“High autonomy,” “sounds demanding”… Consultants tend to carry these kinds of images. What is the reality actually like? This time, we spent a day closely following Kana Serizawa, who is active as a Senior Consultant at NEWONE. Along the way, we also asked her about the fulfillment and challenges of working as a consultant.
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Profile
Kana Serizawa
NEWONE Co., Ltd.
Consulting Division, Senior Consultant
After completing graduate school, she was involved in current state surveys for productivity improvement, measure planning, and implementation support as a business consultant. She was promoted to manager in the shortest possible time and led many projects as PM. Subsequently, she moved to a SaaS venture company, where she was responsible for onboarding, leader support, and field enablement as an HR Business Partner (HRBP). Wanting to experience organizational development for a greater number of clients, she joined NEWONE, where she remains today. She also concurrently engages in research related to human capital as a side job. Doctor of Human Sciences.
A Sample Day in Ms. Serizawa’s Schedule
5:45
After waking up, she gets herself ready while preparing breakfast for her family. Waking the family up and making her child’s bento lunch have also become daily routines. On remote work days, she finishes preparations before 8 a.m., and on in-office days, she leaves home before 8 a.m.
8:00
Today is a remote work day. Using the flextime system, she starts work at 8 a.m. First, she checks chats and emails and organizes her to-do list. Tasks are managed in two tiers — by week and by the current day — and priorities are confirmed at the same time. Among these, she is particularly conscious of prioritizing responses to project-related communications over internal ones.
8:30
The early morning hours are often spent on creating project materials. To lead a project to success, tasks to be done are broken down into smaller components and weekly milestone goals are set. In preparation for regular meetings with clients, discussion items needed for consensus-building are organized and materials are finalized while researching information that serves as the basis for proposals.
10:00
Creating sales proposal materials. Since the consulting division she currently belongs to is an organization that has only been running for two years, creating proposals is positioned as an important initiative to help people get to know the company. When creating materials, she is mindful of keeping the structure simple and easy to understand, and always conscious of clearly communicating the discussion points and key points needed for consensus-building.
12:00
After a lunch break, she moves to the client’s location. On in-office days, she often has lunch at the office. Unless there is urgent work, she always takes a lunch break, also as a mental refresh.
13:30
A 1-on-1 meeting with her supervisor near the client’s location. First, progress on work is shared, after which the time is devoted to talking about her own career and the future outlook of the consulting division. It is a precious time in which she receives feedback from her supervisor on her own thinking.
14:00
Conducting research related to internal projects. As a consultant, 80% of work is client-facing, but the remaining 20% is devoted to activities aimed at improving the company internally. Currently, she is in charge of internal projects such as AI utilization and IPO promotion, advancing research and review while fitting them in around client work.
15:00
Regular meeting with the client. Currently advancing an HR system reform project, she is thorough about sharing discussion items, criteria for agreement, approvers, and timelines in advance so that everyone is on the same page. Meticulous care is taken to prevent the conversation from going off-track or failing to reach agreement during the meeting. She is mindful of proceeding according to the agenda while confirming the path forward with the client.
17:30
After returning home, she compiles the content of the regular meeting. She creates a draft of the materials for the next meeting and, within the limited preparation period, organizes — based on priority — what needs to be prepared and what needs to be done. She is always mindful of preparing with an eye toward what lies ahead and advances work in a planned manner. Typically, she finishes work around 6 to 7 p.m.
19:00
Private time — cooking dinner, doing laundry, driving her child to and from cram school, taking care of the dog, and so on. Bedtime is set at 10 p.m., and just as in the morning, she spends the end of her day with a conscious focus on planning ahead.
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What Ms. Serizawa Thinks and Feels About Being a Consultant
— What do you find most fulfilling in your day-to-day work?
I find fulfillment in being able to think together with people who have deep experience about “what should be done now” in order to envision the future. There is also great joy in having in-depth discussions with an eye toward what lies ahead and being able to provide concrete support toward realizing those goals.
At the same time, NEWONE’s consulting division is only in its second year. The way work is done is not entirely established yet, but precisely because of that, I am able to incorporate approaches that I think “this is good” based on my own judgment. My supervisor also encourages me by saying “let’s choose the best method for the client,” so I feel it is a very comfortable working environment.
Because it’s a still-developing company, you can take on all kinds of challenges if you raise your hand. That high degree of freedom is also a major source of fulfillment for me.
In addition, multiple projects aimed at improving the company internally are also in progress, and being able to personally contribute to the company’s internal growth and improvement is also an appeal. For those with things they want to achieve and the motivation to grow, I think this is a company where you can gain a real sense of accomplishment and fulfillment.
— Are there things you find difficult or challenging?
Because it’s a venture company, there is no clearly defined role of “my responsibilities begin here and end here.” For example, even as a Senior Consultant, rather than focusing exclusively on project management, I also get involved in “activities to improve the company internally” and “activities to envision the company’s growth.” Of course participation is voluntary, but a sense of collaboration and flexibility — being able to take an interest in things beyond your own duties — is required.
If you take a fixed view of your role, you may find it burdensome. Conversely, for those who can think of it positively as “because my role isn’t fixed, I can expand it myself,” I think this is a company overflowing with opportunities for growth.
— What kind of consultant do you aim to become going forward?
I am the type who originally finds fulfillment in understanding things I don’t know and taking on new challenges. I have a strong desire to continue working in an environment with a high degree of autonomy like ours, while broadening my knowledge and experience. I also think the ability to enjoy these kinds of challenges is one of the appeals of a venture company.
At NEWONE, we conduct consulting with “improving engagement” as the centerpiece. That said, simply raising engagement alone is meaningless if revenue doesn’t follow. Building companies and organizations that enhance both engagement and revenue simultaneously is extremely difficult — but it is precisely because there is no clear answer in that space that I find it interesting. That is why NEWONE is a place where I can continue to take on this “answerless” domain, and I am glad to be there. Until an “answer” is found, I want to continue accumulating a wide range of experiences.
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NEWONE Co., Ltd. Company Information
| Company Name | NEWONE Co., Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Location | 2-19-4F Hayabusacho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-0092 |
| Directors | Kenichiro Kasai, Yuko Sawano |
| Advisors | Akito Shimazu, Kennosuke Tanaka, Yuichiro Ishihara, Masaya Ogata, Toshimitsu Sowa, Akira Kitai |
| Auditor | Shinichi Urushiyama, Representative, Urushiyama Partners Tax Corporation |
| Business Overview | HR and organizational consulting, Human resource development and organizational development, HR skill enhancement, HR tech |
