More than half of employees with side jobs intend to start a business in the future, and over one in three of them plan to do so within three years!

The "Startup Support Portal" operated by Jigyoka Shudan Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; CEO: Yumiko Tanabe) conducted a survey on "Intention to Start a Business in the Era of Lifted Side Job Bans" targeting corporate employees (men and women in their 20s to 40s) who currently have side jobs. This survey revealed the entrepreneurial intentions of employees with side jobs, their reasons, and the challenges they face in starting a business. As work styles diversify and talent mobility increases, side jobs are becoming a common option for business professionals. Especially in the spring, a time when people think about starting new careers, there is active movement toward parallel careers where individuals consider full-scale entrepreneurship as an extension of their side jobs. For corporate management and HR professionals, understanding employees' entrepreneurial intentions is an important metric for talent management. Meanwhile, individuals aiming to start a business likely face challenges such as professional preparation for commercialization and choosing reliable support partners. However, there is a lack of quantitative data showing to what extent those with side job experience view entrepreneurship as a realistic option, and what specific preparations and challenges they have. Therefore, Jigyoka Shudan Co., Ltd. conducted a survey on "Intention to Start a Business in the Era of Lifted Side Job Bans" targeting employees engaged in side jobs. - More than half of employees with side jobs intend to start a business in the future based on their side job experience. - Over 1 in 3 employees who intend to start a business in the future based on their side job experience plan to do so within 3 years. - The main reasons for considering entrepreneurship from a side job are "to earn more income" and "to work freely at my own discretion." - The top 3 preparations currently underway for starting a business are: 1st "Acquiring the knowledge and skills necessary for entrepreneurship," 2nd "Procuring and saving business funds," and 3rd "Searching for entrepreneurial companions and business partners." - The most common challenge felt when preparing for full-scale entrepreneurship is "a lack of specialized knowledge and know-how." - The main methods for finding specialized consultants or startup support for entrepreneurship are "Internet search engines" and "SNS and video streaming sites." Survey period: April 6 - April 9, 2026 Survey method: Internet survey Survey target: Corporate employees (men and women in their 20s to 40s) who have side jobs Number of respondents: 813 Monitor provided by: RC Research Data *Because the response ratios are rounded to the first decimal place, the total of response ratios may not equal exactly 100.0%. More than half of employees with side jobs intend to start a business in the future based on their side job experience First, in response to the question, "Do you intend to start a business in the future based on your side job experience?" targeted at employees with side jobs, 53.4% answered "Yes" and 46.6% answered "No." This result clearly shows that more than half of employees with side jobs intend to start a business in the future based on their side job experience. Over 1 in 3 employees who intend to start a business in the future based on their side job experience plan to do so within 3 years Next, asking those who intend to start a business about "What timeframe do you envision for starting a business from your side job?", the results were: 1st "Within 1 to 3 years" at 24.9%, 2nd "More than 5 years from now" at 24.7%, 3rd "Within 3 to 5 years" at 20.5%, 4th "Specific timeframe is undecided" at 19.8%, and 5th "Within 1 year" at 10.1%. Combining the ratios of "Within 1 to 3 years" and "Within 1 year" totals 35.0%. This result reveals that over 1 in 3 employees who intend to start a business plan to do so within 3 years. Main reasons for considering entrepreneurship are "to earn more income" and "to work freely at my own discretion" Subsequently, regarding the question "What are the main reasons for considering entrepreneurship from a side job?", the top answers were: 1st "To earn more income" at 43.6%, 2nd "To work freely at my own discretion" at 38.3%, and 3rd "To work without being bound by time or location" at 37.3%. This result shows the primary motivations for starting a business. Top 3 preparations currently underway for starting a business are: 1st "Acquiring necessary knowledge and skills," 2nd "Procuring/saving business funds," 3rd "Searching for partners" Furthermore, in response to the question "What specific preparations are you currently making toward starting a business?" targeting those who intend to start a business based on their side job experience...