"Role Model Award 2026" Secures Sponsorship from Human Capital Management Promotion Association, Guest Judges Include Futa Sakai; Entry Submissions Open Today

talentbook Inc. (Headquarters: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; Co-CEOs: Wataru Ohori and Kai Ohori; hereinafter "the Company"), which develops the Talent Book series that creates a new AI-era recruitment experience based on "role models," has announced the determination of sponsoring organizations and selection committee members for the "Role Model Award 2026" to be held on Thursday, December 3, 2026. The company also announced that entry submissions for target stories have begun today. Official website: https://product.talent-book.jp/rolemodel-award ◾️ About the Guest Judges for the "Role Model Award 2026" It has been decided that Mr. Futa Sakai, Representative Director of Momentor Inc., and Ms. Ayumi Fujimoto, Representative Director of the Startup Ecosystem Association, will serve as guest judges on the award's selection committee. In addition to experts who have embodied role models in areas such as "human resource development," "global," and "startups," the student job-hunting media "Datsuryoku Shukatsu" will also participate as a group judge to reflect the perspectives of students who are actually seeking role models in the screening process. Mr. Futa Sakai, Representative Director of Momentor Inc. Born in 1991. After joining DeNA as a new graduate in 2015, he became President and Representative Director of DeNA's subsidiary, Everystar, in 2020. After experiencing management reform and M&A, he founded Momentor Inc. in August 2022 with investment from DeNA and Delight Ventures, supporting human resource development and organizational strengthening. Currently, he supports human resource development and organizational infrastructure building for over 200 companies. While disseminating role models may not show short-term results for organizations, it has the power to create life-changing moments for candidates. I strongly empathize with talentbook's belief that 'One person's career can move someone else's life,' and I am honored to serve as a judge. I will rigorously evaluate not just the quantity of dissemination, but the quality of whether a career story can create a moment that moves someone's life. Ms. Ayumi Fujimoto, Representative Director of the Startup Ecosystem Association After working at Career Design Center and Google in corporate sales, she founded at Will Work. After gaining PR experience at Okane no Design, she oversaw marketing and PR as CMO at Plug and Play Japan. In 2022, she established the Startup Ecosystem Association and became its Representative Director, working on building public-private partnerships for ecosystem development. In 2025, she co-founded FoundersNation to promote global support for startups. At at Will Work, where I served as a director, we held the 'Work Story Award' for five years from 2019, celebrating the career stories of working people. talentbook cooperated as a story supervisor. In a sense, this 'Role Model Award 2026' can be seen as the 6th year of that initiative, carrying on its spirit. The importance of visualizing diverse career role models is finally becoming established as a corporate evaluation criterion. I am honored to be involved as a judge at this historic moment. Job-hunting media "Datsuryoku Shukatsu" A job-hunting media run by current university students. It is mainly operated by students from Professor Ken'nosuke Tanaka's seminar at the Faculty of Career Design, Hosei University. With the concept of 'transforming job hunting from a competition to a development opportunity,' it broadcasts a job-hunting radio program every Sunday at 9 PM on Shibuya Cross FM. As 'Japan's easiest job-hunting media' emphasizing entertainment, it is active in connecting students and companies. Official Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/datsuryoku_shukatsu/ Official X: https://x.com/datsuryokuusagi As university students, we have daily opportunities to catch various information on social media and job-hunting sites. 'Is going to a trading company a winning move?' 'Is earning over 10 million yen a year elite?' ... We believe that to find a company that truly suits us, we need more than just selectively presented information like salary, work environment, or brand power; we need more essential information. By participating as a student judging group this time, we will bring the perspective of university students and job-seeking students themselves to the evaluation, asking 'What is a role model that moves students' hearts?' *We will announce additional judges as they are confirmed. ◾️ About the Sponsoring Organization The Human Capital Management Promotion Association has been decided as the sponsoring organization for the "Role Model Award 2026." This association supports the enhancement of corporate value through the practice of human capital management and advocates for the importance of qualitative information in human capital information disclosure. The award's evaluation of 'continuous dissemination of role models' is directly linked to enriching qualitative information in human capital disclosure, leading to this sponsorship decision. A company's initiative to continuously disseminate employee role models is an excellent practical example of visualizing human resource development and organizational culture, truly embodying human capital management. As an association, we aim to support such advanced initiatives and contribute to the promotion of human capital management. ■ About the Award Categories In addition to presenting commendation badges to all companies that have disseminated a certain number of role models during the year, outstanding role models will be recognized in the following eight categories. Winning companies and talents (employees featured in stories) will be presented with shields and given the opportunity to participate in the awards ceremony. 1. Challenge Category Recognizes individuals who have taken the first courageous step into new environments, roles, or uncharted territories. Their act of diving in and forging a path, even without precedents, encourages many others. We are looking for such role models. 2. Professional Category Recognizes individuals who take pride in their work and continuously hone their expertise, technical skills, and customer approach. We are looking for role models whose accumulation of 'trusted work,' beyond mere flashiness, positively influences their organization and surroundings. 3. My Style Category Recognizes individuals who thrive while balancing diverse lifestyles such as childcare, nursing care, side jobs, and regional relocation with their work. We are looking for role models who harmoniously blend work and personal life, offering a unique work style and values. 4. Re-start Category Recognizes individuals who are active in new fields after career changes such as transfers, job changes, or role shifts. We are looking for role models who continue to challenge themselves, unafraid of change, expanding their possibilities. 5. Culture Category Recognizes individuals who embody the vision, mission, and values, positively influencing those around them. We are looking for role models whose attitudes and actions, not just results, create 'the essence of this company.' 6. Connect Category Recognizes individuals who have created new value and opportunities through trust relationships and communities, both inside and outside the company. We are looking for role models for whom 'who you work with' is key.