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In this article, we share experiences from Space Camp, a program that prepares entrepreneurs at Moon Creative Lab, which supports new business creation at Mitsui &amp; Co.<hr>In this article, you will learn about:<ol><li>How Moon entrepreneurs begin their journey</li><li>Exploring your problem space</li><li>How to prepare for the inevitable</li></ol><hr><img src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/Moon_Creative_Lab_Space_Camp_287e026290.png" alt="Moon+Creative+Lab+Space+Camp.png">When you set out to embark on your next journey, it’s likely you’ve been preparing ahead of time – &nbsp;a future trip, new job, or moving to a new city. For budding entrepreneurs, it’s no different when they begin their entrepreneur journeys building their first ventures with Moon Creative Lab.Before ideation sessions, prototype builds, and a minimum viable product (MVP) rollout, Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (EIRs) must complete Space Camp, an intensive three-week program that aims to prepare them for their new roles at Moon. Imagine stepping into a CEO or founder’s shoes for the very first time. It’s a huge role to fulfill! Space Camp’s mission is to address some of the biggest challenges entrepreneurs face not only with their ventures, but as their personal roles transform with profound responsibility. &nbsp;Space Camp gives EIRs a range of experiences and courses, from the transformative (“Life on the Moon”) to the exploratory (“Problem Identification and Design”) to the casual (“Coffee Chat with Moon Mates”). Held by people from the Moon Operating Team including executives, program managers, designers, and other facilitators, Space Camp allows members of the new venture team to get to know one another, and helps EIRs align their team and take the next big step towards bringing their ideas to the world.Throughout their time in Space Camp, EIRs learn by doing, failing, and trying again. Yes, we said failing! Failing and trying again is what the entrepreneur journey is all about. EIRs learn how to collaborate effectively to cultivate their leadership skills, take a deep look into problem spaces, understand concept definition, and learn how to communicate their ideas clearly to future committees – all foundational knowledge needed to begin their ventures.<figure class="image"><img src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/Inna_Circle_Space_Camp_268e9971b6.jpeg" alt="Inna+Circle+Space+Camp.jpeg"><figcaption>Dell Dela Torre and Grace Aldas, EIRs of Inna Circle</figcaption></figure><h3>The First Step In Entrepreneurs’ Journeys</h3>For two of our newest ventures, Space Camp was a valuable introduction to the world of entrepreneurship and startups. For Dell Dela Torre and Grace Aldas, EIRs of <a href="https://www.theinnacircle.com/">Inna Circle</a> (previously called MOM 247)– a service that aims to support mothers by addressing the stressors of motherhood and offers high-quality childcare – Space Camp helped them better understand the startup industry, something they were unfamiliar with in their previous roles. “In Space Camp, we learned about past and existing ventures at Moon, the diverse working culture, a better understanding of what design-thinking is and how to apply it, reflecting on what leadership means, and pivots,” recalls Dell. For Hiro Narihaya, EIR of Pioneer Guild – a service that helps make career paths visible and available through planning and mentorship – it was helpful to learn “the practical know-how of startups and ventures, how people start off, and the first steps.”<figure class="image"><img src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/Spring_Terrace_Oct_22_8_3d4e3d7573.jpg" alt="Hiro Narihaya, EIR of Pioneer Guild"><figcaption>Hiro Narihaya, EIR of Pioneer Guild</figcaption></figure><h3>Identifying Problems and Widening Perspective</h3>Space Camp gives EIRs insight into the demands of new business creation, especially when it comes to identifying the problems they aim to solve within their ventures. For Dell and Grace, they had their minds set on their original idea they had pitched to the Moon Committee back in November. But after attending Space Camp, it gave them a wider perspective and encouraged them to look at their idea in a new way. “We were able to step back and assess the problem we wished to solve and the possible solutions we can test,” Grace says. With a wider perspective, the pair started to realize their ideas might be reshaping. “We have a more open mind now in terms of exploring more value propositions and concepts, beyond what we initially planned,” Dell adds.<blockquote>&nbsp;“We have a more open mind now in terms of exploring more value propositions and concepts, beyond what we initially planned.” – Dell Dela Torre</blockquote>Looking deeper into the problem space also helped Hiro of Pioneer Guild rethink his original idea, too. “Before, I focused on the space I was originally thinking of, but now I can cast light to the spaces from different angles amplified by the diverse Moon capabilities, and advance my ideas.” Hiro expressed how inspired he was by Space Camp, which gave him a better idea of where he wants to take his venture moving forward. “Space Camp was a great opportunity for me to reflect on myself and how I want to be in the future, where I want to go, and that inspired me to want to go further” he says.&nbsp;<blockquote>&nbsp;“Before, I focused on the space I was originally thinking of, but now I can cast light to the spaces from different angles.” – Hiro Narihara</blockquote><h3>Preparing for the Inevitable</h3>An unavoidable part of any journey is unpredictability. Things are bound to change and might not always go as planned, and that’s okay. The lesson here is the willingness to adapt to change when faced with adversity. Space Camp teaches EIRs that this is an incredibly valuable skill and part of the entrepreneur journey. Dell and Grace, who are well underway with their venture Inna Circle, have been able to remain open to change. “Pivots are inevitable. We have to embrace it and learn to navigate it. Although we are still in the early stages of incubation, we started seeing potential pivots coming in our direction,” Dell says.Because of Space Camp, Hiro has reframed his thinking to stay prepared for the unknown. Knowing that not every step of the way will be smooth, he keeps his mind open for the journey going forward and is ready to learn from experience and inevitable setbacks. “There is no right answer. I need to dispose of the fixed mindset and instead be flexible to survive on this journey. I know there will be a lot of failure, rejection, and disappointment. To survive that disappointment, I need to learn from failure in a positive way. That’s the necessary part. That’s going to be my armor that will get me through this big ocean of unknowns to my destination.”&nbsp;<blockquote>“There will be a lot of failure, rejection, and disappointment. To survive that disappointment, I need to learn from failure in a positive way. That’s the necessary part.” – Hiro Narihara</blockquote>Key Takeaways:<ul><li>Expand your perspective. Looking beyond your initial solution to the wider problem space can offer valuable insight, which in turn can help paint a better picture of your businesses’ direction and core purpose.</li><li>Unpredictability is inevitable. Remaining open to change and realizing that every moment is a valuable lesson is an essential part of the entrepreneur’s mindset.</li></ul>To learn more about Inna Circle be sure to follow <a href="https://www.theinnacircle.com/">https://www.theinnacircle.com/</a>We also plan to share more updates here on Moon Stories for Pioneer Guild!&nbsp;

Hiro Narihara, Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EIR) of Moon Creative Lab venture&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pioneerguild.jp/">Pioneer Guild</a>, shares his experiments in career mapping and mentoring. In this interview, you’ll learn how Pioneer Guild launched its product, how they use customer feedback and professional networking to help drive growth, and why it’s never too late to start your own company.<hr>Hi Hiro! Tell us about your venture, Pioneer Guild.<img class="image_resized" style="width:76.48%;" src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/image1_2_bfc8b2e79f.jpg" alt="image1 2.jpg">Hiro Narihara:&nbsp;Pioneer Guild is a venture that is creating a new experience for people to map out their career pathways. Pioneer Guild will allow users to see where they are in their career today and navigate to where they want to be years later. Like Google Maps, they’ll see different paths to go where they want&nbsp; and they can zoom out to take in the bigger picture: they’ll see major highways and minor roads, they’ll see where congestion is choking progress, and they’ll see which route is best for them - which could be the path that’s fastest or the one with the least amount of hassle.&nbsp; Our app’s users – we call them Explorers – will also be able to hear from others who have traversed these paths before. They can read reviews of their career pathway’s conditions or discover insider tips and interesting stops along the way. And there will be seasoned “career travelers” they can talk with – we call these folks our Career Pioneers.&nbsp;&nbsp;We recently ran an experiment matching up Career Pioneers with Explorers looking for advice on traveling down similar career paths, and we learned a lot from it!&nbsp;Can you provide details about how you ran that specific experiment?H.N.: Sure! The whole process was extremely fast and agile. Late last year, our team ran an experiment to test some hypotheses we had made about the current market. We created a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pioneerguild.jp/">website</a> within a week and launched a mentoring program with real customers in only two weeks! The program matched tech startup people who were originally in the finance industry with Explorers who are interested in a similar career shift. The key element that allowed us to run the experiment so fast was networking: Human-to-human connections are always the most powerful, and for us it paid off.Overall, the experiment had some successes but also a lot of struggles. Many visitors to our website were doubtful at first, thinking it was simply another recruiting service. As a result, we did not get much response from users. If I wanted to change anything it would be to use fewer “loaded” words that are common in the industry – e.g., “job change”, “career-up”, “work-life balance”, etc. – which can trigger people’s defensiveness.Taking all this into account, we adjusted our messaging halfway through the experiment. Instead of talking to people as though they were customers, we found they were much more willing to engage with and support us if we simply asked them to evaluate our new experimental offering. Many told us they were excited to become part of something new and join a community of like-minded people. It’s important to remind ourselves that most people fundamentally want to help others.My big takeaway? As founders, we should draw people together into a community and allow them to participate in the creative process of experimentation itself. In fact, when we asked our customers to describe their ideal mentoring service, many of their ideas were more original and insightful than our own! They were teaching us how we should proceed.Listening more and bringing people together to co-create – that’s something I want to focus on more moving forward.&nbsp;Why a mentoring program? How can it help people?H.N.: There are many services out there in the world like this, but most have major drawbacks, which was something we heard again and again from users during our research.Career coaches, for example, tend to be very dream-like and almost therapeutic in tone. They are great for setting long-term, “North Star” goals and going deep into motivations, uncovering unconscious blockers and so on. But their recommendations can lack practicality and near-term actionability.Recruiters, on the other hand, are the opposite – they tend to focus on the near-term, have their own agendas, and don’t necessarily have the best interests of their clients or prospects at heart – sometimes creating a conflict of interest. Recruiters often simply want to make a commission and will push people to accept jobs and take career paths that don’t really meet their needs.With Pioneer Guild, we want to take a different approach and help our Explorers make career path decisions based on objective data, contextualized by the perspective of fellow career travelers – our Career Pioneers – to both inspire them and help them make well-informed, life-changing decisions.&nbsp;Do you have a mentor? Or are you a mentor yourself?H.N.:&nbsp;Yes! I have regular sessions with a certified career coach and also consult with many mentors. It’s extremely valuable to me. Through the process of questioning and being questioned, I can see myself more clearly. In this sense, my coaches and mentors are like mirrors that give me an objective point of view on professional development.Actually, I’ve found the startup founder community in Tokyo – which is relatively small and close-knit – to be a rich resource for mentorship. We often meet up and mentor one other casually. When you’re thinking of building a company from scratch, it’s great to be able to bounce ideas off of so many smart and dynamic people.&nbsp;Is career mapping and mentoring something that more people need?H.N.:&nbsp;Absolutely! Especially in Japan. First off, it’s obvious that Japan needs dramatic changes to recover its competitiveness in the global market. Younger generations know this very well, but middle-aged people (like myself!) are struggling to accept it.&nbsp;The nature of work itself is changing. Everyone needs to start thinking about their mid- and long-term career goals and how to reach them. Too many people are content just existing in their current roles and don’t take an active approach in building their future.&nbsp;As things go on, I believe the employment landscape in Japan will become increasingly fluid with more job mobility – both within and outside one’s current company – with more emphasis on mid-career hiring, hybridity, and work-style diversification. Studies show that many young Japanese people dream of professional independence and are taking steps to make that dream a reality.In recent years, we have seen the growth of freelance matching services and decentralized C2C marketplaces, which reduce the barriers for people wishing to start their own businesses. Pioneer Guild is part of this revolution, where work is more fluid, skill development is self-directed, and people can work across organizations.Our dream is to democratize pathways to rewarding careers, to connect individuals with related expertise, and build guilds of professional excellence. Young people are seeking a more systematic way to find the guidance they need to reach their career goals. That’s the change we want to make in the world!&nbsp;As an EIR, what advice would you give to others wanting to start their own ventures or businesses?H.N.:&nbsp;Truthfully, I’m still learning this. Maybe we all are. But one thing I can say is, don’t give up before you’ve even started. If a middle-aged corporate worker with a young family like me can start a company, so can you!I recently read a great book by Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn, called&nbsp;<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/12030438">The Startup of You</a>, where he talks about the need to do an objective self-assessment and treat yourself like a company by analyzing your aspirations, the market for your particular skills and experiences, your assets, debts, risks and so on. And I agree – this is the first step.Contrary to popular belief, I don’t think starting a venture needs to be a total risk the way it is often portrayed. Instead, you need to make reasonable adjustments to your life and take measured risks. In fact, you can launch a new venture as a side gig while still working a full-time job. You just need to be clever and efficient in the way you go about it.Even the big, traditional Japanese corporations are starting to accept this. Recently, there have been policy shifts allowing employees to have side businesses that even a decade ago would have been unthinkable. Why? Because the world is changing and the pressure to adapt is so intense. As societies, industries and markets evolve, new value creation is increasingly important, wherever it comes from.&nbsp;What’s your next experiment with Pioneer Guild?H.N.:&nbsp;Right now we are starting to collaborate with recruiting agencies to create a dynamic career pathway mapping tool. It’s pretty exciting!It’s well known in the industry that job seekers complain about recruiters, saying, “They don’t understand or care about my mid- or long-term career plan. They just want to push me into a role as fast as possible.” And that’s often true. But to be fair, these agencies know this problem and really struggle with it. They want a better way to provide quality advice, too. After all, this is what truly great career consultants do for their clients.&nbsp;So that’s what we’re building right now: a data-driven, objective way to explore the many possible paths careers might take, and make fact-based decisions to navigate the way through this labyrinth. In fact, we’ve previewed what we’re doing with recruitment agencies, and they are very interested indeed.In the end, everyone deserves to find a career that not only pays the bills, but inspires them and brings them satisfaction. We want to help create that world!&nbsp;To learn more about Pioneer Guild and stay in touch, visit:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pioneerguild.jp/">https://www.pioneerguild.jp/</a> or reach out to Hiro at&nbsp;<a href="mailto:hiro@mooncreativelab.com">hiro@mooncreativelab.com</a>.&nbsp;

<img src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/Frame_1354_9ff9c573c6.jpg" alt="Frame 1354.jpg">Carrium Inc. was founded in June 2024 by Hiroyuki Narihara, who started business planning and service development as an Entrpreneur-In-Residence at Moon Creative Lab, and has officially released "CAREER FORTH," a career strategy support tool for corporate clients.<a href="https://www.careerforth.me/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=blog1218&amp;utm_id=blog1218">https://www.careerforth.me/</a>CAREER FORTH provides a function that quantitatively visualizes and maps potential future career paths for highly specialized young professionals who will play a central role in future business, based on the large data of one million people’s job changes. The company aims to expand the use of this service, especially among companies that provide career transition and career support services for professionals, and will support the provision of quantitative career advice based on objective data.The service has been undergoing business validation, service platform construction, and interface improvement at Moon since 2022, and a beta version of the service was launched in 2023. To date, six companies, mainly recruitment companies, have implemented the service.The company aims to expand the use of the service with the goal of "providing a digital map of career paths to realize data-driven, autonomous career strategies," as more and more human capital management is required in business activities.&nbsp;<figure class="image"><img style="aspect-ratio:1744/958;" src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/main_b23d9403c2.png" alt="main.png" width="1744" height="958"><figcaption>キャリアマップ機能によるキャリアパスの可視化</figcaption></figure>CAREER FORTH provides three main services to enable job seekers to autonomously build their career strategies and to provide quantitative career advice based on big data from a human resources support company.&nbsp;<ol><li>Career Map function: A map function that visualizes and presents possible future career path options based on the company/organization, industry, job type, etc.</li><li>Career Route: A route search feature that visualizes and displays the path to your career goals.</li><li>Reverse Route: An analytics feature that visualizes the type of job seekers flowing into the desired company, job type, and job field, and displays their career paths in reverse.</li></ol>&nbsp;Moon EIR and Carrium Inc. representative, Hiroyuki Narihara, joined Mitsui &amp; Co. in 2005. After working in business in the retail, distribution, and food industries, he was stationed in Southeast Asia for about 5 years. While working overseas, he was troubled by the difficulty of forming a professional identity throughout his life, and developed the business idea of “CAREER FORTH” to solve the same problem of people struggling with autonomous career formation in the 100-year life era.The company plans to develop and expand job information recommendation functions, personalize management tools and dashboards, and expand integrated data in order to realize a “career strategy management tool that everyone can carry in their pocket".&nbsp;<a href="https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000357.000060069.html?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=blog1218&amp;utm_id=blog1218">Press release available here.</a>&nbsp;<h3 style="margin-left:0px;">About Carrium Inc.</h3><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:75%;"><img style="aspect-ratio:1600/900;" src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/Frame_1354_6713adc11b.jpg" alt="Frame 1354.jpg" width="1600" height="900"></figure>Carrium Inc. is a data-driven, unbiased career planning support company. It offers "CAREER FORTH," a career visualization service for young professionals that utilizes big data on career changes. The service was commercialized at Moon Creative Lab, a venture studio of the Mitsui &amp; Co. group, and incorporated in June 2024. The company is currently working on a business aimed at realizing passionate professional lives through the creation of data-driven career strategies.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.carrium.co.jp/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=blog1218&amp;utm_id=blog1218">https://www.carrium.co.jp/</a>　<ul><li>Company name: Carrium Inc.</li><li>Representative: Hirotaka Naruhara</li><li>Registered capital: 10 million yen</li><li>Shareholders: Mitsui &amp; Co.</li><li>Address: 2F Spring Terrace Omotesando, 3-10-5 Kita-Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo</li><li>Business: Operation and provision of CAREER FORTH, development of career-related services</li></ul><h3 style="margin-left:0px;">&nbsp;</h3><h3 style="margin-left:0px;">Related Blog</h3><a href="https://www.mooncreativelab.com/stories/idea-careerforth?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=blog1218&amp;utm_id=blog1218">・Internal Motivation Is Your Greatest Asset: Why a Career Exploration Map was Needed ｜CAREER FORTH</a>

<figure class="image image_resized" style="width:25%;"><img style="aspect-ratio:646/644;" src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/image1_a5c8b7adce.png" alt="image1.png" width="646" height="644"></figure>Author: Takuya Yamagishi, Senior Design Researcher at Moon.&nbsp;Takuya brings extensive experience in advertising strategy, brand concept development, and user research from his time at various advertising agencies. To deepen his understanding of human-centered thinking, he studied design research and service design at Goldsmiths, University of London, and Hyper Island design school. He leads projects ranging from user understanding, needs assessment to hypothesis validation, prototype development and testing.<hr>At Moon, we host "Future Visioning" workshops to uncover emerging trends and potential business opportunities in specific industries. Earlier this year, from January to February, the workshop series focused on "Future Work Styles and Upskilling."<figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><img style="aspect-ratio:1999/1579;" src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/image5_37dc33cbef.jpg" alt="image5.jpg" width="1999" height="1579"><figcaption>Workshop Scene</figcaption></figure>With the rapid evolution of AI services, like ChatGPT, we pondered a critical question: what will be the purpose and nature of human work in the new AI-driven world? The workshop revealed a future where work styles may become more fluid with greater value placed on individual uniqueness.&nbsp;Here’s a closer look at some of the ideas and predictions that emerged from our sessions.&nbsp;Table of Contents<ul><li>The Dragon Quest-Style Work Style Brought by the Spread of AI</li><li>Featured News and Related Startups</li></ul>&nbsp;<h3>The Dragon Quest-Style Work Style Brought by the Surge of AI</h3>Are you familiar with Dragon Quest? It's a role-playing game (RPG) series where players take on the roles of heroes and adventurers, collaborating with companions to face powerful enemies like demon kings and explore vast worlds.Our workshop suggested that as AI becomes more integrated into work, Dragon Quest-style work styles may become more prevalent. So, what is a "Dragon Quest-Style Work Style"? Based on the workshop results, we've identified five key elements.🐉🐉🐉🐉🐉🐉🐉<h3>Characteristics of the Dragon Quest-Style Work Style</h3><h4>1. Mission-Driven</h4><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><img style="aspect-ratio:2000/2000;" src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/image3_d5eb50b3a8.png" alt="image3.png" width="2000" height="2000"></figure>In many RPGs, including Dragon Quest, the story starts with a clear "mission"—whether it is defeating a demon king or pacifying a war-torn world. This mission serves as the driving force that motivates players to spend countless hours on the game.Our workshop suggested that as AI reshapes the workplace, people will become more "vision-driven" and will be motivated by a sense of "purpose." Freed from mundane and repetitive tasks being handled by AI, people will place increased value on the "why" behind their work.&nbsp;This shift will increase the desire to work for companies whose missions, visions, and values resonate with them. It will also lead to the growth of mission-driven communities, connecting individuals, businesses, and even local governments around shared goals and values.<h4>2. Project-Based Teams With Necessary Members</h4><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><img style="aspect-ratio:2000/2000;" src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/image8_aab73d890f.png" alt="image8.png" width="2000" height="2000"></figure>In Dragon Quest, there’s a "party" system that allows players to form teams with specialized characters like wizards and warriors, selected based on the type of challenge or enemy.&nbsp; Similarly, with increased AI integration, work will be more "project-based" and "team-oriented." It will be structured around project units with the necessary skills, personnel, and budgets set for attaining the specified goals. Teams will be assembled from both internal and external talent, combining the right expertise to meet project demands. After project completion, teams will dissolve and reorganize for new projects.&nbsp;This fluidity will create opportunities for knowledge-sharing and unexpected collaborations—key ingredients for successful innovation and new project successes.Professional history will also adapt to this new model. Resumes will shift from listing job titles to highlighting&nbsp;project-based achievements, detailing the projects you contributed to, the team members you worked with, and the outcomes you helped deliver. This evolution will reflect a more dynamic and skills-focused career narrative.&nbsp;<h4>3. Visible Skills and Level-Ups Through Work</h4><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><img style="aspect-ratio:2000/2000;" src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/image2_aba16b83d3.png" alt="image2.png" width="2000" height="2000"></figure>In many games, character skills like strength, agility, and intelligence are scored and displayed to players. Experience points earned through battles with monsters allow characters to increase their abilities.Similarly, we can envision a future where individual skills&nbsp;are tracked and visualized in real-time, with personalized training programs tailored to each person’s strengths and development areas.&nbsp;In the U.S., "Skills Tech," a technology area focused on managing and improving employee skills, has been gaining traction. Instead of traditional classroom learning, "simulated practical styles," where skills are learned naturally through simulated work, will become more common.This applies not only to technical skills but also to soft skills such as communication, leadership, and emotional intelligence. Our workshop emphasized the importance of these human-centric skills, which are essential for successful teamwork and relationship-building. Visualizing a range of skills will simplify team formation and make training more effective, creating more agile and capable teams.&nbsp;<h4>4. Freedom To Change Jobs</h4><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><img style="aspect-ratio:2000/2000;" src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/image4_6034b88ec1.png" alt="image4.png" width="2000" height="2000"></figure>In Dragon Quest III, the “job change” system allows characters to switch roles once they reach a certain level. For example, a wizard who transitions to a warrior becomes a warrior who can use magic—combining the strengths of both roles.&nbsp;In the real world, switching to a completely different occupation through job changes or transfers is uncommon. However, with the surge of AI and the increased access to diverse skill sets, we will move closer to a world where we can freely choose jobs and design careers based on what we want to do rather than what we have done in our past careers.This shift will enable more flexible and creative career paths where individuals can design their professional journeys based on their interests and evolving skills. Eventually, we can expect to see the emergence of unique hybrid roles created by combining diverse skill sets—blurring the lines between traditional job categories and opening up new career possibilities.&nbsp;<h4>5. AI Tools for Enhancing Abilities and Skills, and Autonomous AI Agents</h4><figure class="image image_resized" style="width:50%;"><img style="aspect-ratio:2000/2000;" src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/image6_aa8363d702.png" alt="image6.png" width="2000" height="2000"></figure>In Dragon Quest, weapons and armor are used to enhance a character’s attack and defense abilities. These tools are critical for advancing in the game. Some items possess special skills, while legendary weapons offer exceptional performance. Similarly, AI will serve as a powerful tool for enhancing individual capabilities and improving work efficiency through specialized skills..In the later Dragon Quest series, a system was introduced where players could recruit monsters to fight alongside them. These monsters can be seen as a today's AI agents. How well you command and utilize these AI agents will determine your success.As AI becomes more widespread, mastering AI tools and strategies will become a fundamental aspect of business literacy. Furthermore, high-performance AI and agents may become premium assets—accessible only to a select few at high costs. We may even see the rise of legendary AI tools, akin to the coveted “Erdrick’s Sword,” becoming rare and highly sought-after advantages in the business world.🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️🗡️We have now explored the five characteristics of the Dragon Quest-style work style. While news about AI replacing jobs can make the future of work seem uncertain, it's worth reflecting on how we felt while playing games. Weren’t we excited and fully absorbed, losing track of time?&nbsp;The Dragon Quest-style of work envisions a future where people work with that same sense of joy and purpose.Just as using computers became second nature over the past few decades, mastering AI will become indispensable in the near future. However, there is something more important than skills: the question of "Who do I want to have adventures with, and what kind of adventures do I want to have?"Even if your answer to that question is unclear, AI will be able to serve as a powerful tool to help support and realize your vision.For further reading, explore startups and news related to the Dragon Quest-style work style:&nbsp;<h3>Featured News and Related Startups</h3>1. Launch of "In-House BizReach by HRMOS," a New Service to Prevent Talent Outflow Through Internal ScoutingUsing generative AI, this service creates "internal resumes" by summarizing several years of employee achievements and experiences in minutes. This helps in building and maintaining in-house talent repositories. By inputting "in-house job postings," the system automatically verbalizes and proposes position requirements. It also helps recruiters&nbsp; It also supports recruiters by enabling them to define and refine position requirements based on an employee's specific career history and skill set.Reference: <a href="https://www.bizreach.co.jp/pressroom/pressrelease/2025/0128.html">https://www.bizreach.co.jp/pressroom/pressrelease/2025/0128.html</a>&nbsp;BizReach, a Japanese company renowned for its recruitment platform that connects high-caliber professionals with businesses seeking immediate talent, has launched a new service, 'In-House BizReach by HRMOS'. While the name has drawn attention, the service's standout feature is its 'internal resume' creation capability.Visualizing skills is a key step toward the "Dragon Quest-style work style," where skills are clearly defined and leveled up through work experience. The system will help in creating internal resumes to visualize skills and accelerate project-based team formation.&nbsp;2. DeNA Tomoko Namba Talks "Company Management and Growth Strategies in the AI Era" (Full Transcription)We will grow our existing business with half the personnel. And with the other half, we will work on new businesses. Not just one new business, but with the image of producing unicorns with groups of 10 people, we will attack crazily.Reference: <a href="https://fullswing.dena.com/archives/100153/">https://fullswing.dena.com/archives/100153/</a>&nbsp;This is an excerpt from a speech by Tomoko Namba, Founder and Chairperson of DeNA, at the opening of "DeNA × AI Day || DeNA TechCon 2025," hosted by DeNA Corporation. In the speech, Namba outlined a bold strategy: rather than relying on the full workforce to grow existing business, DeNA plans to dramatically increase productivity through AI and redirect half of the workforce towards building new businesses. The idea of "mass-producing unicorns with 10 people" reflects the current trend in the United States, where unicorns valued at 300 billion yen are being created with teams as small as just 7 people.This strategy perfectly embodies the "Dragon Quest-style work style" of forming small, focused teams to achieve ambitious goals, with AI serving as a powerful tool. Namba’s phrase “attack aggressively” hints at a future where forming lean, highly skilled teams to drive innovation with AI will become the norm..3. Adventure Your Career with Data, Chart a Map to the Future | Carrium Inc.Carrium Inc.'s "Career Force" service (<a href="https://www.carrium.co.jp/">https://www.carrium.co.jp/</a>) visualizes career paths and explores future possibilities based on real career data from approximately 1 million people. You can quantitatively learn about the career paths of people who have had similar careers to yours in the past.This service reveals a broader range of career options than you might have imagined. Knowing your career possibilities and expanding your options connects to the "Dragon Quest-style work style" world, where you can freely change jobs and roles based on your evolving skills and interests.In the future, the company plans to offer services that propose personalized career paths based on work histories, shaping a new era of career design.&nbsp;4. Audio Education Media for Sharpening Thinking Skills | VOOXVOOX (<a href="https://www.voox.me/">https://www.voox.me/</a>) is an audiobook service where authors deliver knowledge from their books in their voices, with content distributed through apps like "Amazon Audible" and "VOOX."Their newly launched "Future Lab" service offers workshops aimed at enhancing the human ability to "conceptualize and understand the essence" of complex ideas, drawing from liberal arts. The workshop focuses on "themes that create the future," "interdisciplinary discussions," and "social implementation of intelligence."As mentioned, In the&nbsp;Dragon Quest-style work style, missions play a central role. To create compelling missions, it is essential to deeply understand the essence of the business and identify key elements. By enhancing conceptualization abilities, companies can craft meaningful ‘missions’ that resonate with employees, attract top talent, and drive higher engagement.&nbsp;<h3>Would You Like to Think About the Future of Work with Moon?</h3>At Moon, we would like to explore new possibilities through discussions and workshops on future work styles and upskilling/reskilling with HR personnel and companies/startups engaged in this field. If you are interested, please contact<a href="mailto:takuya@mooncreativelab.com"> takuya@mooncreativelab.com</a>.<img class="image_resized" style="aspect-ratio:646/644;width:25%;" src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/image1_a5c8b7adce.png" alt="image1.png" width="646" height="644">Author: Takuya Yamagishi, Senior Design Researcher at Moon.&nbsp;<hr>All Illustration by Freepik Storyset (<a href="https://storyset.com/">https://storyset.com/</a>)

Moon-launched venture, Carrium Inc., which provides the career strategy support tool "CareerForth," released its new feature "<a href="https://www.careerforth.me/designer">AI Career Designer</a>" on July 1, 2025. "CareerForth" was adopted in 2022 as a new business by Mitsui &amp; Co.'s venture studio, Moon Creative Lab, after an internal call for proposals within Mitsui &amp; Co. It began offering a beta version in 2023, and Carrium Inc. was established as the operating company in June 2024. In addition to its existing service, which quantifies and maps potential career paths for highly specialized young professionals, "<a href="https://www.careerforth.me/designer">AI Career Designer</a>" will allow individual users to more intuitively build their career strategies. This new feature aims to provide an environment where individuals can design data-driven, unbiased careers, supporting them in achieving a passionate professional life.&nbsp;<h3>Leveraging over 1 million data points to provide personalized career support service</h3><img src="https://moon-website-prod-images.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.com/a_image_a01_1_98b426ff51.png" alt="a_image_a01 (1).png">"<a href="https://www.careerforth.me/designer">AI Career Designer</a>" is a service that leverages over one million labor data points and AI technology held by Carrium to provide personalized career proposals. These proposals are based on the user's career values, including their work history, sources of motivation, and ideal communication methods. The service also includes specific job listings, allowing users to express their interest in a job with a one-stop application process.&nbsp;<h3>What are its main features?</h3>1.Career Design Based on Data&nbsp; Leveraging over one million labor data points accumulated by Carrium, <a href="https://www.careerforth.me/designer">AI Career Designer</a> advises optimal career plans based on the user's input work history and values. 2.Completed in Just 3 Minutes   Only three steps are required for input before a personalized career proposal is generated in approximately three minutes. 3.Presentation of Diverse&nbsp; Options In addition to conventional proposals based on your past career, you can also explore surprising alternative paths complete with concrete action plans. 4.Continuous Optimization   By providing feedback on the generated career proposal, you can discover an even more customized and personalized career path.&nbsp;<h3>Free to use, no need to register</h3><a href="https://www.careerforth.me/designer">AI Career Designer</a> is free for anyone to use, and no registration is required. Please feel free to give it a try! Your feedback is highly welcomed.Contact to Hiroyuki Narihara, founder of Carrium Inc. [📩]<a href="mailto:h.narihara@carrium.co.jp">h.narihara@carrium.co.jp</a><h3>&nbsp;</h3><h3>More to read</h3>Interview to Hiroyuki Narihara, founder of Carrium Inc. <a href="https://www.mooncreativelab.com/stories/idea-careerforth">https://www.mooncreativelab.com/stories/idea-careerforth</a>The Future of Work: Embracing a Role-Playing Approach With AI <a href="https://www.mooncreativelab.com/ja/stories/rpg-work">https://www.mooncreativelab.com/ja/stories/rpg-work</a>

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<h3>Challenge</h3>In the age of VUCA, young professionals are searching for their mid- to long-term career direction with a vague sense of uncertainty about the future. However, the information they have access to tends to be subjective advice, the experiences of those around them, and interest-based position talk. How might we provide them with objective and fair information from a broader perspective?<h3>Solution</h3>CareerForth is a B2B2C customer experience platform that offers business persons a choice of career paths and efficient routes to the future positions they are aiming for. This objective, data-driven communication allows HR organizations and business persons to build a transparent and reliable relationship.

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Provides CareerForth, which visualizes and navigates objective and realistic career paths for young professionals based on job change big data.

データドリブンでバイアスのないキャリア設計をサポート。転職ビッグデータを元に、若手プロフェッショナルに向けた客観的で現実的なキャリアパスを可視化してナビゲートするCareer Forthを提供。


Provides CareerForth, which visualizes and navigates objective and realistic career paths for young professionals based on job change big data.

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