Executive and Advisor Introduction
Directors and Executive Officers
President and CEO
Tange was born in 1974 in Hiroshima Prefecture. After graduating from the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Science at the Kyoto University Graduate School, he joined Incs Inc. (now SOLIZE Corporation) in 2000. Over a five-year period, he built a consulting department that started out with only three members into a 140-strong department generating ¥5 billion in annual revenue. In September 2005, after becoming manager of the consulting department he established SHIFT, Inc., becoming president and representative director. In November 2014, the company was listed on the Mothers Market of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, and in October 2019, it changed the market to the First Section of Tokyo Stock Exchange. He is pushing the company ambitiously forward.
→Greeting by Tange, CEO and Representative Director of SHIFT
Director and Chairman
A graduate of Meiji University’s School of Political Science and Economics, Mr. Sasaki joined Lead Electric Co., Ltd. (now KEYENCE CORPORATION) in 1982. Following appointments as general manager of the KS Division in 1992 and director and general manager of the APSULT Division in 1999, he became the company’s president and CEO in 2000. While in that position, he succeeded in expanding the company’s domestic and overseas business.After two years of supervision on SHIFT as Independent Outside Director, from November, 2018, Sasaki joined SHIFT as director and vice president in November, 2020.
Director
In 2003, Kobayashi graduated from the Graduate School of Engineering of the Tokyo Institute of Technology School of Engineering. Upon graduation, he joined Incs Inc., where he was involved with the development of a design standardization system, as well as design process improvements for ultraprecise electronics, precision auto parts, and precision optical devices before joining SHIFT. After handling business process improvements in the Quality Assurance Department, he was instrumental in launching the software testing business. As general manager, he has been in charge of a variety of administrative projects. Since 2014, as a director of SHIFT, he now oversees the overall business.
Director
After his graduation from Faculty of Law, Kansai University, Hattori joined NTT Communications Corporation (split off and renamed from NIPPON TELEGRAPH AND TELEPHONE CORPORATION, after his join) as a system engineer. He also gained wide variety of experiences such as launching international call business, developing international business, forming investment strategy and business management. After leading M&A project of Indeed, he transferred to Indeed and was appointed as Vice President, Senior Vice President and CFO subsequently. He joined SHIFT as an Executive Officer and CFO in July 2021 and is appointed as Director and CFO from November 2021.
Independent Outside Director
Acquired extensive experiences at Goldman Sachs in corporate actions and transformation of global companies as an expert in M&A, investment, financing, and investor relations. After retirement from Goldman Sachs, Mr. Murakami founded Signifiant Inc., and multiple funds, and operates a growth capital. Currently, he is involved in the management of rapidly growing technology companies as an investor, a director, an advisor or others to accelerate their growth. Representative Director of Signifiant Inc., Outside Director of bellFace Inc.
Independent Outside Director
After engaged in management of Shinkin Development Co., Ltd.(currently renamed as APA Co., Ltd.) as Director, Ms. Motoya was appointed as President and Director of APA Hotels Co., Ltd. in 1994. Introducing membership and online reservation systems, she has grown the company to a nationwide chained-brand hotel. Currently, she serves as Director of 11 companies in Apa Group, a visiting professor at the Tokyo International University, and an advisor of Japan-Korea Culture Association.
Independent Outside Director
Joined Astra AB (now AstraZeneca PLC) in 1996. Established Aglow Management Inc. in 2023 after working at Merrill Lynch & Co. (now BofA Securities) and TIAA-CREF (now Nuveen a TIAA Company). In Nomura Holding America Inc., she serves as Outside Director.
Independent Outside Director and Audit & Supervisor Committee Member
CPA and Tax Accountant holder. After working at Tatsumi Shoji Co., Ltd. and Sunko Techno Co., Ltd., he worked at audit firms and audited a wide range of industries, including the IT-related industry, the manufacturing industry, and the construction industry for more than 15 years. He has a high level of expertise in supporting IPO and the establishment of internal controls. Appointed as Independent Outside Director and Audit & Supervisor Committee Member from November 2021.
Independent Outside Director and Audit & Supervisory Committee Member
A graduate of Waseda University’s School of Law, Mr. Nakagaki has been involved in investments in venture firms for around 20 years, many of which have gone on to be listed on the stock market. Following a position as general manager of Investment at Japan Asia Investment Co., Ltd., he established and continues to run Draper Nexus, a network fund of Draper Fisher Jurvetson, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm. He invests in venture companies in Japan and Silicon Valley.
Independent Outside Director and Audit & Supervisor Committee Member
Registered as an attorney in 2001. Joined Tokyo International Law Office after working at Anderson Mori & Tomotsune. She has also served as SHIFT Growth Capital Auditor since 2022 (current) and as Supervisory Director of Mitsubishi Estate Logistics REIT Investment Corporation (current) since 2023.
Senior Executive Officer and Director of Human Resources Division
Sugahara is a graduate of Keio Universityʼs Graduate School of Science and Technology. He joined Incs Inc. upon graduation, where he was involved in manufacturing before joining SHIFT in 2008. As the quality assurance project was gaining momentum, he gained experience as a structuring consultant for a QA team at a major online production company. Given his general experience with new business launches, he was put in charge of the Business Transformation Division, as well as overall human resources management of SHIFT Group.
Senior Executive Officer, Division Director of Business Division 2
Senior Executive Officer, Director of Digital Business DepartmentClient Account Business Unit A Kyoto University graduate, in 1985 Mr. Hosoda joined Nomura Computer Systems Co., Ltd. (now Nomura Research Institute, Ltd.), where he handled a wide range of IT system planning and operations for enterprise customers. Thereafter, he became deputy general manager of the IT Infrastructure Strategy Department at Nomura Securities Co., Ltd., and was later appointed executive director. After a stint at Samsung Securities Co., Ltd., he joined SBI Securities Co., Ltd. in 2014. There, he held positions as advisor of the System Development Department and head of the CIO office. Also, he was in charge of IT budget planning, quality control and CSIRT. He joined SHIFT in January 2017 and was appointed executive officer in October of that year. After his join, he launched the Quality Technology Department, Consulting Department. Since September 2021, He oversees a wide range of areas from Financial to Entertainment as the Director of Client Account Business Unit (renamed in February 2023, from Digital Business Department to Client Account Business Unit).
Executive Officer, Division Director of Solution Division
Maoka graduated from the Faculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda University. He joined INCS CORPORATION (currently renamed as SOLIZE CORPORATION) as a new graduate and worked as a consultant to standardize and to shorten the lead-time for metal processing processes. In 2006, he joined SHIFT and engaged in standardization and cost reduction projects for auto parts manufacturers as a consultant and a project leader. In 2012, he shifted his career to the software testing business and engaged in projects of financial and enterprise sectors as a project manager. After becoming the head of the ERP department in 2016, he has been consistently engaged in the enterprise field. In 2018, he launched the SAP related service. Beginning in 2019, he has been the head of the Enterprise Industry and Distribution Department. Since then, he has overseen projects and teams in fields, including industrial, distribution, communications, automotive, and ERP.
Executive Officer, Division Director of Sales Enhancement Division
Kimura graduated from Faculty of Law, Hosei University. Since joining KEYENCE CORPORATION as a new graduate, he has served as general manager of the AC Division (currently renamed as Control Systems Division) and FAIN Division. He has also been appointed as director since 2009, driving the KEYENCE’s high growth with achievements, including the launch and growth of new businesses, overwhelming growth in sales, and transformation of business models. From 2018, he became president and representative director of the KEYENCE’s 100% owned subsidiary, responsible for a wide range of areas, from sales to hiring and organizational development. In January 2022, he participated in SHIFT as an executive officer.
Executive Officer and Section Manager of Public Relations & Investor Relations Unit
Joined SHIFT in 2008 after receiving a master degree in business-marketing in the United States. Experienced consulting in the manufacturing industry via auto-parts manufacturers. Along with business growth, in 2013 Yamaji launched PR division and followingly IR division when SHIFT was initially listed on Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers in 2014. Since then, she has broadly overseen PR and IR and managed disseminations to wide-ranging stakeholder, engagement measures, and branding. In 2022, she was appointed as an executive officer.
Advisor
Technical Advisor
Kohsuke Kawaguchi is the creator of Jenkins and co-CEO of Launchable. He is a well-respected developer and popular speaker at industry and Jenkins community events. Kawaguchi’s sensibilities in creating Jenkins and his deep understanding of how to translate its capabilities into usable software have also had a major impact on CloudBees’ strategy as a company, where he served as CTO. Before joining CloudBees, Kawaguchi was with Sun Microsystems and Oracle, where he worked on a variety of projects and initiated the open source work that led to Jenkins.
Industry
President of the defense technology Association.He was the first Director General of the Defense Equipment Agency, and in recent years, has also given keynote speeches at exhibitions related to defense equipment.He is also well known for his efforts to introduce the “Industrial Cybersecurity Standards” (based on the U.S. NIST SP800-171), which came into effect by the Ministry of Defense in April 2023.As a national research institute, he has also served as the head of the Technical Research Institute of the Ministry of Defense, the largest in Japan. He is very knowledgeable about radar, communication, cryptography, and other technologies, and has outstanding knowledge of cyber security. He is still playing an active role in a wide range of fields in the national security domain.
Industry
Aoki first joined the Ministry of Construction (currently the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism), where he was consecutively appointed as the Director General of the City Bureau, the Director General of the Real Estate and Construction Economy Bureau, and the Director General of the Office for Promotion of Overcoming Population Decline and Vitalizing Local Economy in Japan of the Cabinet Office. After he served as the Special Advisor to the Cabinet Office, he now serves as the President of Real Estate Transaction Improvement Organization (RETIO), the Advisor of the R&D Center for Smart Wellness City Policies of the University of Tsukuba, the Advisor of the Property and Construction Data Utilizing Association, and the Sub-program Director of the ” Innovation of Inclusive Community Platform ” developed by The Third Cross-ministerial Strategic Innovation Promotion Program (SIP) of the Cabinet Office. Aoki has strengths in city policy, regional revitalization, construction industry, and real estate and land policy, and his network is wide-ranging from government, industry, ministries, and academic. He carries out research, suggestions, and support activities for policies such as smart cities, real estate and construction DX, walkable cities, innovative cities, community regeneration, and health community development.
Business Strategy
Engaged in consulting for about 30 years at Nomura Research Institute and Accenture where he helped clients to lead business transformation including business strategy, human resources and organizational development, IT strategy, and ERP deign and implementation, in a wide range of client industries, such as auto, machinery, consumer goods, and electronics. In Kyushu University and Kyushu University TLO, he launched a think tank business and turned it profitable in the second fiscal year. Subsequently, he served as Managing Executive Director and head of SI related businesses at Oki Electric Industry and as CEO at Oki Data where he worked on promoting the industrial printer business strategy and restructuring overseas businesses. In SHIFT, he manages strategic planning for customers, project development, and group-company management. Accumulated management experiences in a variety of fields including consulting, IT, industry-academic collaboration, and manufacturing.
Business Strategy
After starting his career as a software engineer for industrial minicomputers, Hosoya was engaged in upstream consulting related to system implementation in the consulting department of Ernst&Young (currently EY). After that, he worked at SAP Japan Co., Ltd. and supervised SAP consulting in Japan, as well as all SAP AG services in Japan. By converging solutions and services, he led explosive growth in SAP businesses. In 2006, he managed customer service as Corporate VP of Oracle Co. in the U.S. and Executive Officer of Oracle Corporation Japan. At the same time, he was also in charge of PMI focusing on the human resources, organization and service area for the software companies that Oracle acquired. After leaving Oracle, he worked at a global company to provide offshore services from China and support implementing MS Dynamics365. Currently Hosoya established Hosoya ERP Lab to support major companies to plan and implement core systems.
Business Strategy
Kawahara led expansion of business for the financial and global manufacturing industries in IBM Japan Ltd. In 2010, he was appointed as Senior Managing Executive Officer and oversaw the software business in Japan, where 900 people belonged at that time. After serving as Senior Vice President of Berlitz Japan, Inc., since 2012, he was appointed as Vice President of Salesforce Japan Co.,Ltd. and General Manager of Enterprise Sales Department and since 2014, served as President and COO of the Company, leading strategic investing in the Japanese marketplace. He joined Deloitte Tohmatsu Consulting LLC in 2016 and became Vice President. He served as Chairman of the Executive Committee. He also promoted the establishment of a corporate management foundation, including the launch of a technology consulting area, the development of an executive engagement program, and the collaborative project with Asia Pacific.