Don’t let a CEO’s vision remain just an “idea.” Use “science” to evolve your organization and sales.

Startup companies that achieve dramatic growth by identifying societal pain points and needs, turning them into business opportunities, and scaling up their operations.
Since startups are generally expected to achieve rapid growth in a short period of time, they must secure the business resources—namely, “people,” “assets,” and “capital”—as quickly as possible.
Therefore, they must drive their business forward by fully utilizing not only internal but also external resources. And sometimes, the insights and experience of employees on secondment from other companies can support that growth.

“The BUDDIES” is a series that spotlights Dentsu Inc. employees who serve as these “running partners”—working on secondment at startups, maintaining their Dentsu Inc. affiliation while fully committing to the business.
In Part 2, we focus on an employee seconded to “NEW STANDARD,” a company with strengths in brand support and the creation of new value specifically tailored to Millennials and Gen Z.
We trace how he, as a partner, systematized sales activities and became a figure so influential that he’s been dubbed the “one-man corporate planning office.”

*This article is reprinted from a sponsored article by NewsPicks Studios.

NEW STANDARD’s Vision: Creating Value from Insights

NEW STANDARD was originally founded in 2014 as TABILABO, the company that operates the lifestyle media platform “TABI LABO.”
In 2019, the company changed its name to NEW STANDARD.
Leveraging the expertise cultivated through its web media operations, the company made a major shift toward becoming a “Brand DX (BDX) Company” that uncovers the interests and passions of young people—primarily Gen Z and Millennials—and handles branding and product development for client companies.
The founder is Shotaro Kushi. He has an unconventional background, having worked for foreign companies and traveled to 25 countries around the world.

“We are a company that analyzes latent desires—that is, insights and motivations—to create new value and meaning for Millennials and Gen Z,” says Mr. Kushi.

Another area the company is focusing on is the science of creativity.

“We aim to scientifically understand creativity—which is often thought of as something that ‘comes from above’—through collaborative research with the University of Tokyo and others, and make it reproducible,” says Mr. Kushi.

Scientifically analyzing creativity, creating new value and meaning, and delivering value to clients. The partner driving this mission alongside him is Kyohei Handa, on secondment from Dentsu Inc.

After joining Dentsu Inc. as a new graduate, Mr. Handa has held roles ranging from managing television station accounts in advertising and sales to client companies, to creative production, event production, marketing, branding, and business development.
This could be described as a classic career path at Dentsu Inc. It was against this backdrop that he joined NEW STANDARD in April 2024. Why did Mr. Handa decide to take a secondment to a startup?

“Somewhere deep down, I had the feeling that I was stuck in a repetitive routine. Amid that, I felt a certain sense of anxiety—wondering if I would ever be able to contribute value to Dentsu Inc. or society in the future.
It was at that very moment that I was seconded to NEW STANDARD. I thought that if I gave it my all here, it would be a rare opportunity to hone my skills and capabilities,” says Mr. Handa.

Even during this interview, other employees teased him, saying things like, “Handa-chan, you’re trying too hard to look good for the camera!” While he has firmly established himself as a beloved character who’s always the butt of jokes, his workload and scope of responsibilities are vast.

BUDDY’s primary mission is sales

Currently, as a Business Producer and Head of Business Operations at the company, he oversees five business divisions.
He oversees a wide range of NEW STANDARD’s operations, including the formulation and execution of sales and solution strategies, as well as recruitment-related matters.

Within the company, he is even referred to as the “one-man corporate planning department,” likened to the corporate planning division that supports management decision-making and formulates and executes business plans.
The duties of this “one-person Corporate Planning Office” are wide-ranging. On busy days, he attends over a dozen meetings.
He is constantly moving from one conference room to another, and even when he is at his desk, he actively responds to inquiries from colleagues. He says that both the scope of his responsibilities and the pace required of him have changed.
In particular, Mr. Handa’s most significant mission is sales. Needless to say, since startups must first achieve a “J-curve,” revenue growth is one of the key metrics.

“It’s no exaggeration to say that the strength of the sales organization and the individual sales capabilities determine whether the company survives or not.
While there are other ways to grow through marketing—such as investing in advertising—if we can approach sales scientifically and strengthen it, including the organization as a whole, we’ll become a stronger company.
If we do that, NEW STANDARD will become a startup capable of even greater growth. I’m determined to make that happen,” said Mr. Handa.

The phrase, “It’s all up to Mr. Handa”

In fact, Mr. Handa experienced a major turning point after being seconded to NEW STANDARD.
About six months after joining, CEO Hisashi told him this face-to-face:

“Mr. Hisashi told me, ‘Whether we continue to grow like this or fail depends entirely on you, Mr. Handa.’
“It’s not often you hear something like that, so I was truly grateful that he placed his trust in me as if I were family,” (Mr. Handa)
Inspired by Mr. Kushi, Mr. Handa set out to reform NEW STANDARD’s sales operations.

First, he visualized and organized the sales process, which had previously been left up to individual employees.
From there, they identified bottlenecks within that sales process and established a cycle of attempting to improve and resolve the factors causing those bottlenecks.
In this way, he built a “sales loop” mechanism to accelerate business growth.

“It was exactly the system I’d always wanted. I’d tried to implement something like this several times before without success, but Mr. Handa managed to build it perfectly.
What’s more, it actually works, and we’ve seen clear improvements in various KPIs and other management metrics. He truly transformed our organization,” said Mr. Hisashi.

So, what does Mr. Handa mean to NEW STANDARD, a company aiming to take a leap forward as a brand DX firm? Here’s what other employees have to say about his achievements and work ethic.

“Mr. Handa took charge of designing the metrics and frameworks for evaluating and managing our sales activities, and thanks to him, we’ve reached a higher level than our previous management methods.”
“He’s the kind of person who makes everyone around him think, ‘I want to work with him.’ He has an incredible ability to engage people, and he’s truly skilled at moving things forward while involving all relevant parties.”

Bridging the Gap to Realize the Company’s “Vision”

Why has he been able to consistently meet the expectations of both the president and his colleagues to this extent?
Mr. Hisashi analyzes that it is because Mr. Handa has the ability to move things forward—and, ultimately, “the power to inspire people.”

“When technology—including AI—advances to its next stage, what ultimately remains is, after all, the feeling that ‘I want to work with this person’ or ‘That was interesting,’ isn’t it?
After all, people are emotional beings, so simply stating the right thing in the right way doesn’t necessarily move their hearts.
In that regard, Mr. Handa is trusted so deeply precisely because he has captured the hearts of the NEW STANDARD members and inspired them to take action. I think that’s his greatest achievement” (Mr. Hisashi).

It is precisely because he is such a reliable figure that Mr. Hisashi has even higher expectations for Mr. Handa.
Specifically, he expects Mr. Handa to take the lead in demonstrating—both internally and externally—that NEW STANDARD is a strong organization not only in terms of “products and solutions” but also in “sales.”

Mr. Handa, who has built the sales organization in just a year and a half, is expected to develop talent and strengthen the organization’s capabilities so that it will continue to function effectively even after he returns to his home office. Mr. Handa also says, “I want to live up to those expectations.”
Up until now, Mr. Handa has devoted himself to understanding what clients and business partners truly want, identifying their challenges, and thinking deeply about how to resolve them.

He takes pride in the experience he has cultivated over many years—including his time at Dentsu Inc.—in putting these insights into practice.

“I don’t think my experience is anything special—like being able to create moving creative work or devise sharp strategies. However, when I moved to a different company, it was a major revelation to realize just how much I could apply what I’d learned.
Even without any ‘special abilities,’ it gave me a great deal of confidence to know that I can move people and make a difference,” says Mr. Handa.

So what, exactly, is the sense of fulfillment Mr. Handa finds in his role as a mentor?

“Entrepreneurs and business leaders have a clear vision and worldview they want to realize.
But unless they’re realized, no matter how wonderful they are, they’ll remain nothing more than an idea.
That’s why it’s truly stimulating—and I find joy in it—to work closely alongside business leaders, helping to bridge those inspiring visions into actual business operations,” (Mr. Handa)

Perhaps the kind of talent a company needs to grow is a mentor with the ability to make things happen.

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Written by: Akihiro Tajima
Design: Kimie Tanaka
Editor: Ryoya Kaita
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Click here to watch the YouTube videos for The BUDDIES #2:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfHJT37Ymb4