, but about what meaning and significance can be created through the products and experiences. It's changing, hasn't it?
Red Bull (a former company in Osada) was originally a standard-bearer of modern marketing, and probably created a brand with a completely different approach from the marketing that Japanese companies did in orthodox.
Osada But when I moved from Red Bull, I thought that "Shibuya" was a great "brand".
I really felt that the value of this city would expand even more, and I still feel it.
Sawada: When I was appointed Deputy Mayor, I was from an advertising company, and while receiving various proposals, there were many talks about branding the city.
As Mr. Osada says, Shibuya can be said to be a "brand" in a sense. However, at that time, I thought that "branding" was not necessary in Shibuya. Because Shibuya is an unspecified city. For some it's a street city, for others it's a fashion city and a sports city. In other words, considering that Shibuya's strength is that if there are 100 people, there are 100 different images, I thought it would be better not to specify too much. So-called strong brands like Louis Vuitton, for example, don't have taglines and don't define themselves in branding.
Shibuya Ward's basic concept of "a city that changes differences from one another" looks like a tagline of the city in that sense, but in reality, it is a change of consciousness and attitude that stipulates diversity and inclusiveness. It's a value that encourages transformation. The vague message of "changing the difference from one to another" does not specifically define the image of the city, but rather it has something to do with the image of Shibuya for everyone.
What should FDS be in the future?
——Please tell us your vision for the future, considering that Mr. Osada has been appointed as the secretary general of FDS from April.
Osada Looking back on the past four years, what I think has changed in recent years is that various people have come closer to FDS without going from here. In the past, I was sometimes seen as "What is this person?"
Sawada: That was probably the case at first.
Osada That's why various people have come to call out with the desire to do something like this. As the number of FDS member companies has increased, I would like to strengthen the horizontal connection. The first is to be able to back up something that is being created among the companies involved, even if it does not necessarily mean that we will connect.
Also, I hope that what was born in Shibuya will spread to other cities and regions.
Sawada: You say "Future Design Shibuya", but your next goal may be to remove "Shibuya" from there. Not only Shibuya but also "Mirai Design Company".
Osada After all, inquiries come from other areas as well. We are centered around Shibuya, so we can't do so much on our own, but if we can strengthen our function as a hub or network, the possibilities of what we can do will expand, and it will expand to a wider area. I think it will spread. FDS, which has been in business for 5 years, wants to bring together the power of various people more than ever and back up what they can do together.
Sawada Another thing I would like to expect is that the percentage of Japanese people involved in FDS should be within 50%. In other words, I want you to promote human resources from around the world. Now that I can work online, I hope this will be an organization with a global network of co-creating with anyone in New York and collaborating with anyone in Paris. I'm sure that Shibuya, which is known to people all over the world, can do that.
In order for Shibuya to develop as a more international city, we need a more international perspective. There are so many things that you can't see in Japan, such as what you see from overseas and what kind of opportunities you have from overseas.
Osada That's right.
Sawada: It is the city of open innovation and global innovation that can incorporate such things well. I think it will take a little longer, but I want you to become such an organization. I hope that we can turn these big changes created by the Korona-ka into opportunities and expand those opportunities.
Secretary General Dialogue Series
Shin Sawada – Deputy Mayor of Shibuya Ward CIO ｜ To an organization that creates and throws "questions" from "answers"
