How this course works

A summary of the orientation session held on September 25. It is kept here so you can come back to it. If you miss a class, this page and the session pages will get you caught up.

What management means here

The course is called "Introduction to Management". Management here means coming up with a business, checking whether it holds up, and carrying it far enough that someone will put money into it.

The 14 sessions run in that order.

Decide (1-4) → Check (5-7) → Back it with numbers (8-10) → Make it a company (11-13) → Ask for the money (14)

What comes up here is divided, out in the world, into fields called building a business, marketing, finance and organization. The references page is arranged by those four.

"Management" also means managing people and running things day to day. That is management too. What this course covers is the other side: taking a business that does not exist yet and getting it into a shape that holds up.

What this course does

There are many ways to learn about business. This course sits at "building your own plan".

Every session sets aside time to take what it covers and apply it to the plan you chose.

How to use this site

Checking this site once a week is enough. The top of the home page shows the next session you have in the classroom. Open that session and you will find the lesson, the handouts, and the assignment in one place.

• Lesson — what the session covers. You can read it again afterwards
• Handouts — the same sheets handed out in class. You can download them if you lose one
• Assignment — five questions for that session

The syllabus lists all 19 rows. If you want to see the whole term in advance, look there.

Lesson content and assignments are written in Japanese only.

Submitting assignments

You submit through the assignment in Teams. The deadline is noon on the day before the next class.

Noon the day before gives us time to read your answers before the class. Whatever comes up most often, and whatever you say you did not follow, gets more time in the next session.

Each question carries a rough length. It is only a guide — there is no need to match it exactly. The fifth question asks what was hardest to follow. If you cannot put it into words, just naming roughly where in the class it happened is enough.

Answers are shared in Teams at the next session. Deciding for yourself first, then reading the answers, is what makes it stick.

How you are assessed

There is no written exam. The 100 points are split three ways.

• Team output, 40 points — the plan your team builds
• Individual process, 30 points — the weekly assignments and how you work in the team
• Individual understanding, 30 points — the final pitch and how you answer on the spot

Everything about how you are assessed is in the rubric you receive on day one. Knowing what you are aiming at means you can check your own progress as you go.

You can research however you like, and you may use AI. Just be ready to explain what you wrote in your own words. In the final pitch, you answer questions on the spot.

What happens in the last session

In session 14 you each pitch to an investor, one at a time. The audience is the other students and the instructor, and questions follow each pitch.

You choose between raising 1 million yen and 10 million yen. One million is the scale of starting on your own; ten million is the scale of hiring people. Choosing which one is part of the work.

The 14 sessions gather the material for that pitch: who you sell to, how many of them there are, what price you charge, whether it actually makes money, what it costs to build. Work through those one at a time and the amount you need falls out of your own arithmetic.

Before the next session

By September 28, think of one business you would like to try. A single line in a notebook is enough. Session 1 starts from there.

It is fine if nothing comes to mind. Either of these works just as well.

• Something you recently paid for and were glad you did
• Something that made you wonder who is actually making money from it

Both lead straight into session 1. Even without a business you want to start, everyone can recall one thing they were glad to pay for.

And if nothing lands, there is a list of candidates ready. We work on it together on the day, so coming in blank does not stall you.

If you get stuck

• Ask in Teams. During class or afterwards, either is fine
• If you miss a class, look at this page and the session pages. The lesson and the handouts stay there
• If a word is unfamiliar, ask when it comes up