Funai Consulting Hosts 'Management Strategy Summit 2026' to Realize 10 Billion Yen Revenue Milestone with 126 Business Leaders

Funai Consulting Inc. (Headquarters: Chuo-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Daisuke Shingai), a leading management consulting firm specializing in SMEs, hosted the 'Management Strategy Summit 2026 for Rapid Realization of 10 Billion Yen Annual Sales' on March 3 at Sustana Growth Square TOKYO (Tokyo Midtown Yaesu).

126 business leaders from across Japan, aiming to enhance corporate value and reach the 10 billion yen milestone, attended the summit. They listened intently to speeches from CEOs of companies that have already achieved this goal and learned about specific methodologies proposed by Funai.

### Background and Purpose Funai Consulting, supporting the foundations of regional economies, aims to clarify the methods for SMEs to reach 10 billion yen in revenue—a benchmark for significant regional impact—even amidst a shrinking population and maturing markets. Through joint research with Kobe University, Funai is building a highly reproducible method for scaling companies to 10 billion yen.

Data shows that it takes an average of 53.8 years from founding for a company to reach 10 billion yen, often achieved by the 2nd or 3rd generation of management. However, many companies have reached this milestone within a single generation. This summit was held to provide participants with the sense that they too can aim for 10 billion yen with speed, by hearing directly from these successful CEOs.

Rapid scaling requires not just increasing sales of existing businesses but also drawing 'non-linear growth strategies' such as starting new businesses. Furthermore, companies often face a 'growth plateau' when they reach 1 to 3 billion yen in sales or 50 to 150 employees, where direct management by the owner hits its limit. Overcoming this wall is essential for fast scaling, and attendees focused on how the guest speakers tackled these challenges.

### Main Program and Features The summit featured guest lectures by CEOs of 10-billion-yen companies and 20 strategy sessions by Funai’s specialist consultants.

**1. Special Guest Lectures by 10-Billion-Yen Company CEOs** Speakers included Mr. Taishiro Hatakeyama, CEO of Effira Group Co., Ltd., and Mr. Yoshigi Tamaki, President and CEO of Wellbeing Group Co., Ltd. They discussed their trajectories, such as 'Breaking 12 billion yen through regional deep-rooting and diversification in Kanagawa' and 'Exceeding 18 billion yen through core business profitability, M&A, and utilizing TOKYO PRO Market listing.'

**2. '10-Billion-Yen Company Strategy' Sessions by Funai Consultants** Managing Director Keisuke Suzuki explained the latest strategies based on building 10-year plans for over 100 companies. Key points included: - **Introduction of 'SGS' (Sustain Growth Score):** A healthy growth metric defined as the sum of year-on-year sales growth rate and operating profit margin. - **Formulating '10-Year Plans' and Long-term Investment:** Structural issues in typical 3-year 'mid-term plans' make it hard to include long-term investments like new graduate training (approx. 5 years) or M&A. A vision-based '10-year plan' is strongly recommended. - **Shift in Financial and Investment Strategy:** Growth rates often correlate with interest-bearing debt. It is crucial to shift from a persistence in debt-free management to a growth-oriented financing structure. Companies at the 10-billion-yen scale often deal with over 10 financial institutions.

**3. Specialist Areas and 'Long-term Growth Roadmap'** In the afternoon, 18 breakout sessions were held on themes like 'Establishing a Strategic HR Department,' 'Internal Control and Governance,' 'M&A and PMI,' 'Launching a Franchise HQ,' 'Subsidy and Finance Strategy,' and 'Productivity Improvement via DX and AI.'

A central message of the summit was the importance of a 'Long-term Growth Roadmap' where business, HR, and finance are integrated. To create synergies and turn 1+1 into 10, a comprehensive and long-term perspective (10-year scale) is indispensable.

Funai Consulting will continue to strengthen its support for SMEs to leap to the next stage.