[Largest-scale Developer Industry Event for New Graduate Recruitment] 16 Major Developers Gather for 2-Day Industry Research Festival "Developer Festival in TOKYO 2026" | Mikiwame Shukatsu

Mikiwame Shukatsu, a new graduate recruitment support service operated by Leading Mark Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President & CEO: Yuji Iida), held the "Developer Festival in TOKYO 2026" over two days on Monday, April 20, and Tuesday, April 21, 2026. This is the industry's largest student-oriented event, bringing together 16 major developers.

The event was held at Bellesalle Shinjuku Central Park (Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo), mobilizing 840 in-person participants and a total of 1,320 including online viewers. It served as a platform to convey the genuine aspirations and the essence of work within the industry to students, gathering leading companies from the developer sector.

Compared to last year's event (7 companies, 456 participants), the number of participating companies more than doubled, and the number of participants approximately tripled. The event was designed as a 2-day program themed "Understanding the Essence and Reality of Developers in Two Days," aimed at helping students refine their fundamental career perspectives on the industry.

Amid the accelerating trend of early recruitment activities, establishing early contact with students from top-tier universities and building a candidate pool has become a critical management challenge for companies in the developer industry. This event functioned as a new graduate recruitment support platform, allowing companies to connect with the target demographic of the class of 2028 at once, providing recruitment branding opportunities beyond typical joint events.

Event Overview

Event Name Developer Festival in TOKYO 2026

Date & Time DAY 1: Monday, April 20, 2026, 17:00-19:00 DAY 2: Tuesday, April 21, 2026, 16:00-19:10

Venue Bellesalle Shinjuku Central Park (6-13-1 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo)

Format In-person + Online (Hybrid) *DAY 1 included simultaneous online streaming

Number of Participants In-person: 840 / Total including online: 1,320

Target University and graduate students (Class of 2028)

Number of Participating Companies 16 companies (total over 2 days)

List of Participating Companies

[DAY 1: 8 Companies] NTT Urban Development / Chuo Nihon Land Building / Tokyu Land Corporation / Tokyo Tatemono / Mitsui Fudosan / Mitsubishi Estate / Mori Trust / Mori Building

[DAY 2: 12 Companies] Open House / Sankeibuilding / Taisei Yuraku Real Estate / Chuo Nihon Land Building / Tokyu Land Corporation / Urban Renaissance Agency (UR) / Toyota Fudosan / Nippon Steel Kowa Real Estate / Heiwa Real Estate / Mitsui Fudosan / Mitsubishi Estate / Mitsubishi Jisho Residence (Titles omitted, in Japanese syllabary order)

Background and Purpose

In recent years, as job hunting activities have become earlier and more formalized, there is a challenge that the "true significance" of the developer profession and the "differences in corporate philosophies" are not being adequately conveyed to students. Opportunities to access the passion each company invests in urban development and the authentic voices of on-site employees, which are difficult to see through recruitment websites or individual information sessions, are limited.

"Do you truly understand the differences between developers?" — Starting from this question, the event was planned to allow students to gain an overview of the entire industry while comparing and understanding the uniqueness of each company by gathering multiple top-tier industry players together.

A key feature of this event is its two-day structure combining "Input (DAY 1)" and "Dialogue (DAY 2)," rather than being a mere corporate briefing session. As an opportunity for students to fundamentally cultivate their own career perspectives, the scale was significantly expanded this year following last year's success.

Program Content

[DAY 1 / INPUT: "Learn the Passion"] Monday, April 20, 17:00-19:00 - 3-minute corporate pitches from each company (theme: "What is the essence of a developer?") - Panel discussion: Deep dive into each company's "passion for work," "unique strengths," and "reasons for choosing the industry" - Q&A session: Panelists answered questions from students in real-time - DAY 1 was also streamed online. In addition to 480 in-person attendees, over 400 students watched online.

[DAY 2 / OUTPUT: "Engage in Dialogue"] Tuesday, April 21, 16:00-19:10 - Opening panel talk session featuring Mitsui Fudosan and Mitsubishi Estate - A "round-table discussion" style program where students rotated through company booths in 20-minute sessions (6 sessions held) - An output-oriented space for students to engage in direct, small-group dialogue with on-site employees, deepening their understanding in their own words - 360 participants gathered at the venue, engaging in detailed one-on-one conversations with company representatives.

Significance of the Event

This event aimed to create "career opportunities for understanding the essence of the industry."

Even within the same "developer" category, the philosophies, strengths, and cultures valued by each company differ significantly. This festival, allowing students to compare and experience multiple companies simultaneously, functions as a platform for "genuine career understanding" that goes beyond superficial information gathering.

Feedback from participating students included: "Hearing the authentic voices of 8 companies at once helped clarify my own career axis," "I was able to sense the atmosphere and true intentions of each company that I could never learn from online information," and "Through the panel discussion, I realized the social scale of the work involved in urban development."

Participating companies also evaluated the event positively as "an opportunity for deep engagement with high-caliber students who are seriously considering a career in the developer industry from an early stage," and further expansion in the number of participating companies is expected for the next fiscal year.

Future Developments

Mikiwame Shukatsu plans to continue and develop large-scale joint events like this one, where leading industry companies gather. It will continue to emphasize "human passion," "the atmosphere of the venue," and "honest dialogue" that can only be conveyed in person, providing students with opportunities to fundamentally engage with the industry, companies, and their own careers.

Furthermore, Mikiwame Shukatsu possesses Japan's largest database of students from top-tier universities, primarily from the former Imperial Universities, Waseda, and Keio. Beyond participating in joint events, it offers one-stop recruitment support tailored to each company's challenges, including segmented direct mail, scout distribution, and recruitment brand strategy planning.

About Mikiwame Shukatsu

"Mikiwame Shukatsu" is a new graduate recruitment support service and direct recruiting platform provided by Leading Mark Co., Ltd. Approximately 60% of its members are from former Imperial Universities, Waseda, and Keio, and about 25% are from the GMARCH group, making it Japan's largest database of students from top-tier schools. It is widely adopted by Japanese, foreign-affiliated, and emerging companies, supporting the recruitment of approximately 280 leading companies representing various industries, including 90 of the top 100 most popular companies for job seekers, and 30,000 students annually.

Its services include scout distribution for top-tier students, segmented direct mail, joint event participation, and recruitment branding support, providing one-stop support from candidate pool formation to the selection phase in new graduate recruitment. In the increasingly early and complex new graduate recruitment market, it offers optimal solutions tailored to each company's recruitment challenges.

Additionally, its sister service, the selective community "NEXVEL," has approximately 1,500 members who are exceptionally high-caliber new graduate talents selected through entry sheets, web tests, and group discussions, enabling efficient target recruitment and talent pool-based hiring.

About the Operating Company

Company Name: Leading Mark Co., Ltd. Representative: President & CEO Yuji Iida Headquarters Location: Minato-ku, Tokyo Business: Operation of the new graduate recruitment support service "Mikiwame Shukatsu"