#Japan #Gunma #Gunma Prefecture #Stamen #Atotsugi

Recruitment for the Heir Development Program 'Atotsugi Shido Juku 2026'

Gunma Prefecture has initiated a project aimed at nurturing successors in small and medium enterprises. Under the supervision of Stamen Co., Ltd., participants are now invited to join the 'Atotsugi Shido Juku 2026' program. This innovative program extends beyond the mere transfer of business operations—it is designed to empower successors (known as Atotsugi) to recognize and redefine the strengths and values cultivated by their family businesses to prepare for the next generation.

Program Overview

The program addresses the challenges that successors face in today’s changing business landscape. With factors like population decline, evolving market conditions, and technological advancements impacting management, the time has come for successors to do more than just continue the legacy.

Achieving success in business succession means grasping the intangible assets left by previous generations, such as technology, customer trust, local connections, brand value, and corporate culture. It's crucial to redefine these hidden assets as unique values for the future.

Many successors express concerns regarding their roles, such as:

• - Unsure of where to start with their future role in the family business.
• - Unable to clarify how to leverage their company's strengths.
• - Eager to explore new business challenges without a clear starting point.
• - Lacking a support network of peers in similar positions.
• - Struggling with generational differences between themselves and the older generation.

The 'Atotsugi Shido Juku 2026' program is created as a means to help these successors reassess their company's value and take their first steps toward the future.

Transforming Your Family Business Assets into Future Tools

This year’s theme focuses on converting the family business assets into tools for value creation. It reiterates that business transition doesn’t always equate to building something new from scratch. Instead, it is about uncovering the sleeping values within existing enterprises and fostering a connection to the future.

The program instills the significant role successors play in verbalizing their company's strengths and possibilities and connecting them to management decisions. More than one-way lectures, this program will include workshops, participant dialogue, and discussions with experienced predecessors to facilitate a deepened learning experience.

Detailed Program Schedule

• - Name: Atotsugi Shido Juku 2026 - A Value Creation Program to Transform Family Business Assets into Future Tools
• - Dates and Locations:

- July 14 (Tuesday), 13:00–18:00, at Aquel Maebashi Conference Room
- July 28 (Tuesday), 13:00–18:00, at Aquel Maebashi Conference Room
- August 19 (Wednesday), 13:00–18:00, at Aquel Maebashi Conference Room
- September 8 (Tuesday), 13:00–18:00, at Aquel Maebashi Conference Room
- September 17–18 (Thursday–Friday), at Ikaho Onsen Area

• - Format: Five in-person sessions
• - Cost: Free

Note: Participants are responsible for transport, accommodation, and meal costs.

Who Should Apply

The program is aimed at successors of small and medium-sized enterprises based in Gunma Prefecture, with a maximum capacity of 15 participants. Applications are welcome regardless of the business succession method (whether employee transitions or third-party transitions). In the event of oversubscription, a selection process may be conducted.

If you are interested in joining, please refer to the official application page for further details: Atotsugi Shido Juku 2026 Application Page

Application Deadline

June 30, 2026, at 18:00
Participants seeking to engage in the program without fully committing to successorship yet are also encouraged to apply.

Final Thoughts

It is important to realize that there isn't a definitive answer to business succession. This program emphasizes that it is better to pause, reflect, and engage with peers undergoing similar challenges while visualizing the future of their businesses. This program serves as a catalyst for successors to rethink their family business’s value and start shaping their company's future.

Organizer Information

• - Organizer: Gunma Prefecture (Industry and Economy Department, Regional Enterprise Support Division)
• - Administrator: Stamen Co., Ltd.
• - Contact: 052-990-2412 (Office hours: 9:30–18:30)

- Contact person: Maruoka/Kubota

About Stamen Co., Ltd.

Founded in 2016 with the mission