Current Management Challenges: "Strengthening Human Resources" and "Improving Profitability" Account for Approximately 50%; "Utilization of Digital Technology and AI" Rises from 11th to 5th Place
According to the "Survey on Current Management Challenges for FY2025" conducted by the Japan Management Association, "strengthening human resources" and "improving profitability" remain key challenges, while "utilization of digital technology and AI" has rapidly risen from 11th to 5th place. Companies are designing their management with an average outlook of 7 years into the future, recognizing that the advancement of AI and DX will significantly impact their operations.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: May 12, 2026 at 00:00
- 🔍 Collected: May 11, 2026 at 15:31
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: May 11, 2026 at 15:54 (22 min after Collected)
The Japan Management Association (JMA, Chairman: Masami Nakamura) has compiled the results of the "FY2025 (46th) Survey on Current Corporate Management Challenges." This survey has been conducted since 1979 with the aim of clarifying the management challenges faced by companies and exploring future management guidelines. This time, we received responses from 530 executives (including management departments). This release reports on the survey results, focusing on "management challenges" as the second installment of the survey report.
[Survey Result Summary]
■ Current management challenges: "Strengthening human resources" and "improving profitability" continue to account for approximately 50% in FY2024, standing out significantly.
■ "Utilization of digital technology and AI" rises to 5th place, moving into the stage of creating management effects.
■ Factors influencing management in 10 years: "Shrinking domestic market," "offensive and defensive digital response," and "adapting to labor mobility while leveraging individual strengths" are among the top.
■ Companies generally design their management with a 7-year outlook (average value of responding companies).
1. Current management challenges: "Improving profitability" and "strengthening human resources" continue to account for approximately 50% in FY2024, standing out significantly.
"Utilization of digital technology and AI" rises to 5th place, moving into the stage of creating management effects.
As current management challenges, "improving profitability" stands at 48.5% and "strengthening human resources" at 46.2%, both around 50%, continuing to be significantly higher than other challenges. "Improving profitability" indicates the need to respond to cost increase factors such as soaring raw material and energy prices, and rising labor costs. "Strengthening human resources" shows that the chronic labor shortage and high turnover rates have not improved.
Regarding "utilization of digital technology and AI," its ranking has significantly risen from 11th in FY2024 to 5th place. It is inferred that this has moved from the trial implementation stage to a stage where it is expected to create management effects such as labor saving and improved customer value.
[Figure 1] "Current" important management challenges (Top 10 items)
Ranking based on the sum of the top three answers for management challenges, % (exceeding 100%). The ranking for current management challenges in 2025 is determined by the ascending order of survey options in case of tied numerical values.
2. Factors influencing management in 10 years: "Shrinking domestic market," "offensive and defensive digital response," and "adapting to labor mobility while leveraging individual strengths" are among the top.
In the correlation between events influencing management in 2035 (10 years after the survey period) and preparedness, three events have a significant impact on management and are actively being addressed: "Further advancement of digital technology including AI and DX (Technology)," "Responding to sophisticated cyber attacks and security measures (Technology)," covering both offensive and defensive aspects of IT, and "Diversification of workers' values and career views (Society)."
Next, two events with a significant impact on management, "Continued shrinking domestic market leading to sales decline, business structural reform, and industry reorganization (Economy)" and "Promoting operations and human resource development based on labor mobility (Society)," are mostly in the planning or consideration stage for preparedness.
For large companies, four events are characteristic: "Responding to sophisticated cyber attacks and security measures (Technology)," "Diversification of workers' values and career views (Society)," "Structural changes in international politics and geopolitical risks (Politics)," and "Establishment of compliance systems and regulations in line with global standards (Politics)."
In manufacturing, "Structural changes in international politics and geopolitical risks (Politics)" is high, while in non-manufacturing, "Diversification of workers' values and career views (Society)" is high. (Details will be posted on our website at 3:00 PM on May 11th).
URL: https://www.jma.or.jp/website/report.html#keieikadai
[Figure 2-1] Matrix on events influencing management in 2035 (10 years after the survey period) and preparedness.
Management impact is represented on the vertical axis with "Large" as 3, "Medium" as 2, and "Small" as 1. Preparedness status is represented on the horizontal axis with "Being addressed" as 3, "Planned" as 2, "Feeling the need to address" as 1, and "Undecided" as 0, expressed as a scatter plot.
3. Companies generally design their management with a 7-year outlook (average value of responding companies).
When asked how far into the future they set their outlook when discussing and considering management challenges and business models, the overall responses were: "5 years later" (37.5%), "10 years later" (30.0%), and "around 3 years (or less)" (24.9%), with an average assumed period of 7.0 years. Companies anticipating a future beyond 10 years were very few, with "15 years later" (3.6%) and "20 years or more later" (2.8%).
By employee size, for large companies, "10 years later" was the highest at over 40%, and over 10% of companies set their outlook 15 years or more into the future. On the other hand, mid-sized companies focused on "5 years later."
[Survey Result Summary]
■ Current management challenges: "Strengthening human resources" and "improving profitability" continue to account for approximately 50% in FY2024, standing out significantly.
■ "Utilization of digital technology and AI" rises to 5th place, moving into the stage of creating management effects.
■ Factors influencing management in 10 years: "Shrinking domestic market," "offensive and defensive digital response," and "adapting to labor mobility while leveraging individual strengths" are among the top.
■ Companies generally design their management with a 7-year outlook (average value of responding companies).
1. Current management challenges: "Improving profitability" and "strengthening human resources" continue to account for approximately 50% in FY2024, standing out significantly.
"Utilization of digital technology and AI" rises to 5th place, moving into the stage of creating management effects.
As current management challenges, "improving profitability" stands at 48.5% and "strengthening human resources" at 46.2%, both around 50%, continuing to be significantly higher than other challenges. "Improving profitability" indicates the need to respond to cost increase factors such as soaring raw material and energy prices, and rising labor costs. "Strengthening human resources" shows that the chronic labor shortage and high turnover rates have not improved.
Regarding "utilization of digital technology and AI," its ranking has significantly risen from 11th in FY2024 to 5th place. It is inferred that this has moved from the trial implementation stage to a stage where it is expected to create management effects such as labor saving and improved customer value.
[Figure 1] "Current" important management challenges (Top 10 items)
Ranking based on the sum of the top three answers for management challenges, % (exceeding 100%). The ranking for current management challenges in 2025 is determined by the ascending order of survey options in case of tied numerical values.
2. Factors influencing management in 10 years: "Shrinking domestic market," "offensive and defensive digital response," and "adapting to labor mobility while leveraging individual strengths" are among the top.
In the correlation between events influencing management in 2035 (10 years after the survey period) and preparedness, three events have a significant impact on management and are actively being addressed: "Further advancement of digital technology including AI and DX (Technology)," "Responding to sophisticated cyber attacks and security measures (Technology)," covering both offensive and defensive aspects of IT, and "Diversification of workers' values and career views (Society)."
Next, two events with a significant impact on management, "Continued shrinking domestic market leading to sales decline, business structural reform, and industry reorganization (Economy)" and "Promoting operations and human resource development based on labor mobility (Society)," are mostly in the planning or consideration stage for preparedness.
For large companies, four events are characteristic: "Responding to sophisticated cyber attacks and security measures (Technology)," "Diversification of workers' values and career views (Society)," "Structural changes in international politics and geopolitical risks (Politics)," and "Establishment of compliance systems and regulations in line with global standards (Politics)."
In manufacturing, "Structural changes in international politics and geopolitical risks (Politics)" is high, while in non-manufacturing, "Diversification of workers' values and career views (Society)" is high. (Details will be posted on our website at 3:00 PM on May 11th).
URL: https://www.jma.or.jp/website/report.html#keieikadai
[Figure 2-1] Matrix on events influencing management in 2035 (10 years after the survey period) and preparedness.
Management impact is represented on the vertical axis with "Large" as 3, "Medium" as 2, and "Small" as 1. Preparedness status is represented on the horizontal axis with "Being addressed" as 3, "Planned" as 2, "Feeling the need to address" as 1, and "Undecided" as 0, expressed as a scatter plot.
3. Companies generally design their management with a 7-year outlook (average value of responding companies).
When asked how far into the future they set their outlook when discussing and considering management challenges and business models, the overall responses were: "5 years later" (37.5%), "10 years later" (30.0%), and "around 3 years (or less)" (24.9%), with an average assumed period of 7.0 years. Companies anticipating a future beyond 10 years were very few, with "15 years later" (3.6%) and "20 years or more later" (2.8%).
By employee size, for large companies, "10 years later" was the highest at over 40%, and over 10% of companies set their outlook 15 years or more into the future. On the other hand, mid-sized companies focused on "5 years later."