How to Advance AI, DX, and Organizational Development in the Labor-Short Construction Industry? LIFEFUND and Maple Construction Co-host Seminar

A dialogue seminar featuring Takuma Shito of LIFEFUND and Tadakatsu Tajiri of Maple Construction recorded 100% satisfaction (n=15, satisfied or higher).

According to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare in Reiwa 6, the three-year turnover rate for high school graduates in the construction industry is 43.2%, exceeding the industry average of 38.4% by approximately 5 percentage points. This cycle of hiring without retention has become a major challenge for homebuilders' management.

LIFEFUND Co., Ltd. (Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture; CEO: Takuma Shito) has consistently practiced the philosophy of “breaking through structural challenges not by relying on recruitment, but through AI, DX, and organizational systems.” After three years of company-wide AI learning, the company achieved 1.6x revenue, 1.3x employee count, and a 4% increase in real wages (※1). To share these insights with the industry, they hosted a Zoom webinar on June 9, 2026 (Tuesday) titled “The Conditions for Homebuilders to Survive the Next 10 Years: ‘AI & DX’ and ‘Systems That Develop People.’”

The event featured a dialogue format with Tadakatsu Tajiri, CEO of Ikinoko Group Co., Ltd. (Maple Construction), known for a 9% turnover rate and 94% employee satisfaction, discussing practical applications of AI, DX, and talent retention.

※1) Achieved a 4% increase in real wages by raising annual paid leave for all full-time employees from 110 to 120 days.

▶ Source: LIFEFUND Co., Ltd. “Why a Construction Company with 13x Revenue Growth in 10 Years Took the Step to 120 Annual Holidays”

URL: https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000016.000160136.html

Three Critical Numbers Facing the Current Construction and Homebuilding Industry

The human resource challenges confronting the construction industry constitute a compound crisis, with multiple indicators simultaneously deteriorating.

① Unable to Recruit

As of 2026, the effective job vacancy ratio for construction engineers stands at 6.82 (6.00 for skilled construction workers), far exceeding the average across all industries. Nearly seven companies compete for every single job seeker.

▶ Source: Funai Comprehensive Research Institute Co., Ltd. “2026 Review of Construction Industry Recruitment and Future Outlook”

URL: https://www.hc.funaisoken.co.jp/blogs/column/column07

② Hired Employees Do Not Stay

The proportion of new high school graduate hires in the construction industry who leave within three years is 43.2% (March Reiwa 3 graduates, new high school job entrants).

For small businesses with fewer than five employees, the turnover rate is even higher. The cycle of “hiring, training, and losing” continues to erode management strength.

▶ Source: Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare “Survey on the Employment Status of New Graduates”

URL: https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/11805001/001318959.pdf

③ DX Is Not Advancing

A December 2025 survey by ANDPAD Co., Ltd. of 2,000 construction industry workers found that 47.3% responded “no plans to use” AI. Productivity-enhancing measures, which could solve recruitment and retention issues, remain unrealized for many homebuilders.

▶ Source: ANDPAD Co., Ltd. “Exclusive Survey on AI Utilization in the Construction Industry” (December 2025, n=2000)

URL: https://andpad.jp/news/20260212

The speakers at this seminar are executives who have overcome these three challenges through systematic approaches.

Speaker Introductions

Takuma Shito (CEO, LIFEFUND Co., Ltd.)

Based in Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture, operates custom home building, renovation, real estate, and AI education businesses. With annual sales of 2.71 billion yen and 114 annual projects, the company has over 70 employees. Through continuous AI learning via Horie AI School for Construction, it achieved 1.6x revenue, 1.3x employee growth, and a 4% increase in real wages. A practitioner of AI utilization in the construction industry, Shito has fostered a culture where employees autonomously use AI by linking its application to personnel evaluations.

Tadakatsu Tajiri (CEO, Ikinoko Group Co., Ltd. / Maple Construction)

Founded Maple Construction in 2007. Based in the Nara-Osaka region, the company has grown from 6 employees at inception to 149 today, operating 10 businesses centered on homebuilding. The figures of 9% turnover and 94% employee satisfaction serve as a proven case of what happens when DX and organizational systems work in tandem. Also operates BoxJob, a recruitment support service for homebuilders.

Dialogue Highlights

Both CEOs emphasized common themes: “investment in people,” “reproducibility,” and “systematization.” AI and DX are built upon organizational systems.

＜Part 1: Why Do Homebuilders Need “AI & DX” and “Organizational Systems” Now?＞

At the seminar’s opening, LIFEFUND’s CEO Takuma Shito explained the essence of investing in AI and DX:

“I invest in AI to invest in people. If AI handles tasks, employees can spend time on the work they truly want to do. As a result, we can raise wages. AI is a tool to enrich people.”

With recruitment market competition exceeding 6x, LIFEFUND’s practice focuses on increasing the productivity and retention of current employees rather than continuously raising recruitment costs.

Maple Construction’s CEO Tadakatsu Tajiri shares the same perspective:

“The recruitment shortage is structural. The only answer is to build a company where current employees can work long-term.”

＜Part 2: The Inside Story of a System Where “People Grow and Stay” — Practical Cases by Guest Tadakatsu Tajiri＞

Tajiri is someone Shito describes as sharing a similar philosophy on “building organizations reproducible through DX.” The principles of “reproducibility” and “anyone can achieve the same results” are fundamentally connected to AI and DX adoption. The core of Tajiri’s organizational development, established throughout his growth journey, was revealed at the event.

Eliminating mismatches at the hiring stage

A unique process requiring job applicants to present “What have you come here to do?” during interviews. By hiring only those who can express their purpose and motivation in their own words, post-hire mismatches are eliminated.

Understanding the real reasons for turnover through data

“The real reason employees leave is almost always different from what management assumes.” By continuously measuring employee satisfaction and maintaining a 94% level, organizational conditions are constantly used as numerical data for management decisions.

Systems remain stable even as scale changes

Maintaining a 9% turnover rate across 10 businesses and 149 employees is due to systems, not individual effort. Shito acknowledged this point, stating it aligns with LIFEFUND’s purpose in pursuing AI and DX.

＜Part 3: How to Start DX Tomorrow — Systematization Starting from “200 Pain Points”＞

Shito’s proposed first step for DX adoption is not technology, but “inventorying pain points.”

Step 1: Collect 200 pain points from the field

Asking all employees to list “daily work difficulties” surfaces around 200 issues. These become the starting point for AI and DX utilization. The biggest barrier—“not knowing where to start”—often arises from skipping this step.

Step 2: Translate into workflows (formalization)

Organize the collected issues into workflows that “anyone can reproduce”