Challenger's Interview Archive — The Challengers TIMEWELL Has Met
TIMEWELL's vision is to "build the world's number one challenge infrastructure," and the company supports people challenging themselves across every field.
This is a compilation of interviews with challengers TIMEWELL has been involved with — craftspeople at small factories pushing beyond the boundaries of manufacturing, a leader contributing to his community through side work, someone using ICT to support a shopping district, a young person tackling social issues through app development, and an aspiring artist exploring the possibilities of art in the earthquake recovery zone. Their words convey the passion that drives them to challenge.
Challenge sometimes brings setbacks and hardship. But on the other side lies new discovery and growth. Through this series of interviews, we hope you'll feel the significance of challenging yourself — and find the courage to take your own first step.
Breaking Through Industry Barriers and Passing Skills to the Next Generation: Kitajima Shibori Seisakusho Creating Value Through Consultative Sales That Stay Close to the Customer: Tsutsumi Kogyo The Importance and Role of Leader Side Workers in the Ota City SDGs Project Aiming for Regional Revitalization: The Ota City SDGs Side Work Platform — Naito on the Initiatives and Results WARP's Path to Solving Social Issues: The Challenge and Discoveries of Hidetaka Matsubara The Possibilities of Art for Regional Revitalization: Aspiring Artist Eiko Kitabayashi and the Journey of Earthquake Recovery Conclusion: What We Learn from Challengers — The Power to Shape the Future
Breaking Through Industry Barriers and Passing Skills to the Next Generation: Kitajima Shibori Seisakusho
Kitajima Shibori Seisakusho is a small Ota Ward factory specializing in high-precision metal spinning. The company is always pursuing technical innovation — taking on difficult-to-machine materials like rare metals, and digitizing craftsman techniques to pass them on to the next generation.
Looking ahead, the company also has in its sights applications for special uses such as mass production of hydrogen pressure vessels, working to create new value that supports the next generation of manufacturing. On top of that, it contributes to the community and young people's growth by providing photos to elementary school textbooks, conveying the appeal of making things to the next generation.
With a flat organization that fosters a free and open environment and generates strong team cohesion, the company pursues new possibilities beyond the domain of metal spinning. It is this pioneering spirit — building a unique and irreplaceable presence in modern manufacturing — that makes their story well worth reading.
[Read the full article here]
Creating Value Through Consultative Sales That Stay Close to the Customer: Tsutsumi Kogyo
Tsutsumi Kogyo specializes in resin cutting and machining. But they go beyond providing high-precision parts — they've built customer trust through consultative sales capability. In prototype manufacturing, they get involved from the product design stage itself, proposing optimal materials and machining methods. This is where they generate high added value.
Using an external sales structure, the craftspeople themselves can focus on manufacturing and customer service — enabling fast, flexible responses that stay genuinely close to the customer. They also have initiatives to let customers and students experience manufacturing firsthand, helping them understand costs and production constraints and guiding them toward the best choices. This connects to quality improvement and cost reduction.
Tsutsumi Kogyo stays close to customers' challenges in resin cutting and machining, creating value together. The secrets to building a true partnership — through solid technical capability in prototyping and consultative sales — are all in this interview.
[Read the full article here]
The Importance and Role of Leader Side Workers in the Ota City SDGs Project
In the Ota City SDGs Project, specialists from various fields are supporting local businesses through side work. We spoke with Kazuhiro Sakamoto — a leader side worker in the project — about his role and approach.
Drawing on his expertise in public relations from his primary job, he says he places great importance on balancing a micro perspective that stays close to individual shops and a macro perspective that surveys the project as a whole. He talks about the satisfaction he feels when new initiatives aimed at solving a shop's challenges lead to increased sales and new customer acquisition — and says the ability to grow personally through the project is part of what makes it compelling.
Getting projects off to an effective start is the challenge ahead, says Sakamoto. His secret to sustaining the work: understanding what shops need, and having fun with it. An insightful interview packed with thoughts on how to contribute to communities through side work, and hints about leadership.
[Read the full article here]
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Aiming for Regional Revitalization: The Ota City SDGs Side Work Platform — Naito on the Initiatives and Results
An interview with Nobuhito Naito, who is working to support local shopping districts through the Ota City SDGs side work platform. Drawing on his experience using ICT for regional revitalization support in his primary job, he is providing hands-on support to help stores attract customers and increase repeat visits using LINE, and to improve their operations.
What left an impression on Naito was the earnest effort of the shop owners and the sense of accomplishment when initiatives started bearing fruit. Doing community contribution through side work, he says, builds confidence and skills — and has had a positive effect on his primary work too.
Going forward, he expressed enthusiasm for better streamlining the process of getting new LINE-adopting stores up and running, and for spreading this model to other regions. This interview with Naito — full of passion for regional revitalization and the possibilities of growth through side work — is a must-read.
[Read the full article here]
WARP's Path to Solving Social Issues: The Challenge and Discoveries of Hidetaka Matsubara
Hidetaka Matsubara, who works in quality assurance for an airline, witnessed trash washing up on Ishigaki Island's coastline firsthand and joined WARP to tackle the problem of ocean waste. Through WARP he learned app development skills, and through the process of giving shape to his idea for an app to visualize beach cleanup activities, he felt the sense of possibility that "this might actually be achievable."
Matsubara later developed an original card game app about ocean waste that elementary school students can play while learning. From the children's reactions, he came to realize the importance of drawing out people's own thinking rather than simply teaching.
WARP is a program recommended for anyone interested in app development or with an idea for solving social issues. The skills you learn can be applied to other problems too, and it's sure to open up new worlds. Through Matsubara's challenge and discoveries, this interview gives you a real feel for what WARP is like and what's possible through it. A must-read if you're on the fence about joining.
[Read the full article here]
The Possibilities of Art for Regional Revitalization: Aspiring Artist Eiko Kitabayashi and the Journey of Earthquake Recovery
Eiko Kitabayashi works in housing at Sekisui Chemical Co., Ltd. while studying at an art university. One year after the earthquake, she visited the Noto region as part of TIMEWELL's Noto initiative and was left speechless by the devastation she saw. But she was deeply moved by the people she met there — people facing forward toward recovery — and transformed her experience into a work called "Flower."
Through flowers, Kitabayashi expressed the image of people living with fragile but powerful strength. She was also deliberate in choosing copy paper as her medium — a material representing the everyday. Through the work, she came to feel the importance of creating something that stays in memory and sparks new dialogue and thought.
The possibilities of art and regional revitalization are limitless. Kitabayashi believes that when sensibilities are honed and creation takes root in a place, new values unique to that place can be born. Noticing the important messages hidden in everyday life — that small accumulation of steps changes the world. What does art have to say in the face of the extraordinary that the earthquake brought? An interview rich with suggestion, in which Kitabayashi's sincere expression makes you feel a real sense of hope for the future.
[Read the full article here]
Conclusion: What We Learn from Challengers — The Power to Shape the Future
How did these interviews with the six challengers TIMEWELL has met land for you?
There's something they all have in common: each of them is constantly pursuing innovation within their specialty, and sometimes pushing beyond the conventional rules and frameworks of their industries to take on the challenge of creating new value.
Within that is not only technological innovation, but a perspective that encompasses developing people for the future and contributing to local communities. From every interview, you could feel the posture of facing squarely the challenges in front of them, accumulating creativity and ingenuity, and moving forward one step at a time.
From their words, you can't help but sense the importance of the discoveries and learnings gained in the process of challenging — and above all, the profound meaning that challenging itself carries.
As we think about navigating the era ahead, it's a collection of interviews that helps us feel anew the importance of each of us continuing to challenge something. We'd be delighted if as many people as possible got the chance to read it.
"Your life, into a professional article." Inquiries and details about TIMEWELL INTERVIEW here.
Employee Interview Vol. 9 — Taisei Mizuno on Using Leadership as a Weapon to Carve Out a Career Through Side Work
When you hear the word "leadership," what image comes to mind? Perhaps strength in leading an organization, or the drive to draw people in. This time, we spoke with Taisei Mizuno about how he puts that leadership to work — and how he charts a career vision through the new challenge of side work. From the leadership experience he's cultivated since his student days to the ongoing challenges he continues at TIMEWELL — we ask about his inexhaustible drive to challenge, and the future that opens up through practicing side work while exercising leadership.
Name: Taisei Mizuno
Division: Technology Department, Senior AI Engineer
Originally from Shizuoka Prefecture. Joined NTT West as a new graduate in 2021, and has been involved in business process reform and change management project management in the company's systems division. He also belongs to "NTT-WEST Youth," a volunteer group working to energize NTT West, and has organized cross-silo events within the company. Through a volunteer group event, he has been working as an AI engineer developing TIMEWELL's services since August 2025.
Leadership That Took Root in Student Days — A New Step at TIMEWELL The Choice to Do Side Work — The Synergy Effect of Multiple Communities The Learning and Growth Opportunities TIMEWELL Has Given The Drive to Shape the Future — An Inexhaustible Will to Challenge Conclusion
Leadership That Took Root in Student Days — A New Step at TIMEWELL
— Please start with a self-introduction.
Mizuno: I'm in my second year at TIMEWELL. My main work is managing TIMEWELL MEDIA and developing apps using AI technology. On the MEDIA side, I make sure the articles in MEDIA are rich in content, with a focus on tech articles. On the app development side, I work on both internal efficiency apps and customer-facing app development.
My primary job is at NTT West, where I serve as a project manager for system development — covering things like evaluating the introduction of new systems and reforming the operational processes that come with them.
— I hear you had many opportunities to exercise leadership as a student. What kinds of things did you do?
Mizuno: In middle school and high school, I was fortunate to often be placed in leadership positions — class representative, captain of the soccer club, and so on. In university, I was also given the experience of being a shift leader at my part-time job.
Getting into leadership positions started when a teacher appointed me as class representative, but from there I came to enjoy leading and guiding a team. Maybe being in front of people and taking initiative was just a natural fit for me.
— That makes sense. Perhaps because of your extensive leadership experience, you always seem to have a bird's-eye view of things — I've always found you to have a calm presence.
Mizuno: Thank you. I hadn't thought about it that way myself — but when I think back on it, I suspect my ronin year (the year I spent retaking university entrance exams) was actually a major turning point. In high school I didn't know how to study properly, and I failed my university entrance exams. During that year retaking them, I got the time and opportunity to genuinely understand what studying was about and to look deeply at myself. I feel that experience cultivated the ability to view myself objectively and from a broader perspective.
And as you say, taking on leadership roles taught me the importance of observing team members and making the right calls. Thinking about how my own actions affect the team probably helped me develop the habit of staying calm.
The Choice to Do Side Work — The Synergy Effect of Multiple Communities
— What was it that led you to start side work at TIMEWELL?
Mizuno: In my second year at NTT West, I wanted a new challenge and applied for a transfer to another company within the NTT Group — but was turned down because I lacked new business experience. That's when I started thinking about gaining new business experience through side work.
Around that time, an NTT Group side work recruitment event happened to take place, and I met Hamamoto-san from TIMEWELL there. About ten companies participated in the event, but Hamamoto-san's energy, humor, and passion set him apart, and I decided to apply. After applying, I had a separate individual meeting with Hamamoto-san, and when I conveyed that I really wanted to work at TIMEWELL, I was hired. With NTT West's approval, I've been doing side work at TIMEWELL ever since.
— What's the significance of belonging to two communities — your primary job and TIMEWELL?
Mizuno: I once heard that "people become happier when they belong to three or more communities" — and I do feel that belonging to multiple communities has given me greater mental stability. Things go wrong at work, or you fail at something — but if you belong to multiple communities, even if you stumble in one, you can shine in another, and you can switch gears on the unpleasant things. Before I started side work, I used to dwell on failures or lie awake at night thinking about them. Now I can switch mindsets quickly and move forward positively in both my primary job and my side work.
— What do you find rewarding about your work at TIMEWELL?
Mizuno: At TIMEWELL I've been given a position with significant autonomy — like managing MEDIA — where I can genuinely exercise leadership, and being in an environment where I can constantly challenge myself is what drives me. With that autonomy comes a tendency to take the direction-giving role sometimes, but I'm conscious of working harder than anyone else so that everyone can do their best work.
The startup pace and the environment where you can use cutting-edge technology are also appealing. Being able to work while constantly keeping the leading edge in mind is a huge source of motivation. In my primary job, decision-making tends to take time — but at TIMEWELL, I can make decisions all the way through to implementation within my own scope, which is very motivating.
The Learning and Growth Opportunities TIMEWELL Has Given
— What do you feel you've gained through your work here?
Mizuno: My time at TIMEWELL has given me many learnings. I've been able to feel firsthand the startup-specific pace and the differences from a large company. And having the experience of being involved in everything from launch onward at a startup like this has become something I can genuinely point to as a real achievement.
— What do you think are the best things about TIMEWELL?
Mizuno: The speed of decision-making strikes me as a major strength. The ability to quickly catch trends and work in an environment that uses the latest tools is an appeal that large companies can't match. Nimbleness is one of TIMEWELL's biggest advantages.
That's possible because Hamamoto-san trusts each of us — including me — and gives us room to make calls on our own up to a point.
The Drive to Shape the Future — An Inexhaustible Will to Challenge
— What would you like to challenge going forward?
Mizuno: I'd like to contribute to TIMEWELL's growth as the company scales significantly. To do that, I want to focus on enriching TIMEWELL MEDIA and on app development — which are part of my role. I feel that the experience of contributing to TIMEWELL's growth will connect to my own career and personal development.
There are so many people in the company with extraordinary experience, and I often feel I have so much further to go. But I hope that by accumulating experience here, I can eventually give back to my primary job too.
— Finally, a message to those reading this article.
Mizuno: For anyone interested in side work, I think the most important thing is to just take that first step. You can't predict outcomes, and you might fail — but by challenging yourself, new paths will surely open up.
Starting small and building gradually expands your world. Don't fear failure — challenging yourself is what leads to growth. I intend to keep taking on new challenges myself!
Conclusion
Through this interview with Taisei Mizuno, we heard valuable insights on leadership, side work, and career development.
Drawing on the leadership experience he's cultivated since his student days, Mizuno continues to take on new challenges at TIMEWELL. The bird's-eye perspective and composure he gained during his ronin year feel like qualities that have genuinely elevated him as a leader.
His account of the mental stability gained from belonging to multiple communities — and the motivation that comes from the startup pace and being at the cutting edge of technology — resonated deeply. We hope Mizuno's experience serves as a good model for anyone interested in side work or looking to build their career, and becomes the spark for many new challenges.
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