A New Approach to Resilient Hospitality Management: Lessons and Insights from Kyoto, Japan [1st ed. 2022] 9811916640, 9789811916649

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Yoshinori Hara Senko Ikenobo Spring H. Han

A New Approach to Resilient Hospitality Management Lessons and Insights from Kyoto, Japan

A New Approach to Resilient Hospitality Management

Yoshinori Hara · Senko Ikenobo · Spring H. Han

A New Approach to Resilient Hospitality Management Lessons and Insights from Kyoto, Japan

Yoshinori Hara Graduate School of Management Kyoto University Kyoto, Japan

Senko Ikenobo Headmaster Designate of Ikenobo Ikenobo Headquarters Kyoto, Japan

Spring H. Han Graduate School of Management Kyoto University Kyoto, Japan

ISBN 978-981-19-1664-9 ISBN 978-981-19-1665-6 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-1665-6 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2022 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. The registered company address is: 152 Beach Road, #21-01/04 Gateway East, Singapore 189721, Singapore

Preface

This book provides lessons and insights reference to the way of the hospitality management of Japanese sustainable organizations with philosophical fundamentals and various business practice examples. The “Japanese way” of customer service and hospitality is well-known worldwide. Traditionally, Japanese organizations have specific, but implicit rules on how to treat customers and other multi-stakeholders, reflecting on respect and omnipresence. Japanese hospitality is complex, sophisticated, and continuously evolving the Japanese society as a whole. It is also a fundamental behavior of beauty. The book introduces sustainable and resilient management of companies, organizations, and society based on Japanese hospitality, traditions, philosophy, and ethics. The book is divided into three segments. The first segment unravels the origins of hospitality management in Japan from the perspective of the Japanese sense of beauty. To intuitively understand this aspect, we have used ikebana as an item of traditional culture that embodies this aesthetic sense in a tangible way. The Japanese aesthetic differs from the Western aesthetic in that it pays attention to asymmetry, ambiguity, simplicity, and process. It also has a clear borderline between what to change and what not to change in accordance with the environment, which is applicable even when times and places change. The fact that they have such clear guidelines is the reason why they are authentic, and why their products and services provide socially sustainable value. The second segment focuses on the structural mechanisms of resilience in intangible asset management. It describes the characteristics of long-established companies (companies and organizations that have been in existence for more than 100 years), which are often found in Japan, especially in Kyoto. Among them the concepts and processes of Juxtaposition, Metamodel, narrative brand development, trustworthy relationship among stakeholders are characteristics that are resilient in the face of various difficulties. These concepts and processes will be introduced by using representative long-established companies in Kyoto, in relation to their historical background in the region. The third segment of the book discusses the future direction of development as a sustainable society with the advancement of technology. This book describes a vision v

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Preface

of a resilient society in which people and AI are in sync, based on a combination of the degree of coexistence of people and the degree of progress in the use of DX. The book serves as a resourceful help for academic and business practitioners in the areas of hospitality management, service management, and human resource management. This book’s lessons and insights will also shed light on the future direction of the post-pandemic era with advanced technologies and their transformation. Kyoto, Japan January 2022

Yoshinori Hara Senko Ikenobo Spring H. Han

Acknowledgement

This book is based on the lecture “Innovative Hospitality Management” given by the Integrated Hospitality (Greenhouse) Endowed Chair at the Graduate School of Management, Kyoto University. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to Chiaki Tanuma, President and CEO, Green House Co., Ltd. for supporting this endowed chair, which has so much contributed to the promotion of the Kyoto University—Cornell University International Collaborative Degree Opportunity (a double degree course). The “Innovative Hospitality Management” lecture was designed to develop leadership skills with a hospitality mindset and to improve intercultural communication. We would also like to express our gratitude to Daiko Matsuyama, Deputy Head Priest of Taizoin Zen Buddhist Temple, Masao Hosoo, Chairman of Hosoo Co., Ltd., Akemi Nishimura, Proprietress of Hiiragiya, Takayuki Sakakida, President & CEO of Kyoto Shinkin Bank Ltd., Dr. Ryoichi Nagata, Chairman, President & CEO of Shin Nippon Biomedical Laboratories, Ltd. Students of this lecture also helped in elaborating the concept and collecting global examples. We are also very grateful to Ihee Hosotsuji XIV, President of Eirakuya and Akira Sasaki, President of Sasaki Brewery, for allowing us to interview them as longestablished companies in Kyoto. We are also very grateful to the Springer team for making this book possible. Last but not least we would like to thank Masashi Hata, Ikenobo General Affairs Office, Eriko Nakashima, Researcher, Graduate School of Management, Kyoto University and Yoko Tokuyama, Office Administrative Staff, Graduate School of Management, Kyoto University for their invaluable contributions. This book would not have been possible without their involvement.

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Contents

1 Understanding the Philosophy of Japanese Hospitality . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1 Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2 The Japanese Sense of Beauty—A Process from Imperfection to Perfection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.1 The Origins of the Japanese Sense of Beauty . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.2 Elements that Characterize Japanese Values of Beauty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.3 Asymmetry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.4 Simplicity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.5 Making Use of “Ma” (Space) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2.6 Respect for the Passage of Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3 Authentic Borderline—What Should Change and What Should not Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4 Japanese Hospitality “Omotenashi”—Its Origin, History, Philosophy and Expression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4.1 Origin and History of Japanese Hospitality “Omotenashi” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4.2 The Concept of Hospitality and Its Expression . . . . . . . . . 1.5 Sustainability of “Ikebana”—A Japanese Traditional Culture Epitomizing Japanese Hospitality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.1 Japanese Sense of Beauty Derived from Harmony with Nature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.2 Long-Term Trustworthy Relationships with Local Communities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.3 Regional Characteristics of Kyoto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5.4 The Hospitality Mind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1 1 3 3 4 6 8 11 13 16 24 24 26 30 30 31 34 35 38

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2 Structural Mechanism for Resilience in the Management of Intangible Assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1 Dynamic Balancing Against Crisis, Disaster, and Environmental Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1.1 Dynamic Balancing in Sustainable Activities . . . . . . . . . . 2.2 Assemblance of Shinise—One of the Highest Density Regions of “Shops of Long Standing” in the World . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.1 What is a Long-Standing Company in Japan? . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.2 “Shinise” Located in Kyoto and Osaka . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3 Juxtaposition—A Resilient Structure for Sustainability . . . . . . . . . 2.4 Metamodel—A Mechanism for Adapting Environmental Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.1 Kata (Model) and Metamodel (Model for Model) . . . . . . . 2.4.2 Shu–Ha–Ri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.3 The Case of Ikebana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4.4 Relation to the Authentic Borderline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5 Brand Development Through Storytelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6 Long-Term Trustworthy Relationship Among Multi-Stakeholders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6.1 Stakeholder Theory and the History of Sanpo-yoshi . . . . . 2.6.2 How to Build Long-Term Relationships with Customers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6.3 Leadership with a Hospitality Mindset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.7 Case: Hiiragiya—A Traditional Ryokan (Japanese-Style Inn) in Kyoto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.7.1 History of Hiiragiya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.7.2 The Hiiragiya’s Sense of Beauty and Hospitality . . . . . . . 2.7.3 Hiiragiya’s Resilient Hospitality Management . . . . . . . . . . 2.7.4 Hiiragiya After the Pandemic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.8 Case: Hosoo—More than Fabric and Textile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.8.1 History of Hosoo and Nishijin Textile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.8.2 Strive for Innovation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.8.3 Prospects for the Future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9 Case: Eirakuya—A Deign Innovation for Tenugui (Plain Weave Cotton Cloth) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9.1 The History of Eirakuya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9.2 Crisis of Eirakuya’s Survival . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9.3 Ihee Hosotsuji, the 14th Successor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.9.4 Addressing the Current Crisis Facing Eirakuya . . . . . . . . . 2.9.5 Eirakuya’s Resilient Hospitality Management . . . . . . . . . . 2.10 Case: Sasaki Shuzo—The Only Long-Established Sake Brewer in Downtown Kyoto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.10.1 History of Sasaki Shuzo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.10.2 Resilient Hospitality Management at Sasaki Shuzo . . . . .

39 39 39 40 40 41 44 48 48 50 51 52 53 55 55 58 61 62 62 63 67 68 69 69 73 75 77 77 80 80 83 84 86 86 88

Contents

2.10.3 Responding to a Post-Pandemic and Investing in the Future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Sustainable Society Following the Advancement of Technology . . . . . 3.1 Issues on Sustainability and Scalability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.1 Hospitality and Omotenashi Revisited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.2 Sustainability and Scalability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1.3 Popularization of High-Quality Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2 Symbiosis and Mutualism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.1 Symbiosis in Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.2 The Four Models of Symbiotic Relationship in Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.3 Business Mutualism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.4 GO ON Project in Kyoto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3 Sustainable Transitions with Digital Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.1 Digital Technology Adoption and Business Re-Engineering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.2 Digital Technology and Hospitality Industry . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.3 Advanced Technology as an Enabler to Provide Highly Delicate Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.4 Toward Sustainable Future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4 A Sustainable Form of Culture that Can Be Found in Ikebana . . . . 3.5 Toward an Autonomous Distributed Society with a Hospitality Mindset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.5.1 Characteristics of Resilience in Kyoto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.5.2 Progress in Resilience Through Digital Technology . . . . . 3.5.3 Kyoto as Resilient City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.5.4 Future Direction of Resilient Hospitality Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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91 92 93 93 93 94 95 97 97 97 100 101 102 103 107 109 112 114 116 116 118 123 123 128

Afterword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129 Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

About the Authors

Yoshinori Hara, Ph.D. Professor, Graduate School of Management, Kyoto University. In charge of Preface, Chaps. 1(1.1, 1.4), 2(2.1–2.4, 2.7–2.10), 3(3.1, 3.5). He serves as a professor in the Graduate School of Management at Kyoto University since April 2006, when the graduate school was established. His current research focus includes innovation management, service & hospitality innovation, and open innovation with IT frameworks. Prior to joining Kyoto University, he conducted R&D at NEC Corporation both in Japan and in the Silicon Valley, California, USA. He serves as the president of the Society for Serviceology. He was a visiting researcher at the Department of Computer Science, Stanford University and an exchange researcher at the University of Vienna. He received his B.E. and M.E. from the University of Tokyo and his Ph.D. from Kyoto University. Senko Ikenobo, Ph.D. Headmaster Designate of Ikenobo, Adjunct Professor, Graduate School of Management, Kyoto University. In charge of Preface, Chaps. 1(1.2, 1.3, 1.5), 3(3.4), Afterword. She is the Headmaster Designate of Ikenobo, a family arranging ikebana for over 550 years. The philosophy of Ikenobo ikebana was established in the 14th century. She also serves as a Vice Head Priest of Shiunzan Chohoji (Rokkakudo) Temple in Kyoto. Her varied activities focus on life as emphasized through Ikenobo ikebana. She has used an engineering approach to study the world of ikebana, such as how ikebana’s beauty is developed and formed. As an Honorary Consul of Iceland, she has also contributed to fostering international friendship. In 2013, she conducted an ikebana workshop at Harvard University and performed a flower offering ceremony with a wish for world peace at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.

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About the Authors

Spring H. Han, Ph.D. Associate Professor, Graduate School of Management, Kyoto University. In charge of Preface, Chaps. 2(2.5, 2.6), 3(3.2, 3.3). She is an associate professor in the Graduate School of Management at Kyoto University. Her current research interests include sensory marketing, emotions and service experience, and resilient hospitality management. She has participated in various industry and academic projects in Korea, the USA, China, and Russia. Han has published research papers in distinguished journals, including Cornell Hospitality Quarterly and Service Science. She received the “Best paper award for the year 2012” from Cornell Hospitality Quarterly and the “Educational Innovation Award” from National Research.

Abbreviations and Technical Terms

AI Dan-Sha-Ri

DX Iemoto

IT Kata

Ma Mitate Okami Omonpakari Omotenashi Shu-Ha-Ri

Artificial Intelligence The idea of “cutting off” and “throwing away” unnecessary things, and “getting away” from attachment to things, in order to obtain a light and comfortable life Digital Transformation In the society of traditional Japanese cultural activities such as ikebana, tea ceremony, traditional Japanese music, Japanese dance, noh, and kyogen, a person who is a member of a family that carries on the orthodoxy of one of the leading schools, or a person who holds such a position through succession Information Technology A style of expression that has been inherited, refined, and fixed from generation to generation in the performance and direction of traditional cultural activities The space or time that separates things from each other Abstract expression or presentation of one’s own thoughts. To describe an object by likening it to something else A female head manager of a restaurant, inn, or other establishment that serves customers To understand the mind and intentions of the other person. Also, to think about and consider the other person carefully Japanese hospitality. Heartfelt treatment, entertainment, and service to customers with care and attention It shows the stages in training. “Shu” is the stage of faithfully following the teachings, kata, and techniques of the master or school and making sure to acquire them. “Ha” is the stage where you consider the teachings of other masters and schools, take in the good things, and develop your mind and techniques. The stage of “Ri” is to leave one school and to create and establish something new and unique

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Suriawase

Abbreviations and Technical Terms

To create value by holding the tension between the intentions and knowledge of the user and the provider by rubbing against each other. In general, it is the process of finding a compromise by exchanging and coordinating information from each side in negotiations

List of Figures

Fig. 1.1 Fig. 1.2 Fig. 1.3 Fig. 1.4 Fig. 1.5 Fig. 1.6 Fig. 1.7

Fig. 1.8 Fig. 1.9

Fig. 1.10 Fig. 1.11 Fig. 1.12 Fig. 1.13

Fig. 1.14

Fig. 1.15 Fig. 1.16 Fig. 1.17 Fig. 1.18

Giant tree worshiped as yorishiro (Photo Provided by PIXTA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Modern day tokonoma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nijo-jo Castle, Ninomaru Goten, World Heritage (Entire view) (Photo Provided by Nijo-jo Castle Office) . . . . . . . An asymmetrical, yet coherently organized ikebana work, Rikka Shofutai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Denka (Tsubaki Ichirinike) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Suirikuike, Shoka Shofutai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Scenery represented by Suirikuike Grasses in the front waterside, and trees in the distant land (Photo Provided by PIXTA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “Ikenobo Sen’no Kuden” (1537) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “Shorinzu Byobu” (right wing) by Hasegawa Tohaku Cited by: Integrated Collections Database of the National Institutes for Cultural Heritage, Japan. https://colbase.nich. go.jp/collection_items/tnm/A-10471?locale=en . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gyodoike, Shoka Shofutai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nishuike, Shoka Shofutai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hasu Isshiki, Rikka Shofutai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Illustration of the Kamesuehiro confectionary exposition. (Kamesuehiro Collection/Fuji Film Innovation Japan Cultural Property Archives) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Major long-established companies with more than 100 years in business (Top 10 companies): Source Teikoku Databank (2010). Reference https://news.mynavi.jp/art icle/20100909-a006/ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Example of ikebana using withered leaves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vase made of FRP material combined with Nishijin fabric . . . . . Shoka Shofutai style ikebana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Shoka Shimputai style ikebana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

4 5 6 7 8 9

10 11

12 13 14 15

17

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Fig. 1.19 Fig. 1.20 Fig. 1.21 Fig. 1.22 Fig. 1.23 Fig. 1.24

Fig. 1.25 Fig. 1.26 Fig. 1.27

Fig. 2.1 Fig. 2.2 Fig. 2.3 Fig. 2.4 Fig. 2.5 Fig. 2.6 Fig. 2.7 Fig. 2.8 Fig. 2.9 Fig. 2.10 Fig. 2.11 Fig. 2.12 Fig. 2.13 Fig. 2.14 Fig. 2.15 Fig. 2.16 Fig. 2.17 Fig. 2.18 Fig. 2.19 Fig. 2.20 Fig. 2.21 Fig. 2.22 Fig. 2.23 Fig. 2.24

List of Figures

Rikka Shofutai style ikebana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rikka Shimputai style ikebana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Value Co-creation of “Omotenashi” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Japanese creative services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Movie “Gion Matsuri” (1968 Collection of the Museum of Kyoto) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “Gion Goryo-e Saiki” (Detailed Drawing on Religious Festival) (partial) (1757 Collection of Kokugakuin University Library) Depicts a scene of “kuji-tori-shiki” (lottery for the parade order of the floats) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bronze vases offered to the war . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O-sunanomono in Maeda House (reproduced) © Production Committee of “Flower and Sword” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “Bunroku San-nen Maeda-tei Onari-ki” (Vol. 663 of “Zokugun Shorui Ju” (Classified Documents), (Collection of Archives and Mausolea Department, Imperial Household Agency) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “Shinise” located in Kyoto and Osaka (1) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “Shinise” located in Kyoto and Osaka (2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Juxtaposition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Juxtaposition, omnidirectional, and select and focused . . . . . . . . Downtown Kyoto as an example of Juxtaposition . . . . . . . . . . . . Three layer architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hiiragiya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “Rai-sha-nyo-ki” (Who comes, feel at home) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A room from the late Edo period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Three-sided glass, modern large hall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reflection of the sunlight shaping holly leaves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Small lattice-like window and holly leaves in a small shoin (drawing room) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nishijin textile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textiles used on the Noh stage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A folding screen with matching early Hosoo textiles . . . . . . . . . . Loom of the Edo period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Loom developed by Hosoo with a width of 150 cm . . . . . . . . . . . GO ON project with Panasonic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Art work using fluorescent silk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Hosotsuji family motto, “Lessons Learned Daikokumai” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “Momoiro-kai” sample tenugui designs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tenugui design “Five-storied Pagoda” (patter from around 1930) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tenugui design “Gion Festival and Maiko” (pattern from 2018) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tenugui art exhibition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

22 23 27 30 32

33 34 36

37 42 42 45 47 47 49 63 64 65 65 66 66 70 71 72 72 74 75 76 78 79 81 81 82

List of Figures

xix

Fig. 2.25 Fig. 2.26 Fig. 2.27 Fig. 2.28 Fig. 2.29 Fig. 3.1

83 86 87 88 90

Fig. 3.2 Fig. 3.3 Fig. 3.4 Fig. 3.5

Fig. 3.6

Fig. 3.7 Fig. 3.8 Fig. 3.9 Fig. 3.10 Fig. 3.11

Eirakuya’s lovely crest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . How to wrap using Tenugui . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sasaki Shuzo in Rakuchu, Kyoto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sasaki Shuzo’s Sake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Non-alcoholic drink “White Gin Meisui” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sustainability and scalability in the context of hospitality management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Blueprint components with advanced technology for resilient hospitality management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “Daiichi Eidai Montei Cho” (The First Permanent Disciples Record) (1678, Collection of Ikenobo Headquarters) . . . . . . . . . . Certificate of Kado Instructor in the Kyoto Girls’ School (1879, Collection of Ikenobo Headquarters) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . An Online Ikebana lesson. Photo Provided by SAKURA Experience Japanese Culture. https://www.sakura-kyoto. jp/kado/online-ikebana.html . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kyoto Shinkin Bank “QUESTION”. Photo Provided by Kyoto Shinkin Bank. https://question.kyoto-shinkin.co. jp/articles/articles-652/) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Resilient Hospitality Management in the Era of Digital Transformation (DX) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . GO ON project (the same image as on Fig. 2.18) . . . . . . . . . . . . . Future Resilient City Kyoto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dan-Sha-Ri and Human Resource Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ikebana “Mitate” (Visualization) Mapping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

96 110 114 116

118

119 120 121 122 125 126

List of Tables

Table 3.1 Table 3.2

Two types of organizational transformation presented and contrasted in previous consulting literature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Studies used the theory of three-order effects in various fields . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

104 106

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1.1 Background The world is facing an unprecedented crisis, the spread of COVID-19, which we are trying to overcome with a lot of wisdom. Japan has experienced many crises caused by such viruses and epidemics. Above all, we have suffered from natural disasters such as typhoons, earthquakes, tsunamis, and the ravages of war. Kyoto has been the capital of Japan for over 1,200 years, during which, it has experienced the Ohnin among other wars, the Tenmei among other fire outbreaks that swept through the city, and epidemics many times. The economic stagnation that followed the relocation of the capital to Tokyo was also a major crisis for the Kyoto economy. In spite of these crises, Kyoto has successfully recovered and developed to the present day. Interestingly, a survey reported that the percentage of long-established companies and organizations that have been in business for more than 100 years is about 4% in Kyoto as a whole. This is the highest of any region in Japan and probably the most sustainable in the world. For example, the Iemoto (Headmaster) of Ikebana Ikenobo is also the priest of a temple called Rokkakudo in the center of Kyoto. This Rokkakudo temple has been burned down 18 times since its founding due to warfare and great fires. However, each time it burned down, the local people provided support, and all 18 times it was rebuilt to this day. This kind of resilience can be seen in no small number of places throughout Kyoto. Moreover, not only the hard resilience such as building materials and technologies, but also the intangible soft resilience such as people’s mindset has had no small impact. This book seeks to ascertain: The source of resilience in a region that has encountered such a crisis or disaster, the sources of resilience in regions that have encountered such crises and disasters and how companies and organizations have developed to incorporate such resilience. It further seeks to investigate the hints for the ideal image of society that will help avoid future crises. We focus on the management of sustainability by focusing on intangible assets such as philosophy and hospitality in companies and organizations. Of course, as © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2022 Y. Hara et al., A New Approach to Resilient Hospitality Management, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-1665-6_1

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in conventional discussions of resilience, it is important to consider the hardware of cities, such as their infrastructure, and the attitudes of the people who live in them. It is also important to focus on aesthetic sense and hospitality, which have been recognized as the characteristics of Japan, as they can provide new insights for a world undergoing an unprecedented crisis. Up until now, the world has highly regarded Japan as a “manufacturing nation” that provides high quality products. Simultaneously, the cleanliness and aesthetic sense of cities/towns and the Omotenashi (hospitality) everywhere have been admired. In 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of foreign visitors to Japan exceeded 30 million. This can be attributed to Japan’s growing reputation as a “land of hospitality” that values culture and tradition while seeking innovation, and to the fact that the world is becoming increasingly interested in the quality of services provided by the Japanese culture. However, the aesthetic sense that has been cherished in Japan for a long time, the philosophy that has been handed down, and the essence of Omotenashi have been strongly implicit and inherited. Consequently, it has been particularly difficult for foreign readers to understand them. This book focuses on the resilience of Japanese companies and organizations, which have such strong implicit and impersonal elements, and unravels them by focusing on visually comprehensible examples such as ikebana. In the age of digital transformation, we also discuss the structure of such Japanesestyle resilient organizations and the roles of people, artificial intelligence (AI), and information technology (IT), using examples. The book is divided into three segments. The first segment unravels the origins of hospitality management in Japan from the perspective of the Japanese sense of beauty. To intuitively understand this aspect, we have used ikebana as an item of traditional culture that embodies this aesthetic sense in a tangible way. The Japanese aesthetic differs from the Western aesthetic in that it pays attention to asymmetry, ambiguity, simplicity, and process. It also has a clear borderline between what to change and what not to change in accordance with the environment, which is applicable even when times and places change. The fact that they have such clear guidelines is the reason why they are authentic, and why their products and services provide socially sustainable value. The second segment focuses on the structural mechanisms of resilience in intangible asset management. It describes the characteristics of long-established companies (companies and organizations that have been in existence for more than 100 years), which are often found in Japan, especially in Kyoto. Among them the concepts and processes of Juxtaposition, Metamodel, narrative brand development, trustworthy relationship among stakeholders are characteristics that are resilient in the face of various difficulties. These concepts and processes will be introduced by using representative long-established companies in Kyoto, in relation to their historical background in the region. The third segment of the book discusses the future direction of development as a sustainable society with the advancement of technology. This book describes a vision

1.1 Background

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of a resilient society in which people and AI are in sync, based on a combination of the degree of coexistence of people and the degree of progress in the use of DX.

1.2 The Japanese Sense of Beauty—A Process from Imperfection to Perfection 1.2.1 The Origins of the Japanese Sense of Beauty When discussing the background in which the Japanese sense of beauty was formed, it is impossible not to mention Shinto with its roots in nature and the four seasons, as well as other religious thoughts including Buddhism and Zen introduced in India and China. The standards by which Japanese tend to determine whether something is “beautiful” are generally associated with good and evil as well as cleanliness, things strongly connected with the beliefs and concepts found in Shinto. Shinto is a spontaneous religious belief in that there is no founding figure or scripture. It is mainly a worship of nature, such as mountains or rocks, as well as a worship of one’s ancestors. In 720, the term “Shinto” first appeared in “Nihon Shoki” (Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697). However, its origins are thought to be even earlier than this. For example, mountain worship, a form of nature worship, gives reverence and respect to mountains as sacred places. A small shrine built on the top of a mountain, as well as shrines located in mountains are good examples of a reverence that probably existed from ancient times. The Japanese people, as evidenced by their history of worshipping nature, have nurtured their sense of values through the richness of nature and the four distinct seasons, that is, spring, summer, autumn, and winter. One characteristic notable among the Japanese people is that they have closely observed nature since ancient times and are extremely sensitive to its changes. In the natural world, there is no such thing as a perfect state. It is always in a state of incompleteness, which changes constantly. The founder of Buddhism, Shakamuni Seson (Shaka, or Shakuson) states that the world is impermanent and continuously changing with the flow of time. The Japanese values of beauty, such as imperfection, imbalance, and empty space, are considered effects of these influences. They are also strongly related to Zen thought. There is an ideal in Zen that it is beautiful to be thoroughly devoid of any excess. Zen also values staying away from every artificial motivation and giving up one’s attachments. This is consistent with the Japanese standard of beauty, which is to be simple, not to be wasteful, and not to be unnatural. In summary, for Japanese, who have been living with nature, worshipping nature and conscious of being part of nature, the existence of nature is considered absolute. One can infer that the Japanese seek to learn from nature, to gain truth and insights from it.

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1.2.2 Elements that Characterize Japanese Values of Beauty The Japanese sense of beauty tends to find value in imperfection and ambiguity. In Japan, there is a premise that humans are imperfect beings. Moreover, imperfection is considered having the potential to become perfect and to develop. There is respect for this. Regarding the Japanese values of beauty, the following elements are also relevant to the discussion: • Asymmetry. • Simplicity. • Capturing the beauty, not only of the actual object, but also of its surroundings; in other words, making use of “Ma” (space). • Giving the impression of an object being natural. Even if the object is artificial and created by human hands, it should not look artificial, but rather should appear natural. • Respect for the passage of time.

Fig. 1.1 Giant tree worshiped as yorishiro (Photo Provided by PIXTA)

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These aesthetic elements are commonly found in Japanese artistic expressions such as architecture, drawings, haiku, and ikebana. With abundant mountains and rivers, and with about 70% of the country covered by forests, Japanese have lived in a rich natural environment with four distinct seasons. At the root of these visible and external representations of artistic expressions are nature-oriented perspectives cultivated in their long history, such as the belief that spirits dwell in nature. One can understand the uniqueness of Japan and of the Japanese identity from the external expressions of this. As a prerequisite to delving into each aesthetic element, we would like to start with a discussion on ikebana, Japanese flower arrangement. It has its origins in ancient animism, in which, it is alleged that every natural thing in the universe has a spirit or a soul. Even today, there are shrines in Japan for the worship of giant trees or rocks as yorishiro (an object representing a spirit). This is a good example of animism that esteems divine spirit dwelling in nature (Fig. 1.1). In the sixth century when Buddhism was introduced in Japan, the custom of offering flowers to Buddha was also introduced as one of hotoke shogon (the adornment of the Buddhas). The words “Somoku Kokudo Shikkai Jobutsu” (recited in “Nehankyo,” Nirvana Sutra, the teachings given by Shakamuni shortly before his death) is a passage that represents typical Buddhist thought. It means that all things, including the land and mountains, are living as human, and intrinsically exist as deities. It was against this background that offering flowers to Buddha became a common practice and the “tokonoma,” an alcove, came into being along with the new architectural design, shoin-zukuri (Fig. 1.2). Ikebana is appreciated together

Fig. 1.2 Modern day tokonoma

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with hanging scrolls on the back wall of the tokonoma and gained popularity as something that adds color to our lives and brings peace of mind. In the Meiji era (nineteenth century), ikebana was incorporated into school education and has been handed down from generation to generation to date, as a traditional Japanese culture that embodies the Japanese spirit as well as a living culture. Like chanoyu (tea ceremony), ikebana is regarded as being representative of traditional culture in Japan owing to the way one’s improvement in its techniques is also considered training of the spirit. Ikebana is not only about acquiring the skills to create a good work of art, but also about preparing one’s own mind. Through repeated practice of flower arrangement, one can create a mind that is unfazed by any situation. Thinking of a guest with such a well-prepared and peaceful mind and arranging flowers or preparing tea for them, and moreover, doing so not only for the guest’s benefit, but also for one’s own training–this must be the most unique and outstanding characteristic of these traditional arts in Japan.

1.2.3 Asymmetry The following examples show how Japanese values of beauty are concretely expressed in ikebana.

Fig. 1.3 Nijo-jo Castle, Ninomaru Goten, World Heritage (Entire view) (Photo Provided by Nijo-jo Castle Office)

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In Japan, asymmetry (left–right asymmetry) tends to be preferred over symmetry (right-right symmetry). This concept of asymmetry can also be seen in Nijo-jo Castle and tea houses in Kyoto (Fig. 1.3). Western architecture, be it castles or modern buildings, in contrast, is built on the basis of symmetry, as that design is considered beautiful. However, in ikebana, flower materials are composed and arranged asymmetrically. This is because ikebana values the aesthetics of harmony, which are more natural and unfinished than the beauty of perfection, and are based on the idea of sharing and growing together like natural plants. Unbalance is also important in the composition of ikebana. The Japanese aesthetic of “7:5:3” and “long right, short left” has been popular for a long time. Moreover, in ikebana, this idea is employed to express the natural form and emotion mentioned above. Including such asymmetric and unbalanced compositions, we sympathize with the way different beings accept and share each other’s existence, and feel the magnanimity of nature and the severity of the dying form. These elements are intricately intertwined to create the beauty of ikebana, a beauty that is universal rather than transient.

Fig. 1.4 An asymmetrical, yet coherently organized ikebana work, Rikka Shofutai

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There is a phrase in ikebana, “Ucho Satan.” This means “long on the right, short on the left.” It indicates that the right and left branches must be of different lengths so that they do not compete with each other. By arranging different elements so that they are not similar; each characteristic, such as long or short, can be all the more enhanced. The characteristics of each will be clarified to better complement each other. Even in such an asymmetrical design, the entire work should have a perfect weight balance so that no branch tilts or falls down. At the center of the work there is a core part referred to as “seichusen” that indicates the centerline (Fig. 1.4).

1.2.4 Simplicity Simplicity also typifies Japanese values of beauty. Rather than adding more to fill up space, one chooses the aesthetic of subtraction, of determining what is minimally necessary from a large number of things, eliminating the excess, and leaving only the important things. This could be summed up in the phrase, “Less is more.”

Fig. 1.5 Denka (Tsubaki Ichirinike)

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For example, there is a certain ikebana arrangement style referred to as “Tsubaki Ichirinike” (single flower arrangement of camellia) (Fig. 1.5). This is a work that consists of only of a single camellia flower and three and a half leaves (three normal leaves, and one leaf that has been torn in half). For this, creators must select the best of these from many. Although the work ultimately uses only one flower and three and a half leaves, it is precisely the simplicity of using such few elements that gives the viewer more room to imagine and it is with that power of the viewer’s imagination that the ikebana work becomes complete. One could say that in contrast to the “expressive” culture of the West, Eastern cultures are cultures of “conjecture.” In ikebana, there is also a method referred to as "suirikuike" (Fig. 1.6). In suirikuike, one of the two groups of floral materials arranged separately (one to the right and one to the left) in a vase should be wood, like a tree, and the other should be grassy material. It is customary to place a stone at the foot of the tree. The far side of the stone represents distant hills and mountains, while the part in

Fig. 1.6 Suirikuike, Shoka Shofutai

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front of the stone represents a view of the waterfront (Fig. 1.7). This method of expressing a magnificent landscape using only a few floral materials typifies one of the Japanese aesthetics. Evidently, since ancient times, not only those who practice ikebana, but also those who appreciate it must have had profound knowledge and rich imagination. In “Ikenobo Sen’no Kuden” (Oral Teachings of Ikenobo Sen’no) written by Ikenobo Sen’no in sixteenth century, we can see the following phrase (Fig. 1.8): “Represent a huge mountain and a river running through it using a small amount of water and short plants. In the course of a short period of time, you will be able to see the beauty of many changes. It will be as if it were the wondrous art of the immortals.” This can be interpreted as saying that arranging flowers is a way to express the natural scenery of mountains and rivers with a little water and a few plants and trees.

Fig. 1.7 Scenery represented by Suirikuike Grasses in the front waterside, and trees in the distant land (Photo Provided by PIXTA)

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Fig. 1.8 “Ikenobo Sen’no Kuden” (1537)

Simultaneously, it can be interpreted as reconstructing the individuality and beauty of flowers in a single vase. Likewise, Japanese haiku incorporates kigo (words that express the season) in its excessively short total of 17 syllables (5–7-5 syllable pattern), leaving the author a limited number of words in which to reflect their thoughts. Let us look at an example (Seidensticker & Nasu, 1962).

Furuikeya Kawazu Tobikomu Mizu no Oto

(English translation) The quiet pond A frog leaps in, The sound of the water.

This is a haiku written by Matsuo Basho. At first glance, it encompasses the sound of a frog jumping into an old pond, the silence of the surroundings being emphasized by the sound of the water. However, there are many other interpretations.

1.2.5 Making Use of “Ma” (Space) Another characteristic of Japanese aesthetics is capturing the beauty, not only of the actual object, but also of the surrounding space; in other words, making the most of the “Ma” (space). A good example of this is the work “Shorinzu Byobu” (The folding screen of pine trees) by the Japanese painter Hasegawa Tohaku (1539–1610) (Fig. 1.9). In this painting, pine trees are depicted in a large space. Although there are only a few pine trees in the painting, they are not merely presented to show pine trees. They are expressed in a way so as to make the viewer feel the wind and the

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Fig. 1.9 “Shorinzu Byobu” (right wing) by Hasegawa Tohaku Cited by: Integrated Collections Database of the National Institutes for Cultural Heritage, Japan. https://colbase.nich.go.jp/collec tion_items/tnm/A-10471?locale=en

air crossing between them, as if they are a part of the nature depicted. Here, the real (pine trees) and the virtual (space) can be captured integrally (Fig. 1.9). Another such ambiguous area would be the “engawa” found in the architecture of Japanese traditional houses. The engawa is a boarded passageway overhanging the edge of a Japanese house. It allows direct access to the interior from outside, such as from a garden. It is an eclectic best-of-the-both-worlds space from which you can instantly enjoy the outdoors, and which you can freely identify to be either interior or exterior, depending on the situation. In Japan, such spaces, that cannot be clearly considered indoors or outdoors, have been cherished by families as a place for refreshment. Another important aesthetic element is to not be “artificial.” There is a type of ikebana arrangement referred to as “gyodoike” (fishway) (Fig. 1.10). This is a method of arranging two kinds of plants that grow near water with a gap between them to look like a path for a small fish to pass through, hence the name. It takes a lot of time and effort to create this type of art. However, a look at this work evokes an image of a waterfront with plants growing and fish playing among them. Though it is a work elaborately made by human hands, it evokes a scene cut from nature and represents a way in which Japanese incorporate outdoor scenery into their homes to enjoy, through miniaturizing it. The same can be said of another arrangement style in ikebana referred to as “Shoka” (Fig. 1.11). It, for example, calls for the use of two types of material (wood and grass). Normally the grass is at the front of, and the wood is at the rear of the kenzan (flower support). This is because we usually see trees grow thickly at higher positions, whereas grasses are under our feet and appear low in our line of sight. This should be represented in the work. With this technique of arranging both wood and grass together, we can express two different elements; long and short time, and far and close distance. Further, these can be harmonized as a single element. The plants

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Fig. 1.10 Gyodoike, Shoka Shofutai

and trees are arranged as if the natural landscape were directly inside the house. This is not to say that the plants and trees are arranged according to what people think they should look like, but that they are arranged with respect for nature.

1.2.6 Respect for the Passage of Time In conclusion, we discuss the aesthetic of showing respect for the passage of time. In the West, a “flower” has its greatest value when it is in its “completeness,” and it tends to be a good idea to keep it that way. In ikebana, “flower” refers to not only tulips and cherry blossoms, which are commonly imagined, but everything in the world. The word “ikebana” consists of “ikeru” (arrange) and “hana” (flowers). From buds to blossoms, on to withered leaves and then withered branches, one finds the

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Fig. 1.11 Nishuike, Shoka Shofutai

radiance of life in each stage, and believes that there is a beauty that can only be brought out at that moment in its life. In ikebana, the idea is to minimize the artificial load on them and to bring out their natural properties. An arrangement style referred to as “Hasu Isshiki” (arrangement composed mainly of lotus) is clearly based on such an idea (Fig. 1.12). The word “isshiki” here indicates a “single kind” of floral material. This style uses a variety of conditions of lotus flowers and leaves in a work, implying the past, present, and future. For example, the past is expressed by kuchiha (withered leaves) and renniku (a seedpod without petal). The present is expressed by hirakiha (an open leaf) and kaika (blooming flower). Moreover, the future is through makiha (a tightly furled leaf), shumokuha (furled leaves that look like a hammer), and a bud. Shumokuha is a type of makiha in which the leaf is partially open; the term “shumokuha” derives from a hammer called “shumoku” used in the Buddhism rituals. “Hasu isshiki” conveys not only beauty, but also a sense of time; the past, present, and future, the time of the moment, as

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Fig. 1.12 Hasu Isshiki, Rikka Shofutai

well as the passage through time. It is no exaggeration to say that ikebana is an art of “demonstrating time.” It can be said that, in the Japanese sense of beauty, there is an attitude of not only valuing and enjoying something’s current state of beauty, but also to be mindful and find enjoyment in the changes that occur in its life with the passage of time. Most Japanese temples and shrines look ancient with the passage of time since they were built, but this was not always the case; rather, it expresses a shift in values toward the philosophy of “wabi-sabi,” accepting the fading of colors over time as a natural part of life. To relate that to ikebana, because people are connected to plants and trees over a long time, and can closely observe their changes as living organisms, they feel empathy for them as they would another living being. Such empathy is a foundation of ikebana.

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1.3 Authentic Borderline—What Should Change and What Should not Change Traditional culture organizations and long-established businesses have maintained their traditions and have prospered from their consistent reputation. For such an enterprise to overcome changes in social conditions and values, and continue to sustain itself, it is necessary to have the combination of two things, best characterized as: “things that should not be changed” and “things that should be changed.” What should not change is the philosophy of the company, which can be regarded as the identity of the company. In contrast, what needs to change in this age of diversified communication is the method of transmission or the product itself. The things that must not be changed are generally the philosophies and principles that are deeply related to the founding and establishment of the company, and therefore, “invisible” and difficult to recognize. The things that must change, in contrast, are both easy to see and easy to understand. In that sense they seem to be the opposite of things that should not be changed. We introduce some examples. In Kyoto, there are companies with great longevity, such as Gekkeikan Sake Corporation, which has been producing sake since its establishment in 1637 in the Edo period. Many of these companies have been handed down from generation to generation and are significantly popular among the people of Kyoto. Alternatively, some companies, such as Kyocera Corporation, OMRON Corporation, and Nintendo Company, Ltd., have developed from their initial form into global companies. At first glance, the development patterns of these two categories of companies seem different. However, both of them have identified and put into practice the criteria for what should not be changed and what should be changed. This is probably the reason they continue to be considered “authentic,” regardless of the development patterns. These companies considered the “long-established companies,” have not always continued making the same products or presenting them in the same way from past to present. For example, Kamesuehiro (founded in 1804), a long-established Japanese confectionery company in Kyoto, preserves a recipe from the Edo period (1603–1868) which is about 200 years old, while changing the amount of sugar from its inherited recipe, to meet the needs of today’s health-conscious sensibilities and changing tastes (Fig. 1.13). This is the result of their constant pursuit of being attractive and valuable to the people of the current era. Regarding Gekkeikan Sake Corporation, they also sell cosmetics and other products using their sake yeast. Additionally, the company’s strategy of having product diversity and its earlier development of non-alcoholic beverages has allowed it to maintain a certain level of performance even when alcohol was banned owing to the spread of the COVID-19. Ikebana is also represented in the list of long-established companies (including both privately owned businesses and various publicly held corporations), with a history of about 1,400 years, dating back to the Asuka period (592–710), the time of Prince Shotoku (574–622, a regent and a politician). According to a 2010 survey by

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Fig. 1.13 Illustration of the Kamesuehiro confectionary exposition. (Kamesuehiro Collection/Fuji Film Innovation Japan Cultural Property Archives)

Teikoku Databank, Ikenobo Society of Floral Art, founded in 587, is recognized as the second longest-established company in Japan (Fig. 1.14). The business topping that list for longevity is one established at the time of the arrival of Buddhism, a business involved in the construction of temples and shrines and the selling of Buddhist altars. Various enterprises were born with the arrival of Buddhism and continue to exist. Moreover, in the world of ikebana, there is a coexistence of things that have changed and things that have not changed. Among the things that have not changed is the fundamental philosophy of Ikenobo, the “Ikenobo Sen’no Kuden.” It is a philosophy typified by such expressions as “Even withered flowers are full of charm” as well as other insights, such as what it says about repeated practice, that through repeated practice one can not only appreciate the flavor of each season, but also reach a state of enlightenment. This conveys a deep compassion for finding and respecting the radiance of life in all things, rather than just the superficial colors and shapes of flowers. It is a sense of reverence for life, that life is beautiful in all its states (Fig. 1.15). In 1968, when the novelist Yasunari Kawabata (1899–1972) was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature, he quoted a passage from “Ikenobo Sen’no Kuden” in his speech (Kawabata, 1969). Sen’o Ikenobo remarked on another occasion that “the mountain and strands should appear in their own forms.” Bringing a new spirit into his school of flower arranging, therefore, he found “flowers” in broken vessels and withered branches, and in them too, the enlightenment that comes from flowers. “The ancients arranged flowers and pursed enlightenment.” Here we see an awaking to the heart of the Japanese spirit, under the influence of Zen. Cited by “Japan The Beautiful and Myself” translated by Edward G. Seidensticker. This is where the world view of ikebana differs from that of Western flower decorating culture. Ikenobo always adheres to this unchanging philosophy, even with the floral materials used. Moreover, the materials and shapes of the containers have changed significantly.

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Name of Business

Industry

Location (Prefecture)

Foundati on (A.D.)

1

Kongo Gumi

Wooden construction

Osaka

578

2

Ikenobo Society of Floral Art

Ikebana instruction

Kyoto

587

3

Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan

Japanese hotel management

Yamanashi

705

4

Koman

Japanese hotel management

Hyogo

717

5

Zengoro

Japanese hotel management

Ishikawa

718

6

Tanaka Iga Butsuguten

Manufacturing of Buddhism equipment

Kyoto

885

7

Nakamura Shaji

Construction

Aichi

970

8

Shumiya Shinbutsuguten

Sales of Buddhism equipment

Yamanashi

1024

9

Sudo Honke

Manufacturing of Sake

Ibaraki

1141

1 0

Tsuen

Manufacturing and Sales of Japanese tea

Kyoto

1160

Fig. 1.14 Major long-established companies with more than 100 years in business (Top 10 companies): Source Teikoku Databank (2010). Reference https://news.mynavi.jp/article/20100909a006/

In traditional ikebana, plants and trees that grow naturally in the fields and mountains have been collected and used as part of the flower arrangement. There is a saying, “Ikebana should be done with your feet,” which is to say that one should look around and walk around to fully understand what plants and trees are in bloom and in what condition they are in before arranging them. In the past, it was assumed that

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Fig. 1.15 Example of ikebana using withered leaves

Fig. 1.16 Vase made of FRP material combined with Nishijin fabric

flowers would be collected from the fields. However, urbanization is now making this difficult. More and more horticultural species and imports are being used as flower materials. The number of cultivated species has expanded owing to the developments in greenhouse cultivation and improved varieties, as well as an increase in imports from overseas. Such changes are not only improving the appearance of the flowers. However, the use of a wider variety of floral materials and other changes such as longer lasting

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Fig. 1.17 Shoka Shofutai style ikebana

flowers and the creation of new colors that did not exist before have contributed to a wider range in the ways ikebana can be expressed. There is also a change related to the use of natural trees. Natural trees take decades to grow. It is important for our company and industry to not cut them down unnecessarily, limiting that to occasions such as flower exhibitions. We should always strive for a world where traditional culture helps protect the natural environment as well as interpret contemporary challenges represented typically as changes in the natural environment. Flower vases have also changed. Traditionally, vases were made of natural material such as copper, pottery clay, and bamboo, but today, in addition to these materials, vases made of fiber reinforced plastics (FRP) have also been created. This is useful to the times in Japan, where the population is aging. The material makes them unbreakable, light, and portable. The development of products combining fiber-reinforced plastic with another product of Kyoto, dyed and woven textiles, has also played a role in expanding the demand for those products. It offers a different use for dyed and

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woven textiles outside their use in the traditional Kyoto industry producing kimono and obi (Fig. 1.16). With that said, however, the environmental problems caused by plastics and their discharge into the oceans have become a global issue in recent years. Kyoto was the site of COP3 (COP: Conference of the Parties). The Kyoto Protocol adopted at COP3 set a target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 6% between 2008 and 2012. Based on the Kyoto Protocol, the City of Kyoto formulated a “Plastic Resource Recycling Strategy” in its “4th Fundamental Plan for Establishing a Sound Material-Cycle Society” (approved by the Cabinet in June 2018). That plan went into effect in May 2019. The city’s goal is to reduce the amount of single-use plastics by 25% by 2030. Changes related to this include a trend in recent years to return to

Fig. 1.18 Shoka Shimputai style ikebana

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natural materials and other trends toward de-plasticization, that see the use of fiberreinforced plastics being phased out as much as possible. This change in vases is a good example for us to consider the things that have changed, and what is acceptable to change. It is not only external elements that change. Ikebana itself, or the “style” of ikebana, which is usually considered unchanging, has also changed according to circumstances. There are two ikebana styles: “Shofutai” and “Shimputai.” Established in the Meiji era (nineteenth century), Shofutai reflects the Japanese view of nature and is composed according to the balance of “7:5:3.” Also, a “rating” system according to the growing conditions of plants and reflecting traditional Japanese values was established, based on which ikebana in the Shofutai style is arranged. (Figs. 1.17 and 1.18). In contrast, Shimputai does not have a fixed form, nor is its dignity determined by such ratings of plants. It can be determined and arranged according to the subjective judgment of the creators (Figs. 1.19 and 1.20). The Shimputai style was created and supported because it matched the sensibilities and current situation of modern people. This is because the housing environment in

Fig. 1.19 Rikka Shofutai style ikebana

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Japan has changed. Japanese homes used to be wooden and had a tokonoma (alcove), but with the increase of condominiums, the number of tokonoma decreased. Another factor is the change in the availability of plants and trees owing to changes in natural ecosystems and the liberalization of the global economy. This is also influenced by the fact that, nowadays, people tend to prefer natural and light things rather than complex and heavily constructed things. Shimputai was a proposal for a new type of ikebana to respond to various changes. In other words, a result of efforts to create new values while maintaining traditional values.

Fig. 1.20 Rikka Shimputai style ikebana

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1.4 Japanese Hospitality “Omotenashi”—Its Origin, History, Philosophy and Expression 1.4.1 Origin and History of Japanese Hospitality “Omotenashi” Hospitality creates some value in the mutual relationship between people, whether it is free of charge or with compensation, and is also something that people enjoy. In the digital transformation society where information technology has advanced, a kind of fear that artificial intelligence will replace the role of human beings has aroused public interest. However, it is precisely in this era of digital transformation, which is forcing a change in human behavior and institutions, that the importance of values that rely on the interrelationships among people becomes more prominent. The Western word “hospitality” is derived from the Latin word “hospes” (guardian of guests). From this “hospes”, the word “hospitalis” (to entertain) was invented, and after which the word hospitality was further invented. The word “hospitalis” has also given rise to a variety of derivatives. For example, “hospital,” “hostel,” and “hotel”. These words have a commonality in the sense of treating others well. Morrison & Gorman define hospitality as “the cordial welcome and hospitality of a host who, with kindness and generosity, provides a guest or newcomer from a different social background or culture a temporary place to eat or stay, whether charitably, socially oriented, or for business purposes. It is welcome and hospitality. The degree to which hospitality is offered conditionally or not depends on the environment and circumstances. The degree to which hospitality is conditional or non-conditional depends on the environment and the situation.” They said, noting that, it is not only a principal-customer relationship and social orientation, but also a business act. Lovelock, C., & L. Wright define hospitality as “treating the customer as a guest and providing a level of comfort that meets the customer’s needs in interaction with the service organization.” Western hospitality is considered one of the most important service elements that add value to the service, and the element of “supplementary” is added. In Japan, the term corresponding to Western hospitality is referred to as “Omotenashi.” The letter “o” is a prefix indicating respect and politeness, while “motenashi” corresponds to the content of hospitality. The word “hospitality” is a compound of the two words “mote” and “nashi.” This can also be found in the article of Prince Shotoku’s “Constitution of 17 Articles” (604), which states, “Harmony is the basis of nobility.” The basic meaning of this kind of Omotenashi is behavior and treatment of people. It is said that the origin of the meaning of such a word is derived from entertaining travelers by serving them a feast or sharing a meal with them. It is likely that the relationship between people through food has led to a rapport, sympathy, and gratitude. Consequently, some kind of value has been created. Such value will remain in people’s memories and become a source of sustenance to overcome difficulties in the future.

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Gyoki (669–749), a high priest of the Nara period (710–794), prepared lodging facilities called Fuseya throughout the Kinai (Greater Kyoto) region to help travelers. By combining the two functions of “staying” and “eating,” we can see the value of this type of hospitality in Japan today. In the Kamakura (1185–1333) and Muromachi periods (1336–1573), when social classes such as samurai and merchants were clearly defined, people began to strengthen their relationships with each other by feasting and eating together. This kind of development is consistent with the Western concept of hospitality. The Venerable Master of Nanzenji Temple, a famous temple in Kyoto, also said that hospitality means first recognizing the other person as an enemy, and then respecting and accepting the enemy, so that there is no one enemy. This kind of thinking is close to the meaning of hostile, hostility, etc., as proximate words of the Latin root of hospitality, hospes. Such closeness is interesting. In contrast, it is said that it was around the time of Sen no Rikyu in the AzuchiMomoyama period (1573–1603) that an event similar to Japan’s characteristic spirit of hospitality emerged. Sen no Rikyu was a pioneer in the development and completion of the tea ceremony from an event referred to as Chanoyu (a simple tea event) to Wabicha, the prototype of today’s tea ceremony. The meaning of wabicha is not only to treat people with courtesy and kindness through a tea ceremony, but also to consider things that are not visible to others. The spirit of Omotenashi can be traced back to the manners and spirit of the tea ceremony. Sen no Rikyu taught his disciples the “Seven Rules of Rikyu” as the basic manners and spirit of the tea ceremony. These rules are: “Boil water while considering the situation and feelings of the other person, make preparations accurately and sincerely, and give consideration so that both parties can feel most comfortable.” Further, “express yourself concisely by knowing the essence of things, always have a relaxed mind, consider the other person in everything you do, and do everything possible for the other person.” These are the essence of Omotenashi to this day. Furthermore, Sen no Rikyu also taught the equality of nobility and lowly status in the tea room, and created the basis of the Japanese culture of hospitality, where feudal lords, townspeople, and peasants are all treated as guests. Omotenashi, which was influenced by the tea ceremony, has been expressed in several interesting sayings. For example, there is a saying, “70% for the host and 30% for the guest.” The tea ceremony can be regarded as a game in which the host prepares the theme and the guests read and understand it. This phrase means that the host of the tea ceremony is the one who enjoys the main value of the tea ceremony, and the guests also enjoy the value of the tea ceremony. The relationship between the host and the guest is one of equality, and the host takes the initiative and enjoys himself, while the guest and host enhance each other’s value. This point of view is somewhat different from Western hospitality as a customer touch-point. The phrase “Ichigo Ichie” refers to a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. “Ichigo Ichie” means a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and means to devote oneself to something that will only happen once in one’s lifetime. It is a word that expresses the spirit of the tea ceremony. It means that every tea ceremony should be considered a oncein-a-lifetime event, and that both the host and guests should devote themselves to it

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with sincerity. Rikyu’s “Wakei Seijaku” is also widely known as an expression of the spirit of tea. This phrase means “to get along with each other well, to respect each other, to be pure from the heart in all things, hence achieving a calm and unmoved mind.” From these words, we can understand the beauty of the heart that appears when we entertain others. From these words, Japanese hospitality includes the value of encounters with people in a limited time and in a limited place. Rather than the universal value of “anytime, anywhere, with anyone,” the emphasis seems to be on the difficult-toreproduce value found in the limited environment of “only now, only here, only you.” This kind of encounter is not something that people can control. Therefore, the hospitality created by such encounters must be unconsciously based on gratitude and prayers to nature, Gods and Buddha.

1.4.2 The Concept of Hospitality and Its Expression Today, hospitality is not only an act of anticipating the needs of the customer half a step ahead, but also an act that shows the essence of the living environment, where traditions, culture, and customs are intricately intertwined. Customers are also required to be literate enough to understand the intentions of the providers. These acts are based on long-standing relationships of trust, and when such relationships are established, co-creation values are less likely to be compromised. Let us consider capturing this kind of hospitality in a scientific way (Kobayashi et al., 2014). Scientifically, it means to find some kind of reproducibility in people’s thoughts and behavior, not just in terms of human factors. Omotenashi can be regarded as a situation in which there is a template of what to “do” and how to “do it,” but what kind of treatment is still undecided (Hara, 2016). In other words, the higherlevel abstract concepts, such as philosophy and behavioral style, remain unchanged, but the situation in which specific services are provided (service encounter) can be regarded as one in which value is created by responding flexibly. The proprietresses of Japanese inns and the chefs of Edomae sushi restaurants must have learned this process of hospitality through daily training and experience. So, why leave the “what” and “what to do” parts blank? And what is the benefit of doing so? This is because hospitality is mainly closely related to services based on high-context communication that does not involve verbal expression. In high-context communication type services, there is a high degree of context sharing of culture, history, and lifestyle in the interaction between the provider and the customer. The value of hospitality stems from the ability to interpret and read the context and the service itself, as well as the relationship between the provider and the customer, based on this shared context. This is because there is no need to explicitly translate the message into language because both parties have a shared understanding of the context. This is because we can recognize appropriate information through casual non-verbal communication, such as small gestures or changes in facial expressions.

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Therefore, even if the part of what to “do” is not known in advance, specific information can be applied at the time of service provision. As the service literacy of the people involved increases, more abundant value creation can be expected. In contrast, low-context communication type services are effective and efficient when the service characteristics of the provider and the needs and wants of the customer are clear. It is easy to specify what should be “done” and what should be “done” in a manual beforehand. The more detailed the description of what “should” and “will” be, the more the service can be customized to meet the needs of individual customers. The more abstract the level of “Therefore” and “To do,” the easier it is to express it in language as a philosophy, service credo (behavioral guidelines), and to promote information sharing. Unlike value co-creation based on explicit communication, Omotenashi is characterized by communication that implicitly provides information to at least one of the sender and receiver. In this type of value co-creation, there is a tendency for communication to be based on mutual understanding of the intentions of the other party. Particularly, in Japan, there is a strong tendency to form contexts based not only on language but also on shared time and shared experiences. This allows communication among people in a community who have eaten the same food. However, if that environment is not in place, both parties will not be able to find a clue to talk to each other, conversation will not take off, and the other party will not be able to grasp what the other party is trying to say, resulting in awkwardness. In the following, four patterns of value co-creation can be identified depending on whether the actions of the provider and recipient of hospitality are explicit or implicit (Fig. 1.21). There are four patterns of value co-creation depending on whether the act of understanding the psychology and intentions of the recipient of the hospitality is explicit or implicit: the explicit, the “Omonpakari,” the “Mitate,” and the “Suriawase” types. The explicit type is value co-creation in which the provider and the customer communicate explicitly.

Fig. 1.21 Value Co-creation of “Omotenashi”

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Thoughtful value co-creation is a form of value co-creation in which the provider does not consciously emphasize that they are providing a service, but rather provides an appropriate service by understanding the customer’s implicit psychological state and intentions. Consideration is one element in understanding hospitality. The core of the value generation of the discretionary type is the existence of a place where the psychology and intentions of the other party are understood. By defining such a place, it is possible to smoothly “lead the customer to enjoy the service” through the “behavior of using the service” and “understanding the customer’s mind and intentions.” This is a value-creating process that is effective in improving the customer’s intention to continue using the service and increasing the relationship and lifetime value with the customer. A typical example is the service based on the communication between a nakai (waitress) and a customer in a ryotei (traditional Japanese restaurant). In Kyoto and other long-established ryotei restaurants, the nakai (waitress) can understand the implicit intentions of the customers from their behavior, and ease tensions by talking about the seasons and the garden. Through such thoughtfulness, the guest can naturally pay attention not only to the food but also to the details of the garden and hanging scrolls, and further recognize the deep value of the service. In other words, thoughtful value co-creation can be regarded as a value co-creation model in which the provider takes in implicit information such as the customer’s psychological state and experience, and consequently, increases the customer’s receptivity to the service. Value co-creation of the standpoint type differs from the value co-creation of the consideration type in that it is a process in which there are implicit elements in the form of information provided by the provider. Look-up is a communication method that reminds the customer of the provider’s implicit intentions through the color and shape of the object. A specific example is the use of Kyo-gashi (Japanese sweet) in a tea ceremony. The colors and shapes of Kyo-gashi express the changes of the seasons, and at a tea ceremony, the guests can sense the intentions of the host through the confectionery that is presented in this way. This kind of appearance is one of the elements to understand Omotenashi. The core of the value generation of the “Mitate” type is the existence of a place to abstractly express and present one’s thoughts. In the formation of such a place, visualization that leaves room for imagination through colors and shapes, or information expression that appeals to the five senses is used. By defining such a place, it is possible to promote “the customer’s understanding, imagination, and enjoyment of the intentions” through a place where the provider’s thoughts are abstractly and visually expressed using colors and shapes. The effect of visualization is to leave room for imagination. As a result of value co-creation through such a view, customers can comprehensively understanding the value of the service through the process of understanding and imagining the intention of the provider. In other words, it can be said that the value co-creation process is such that the customer can enjoy the service with creativity by daring to express the provider’s implicit thoughts abstractly. The value co-creation of the “Suriawase” type is meant to enhance the value of the service through the implicit exchange of information between the provider and

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the customer. A familiar example is the friendly communication between a chef and customer in a sushi restaurant. Here, a kind of tension is created not only through the food itself, but also through the conversation between the chef and the customer, their gestures, and changes in facial expressions, etc. Consequently, the service value of the place is enhanced. In other words, value co-creation can be considered a process in which the service provider and the customer present their own selves and negotiate through mutual actions. This kind of negotiation is also one of the elements applied to understand Omotenashi as in the case of consideration and observation. The core of value generation in the “Suriawase” type is the existence of a place that holds the tension between the intentions and knowledge of the user and the provider by rubbing together. By defining such a place, not only the provider but also the customer can enhance the value of the service through the conversation between the provider and the customer that creates and maintains a sense of tension. This type of value co-creation is one of the most sophisticated and flavorful value co-creation processes in Japanese creative services. In this kind of value co-creation, customers are willing to grow taller and gain more experience. Consequently, the customer’s sensitivity to service value (service literacy) will increase. Moreover, they will be able to understand the service value more comprehensively. Traditionally, Japanese hospitality, as represented by the word Omotenashi, has often given an enigmatic impression. This is probably attributed to the fact that the hospitality goes out of its way to manage issues that are unknown to the recipient. Often, the recipients do not recognize the hospitality that has been paid attention to. For foreign visitors to Japan, if they are not aware of the underlying context and common implicit assumptions, it becomes difficult to understand. Additionally, not only do they not understand the value of the service, but in some cases, it may be perceived as excessive service, resulting in a mysterious impression. In fact, this impression may be similar for Japanese people who have never experienced Kyoto’s temples, shrines, and traditional arts. What kind of services can Omotenashi be seen with? We call such services with Omotenashi that are difficult to replace by AI as “Japanese Creative Services”. As concrete examples of these services, these are areas such as certain long-established stores, Japanese cuisine, traditional cultural activities, and Cool Japan as shown in Fig. 1.22. These services have value not only from their content, but because of their relationship with contextual information such as culture, tradition, and history. These services are characterized by utilizing such contextual information in the form of non-verbal (high-context) information seen throughout the communication between the service providers and service consumers. The value co-creation using such high-context communication is a characteristic of Japanese Creative Services and an essence of sustainable value.

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Fig. 1.22 Japanese creative services

1.5 Sustainability of “Ikebana”—A Japanese Traditional Culture Epitomizing Japanese Hospitality This section focuses on the history of ikebana, with a look on the various eras, to understand how the Japanese sense of beauty, its criteria for authenticity, as well as elements of Japanese hospitality through the generations have influenced the sustenance of the popularity of ikebana.

1.5.1 Japanese Sense of Beauty Derived from Harmony with Nature The enduring value of ikebana can be attributed to a complex variety of factors. First, its philosophy of seeing and respecting beauty in all forms of plants. This is the foundation of ikebana. This philosophy can be seen in “Ikenobo Sen’no Kuden,” and embodies Japan’s unique aesthetic senses of asymmetry, simplicity, “ma,” and blank space. These elements enhance the value of Japanese culture by identifying its unique characteristics. External, “visible” aspects such as forms or colors have also contributed to ikebana’s survival. Adding to this, ikebana recognizes even “invisible” functions as inner aspects. The harmony, the fusion of these two aspects ensures the sustainability of ikebana as a philosophy. It is worth noting that there has not been a strict adherence to the philosophy or the various aesthetic qualities without acceptance of change; On the contrary, it has rather flexibly accepted change and responded to changing times and situations. Ikebana has never been about repeating the same thing, a quality that helps it sustain its future.

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1.5.2 Long-Term Trustworthy Relationships with Local Communities The second factor to discuss regarding the enduring popularity of ikebana is the long-term trust between the stakeholders. Kyoto enjoyed the status as a capital city for over 1000 years, during which there were many religious schools for both Shinto and Buddhism, making the city a place of great activity for both cultural patrons and artisan groups. Regional characteristics of Kyoto, in which people gather to live and work, have helped support the enduring popularity of ikebana. Throughout the long history of Ikenobo, this is evident during not only peaceful and smooth times, but also during times marked by many difficulties. Some of them were transitory, caused by particular events, while others are long-term, caused by changing trends and changing times. Shiunzan Chohoji Temple (aka Rokkakudo) is the base for Ikenobo’s activities and a home of its training programs. It has also been the home for generations of Ikenobo headmasters who have served there as chief priests. In its history, the temple has burned down 18 times, mostly from fires that started in the surrounding neighborhoods. The temple could not escape the fires as many buildings in Kyoto were built of wood. Moreover, the Rokkakudo temple was located in the center of Kyoto. The last fire occurred during the “Hamaguri Gomon Incident” in 1864 (a clash between pro and anti-shogunate forces), during which the temple was completely burnt down. Its reconstruction was completed in 1877, which means that it took about 13 years to rebuild. Rokkakudo, as its name implies, has been hexagonal in shape since its founding by Prince Shotoku. However, in some of its reconstructions after the fires, the temple was rebuilt in a quadrangular shape, with only the zushi (a miniature temple with double doors) in the interior, retaining the hexagonal shape. After a later fire in which the temple burned down, it was restored to the hexagonal shape of the original building. It is a testament to the many times it was burned down and rebuilt. The Rokkakudo temple does not depend on danka (parishioners); it is dedicated to wishfulfilling prayers, and therefore it had no supporters to continuously donate funds. Each time it burned down, it was rebuilt using donations from the monks of the time, the “monjin” (disciples of Ikenobo), and the “machishu” (local leaders) who all worked hard for the reconstruction. The 1968 movie “Gion Matsuri” (Gion Festival) gives a depiction of the machishu’s efforts when a fire occurred, as they rushed to the Rokkakudo temple, rang the bell to report the fire, and worked hard to extinguish it (Fig. 1.23). This action by the machishu can be explained by the significance of Rokkakudo temple in those days as a venue for “Kuji tori shiki” (lottery for the parade order of the floats) for Gion Matsuri (the festival that has been held by Yasaka Shrine for the past one thousand one hundred years), to decide the order of yamahoko (floats for the festival, known as “moving museums” owing to their elaborate decoration) as well as its function as a place for exchanging information for the communities (Fig. 1.24). This is a clear indication of how Rokkakudo attracted the faith of the townspeople and gained a place in their hearts.

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Fig. 1.23 Movie “Gion Matsuri” (1968 Collection of the Museum of Kyoto)

One, of course, cannot forget World War II as a profound time of crisis. Although it was exceedingly difficult to conduct cultural activities under the conditions of war, it was important to continue the passing down of cultural traditions because if that was to stop, there was a possibility that the teachers, techniques, and philosophy would cease to exist. There are records that indicate that during World War II, bronze vases used for ikebana had to be offered to the government military authorities for weapon production (Fig. 1.25). Since more and more bronze vases were offered, Ikenobo recommended new vases made of bamboo with flower supports as a means to solve the shortage in vases. Vases referred to as “usuhata” (a flat-topped bronze vase) made of bamboo, although they were originally supposed to be made in bronze, were handed down to the present. Ikenobo continued normal practices even during the

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Fig. 1.24 “Gion Goryo-e Saiki” (Detailed Drawing on Religious Festival) (partial) (1757 Collection of Kokugakuin University Library) Depicts a scene of “kuji-tori-shiki” (lottery for the parade order of the floats)

war, which is evident in “Tsukinami Kaiki,” the records of monthly flower exhibition of August, 1943, which introduces the creators of the work along with the floral materials used. The social conditions of the time, especially the mobilization of women into the labor force, brought about unavoidable changes in how kado was taught. As is evident in the example of kado education in schools beginning in that period, Ikenobo was seeking to prepare a system for the future. Also during the war, in November 1943, the Autumn Tanabata Exhibition was held. This exhibition was held annually at the salon of Emperor Go-Mizuno-O, in Kyoto Gosho imperial palace in Edo era, for which Senko Ikenobo played the role of director of rikka. Incidentally, this exhibition is still held annually, although the venue has moved from the imperial palace to Rokkakudo temple, the Ikenobo Headquarters. In October 1945, the first flower exhibition after the end of the war was held at the Daimaru Department Store in Kyoto, near Rokkakudo. The theme of this exhibition was expressed in these opening words for the exhibition; “The people who will not lose their spirit, even after everything has been destroyed, will survive forever.” It continued, “Kado is a way of bringing tranquility to our lives, like a gracious mother brings happiness to our lives. It has always been with us. We hope this humble flower exhibition will remind all the visitors of the fragrances of their homes, of their mothers’ love, and give you another chance for your new life.” The regular Autumn Tanabata Exhibition was held in November in the same year. The character of the Rokkakudo temple and its shared history with the machishu, along with its local communities can be said to have played a major role in the enduring survival of Ikenobo ikebana.

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Fig. 1.25 Bronze vases offered to the war

1.5.3 Regional Characteristics of Kyoto A third factor supporting the enduring popularity of ikebana is the historical, economic, and academic significance of the Kyoto itself, where Rokkakudo is located. Kyoto was the capital of Japan for more than 1000 years, from 794 to 1869; the imperial culture there flourished. Along with the Emperor and the Kuge (court nobles) around him, many masters of traditional culture also lived in Kyoto. In conclusion, the craftsmen who produced high quality products lived in Kyoto’s artisanal districts, interacting with each other in friendly rivalry and refining their products to make them ever more sophisticated. Kyoto is also the headquarters of many temples and shrines and has profoundly influenced Buddhist art and teaching. Today, Kyoto is not only a traditional city, but also a city of innovation. Many leading global companies like Kyocera Corporation, OMRON Corporation, and HORIBA, Ltd. began as local startup companies in Kyoto.

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Aside from these are also the multitude of small and medium-sized local companies with unique technologies that are extremely niche and can only be found here. From this, it is safe to say Kyoto has two exceptional qualities: a “long-view perspective” with which it has been able to recognize and grasp the essence of authenticity, and a “mind for innovation” in that it has channeled its unique enterprising spirit to proactively take advantage of change. A good example of this combination of qualities can be seen in the tapestries and other decorative items hung on the yamahoko floats in the Gion festival. Kyoto is also significant as an academic city, home to many universities and the many students attending them. According to the “Statistical Observations of Prefectures 2018” presented by the Statistic Bureau, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, Kyoto ranks first in terms of the number of universities per 100,000 people; the number of students who reside in Kyoto make up approximately 10% of the city’s total population. This probably also makes it one of the cities with the highest percentage of students in the world. Additionally, according to the School Basic Survey 2019 performed by MEXT (Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology), Kyoto prefecture ranks first amongst all prefectures in terms of the percentage of students who go on to university. This is an even higher percentage than that of Tokyo, the capital of Japan. The many universities and colleges and the influx of many enterprising students and free-thinking researchers has resulted in the continued revitalization of Kyoto as a creative center.

1.5.4 The Hospitality Mind In conclusion, there is a fourth factor behind the enduring popularity and resilience of ikebana, the hospitality mind that ikebana has embraced from its beginnings. The “Bunroku San-nen Maeda-tei Onari-ki” (A document recording the visits of noblemen to Maeda house in 1594) has a description of ikebana being displayed for Hideyoshi Toyotomi (1537–1598), the daimyo warlord who rose from a humble peasant boy to the rank of kanpaku (a chief advisor of the Emperor), and is widely known as a significant historical figure who unified all of Japan in 1590. In 1594, Senko Ikenobo I made an o-sunanomono (a style of rikka arrangement that is composed to expand sideways) work using pine for the tokonoma (a prestigious decoration space in a Japanese guest room) in the house of Toshiie Maeda. Toshiie Maeda (1538–1599) was one of the major military commanders serving Hideyoshi Toyotomi, and controlled Kaga (current Ishikawa prefecture). Senko Ikenobo made the work for the occasion of welcoming Hideyoshi Toyotomi to the house of Maeda. The large tokonoma had a width of approximately 7.2 m (Figs. 1.26 and 1.27). Moreover, on the wall of the tokonoma hung a set of four kakejiku (hanging scrolls). It was described that the twenty monkeys illustrated in the scrolls looked as if they were happily playing among the pine trees in the o-sunanomono ikebana. The document recording the visit praises this work of ikebana as “Ikenobo Ichidai-no Dekimono”

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Fig. 1.26 O-sunanomono in Maeda House (reproduced) © Production Committee of “Flower and Sword”

(the greatest work in the Ikenobo family history). One can imagine that the perfect harmony of the o-sunanomono work and the kakejiku scroll was especially admired. It is safe to say that Senko Ikenobo was commissioned by Toshiie Maeda to design and create such an elaborate work especially for that occasion and for Hideyoshi Toyotomi’s enjoyment. In other words, the embodiment of the hospitality mind. The Japanese, who from ancient times have considered each social encounter as “ichigo ichie” (once in a lifetime opportunities) to treasure, have also had the same spirit toward the art of flowers. Prescribed floral patterns have certain constraints, which must be reproduced. In contrast, there is no reproducing “feelings” such as love in the moment, cherishing each meeting, or the spirit of hospitality. Therein lies the essence of the Japanese way of hospitality, Omotenashi. It is a fusion of two things: patterns that can be understood, shared, and mastered by everyone, and a spirit that is contradictory and cannot be reproduced. It is an integration that conveys a hospitality that can be deeply moving and create a memorably warm impression. Today, following digitalization and rapid technological innovation in AI, it has become possible to quantify “patterns” with digital and AI technologies. In ikebana, as well, judging from the entire scale (height, width, and depth), precise numerical values in the angle, length, or the number of branches could be specified. Using the data that can be accumulated, we can further technically analyze such things as the eye movement of the ikebana practitioners to know what they tend to focus on during the work creation, or the order in which they choose their floral materials. We have been actually trying to incorporate these approaches into our practices. Japan has many different traditional cultures and arts which have been handed down from generation to generation. There are the classical theater arts such as noh, kyogen, kabuki, bunraku, traditional handicrafts including the dyeing and weaving of fabric, pottery, bamboo handicrafts, and expressions of traditional culture such as kado (flower arrangement), sado (tea ceremony), and shodo (calligraphy). Some of these traditional arts are facing difficulties amid the aging of their current masters

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Fig. 1.27 “Bunroku San-nen Maeda-tei Onari-ki” (Vol. 663 of “Zokugun Shorui Ju” (Classified Documents), (Collection of Archives and Mausolea Department, Imperial Household Agency)

and a lack of successors. In light of this situation, efforts are being made to capture the skills and movements of various craftsmen using scientific data. By analyzing the data, the skills and expertise of the masters can be quantified, scientifically examined, and incorporated into a curriculum through which students, their successors, can learn and acquire what is necessary with proper timing. Such an approach is promising in human development, and it is highly likely to solve the problem of the shortage of human resource and help support the continuation of traditional performance, handicrafts, and cultural arts. In the field of ikebana too, it is conceivable that in the future, AI-equipped robots will be able to create ikebana based on the big data accumulated, of highly rated works.

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While there are “patterns” that can be quantified and followed like a manual, there is also a spirit that sustains the Japanese hospitality. It is an attitude of flexibly responding to people and situations in the moment. The more digitalization progresses, the greater the need will be for humans to give their spirit to their works. It will become more important to ensure a continuous balance between the two. Considering things from the aspect of a business, we see the creation of patterns as one of the requirements for organizations to grow. By defining, stipulating, and utilizing patterns, we will be able to educate employees and hand down the techniques and skills for effective growth. In contrast, the company’s survival will also depend on our ability to look beyond the pursuit of temporary profits to capture the essence of the company, maintaining the best conditions while seeking and implementing ways to continuously increase its value. The continuous achievement of goals will require an attitude of utter attentiveness to our surroundings, a long-term perspective and flexibility, along with a firm philosophy that the members can always return to. In line with this, we need to not simply use patterns passed down from predecessors, but also to adapt them to the social environment of our time. They should be utilized in a way that gives them vitality and fluidity. In Japan, there is a marathon event referred to as “ekiden,” that is run in the form of a relay. In ekiden, each runner runs a designated distance for a section of the race and passes the baton (sometimes a sash) to the next runner. One of the most famous ekiden races is the “Hakone Ekiden,” a collegiate ekiden relay race from Tokyo to Hakone, in which every team comprises 10 runners, each of whom runs approximately 20 km (approximately 200 km for the total distance). In ekiden, each runner puts in great effort to hand their baton to the next runner in the best condition possible, which is of critical importance. In the passing down of traditional culture to future generations, as well as in sustaining a business in society, how to hand the baton to the next generation, in what condition it is passed, are important questions for the current generation to examine and make concrete decisions about. An understanding of Japanese concepts of hospitality, Omotenashi, and of long-established Japanese companies can provide hints on how to go about growth and sustainability.

References Hara, Y. (2016). Japanese creative service and its competitive value co-creation processes. In Kaneda, T., Kanegae, H., Toyoda, Y., & Rizzi P. (Eds.), Simulation and Gaming in the Network Society, pp. 159–172. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-0575-6_13. Kawabata, Y. (1969). Utsukushii nihon no watashi (Japan, the beautiful, and myself), Tokyo: K¯odansha. Kobayashi, K., Hara, Y., & Yamauchi, Y. (2014). Nihongata kurieitibu s¯abisu no jidai: “Omotenashi” e no kagakuteki sekkin (The age of Japanese Creative Services – A Scientific Approach to “Omotenashi”). Tokyo: Nihon hy¯oron sha. Onitsuka, T. (2016). Hanaikusa (Flower and sword). Tokyo: KADOKAWA/Kadokawa shoten. Seidensticker, G. E., & Nasu, K. (1962). Nihongo rashii hy¯ogen kara eigo rashii hy¯ogen e (From Japanese-like expressions to English-like expressions). Tokyo: Baif¯ukan.

Chapter 2

Structural Mechanism for Resilience in the Management of Intangible Assets

2.1 Dynamic Balancing Against Crisis, Disaster, and Environmental Change 2.1.1 Dynamic Balancing in Sustainable Activities In the previous chapter, we introduced the philosophy and historical background of Japanese hospitality, and outlined how it has influenced the behavioral guidelines in ikebana, tea ceremony, and ryokan. Omotenashi in Japan entails a mapping between the means of hospitality and the actions to be taken. However, the kind of hospitality to be performed remains undecided. It is not a matter of deciding what action should be taken beforehand, when the other person is in a predetermined situation. One of the elements that reminds us of hospitality in Japan is the sense of beauty. The Japanese sense of beauty focuses on the process of bringing something from an incomplete or unbalanced state to a complete and stable state; it is this process of effort that inspires empathy as beauty. In other words, we do not necessarily place our consciousness on the completed beauty. Rather, the process may be crucial. Additionally, we can create a space where inside and outside coexist on the boundary between inside and outside. We can also create a time where past and present events coexist in the same way. We do not make the inside and outside, past and present, etc., very clear. There is a sense of beauty in such spaces and in the space between time and time. However, such hospitality and aesthetic sense will not last long if we simply focus on incomplete processes and ambiguous space and time. To ensure sustainability, it is necessary to eliminate incidental information and actions and focus on more intrinsic values, and to have clear standards for what to protect without changing and what to change in response to the environment and the demands of the times. These ideas have been inherited by people as intangible assets, and have continued to this day. Thus, looking back on the history of the world, as in the case of ikebana, tea ceremony, ryotei (Japanese style restaurants), and ryokan (Japanese style inns), it © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2022 Y. Hara et al., A New Approach to Resilient Hospitality Management, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-1665-6_2

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is not because the organization and organizational behavior are perfect that they have been sustained. Rather, they have found beauty in ambiguous boundaries and imbalances, and by sincerely facing the process toward completion, they have been able to sustain themselves. In other words, it is safe to say that they have found a balance point by continuing to move dynamically in response to environmental changes. In the next and subsequent sections, we focus on the structural mechanisms that enable such a dynamic balance to be achieved, and discuss specific cases.

2.2 Assemblance of Shinise—One of the Highest Density Regions of “Shops of Long Standing” in the World This chapter focuses on Japanese longevity companies and organizations, and mentions the characteristics of their sustainability and their relationship with the Japanese philosophy and hospitality mentioned in the previous chapter.

2.2.1 What is a Long-Standing Company in Japan? According to a fact-finding survey of “Shinise” companies (shops of long standing) by Teikoku Databank (2019), there are about 33,000 “Shinise” companies in Japan that have been in business for over 100 years; these account for about 2.3% of the total. This is an outstanding number even from a global perspective. Well-established companies have the ability to overcome many difficulties. Moreover, there are many things to learn from their corporate philosophy, management policies, and crisis management measures. In Japan, the ratio of long-standing companies in Kyoto Prefecture is the highest at about 4.7%. This is because Kyoto had the soil to protect and nurture traditional crafts. There are many companies that stand for a long period of time, such as Nishijin, which manufactures Japanese fabrics or Kongo-gumi, which is involved in the reconstruction of temples and shrines over hundreds of years. This is attributed to the fact that the value and philosophy of intangible assets represented by Japanese hospitality described in Chap. 1 have influenced the survival strongly and flexibly even in various difficult situations. The oldest company in Japan is Kongo Gumi. Kongo Gumi is a construction company that mainly deals with the design and construction of shrines and temples, and the restoration and repair of castles and cultural properties. It has a history of 1,400 years. It is the oldest surviving company in the world. The survival of such a company is also attributed to the fact that it has inherited architectural design through the continuous culture of wood in Japan and has been engaged in repeated battles and disaster recovery. Therefore, it is a company with a resilient element.

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2.2.2 “Shinise” Located in Kyoto and Osaka We further investigated the characteristics of such a long-established company. Kyoto and Osaka are taken up as areas where there are many long-established companies, and the case of conducting an attitude survey of long-established companies is given as a reference. We asked about 2,000 long-established companies located in Kyoto and Osaka, and got responses from 300 companies. As a survey of long-established companies, the management’s awareness of top decision-making, risk appetite, and industry development is taken from Hofstede’s Culture Dimensions, which is an important perspective in cross-cultural understanding. For management awareness, Hofstede points out that power distance is the way top decisions are made, and uncertainty avoidance is the risk appetite in business development. Additionally, individualism vs. collectivism is analyzed in association with the degree of industry development orientation compared to in-house development. Further, as a manager’s consciousness, self-reliability, humility, and discipline are also evaluated in the survey. A long-established company with self-reliance, humility, and discipline continues to this day. Conversely, the lack of any of these factors increases the chances of a survival crisis. It also mentions in-house manufacturing and sales, cultural history, customer relationships, and quality are important for the management’s awareness. These are basic elements in open innovation and marketing. These 10 dimensions express the consciousness of the manager, and are independent of each other. As a result of the analysis, the following five long-established corporate groups were derived: • Cluster 1 (long-established high-discipline, conservative shops): Small scale, small bankruptcy experience ratio in the past, high discipline, price oriented • Cluster 2 (long-established conservative shops): Mainstream conservative • Cluster 3 (passive conservative shops): Passive, benefits of regional brands, relatively large rate of bankruptcy experience in the past • Cluster 4 (modern long-established shops): Business scale is relatively large, risk appetite, enthusiastic about collecting in- formation on financial discipline • Cluster 5 (long-established innovative shops): Longevity/small business, risk appetite, high discipline, spouse of successor are also crucial for management, enthusiasm in terms of innovation, community relations, consideration of both seniority and business performance, separation from shareholders, long-term thinking of note here is cluster 5. The characteristic tendency is that there is a high correlation between sales and efforts to export to overseas and strengthening products and services for overseas visitors. It also has

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a relatively high correlation with organizational innovation. This means that the long-established traditional innovation shops that belong to Cluster 5 are doing business while focusing on overseas or are highly oriented toward execution as a source of growth. Practical education is also important; it is proof that schools should not be decided in advance and that it is necessary to respond according to the situation (Figs. 2.1 and 2.2). Using the multivariate analysis, we investigated the characteristics of Kyoto and long-established companies. Specifically, we evaluated the number of years of establishment, sales, sales per employee including executives, the way of thinking about inheritance, relationships with employees, business partners, customers, financial information, etc. in a long-established company. Taking these analysis results into consideration, we listed the possible factors for success in each cluster.

Fig. 2.1 “Shinise” located in Kyoto and Osaka (1)

Fig. 2.2 “Shinise” located in Kyoto and Osaka (2)

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• Cluster 1 (long-established high-discipline, conservative shops) It is worth noting the positive correlation between years of founding and continuous innovation. It can be interpreted that the older, highly disciplined conservative companies have maintained their management through continuous innovation. Particularly, the impact of innovation in production processes is high. Additionally, it is a factor of longevity that it is rare to change business partners such as suppliers with whom we have a long-standing relationship, emphasizing relationships with business partners. In addition to maintaining regional social capital with an emphasis on communication within the organization, appropriate information analysis is also one of the factors crucial for success. • Cluster 2 (long-established conservative shops) It is also worth noting this cluster is the age of its founding. Older companies have higher scores for inviting local residents to company events and activities, and less likely to sell owned assets such as real estate to procure funds when funds are needed. This is the same tendency in the single correlation, multiple regression, and decision tree analyses. It is safe to say that longevity companies that belong to this category are promoting their corporate activities with the highest priority on social capital in the region. In contrast, with regard to sales, companies that select companies including external human resources and companies that are strengthening products and services for overseas visitors tend to have higher sales. Even for long-established conservative companies, the implementation of such open management measures and the increase in sales are the keys to business expansion. One of the important factors is the continuity of the sale of the same product 30 years later. • Cluster 3 (passive conservative shops) The characteristic of this cluster (a long-established passive conservative company) is that it has been founded for many years and has a strong desire to sell the same product 30 years from now. Additionally, it is also a cluster that has an impact on the number of years since its establishment by actively utilizing financial strategies such as asset formation (real estate investment, etc.) other than its main business. It is relatively stronger than companies belonging to other clusters in that it will continue to produce what it has protected so far. Furthermore, the fact that a reward system is set up to motivate technological improvement also has a positive correlation with sales. Although product continuity is important, organizational innovation is necessary, and customer information management utilizing IT is also one of the factors. It is better to increase the composition of directors and the ratio of non-founders; governance is also important. • Cluster 4 (modern long-established shops) The secret to the success of companies belonging to this cluster is the strong will to expand the scale of business in the future, while considering exports to overseas. Additionally, financial strategy is also an important factor, such as actively utilizing asset formation (real estate investment, etc.) other than the main business. However,

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it may be a relatively necessary requirement to be uplifting, including a sense of money. Simultaneously, organizational innovation is still necessary. The companies to which this cluster belongs are generally large companies and companies that make large sales. • Cluster 5 (long-established innovative shops) The characteristic tendency in cluster 5 is valuing local customers and social capital, and not be satisfied with the current situation, reinforce export efforts overseas as well as products and services for overseas visitors. It is compatible with the challenge and the existing business. In other words, while valuing traditional core competencies, we conduct business based on an overseas perspective or highly oriented toward execution as a source of growth. Practical education is also important. Moreover, the schools eligible to attend should not be decided in advance. Further, it is necessary to respond according to the situation. Among the long-established companies, the cluster 5 is noteworthy. We further focus on companies with characteristics like Cluster 5 and take a closer look at their resilience and innovation.

2.3 Juxtaposition—A Resilient Structure for Sustainability We further investigate how the city of Kyoto has been as the capital of Japan for 1,200 years and how the companies in Kyoto have adapted environmental changes and overcome various difficult situations. In other words, we investigate the kind of resilience elements Kyoto has adopted to build a sustainable society. The first keyword is Juxtaposition. Juxtaposition is a coexistence that drives interesting effects on the same location. An example of Juxtaposition is a state in which contrasting elements are placed in close proximity, as evident in the fields of architecture and painting. With such an arrangement, it is possible to compare and contrast the elements, and to clarify the resulting similarities and differences. In other words, it is a sharp expression method (Fig. 2.3). At first glance, the elements of such an expression method seem to be opposite, but in reality, they influence each other. The same holds for what changes and what does not change as explained in Chap. 1. Looking at companies and communities from a different perspective, the following relationships are also observed: • • • • • • •

Tradition and innovation Defense and attack/changeability Exclusiveness and inclusiveness Craftsmen and politicians Savings and luxury Old city and present Inbound and outbound.

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Fig. 2.3 Juxtaposition

However, for such contrasting elements to be juxtaposed and stable, it is necessary to change the degree of balance appropriately in the environment of the elements surrounding them. When the outside world changes so that risks in the environment become apparent, the degree of focus on juxtaposed elements is changed. In other words, by shifting the center of gravity, it is possible to maintain stability against changes in the environment. Speaking of the analogy borrowed from the traditional Japanese toy “Yajirobee”, the high fulcrum (highly contextual cultural and historical environment) with “Yajirobee” results in that the “center of gravity” of the juxtaposed elements becomes low and stable. This is similar to maintaining dynamic stability against changes in the environment. It is also important that coexistence and co-evolution occur between juxtaposed elements during a stable period when risks do not become apparent. For such coexistence and co-evolution to occur, it is considered that the high context of the abovementioned culture and history as environmental information is also a facilitating factor. In other words, it is safe to say that one of the conditions for system sustainability is to integrate limited resources into several contrasting elements in a company or community. The accompaniment of these will effectively utilize the dynamic capabilities between different elements. Such a phenomenon of co-evolution is also positioned in the category of Red Queen theory in management. The Red Queen theory focuses on co-evolutionary growth in inter-company relations with the analogy that the co-evolution of two species causes evolutionary arms race. However, the characteristics of Kyoto as a sustainable enterprise and city mentioned here are not always tense hostile relationships such as evolutionary arms race, but rather a mutual recognition of their existence. It would be more appropriate to describe the situation as not causing excessive mutual interference. These are considered to be in a state of being able to recognize each other’s existence and to be in a state of balance (=resilience state) in response to a request for change, rather than causing excessive mutual interference.

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For example, we consider the case associated with Ikenobo, which is mentioned above. For historical reasons, the headmaster of Ikenobo also serves as the chief priest of a historic temple referred to as Rokkakudo, which is adjacent to the headquarters. This hexagonal shaped temple has been destroyed 18 times in total, owing to several big fire outbreaks in the city, natural disasters and battles. Believe it or not, 18 times. However, for all the 18 times, the temple was reconstructed successfully and completely with the support of the neighboring townspeople. In a Juxtaposition’s model, the different elements of Ikenobo/Rokkakudo and the townspeople (they may be stakeholders, though) form mutual trust by respecting each other in the historical and cultural context. Moreover, it is clear that both of them are juxtaposed. It is a good example of how resilience has been acquired and continues to the present day in the midst of many changes in the times. However, it is not clear why the structure of Juxtaposition has lasting stability compared with the structure of other organizations and communities. Considering Juxtaposition as a kind of pattern, it is a state where different colors are compatible, like the “checkered pattern” in Japan. You may imagine an image like Impressionist pointillism. If you zoom out such a pattern and look at it from a distance, each color will be mixed, and you will see an omnidirectional monotone image without boundaries. In contrast, if you zoom in and approach, only one of the colors will appear to be the selected image. If these are recognized as the structure of a company, the former structure that looks like a monotone color is a group of companies that conduct omnidirectional activities. The latter structure that picks up one color is a group of companies that conduct “selection and focused.” The omnidirectional structure makes it easier to hedge risks in response to relatively slow changes, but growth is relatively slow. Additionally, in a rapidly changing environment, it is difficult to keep up with the changes. However, companies that favor “selection and focused” promote efficient growth in the short term, but are susceptible to risks from changes in the environment (Fig. 2.4). The structure of companies and communities based on Juxtaposition is a structure located in the middle of these structures. The juxtaposition structure can maintain stability as a result by shifting the focus to one of the elements when there are environmental instability and risk factors. Consequently, it becomes one of the key factors towards social sustainability. Juxtaposition is also influenced by the Yin–Yang philosophy that originated in China. Yin and Yang is the idea of classifying all the things in the universe into two categories, Yin and Yang, from various perspectives. Coexistence and harmony with nature are also important in Japanese ideology, and are influenced by such ideas of Yin and Yang. The contrast between Yin and Yang also appears in “straight lines/curves,” “height/lowness,” “gorgeous/plain,” and so on. Moreover, each element has the effect of emphasizing each other’s individuality and compensating for defects. Additionally, Yin and Yang are two “Ki” (life energy) with opposite attributes, and in this respect, they are structurally similar to Juxtaposition. Some business executives say that hospitality comes from “Ki,” which reinforces this similarity. However, Yin and Yang are in the position of being the source of change in the

2.3 Juxtaposition—A Resilient Structure for Sustainability

Fig. 2.4 Juxtaposition, omnidirectional, and select and focused

Fig. 2.5 Downtown Kyoto as an example of Juxtaposition

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creation and annihilation of all things. However, in Juxtaposition, it is safe to say that the order of causality is reversed in the sense that it is a structure that creates stability against environmental changes. Finally, we would like to guide you through a map of the present-day central area of Kyoto (Fig. 2.5). The dashed circle indicates the traditional temples, shrines, and buildings that have been built around the area. The rest of the city is composed of modern elements such as shopping streets, offices, and residences. Thus, we can see that the city of Kyoto itself is a has a binary within itself introducing a dynamic mix of tradition and innovation. This type of urban formation is different from the development of European cities, for example, where there is a clear distinction between the post-modern cities and the modern metropolises.

2.4 Metamodel—A Mechanism for Adapting Environmental Change The second key concept is a metamodel intended to answer the question, “What resilience elements do we have and how have we built a sustainable society?” A metamodel is a “model for a model.” The Japanese tea ceremony and flower arrangement can be explained by the concept of Kata (model). However, the concept of Kata for Kata (model for model) has not been widely recognized. In this book, however, we attempt to explain it using the concept of metamodel (model for model) in terms of mechanisms for adapting to environmental changes.

2.4.1 Kata (Model) and Metamodel (Model for Model) Hospitality-derived behavior and activities are based on a model referred to as Kata. In the absence of the concept and mechanism of Kata, each action or activity is based on individual traits. The effort depends on how many actions or activities are performed. For example, we consider the process of making Higashi (Japanese dried confectioneries). Once a mold for dried confectioneries is made, it is relatively easy to manufacture dried confectioneries according to the mold. Additionally, using a mold, it is possible to change the ingredients to be poured into the mold, or to change the color. The mold ensures diversity in this respect (Fig. 2.1). The same holds for hospitality: if there is a predetermined pattern for each behavior, i.e., what to achieve with how we should behave, then by learning that pattern, many people will be able to adopt the same hospitality mindset and behavior. In other words, it is possible to create a pattern of hospitality, which results in gaining scalability. However, in the same way as in the production of dried confectioneries and hospitality, if a production or service is based only on a predetermined mold, it is possible to act efficiently within the scope of that mold. However, if a production

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or service is attempted outside of that mold, it is not only ineffective but may even become a hindrance. In Kyoto and other parts of Japan, manufacturing and services are adapted to the natural and seasonal environment. In other words, it is important that the Kata is not fixed, so that it can change. A wide variety of dried confectioneries are available in various forms. To respond to such environmental changes sustainably, a metamodel (model for model) to facilitate the creation of a Kata (model) is empirically powerful. In a metamodel, the structure of a Kata, such as its attributes, is defined as a metalevel of the Kata, which also serves as a condition for constraints. The information in this meta-level is like a modifiable parameter. Various Kata can be generated by changing the parameters based on the original type in the metamodel. By using the molds generated in this way, we can enjoy the value of hospitality, such as the dried confectioneries produced from time to time, consideration, and consideration. Thus, knowledge representation in three layers, i.e., metamodel (model for model)—Kata (model)—instance (individual entity), can continue to realize products and services that are resistant to environmental changes. In the following, we attempt to explain the definitions of a metamodel, Kata (model), and instance in more detail (Fig. 2.6). • Metamodel: A metamodel is a set of rules and constraints that define the attributes of a Kata (model), including both explicit and implicit rules and constraints. They

Fig. 2.6 Three layer architecture

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also include the parts that make up the Kata. For example, wooden materials for making a mold of dried confectioneries, standard shapes, and tools for making changes from the standard shapes. It also generally includes information about the degree of aesthetic tolerance, and the degree of aesthetic awareness of asymmetry and simplicity. • Kata (model): A Kata is a structure created from a metamodel. It specifies an abstract form of a state or behavior with common attributes. In the case of dried confectioneries, it is literally a wooden mold of dried confectioneries. In the case of ikebana, this would be, for example, the “Shin, Soe, Tai” of Shoka Shofutai. • Instance: Instances are concrete examples created in the real or virtual world by incorporating individual cases or information into the Kata. For example, daily life according to the seasons (e.g., dried confectioneries), individual ikebana works, scenes of hospitality, and concrete tea ceremonies. Here, the process of creating a Kata from a metamodel and the process of creating an instance from a Kata are, in principle, similar mechanisms. However, many manuals basically describe only examples and Katas, and in few cases include metamodels in their systematic and continuous use. Credo is more of a basic guideline for action, and is not primarily intended for resilient business continuity in response to environmental changes.

2.4.2 Shu–Ha–Ri Sustainability and growth do not necessarily mean understanding the Kata, acting in accordance with the Kata, and creating the Kata. When the environment is changing relatively slowly, or when you want to grow in the short term, it is effective to act in accordance with the Kata. However, from a long-term perspective, environmental changes will occur at some point, and there will be situations where sustainability and growth do not coincide. In such a situation, adhering to the Kata may not be beneficial, but rather, may create disadvantages and absurdities. To avoid such a situation, it is necessary, not only to observe the Kata, but also to enhance the meaning of the Kata and move away from it. Our predecessors recognized this necessity, and shared and enlightened us on the importance of such a process as “Shu–Ha–Ri” (protecting, breaking, and leaving the Kata). However, even in “protecting, breaking, and leaving the Kata,” the process has traditionally been depending on individuals. Breaking the Kata or leaving the Kat does not necessarily result in sustainability or growth. Even if we create instances directly while skipping the process of understanding the Kata, it will be difficult to grow and sustain in the long run. The existence of metamodels is particularly useful in the phase of reinforcing and breaking away from such Kata. The current Kata needs to be updated as the environment changes. In this case, adapting to the environment at the metamodel level is considered one way through which to ensure continuity and have resilience.

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2.4.3 The Case of Ikebana We further investigate the case of Ikenobo, the origin of ikebana. In Chap. 1, we introduced three styles of ikebana at Ikenobo, i.e., Rikka, Shoka, and Free Style. In this section, we attempt to explain them using the three layers of interpretation: metamodel—Kata (model)—instance. The first is Rikka, which was formed during the Muromachi period (1336–1573). This is a form of ikebana that evolved from Tatebana, a form of ikebana that has been offered to the Gods and Buddha since ancient times, consisting of a portion of a tree and undergrowth. As a metamodel, this form of ikebana is based on the idea of expressing natural scenery and an aesthetic sense derived from harmony with the nature and beauty of the scenery. In the Meiji era (1868–1912), a Kata was created from this metamodel. This is Rikka Shofutai. In the Rikka Shofutai, there is a set of role branches referred to as “Shichiku no Dogu (tools).” These are based on the following role branches derived from the metamodel: Shin, Shoshin, Soe, Uke, Hikae, Nagashi, Mikoshi, Do, and Mae-oki. By using these “Shichiku no Dogu,” the Rikka style expresses the idea that beautiful natural scenery is created by the harmony of all things. In other words, Rikka emphasizes the importance of understanding the providence of nature through the harmony of plants and trees. In the Heisei era (1989–2019), a new form referred to as Rikka Shinp¯utai was created in Rikka. This can be interpreted as a reinforcement of the Kata in the metamodel based on aesthetics. This can also be interpreted as reinforcing Kata based on an aesthetic sense in the metamodel. In other words, it corresponds to the change in the living environment, from the Tokonoma to the modern living space, and to an environment with a modern sensibility. In the new style of Rikka, the emphasis was on expression, and flowers were made to have elasticity, freshness, and luster. Additionally, the beauty of Rikka was expressed through brightness, sharpness, and prominence. The second style is Shoka, which was established in the mid-Edo period. It is an ikebana style that uses one to three kinds of flowering materials to express the way plants and trees live and take root in the ground. As a metamodel, it is based on the aesthetic sense derived from the beauty of birth and the beauty of simplicity in which the life of things appears. While Rikka seeks beauty in the harmony of plants and trees, Shoka focuses on the beauty of birth, when the life of plants and trees emerges. Birth is the characteristic, or individuality, of each plant and tree, and birth beauty is the beauty found in the various ways in which plants and trees strive to live. Based on the beauty of birth of plants and trees, ikebana is a style that attempts to express the life of plants and trees with dignity in a single bottle. As in the case of Rikka Shof¯utai, a Kata was created from this metamodel in the Meiji era. This was referred to as Shoka Shof¯utai. It is based on the simple role branches of Shin, Soe, and Tai derived from the metamodel. The natal beauty of plants and trees is evident in the way these three branches respond to each other and extend gracefully from the water’s edge. As a result of this standard, Shoka has

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become widely popular among women as a floral form that is easy to learn and teach, and has continued to do so to this day. In the Showa period (1926–1989), a new style of ikebana referred to as Shoka Shinp¯utai was created. This can also be interpreted as the evolution of aesthetic sense owing to environmental changes in the metamodel. In other words, the living environment has changed, providing more opportunities for private places, small tatami rooms, and small alcoves. Another background that can be given is that it has become more important to see and express the beauty of the birth of plants from various aspects, such as color, shape, texture, growth of leaves, and vigor of branches. It is worth noting that even though the Kata is not explicitly used in both Rikka Shinp¯utai and Shoka Shinp¯utai, ikebana has been done in a way that goes beyond the Kata, recognizing the Kata as a reference model. This is an example of how the structure of a Kata remains. However, the use of the Kata has changed over time. The third type of ikebana is Free Style ikebana. Free Style ikebana does not have a fixed Kata, but is literally free to arrange, paying attention to the shape and texture of the plants and trees. In contrast to the metamodel—Kata—instance framework described in this section, Free Style ikebana does not have a specific Kata, but it can be interpreted as ikebana with a clearly defined philosophy as a constraint in the metamodel, to find the beauty of plants and trees from various perspectives. In recent years, ikebana has come to be used not only for enjoyment in living spaces, but also as a display to create event spaces, stages, show windows, and so on. Free Style ikebana, which can be created freely without being bound by conventions, is expanding its field of activity as a new type of ikebana that can be used to display flowers in spaces and situations that are different from the Tokonoma (alcove) that has been envisioned by Rikka and Shoka. This expansion of Free Style ikebana can be said to indicate that the importance and recognition of the metamodel of ikebana’s aesthetic sense is, in fact, increasing in this age of respect for individuality, in which living spaces are becoming more Westernized and Western flowers are becoming more widespread.

2.4.4 Relation to the Authentic Borderline The above is an explanation of the metamodel based on the examples of dried confectionery and ikebana. A metamodel is a Kata for Kata. Here, we attempt to explain the relationship between the metamodel and the authentic borderline, which we mentioned in Chap. 1. We have decided that the criterion for authenticity is the clarity of the criteria for determining what should change and what should not change. A metamodel is one that specifies the essence of the structure of a Kata and also flexibly defines the structure of the Kata. In this sense, at least the description of what should not be changed as a criterion of authenticity should be specified in the metamodel. In contrast, what can be changed as a genuine criterion can be a change in parameters in the metamodel, or a change in the way data is used or changed in the resulting Kata. It is not clear whether this kind of correspondence was conscious when it was formed

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as a genuine standard. However, it is safe to say that only desirable characteristics have been retained in manufacturing and services that have been used continuously, and consequently, have had resilient characteristics. In this context, the relationship between metamodels and authentic guidelines is also interesting.

2.5 Brand Development Through Storytelling We further focus on the image of the city of Kyoto and the companies that operate within it. In Kyoto, there is a clear integration of traditional townhouses, temples and shrines, and newly built offices and residential facilities that comply with landscape regulations. Walking around the city, historical monuments are everywhere, bringing back many episodes from 1,200 years ago to today. People’s daily lives are closely related to nature with its four seasons of spring, summer, autumn, and winter, many events such as the Aoi Matsuri and Gion Matsuri. There are also related prayers of various religions and schools such as Buddhism and Shintoism. Although it is difficult to express in words, it is safe to say that people recall images based on information they can perceive with their five senses (i.e., high-context communication). Consequently, the brand image of the city of Kyoto has been created. This kind of branding based on storytelling using high-context communication has influenced not only the branding of the city as a whole, but also the branding of individual companies and organizations. For example, Shoei-do, an incense company, is a long-established company that was founded about 300 years ago. The current president, the 12th generation, has been devoted to the production of incense. At Shoei-do, the traditional techniques of handcrafting with all one’s heart and soul are utilized right up to the final sealing stage. When expert hands and methods, a passion for authenticity, and highly tuned senses come together in harmony, the finest incense is produced. The company’s brand image is founded not only on the manufacture and selling of incense, but also on the concept behind it and the virtue of hospitality. This is further based on the family slogan, “Never bend, always smolder, and spread far and wide.” Furthermore, the sensation of really smelling incense and the experience of Kodo enhance and maintain these ideals. As another example, we mention the Nishijin Museum of Life “Tondaya.” Tondaya, a nationally registered tangible cultural property, is a museum that includes not only the building that conveys the history and culture of Kyoto, but also the spirit of its origins that has preserved the traditions of Kyoto. Daily Shinto and Buddhist rituals, events that have come down from the court, and rules for good health and household safety are all the wisdom and meaning of our ancestors. All of these are the wisdom and meanings of our ancestors. They wish for people to live in harmony and peace. Tondaya is a small museum of machiya houses where visitors can experience the daily lives of these people with their five senses. In other words, it is a “living machiya” that conveys the history and lifestyle of Kyoto to the present. When you visit the museum, you will be able to recall the stories of seasonal events such as New Year’s Day, Setsubun Festival, Girls’ Festival, Cherry Blossom Viewing,

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Tango-no-Sekku Festival, Summer Purification, Tanabata Festival, Obon Festival, Chou-you-no-Sekku, Moon Viewing, and Tea Ceremony. The acquisition, sharing, and compassion of high-context communication from lifestyle and nature via such encounters and experiences encourage the creation of tales, which is the foundation of story-based branding. This kind of brand creation is very simple to preserve value. It also maintains a resilient value generation process by detecting different environmental changes using the five senses. We further investigate how brands are formed in different foreign locations. Following that, we discuss the major branding procedures of Hamburg, Germany, Paris, France, and New York City, USA. Hamburg, Germany’s second largest city, used to address as many markets and target groups as possible with a variety of stakeholders, topics, and content, using the available budget in light of the demands from various stakeholders in the city. The result was little by little, sometimes with contradictory messages, communicated through various channels in Hamburg. Since this approach did not allow for the formation of a cohesive city image, Hamburg’s external image remained ambiguous. In 2004, the development and management of Hamburg’s brand was declared a top priority, and strategic city branding took the place of traditional destination marketing. In other words, Hamburg is viewed as a single brand, with appropriate topics to be prepared and disseminated. This integrated approach went beyond the concept of target groups, embraced the concept of “one city–one brand,” and focused on external communication. The novelty of this approach is evident in the fact that at the time, many cities and regions were adopting a multi-brand strategy, with subbrands for tourists, sub-brands for businesses and human resources, and sub-brands for academia, sports, and culture. The implementation of this new strategy required several structural changes, and a company was created to coordinate and manage the Hamburg brand. Hamburg Marketing GmbH was established as a “primus inter pares” (first among equals), gradually giving direct and indirect access to other organizations and actors involved in the marketing of Hamburg. Management mechanisms and processes were further established to ensure the effectiveness of the city’s marketing and to promote close cooperation for the benefit of the city. Paris is the image of a place that we set in our minds, which deeply permeates our sense of travel and captures our hearts. Paris has always had a long history, culture, heritage, and a romantic image. Paris, well known as the most prestigious city brand in the world, is popularly known as the “City of Lights” and is recognized for its iconic buildings such as the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre, which are lit up every night. Cultural heritage, unfriendly restaurant owners, a Woody Allen movie or two, and overall aesthetics reinforce the brand. It is precisely the image as a symbol that influences brand development significantly. Google’s Parisian love story, for example, is set against the backdrop of Paris and is consistent with the romantic notion of the city that Paris has long cultivated. This reinforces the link between French romance brands and Paris. Paris also continues to attract tourists, welcoming more than 15 million visitors in 2013. This number is not likely to disappear in the future. It continues to be strongly associated with love and romance.

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New York, unlike Paris, which had to build its brand from scratch, is now enjoying tremendous success. As one of the world’s leading financial centers, New York values the functionality and viability of its cosmopolitan population, which has become part of its culture and traditions. The “I Love New York” campaign and, more recently, the “NYC Work” campaign have been very successful. We further focus on the emphasis on work culture. In other words, if you are willing to work hard, this city will reward you and make all your dreams come true. In 2007, the year after the campaign was launched, the number of visitors to New York increased by 5%, 350,000 jobs were created, 9 million visitors, $31 billion in visitor spending, and New York became the most popular tourist destination in the U.S. for the first time in 20 years, making 2010 a record year, a record-breaking year. (Source Wolff Olins) Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York project reached over 14 million people, spawned a book, and inspired a million projects around the world. Its originality and commitment to bringing people, their differences, and the human element to the fore is what makes this project unique and also the “most” New York. These images solidify New York as a melting pot of diverse emotions and human experiences. Kyoto’s primary brand development, as previously said, has been focused on high context communication drawn from culture, history, nature, and everyday life. It is formed via the recollection of tales using our five senses. In Western cities, however, brand creation has traditionally played a significant role via the sharing and comprehension of low-context information, such as explicit symbols and language. Explicit symbols are simple to comprehend and do not take long to attract people’s attention. This is a response to people’s impatience in contemporary times. From a marketing standpoint, it is a very understandable method. However, high-context and implicit information, like in the case of Kyoto, it may be difficult to get tired of seeing and experiencing something that always evokes fresh feelings and sensations. Deep thought will be required on how to offer an integration of information and how to balance providing this information. As an example, the ideal kind of food should contain all six tastes, namely sweet, salty, sour, bitter, pungent, and astringent.

2.6 Long-Term Trustworthy Relationship Among Multi-Stakeholders 2.6.1 Stakeholder Theory and the History of Sanpo-yoshi Stakeholders vary from company to company and organization to organization. They include employees, consumers, suppliers, shareholders, regulators, boards of directors, and corporate owners. Each has its own perspective on what is necessary for the company or organization to prosper. For example, internal stakeholders, such as employees, have a bottom-up understanding of the organization’s strengths and limitations and know firsthand what it takes to yield results. External stakeholders have

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a different, but equally important, perspective on how the company and its activities affect them. Stakeholder theory is a philosophy of organizational management and business ethics that considers the various constituencies affected by a corporate entity, such as workers, suppliers, local communities, and creditors. It also covers morals and values in organizational management, including corporate social responsibility, market economy, and social contract theory. Central to the stakeholder theory is what happens when, in reality, the stakeholders of a corporation establish their relationships. According to the stakeholder theory, while accounting profit is a measure of returns to shareholders, value added is a more accurate measure that stakeholders generate and give to those same stakeholders. Value added, which is considered more accurate, is linked to the returns that stakeholders index. Consequently, both value added and returns may explain the strength of the stakeholder theory in terms of evaluating organizational performance. Stakeholder engagement is essential for a company to be successful. Successful engagement helps to translate stakeholder demands into corporate objectives and is the basis for effective strategy creation. Additionally, finding points of agreement and shared motivations among stakeholders can drive group decision-making and ensure investment in meaningful outcomes. Without internal collaboration, it is not possible to develop effective plans or implement change. Stakeholder engagement is a method used by companies to listen, collaborate, and educate (or a combination of the three). The process involves identifying, mapping, and prioritizing stakeholders to establish the best strategy for successful communication while making the most effective use of available resources. Stakeholder engagement allows companies to be proactive in addressing the needs and aspirations of all those who have a stake in the company, thereby creating relationships, trust, credibility, and buy-in to the organization’s key objectives. If done correctly, stakeholder engagement can reduce possible risks and conflicts among stakeholder groups, such as ambiguity, dissatisfaction, inconsistency, disengagement, and resistance to change. The benefits of such stakeholder interventions are as follows: • Those affected by the outcome will enjoy the opportunity to express their opinions. • Ensures that the influential people in the organization are better identified and have a shared vision. • Enables companies to identify their key stakeholders and understand their connection to the company. • Individuals can come together and share information, experiences, and skills to co-create solutions. • Contribute to the formation of cooperative collaborations and new connections that create value. • It can help discover ways to increase competitiveness. • It can reduce risk and reinforce governance within the enterprise. In other words, a common understanding among stakeholders is essential to create a coherent vision for the future.

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“Sanpo-yoshi” is an interesting example of the Japanese concept of stakeholder relations. It refers to a management philosophy that is good for all three stakeholders: “good for the seller, good for the buyer, and good for the community.” This is truly a multi-stakeholder management. The term Sanpo-yoshi itself was proposed at the World Akindo Forum held around 1990, with the goal of applying the management principles of the Omi merchants (merchants in the Omi region, which means today’s Shiga Prefecture) to new urban development and industrial promotion. However, the management philosophy articulated therein is a mindset that has been handed down continuously since the Edo period (17th century). The Omi merchants, a small group of about 100 people, traveled around the country selling medicine, mosquito nets, textiles, and other products from the Omi region, and brought back local specialties. From the 17th to 19th centuries, the Omi merchants steadily expanded their businesses and built a nationwide network of stores from Hokkaido in the north to Kyushu in the south. By the end of the Edo period, they had become one of the most successful and influential commercial organizations in Japan. One of the characteristics of these successful Omi merchants was that they traveled long distances to do business. In other words, it is important to be accepted by the local community. Therefore, Omi merchants needed to build long-term trustworthy relationships and simultaneously become loved and respected by the local community. Thus, even before there were calls for corporate social responsibility (CSR), Omi merchants set an example of corporate citizenship based on the principle of Sanpoyoshi. The Omi merchants succeeded in their businesses because they built good relationships with consumers and local communities. They also generously invested their earnings in charitable activities that benefited the entire community, such as building bridges and schools. They recognized that their success was entirely attributed to their consumers and the local community. For this reason, they valued giving back. Sanpo-yoshi is a concept that is still useful today. Sanpo-yoshi means that what helps you is good for others and society as a whole. Omi merchants were good corporate citizen centuries before business terms such as CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility), TBL (Triple Bottom Line), B Corp, and CSV (Creating Shared Value) were coined. Moreover, they were doing well economically. The merchants were a true proof of the phrase “Being nice is good business” advocated by Ms. Anita Roddick, the founder of The Body Shop. Many Japanese companies still adhere to this principle and utilize the Sanpo-yoshi framework to communicate their values to their customers, partners, employees, and other stakeholders. This kind of Sanpo-yoshi multi-stakeholder management is also an important aspect of the building blocks for resilience. In recent years, there have been a series of large-scale business scandals in Japan, which may indicate the difficulty of making ethical decisions within a huge corporation. With an aging society, frequent natural disasters, and gender inequality (women hold only 5% of senior positions in medium and large companies), Japan’s future depends on all levels of society—small and medium-sized businesses, government, civic organizations, and large corporations—working together to address these issues.

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In these times, customers are expecting more from us, which is the perfect opportunity to rethink the basic positioning of our business and rediscover the Omi merchant way.

2.6.2 How to Build Long-Term Relationships with Customers Strong customer relationships are essential for business success. Customer relationships, like personal relationships, must be nurtured and cultivated. Managing interactions with past, current, and potential customers is customer relationship management. In companies that successfully manage their customer relationships, positive customer experiences increase customer retention and drive customer acquisition. Most experienced executives agree that building relationships with customers is critical to acquiring and retaining them. But who is in charge of that? In simple terms, everyone. Singapore Airlines educated its agents on this concept in the 1980s, claiming that there were only two departments in the company: inside and outside sales. However, not all businesses are set up this way. Marketing, sales, and customer service departments have traditionally been involved in building relationships with customers. However, not all businesses are like this. Everything that a company does to generate interest in its current and future products and services is called marketing. Marketing uses knowledge on the marketplace to persuade, inform, educate, and induce a response from customers and potential customers. In this sense, every communication or contact is an opportunity to build a relationship. This is Because people intuitively respond to what they hear, see, think, and feel. The more frequently you focus your marketing on the needs, concerns, and challenges of your target customers, the more likely it is that the seller will be perceived favorably. This is the first step to building a relationship with the customer. We further investigate what marketers can do to make a good first impression. It comes down to the ability to ask the right questions, create meaningful messages, communicate consistently, and interact both in person and online. It is the responsibility of marketing to create messaging that reflects the company’s brand and demonstrates the organization’s leadership, expertise, credentials, and track-record of success. Consequently, prospects come to “like” and trust the company. Marketing helps salespeople deepen relationships by increasing their visibility, credibility, and stature in the marketplace. Consequently, more deals are closed and revenue targets are met. The nature of the product or service, the size of the company, the organizational structure, and other variables affect the role of customer service. In some companies, the customer service function is conducted by the sales staff. In other organizations, customer service is handled by a separate department, whether internal or external. Customer service, regardless of who performs it, is critical to building and maintaining relationships with customers. It requires demonstrating professionalism (competence and skill), showing a personal interest in the customer, and being

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creative and resourceful in solving problems and answering questions. Although emotions play an important role in the buying process of prospective customers, logic rather than emotion is necessary to retain them as customers. That is why it is important to respond to customer requests promptly. This attitude, more than anything else, will increase customer loyalty and result in long-term relationships. Relationships with customers are essential to the success of a company. However, it is not something that can be achieved overnight. Customer relationships, like personal relationships, must be nurtured. If a company builds a strong relationship with its customers, it will result in loyal customers, positive word of mouth, and increased sales. Building meaningful relationships, however, takes time and effort and can fall apart quickly. Relationships that we take for granted can deteriorate very quickly. Strong relationships are built by taking care of the other person. Doing this frequently yields success. For a company, a customer base that buys regularly may be its most valuable asset. By adjusting marketing expenditures to nurture existing customers as well as new ones, a company’s profitability and sustainability can be significantly enhanced. In Japan, interacting with customers is a highly developed art and is based on various concepts of buyer-seller relationships. The following are some examples and strategies for securing long-term customers.

2.6.2.1

Customer Experience Based on Core Competencies

In the gaming industry, creating a sense of nostalgia is one of the most effective ways to create an emotional connection with customers. Headquartered in Kyoto, Japan, Nintendo was founded in 1889 as a manufacturer of Hanafuda cards. Hanafuda is a game in which players collect cards with various flowers on them, each with a different score. Nintendo is a good example of a company that faithfully adheres to what it refers to its “core competencies.” Core competence is a basic way of thinking that allows a company to survive even when technology and the world change. In the case of Nintendo, it is “how to make things fun.” Nintendo understands that its customers enjoy familiarity and nostalgia, so when it releases a new game such as “Animal Crossing: New Leaf”, it draws inspiration and references from classic games. This is a strategy that emphasizes emotional connection, and it has paid off in a big way. Today, Nintendo provides unique and intuitive entertainment experiences by manufacturing and selling game consoles, including the Nintendo Switch, developing and operating applications for smart devices, and collaborating with partners in video content and theme parks. It is precisely by providing customer experiences as the most important differentiator that Nintendo is building long-term relationships with its customers and ensuring the sustainability of its business.

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Implementation of Effective Engagement Strategies

Customer engagement benefits both buyers and suppliers by increasing the closing rate while meeting customer expectations. Maintaining engagement throughout the customer buying process can increase customer loyalty and gather valuable customer information. By interacting with customers more, buyers can appreciate the supplier brand more and suppliers can gain customer insights. This customer information can be used to make marketing decisions, such as retargeting and content development, and sales processes, such as messaging and outreach methods.

2.6.2.3

Customer Empathy

The future of customer service will be filled with “empathy.” However, empathy is easier said than done. The novelist Mohsin Hamid defines empathy as “finding in yourself the echo of another”. When a customer is upset because the price on the display is not the same as the price at the register, an empathetic cashier can see the situation from the customer’s point of view. They can think, “How would I feel if I were in their shoes?” Empathy is a simple, yet powerful and under-appreciated function of our mind. However, it is important for companies to realize that empathy comes from other valuable traits of good customer service. Patience, decisiveness, and a sense of humor are also necessary. A corporate culture that emphasizes empathy will definitely differentiate a company from its competitors. Customer service is what differentiates a company. In fact, high-performing companies are twice as likely to prioritize customer service than low-performing companies. In this context, empathy is the essence of customer service. According to the Harvard Business Review (Parmar, 2016), the top 10 companies in the Global Empathy Index 2015 were more than twice as valuable as the bottom 10 and generated more than 50% more revenue (defined by market capitalization). For this reason, customer service empathy training is crucial. This is because customer service representatives are not always able to provide the answers that customers seek. However, they can understand and empathize with the customer’s concerns. The first step to gaining empathy for customers is smiling. A smile prepares the mind as well as the words of empathy. It is not easy to put on a happy face, especially if you have a stressful job. This is the challenge of emotional labor in a maturing society. Remembering to smile, as a tip or trick when faced with a difficult situation, should help develop empathetic customer service. Empathy can be trained and acquired, but it can never be mastered; it requires continuous practice.

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2.6.3 Leadership with a Hospitality Mindset In the above section, we have mentioned how to maintain long-term and trustworthy relationships with stakeholders including customers. In building relationships, leadership is required. The need for all members of the organization to take ownership and be involved in the culture is raised. For an organization to achieve its goals, including strong service, it needs a vision. Effective leadership begins with the ability to recognize, outline, and inspire others to work toward that goal. The leader paints a picture of how that vision will affect both the company as a whole and the individual. A leader’s ability to articulate that vision in the form of a mission statement can result in the proactive implementation of goals and the success of the company’s bottom line. A productive vision is not simply a written mission statement for the organization, but one that permeates all levels of the company and manifests itself in actions and beliefs. John P. Kotter, author of “What Leaders Really Do,” writes, “Vision is the language that articulates the direction in which an organization wants to go, and it is a relatively easy means of communication that appeals to customers, shareholders, and employees.” Thus, the right leader can establish and communicate a vision clearly, inspiring those around them to share and implement it. The vision is not just for the leader. According to The Leadership Challenge by James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, leaders can envision the future by imagining the possibilities and finding a common purpose. Additionally, leaders need to instill a sense of meaning and purpose in those around them. After seven years of rigorous research, a landmark study of observations from more than 100 CEOs and 8,000 employees found that “leaders who are clear about their values are five times more likely to benefit their organizations than leaders with weaker character”. They were found to be five times more profitable to their organizations. We further investigate how prominent CEOs and successful leaders share their vision of the future and shape the parameters for success and how they motivate the people around them to make decisions and achieve their goals? A modern leader must have a hospitality mindset. Leading with a hospitality mindset means listening to people, connecting emotionally with people, striving for self-cultivation, and accepting the responsibility as a leader to serve, guide, care for, and inspire. The goal of the hospitality mindset is to make stakeholders and prospects feel needed and appreciated. In any industry, a hospitality mindset is necessary to work in a multicultural environment and provide an excellent customer experience. The core of the hospitality mindset is to make others feel at ease and appreciated. These two elements relate to the ability to maximize productivity, improve the culture of the team, and ultimately drive business results. If you can make your stakeholders feel welcome and appreciated, your relationship with them will be longer and better.

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2.7 Case: Hiiragiya—A Traditional Ryokan (Japanese-Style Inn) in Kyoto 2.7.1 History of Hiiragiya The Hiiragiya originated in 1818, when their ancestor came to Kyoto as a village headman from Mukasa in present-day Fukui prefecture, which is in the Hokuriku region, facing the Sea of Japan. While working as a transporter and marine products merchant, he was invited to provide lodging for people. The name of the ryokan was derived from the legend that the holly tree in the precincts of Shimogamo Shrine would ward off evil spirits, and the name of the ryokan was taken from this legend. Seijiro, the 2nd successor, learned the techniques of painting and gold and iron engraving, and manufactured tsuba and menuki (sword guard), etc. He also interacted with samurai warriors, and was asked to provide lodging for the general public. In 1864, the ryokan was opened as a main business. It became a place to stay for prominent figures outside government at the end of the Edo period, as well as for members of the imperial family, government ministers, writers and artists from the Meiji period (1868–1912). When the capital was moved to Tokyo during the Meiji period, he and the local people worked together to build an elementary school for the future development of Kyoto. He also emphasized the importance of incorporating “culture and education” into the facilities of the schools, such as tea ceremony rooms and traditional crafts. In recent years, the ryokan has also welcomed guests from overseas, and it continues to be a genuine Japanese ryokan in Kyoto, with a tradition of more than 200 years (Fig. 2.7). Many famous people have stayed at the Hiiragiya, including Yasunari Kawabata, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature. Kawabata also wrote a memoir about Hiiragiya, and consequently mentioned the hospitality of Hiiragiya. Some of the advantages of the holly house in the old capital is that it is inconspicuous and unchanging. It has always been prestigious, but not overstated. Reflecting on the situation at the time, he commented that Hiiragiya’s modesty in all things seemed unusual. The historical beginnings of Japanese-style inns are said to be the Fuseya established by the high priest Gyoki (669–749) during the Nara period (710–794) in various parts of the Kinai region (Greater Kyoto). Fuseya was the first lodging facility in Japan to provide relief to travelers. Fuseya was the first lodging facility in Japan to provide relief to travelers, while fulfilling the two functions of “staying” and “eating” to provide a unique experience. There is a Buddhist teaching referred to as “The Seven Treatments of the Immaculate Conception,” which refers to the seven teachings of kind eyes, gentle smiles, warm words, helping others with their bodies, compassion, giving up one’s seat or place, and providing a place of rest. These teachings also influence the formation of hospitality in inns. It has also included the desire to live in harmony with nature and to enjoy and enhance cultural differences. In the management of such inns, which provide lodging and food, sincerity as well as trust

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Fig. 2.7 Hiiragiya

and kindness have become the most important factors in business, as described in the memoirs of Yasunari Kawabata. The management of inns is often the responsibility of a female proprietor. At Hiiragiya, Akemi Nishimura is currently the proprietress. This seems to have been influenced by the idea that even in the old days of a male-dominated society, women still took over for their masters when they were absent and raised the next generation of masters. For the proprietress of such an inn, it was necessary to be cultured. The importance of taking good care of things was also influenced by cultural elements from folk beliefs and Shintoism in the past, and has continued to this day. An interesting term is “Okohitsu-san.” This term refers to the widow of a large store of an Omi merchant in Shiga Prefecture. It was used to express affection for a woman who was recognized by both herself and others as a great wife with a personality and culture suitable for a large store. The wives of Omi merchants, who spent most of the year peddling, took the place of their masters who were away from home. Allegedly, the behavior of such female managers also influenced their roles as ryokan proprietresses.

2.7.2 The Hiiragiya’s Sense of Beauty and Hospitality At the entrance of Hiiragiya, there is a plaque that reads, “Rai-sha-nyo-ki” (Who comes, feel at home) (Fig. 2.8). This means that Hiiragiya wants their customers

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Fig. 2.8 “Rai-sha-nyo-ki” (Who comes, feel at home)

to feel at home, as if they were coming home. Since our founding, Hiiragiya has carefully preserved and passed on this spirit. Based on this wish, not letting their customers feel uncomfortable is a part of their hospitality spirit. Hiiragiya has earned its reputation as one of the most traditional inns in Kyoto by making guests feel as if they were returning to their own home, and by offering warm hospitality as if the master of the family had just returned from a trip. The aesthetic sense of the Hiiragiya is condensed in the pattern of holly, their symbol. As described by Yasunari Kawabata, the holly pattern is not only on the sliding doors and nightclothes, but also on the teacups, tea bowls, and wastebaskets. However, it is not overly noticeable. Additionally, these furnishings have been carefully used and have not changed. This sense of aesthetics gives guests a sense of familiarity and comfort. In other words, the simplicity of a place is what makes it inherently creative and stimulates the imagination. Additionally, various imaginations can be transformed into tastes, giving us a sense of security and new value. This kind of value creation is inherently different from process tailoring, in which the service provider explicitly customizes the service to the individual customer’s preferences, who enjoys the value. Even within the constraints of simplicity, customers find new discoveries and value in the thoughts of the service provider behind the service, which is why they never get bored and become regular customers. The approach from the entrance to the rooms and the decoration of the rooms also reflect the aesthetic sense of being natural. The use of natural materials gives a soft impression. The view of the garden from the room is also ingenious. The garden looks natural. However, to give the impression that it is a natural landscape, they take care of it on a daily basis. For example, in the creation of the garden, there is no single branch that should be utilized, but rather, the beauty of the natural space is created by considering the balance of the entire garden. This kind of invisible labor and work is not shown to the customer, but the customer will later recognize the benefits of the labor and work. Thus, Hiiragiya is a genuine Japanese inn, in that it keeps the standards of what should be protected and what should be changed. Hiiragiya has always inherited the traditional culture and aesthetic sense of Japan and Kyoto, respecting nature, and providing accommodation and food that emphasizes what people can feel with their five senses. Simultaneously, Hiiragiya has objectively assessed our position with the times and have created new guest room spaces for the Edo period, the Meiji, Taisho,

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and Showa periods, and the Heisei and Showa periods as the modern era (Figs. 2.9, 2.10, 2.11 and 2.12). The height of the guest rooms, the layout of the rooms, the way light is let in, the bedding, the furnishings, and the arrangement of the tsuboniwa garden in each era. Additionally, the ryokan provides high quality hospitality by continuously investing in the education of its employees, and by continuously repairing its buildings and guest rooms, so that the guest rooms of each era can be

Fig. 2.9 A room from the late Edo period

Fig. 2.10 Three-sided glass, modern large hall

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Fig. 2.11 Reflection of the sunlight shaping holly leaves

Fig. 2.12 Small lattice-like window and holly leaves in a small shoin (drawing room)

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used with emotion even today. As a form of embodying Kyoto’s dignity, Hiiragiya’s authenticity can be seen in its pride in passing on Kyoto’s traditions and culture to the next generation, and in its heartfelt wish for the mental and physical well-being of the next generation of stakeholders.

2.7.3 Hiiragiya’s Resilient Hospitality Management Hiiragiya, just like other long-established companies in Kyoto, has encountered many difficulties from its inception to date. The Kyoto economy stagnated owing to the relocation of the capital to Tokyo, and the implementation of urban planning during World War II. The latter directly affected the management of the Hiiragiya, as they were ordered to demolish the northern part of the inn’s rooms and side entrances with only five days to spare, owing to the widening of the road for fire prevention. The reason the Hiiragiya was able to overcome such a crisis was not only attributed to the Hiiragiya itself, but also to the support of the townspeople who lived and worked around the Hiiragiya, Japanese inns in the same industry, and the local government of Kyoto. Kyoto is a city with many unions and neighborhood associations as living communities, and the trust, kindness, and sincerity that the Hiiragiya has provided can be considered the source of their resilient hospitality management. This invisible strength of Hiiragiya has enabled it to overcome crises, wars, and disasters. Hiiragiya is an inn with the philosophy of cherishing nature. Simultaneously, it has a dignified style in the city of Kyoto. It respects what guests and employees can feel with their five senses, while emphasizing logical education. New customers are welcomed as if they were coming home, just like familiar customers. In a sense, these seemingly opposing things are juxtaposed to maintain a balance. Yasunari Kawabata said, “Hiiragiya has always been a dignified, but not pompous house.” Moreover, it is safe to say that this kind of casualness has been able to absorb changes in the environment and maintain a dynamic balance under the cultural and historical soil of Kyoto. This is the juxtaposition of elements that should be emphasized in holly houses, and can be considered a characteristic aspect that drives resilience. Additionally, hospitality in Japanese inns has generally been considered difficult to describe linguistically, such as in a manual. Consequently, it is believed that hospitality is significantly dependent on the proprietress and employees, and that it takes time to pass on. However, the Hiiragiya emphasizes the importance of a detailed manual to improve the quality of the employees’ hospitality. To begin with, it has been said that Japanese inns do not have manuals, but in fact, “Ryokan Jochu Dokuhon” (manuals for female employees at ryokan) was published in 1928, and “Ryokan Service Dokuhon” (manuals for service and hospitality at ryokan) in the 1940s. The “Ryokan Jochu Dokuhon” contains detailed information on etiquette, tips, and the ten virtues and ten precepts of a wench. The Hiiragiya is also going back to the beginning and emphasizing the importance of this kind of Japanese hospitality, passing it down and sharing it through manuals. Things that were part of daily life, such as how to use things, could be passed on

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without a manual. However, for things that have become difficult to experience in daily life, such as manners, it is necessary to create something like a manual to learn them. Hiiragiya supposes they live in such an age today. However, the essence of Hiiragiya’s hospitality is not complete with this. The value of its hospitality is to make people feel relaxed, as if they had come home. To achieve this, the space must be beautiful, and people’s manners and etiquette must be reasonable, so that they can feel the inner beauty in such manners. Additionally, it is important to consider the feelings of the other person according to the guest. In other words, based on hospitality, it is normal to be asked to do things by others. However, true hospitality entails doing things casually before others tell you to do them. In this regard, “Omonpakari” (guessing what the other person is thinking) and “Mitate” (expressing one’s intentions indirectly) are important elements of Japanese hospitality. For this purpose, it is a prerequisite that one should be hands-on and prepared based on the knowledge gained from the manual. Additionally, it is important to refine one’s five senses when interacting with customers, to understand their feelings, and to take action to casually manage their anxiety and dissatisfaction. This also means dealing with things that are not mentioned in the manual, and in some cases, you may be forced to act differently from the manual. This kind of thinking and action is the guideline for meta-level behavior. This also applies to dealing with overseas guests, hospitality tailored to each culture, and the introduction of IT for this kind of hospitality. In Hiiragiya, the proprietress does not seem to have much awareness of the Hiiragiya brand itself. Rather, she considers Hiiragiya a part of Kyoto culture, and positions it as one of the inns within the Kyoto brand. During their stay, guests will experience Kyoto’s culture, history, scenery, food, etc., and the integration of all of this and their stay at Hiiragiya will become their overall memory. Consequently, the brand will be built. In this respect, Hiiragiya is one of the unique places in the city of Kyoto, connecting space, time, nature, and human beings to make people feel the hospitality. This kind of standing creates various stories and helps to improve the brand image of the entire town. Consequently, it has become a factor in overcoming crises when faced with them. Paradoxically, it is feared that if Kyoto neglects its culture and history, its high-context communication as well as its resilient elements will disappear.

2.7.4 Hiiragiya After the Pandemic Before the spread of the COVID-19, Kyoto was a tourist city, attracting many tourists from Japan and abroad. In 2019, the number of foreign visitors to Japan exceeded 30 million, and in Kyoto, almost 9 million foreign tourists visited. In Hiiragiya, there were many foreign tourists who wished to stay, up to about 60% of the total number of guests.

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There were almost no inbound tourists staying at Hiiragiya during this pandemic. Despite this situation, many domestic guests made reservations online rather than through travel agencies. Japanese cuisine is based on the selection of seasonal ingredients and ingenuity in cooking methods such as fermentation techniques that contribute to immunity. This is one of the reasons why, as a Japanese inn dealing with Japanese food, Hiiragiya has rediscovered the importance of food culture as something that is good for the body and beneficial to health. Consequently, the value of Japanese inns has been rediscovered. As for the future challenges of Hiiragiya, the ryokan is focusing on making forward-looking changes to advance Kyoto’s tradition of innovation. One example of this is the further promotion of THE RYOKAN COLLECTION project. This is an international hotel consortium that specializes in Japanese inns and small hotels under the slogan, “Japanese Ryokan for the world’s RYOKAN”. The purpose of this consortium is to convey the wonderful Japanese ryokan culture to the world, which is still unknown, and to allow people from all over the world who understand the value of Japanese ryokan to visit this country and experience the true Japanese ryokan culture. Specifically, Hiiragiya will hold online study sessions and analyze business data, and jointly promote activities such as efforts to attract customers, IT implementation, web/social networking that allows people to experience the depth of hospitality and the five senses, and advertising consulting. Rather than being pessimistic about the declining number of guests, they are aiming to develop new businesses from a medium- to long-term perspective. This aspect can also be considered a characteristic of resilient companies and organizations with hospitality at their core.

2.8 Case: Hosoo—More than Fabric and Textile 2.8.1 History of Hosoo and Nishijin Textile Nishijin Textile has a long history of 1,200 years. Hosoo Company Ltd., is based on the Kimono culture, dyeing and weaving culture of Japan. Through textile making, Hosoo aims to contribute to people’s life by providing the beauty and affluence of the world, of which people can enjoy. Its mission is to give people the chance to enjoy the beauty and affluence of life. The company is pursuing the beauty, aesthetic consciousness through the textile dyeing and weaving. In doing so, what the company wants to do now is a kind of merge between the traditional technology and the leadingedge advanced technology that should be integrated and create their innovation. The Nishijin Textile is a silk textile (Fig. 2.13) (Hall, 2020). China is the original source country which produced the silk first. Several thousand years ago people used to raise silkworm cocoon, creating the silk thread. They made a loom with high technology. The warp has been placed on the loom and the weft is placed upon the warp, creating a lot of technology and skill, various patterns of textile is to be created.

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Fig. 2.13 Nishijin textile

That is the inception of the silk textile. Through the Korean Peninsula, it has been introduced into Japan and into Kyoto, the Asian, Chinese and the Korean technician who has a technology of weaving has come to Kyoto to spread, to teach people how to weave that silk textile, silk fabric. More than 2,000 years ago, during the time of the ancient Chinese dynasty, the Western Han Dynasty, the oldest type of textile, referred to as “luo”, was already being produced. Figure 2.14 shows the Nishijin Textile used in Noh performances. Wearing Noh masks and gorgeous costumes is truly a traditional Noh performance. In the 15th and 16th centuries, Noh has been generated in Japan. The Karaori looks like embroidery. Actually it is a twill. The belly, a thick weft is placed to make a pattern upon the twill, Karaori style. For the past 1,200 years, in the Nishijin District, various types of weaving technique has made various types of woven fabric. In this period, there is the change of the history. War broke out especially in Kyoto, which was the capital of ancient Japan. There also emerged various civil wars. Nishijin Textile industry was affected. Sometimes

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Fig. 2.14 Textiles used on the Noh stage

it served very well, and sometimes this industry declined owing to the wars. Despite that, however, craftsmen working in this industry were putting in utmost effort to keep their technology so that this industry could be continued over generations. Those techniques and technology have been passed on through generations through which this industry survived. Hosoo was founded in 1789, about 230 years ago. This sliding door or the folding screen shown in the Fig. 2.15 is for the room accommodation in the 17th through 19th centuries. The ancestors of Hosoo started to create the fabric, and looms were developed around that time (Fig. 2.16). This is actually that model. The loom was further used for textile production. That fabric is used for this folding screen. Hosoo can learn many things from this folding screen. There is fabric and textile that the emperors and some aristocrats gave Hosoo the order for the production. Tokugawa Shogunate family gave Hosoo the order during the 17th and 18th or at the beginning

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Fig. 2.15 A folding screen with matching early Hosoo textiles

Fig. 2.16 Loom of the Edo period

of 19th century, too. The Tokugawa Shogunate ruling lasted many years, over 240 years. Moreover, the Shogunate family and the government continued to make fabric and textile orders from Hosoo. During the Edo period, temples and shrines, who made such orders from Hosoo, were very powerful. The fabrics were woven by the looms the company created. Therefore, Nishijin Textile has lasted many centuries, being supported by the orders from the aristocrats and upper-class people. More than the expectation of the owners and those who give the order, craftsmen actually dedicated their whole life to create beauty and the fantastic textile. They neither thought about how much money they could earn, nor how much profit they could make. When the orders were made,

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they put in so much effort so that the outcome could live up to or even exceed the expectations of their customers. They dedicated their whole life and at stake and was their honor and credibility. Nishijin Industry has been supported over centuries by the soul, and also dedication of those craftsmen. Nishijin Industry has lasted many centuries, after which the World War II broke out in the world. The World War II was actually a devastating experience. The Japanese economy had to restart from zero or maybe from negative figure. However, after the 1960s, Japan experienced a rapidly growing economy. Many people were very diligent, which supported very high growth of economy. People became affluent. The per capita income further increased. In that background, many people started buying Nishijin textile again. Until then, Nishijin fabric and textile were only for rich people, upper class people and aristocrats including imperial people. Silk yarn and textile were actually adored by many people. The production of the yarn and textiles increased significantly. The industries also thrived and flourished. This fabric was used for the belt, Obi, and Kimono. When the Japanese economy advanced at such a high pace, many people were able to afford such expensive stuff. However, things have changed.

2.8.2 Strive for Innovation The Kimono market has grown to 2 trillion yen in a peak year of 1982. The great turnover and profit were generated. The lifestyle of the people began to be westernized, and the people began to ride on cars more. It is very inconvenient and difficult to operate and drive a car in Kimono. Therefore, the sort of the modernization and westernization of the life began where the chance of wearing a Kimono becomes decreased constantly. Moreover, the demand for Nishijin Textile started decreasing, and the market started to shrink. However, very unfortunately, as of the year 2020, the market size of the Kimono was 280 billion, which is about 15% of the peak year market size. Naturally, Hosoo has been suffering significantly as it has been making the Kimono and the Obi belt, sash, those are the products that were sold. The company needs some kind of renovation, transformation, and a means of survival into the future. Otherwise, this business is at risk of failing. From 2005, Hosoo started to sell this beautiful Nishijin Textile, not only in Japanese market, but also in many world markets. Hosoo decided to launch the product into the world. People worldwide would know the beauty of Nishijin Textile, and use this textile in their daily life. Hosoo started to challenge the new business development. The challenge was a difficult and technical one. In Nishijin, over 1,200 years, textiles have been woven with the width of 40 cm, and of course, the width of the room. Moreover, the technology materials are all based on the assumption of a 40 cm-width. The 40 cm-width

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is inconvenient, and too narrow. People worldwide are hoping that the width be 150 cm, so that it will be used very flexibly. It is kind of a mandate that Hosoo had to broaden the width from 40 to 150 cm. One may think it is easy, but actually it is not. Technically, it is very difficult. It took two-years to finally succeed in making the width of the textile using the original material to make a 150 cm width of the textile. Hosoo developed the loom which enabled us to weave 150 cm on the weaving machine from scratch, from the zero base. Additionally, the technique of weaving and the material were applicable to the width of 150 cm. That was a very high hurdle but Hosoo succeeded in making that new textile, which was the start of a new global business. Figure 2.17 shows the loom, which Hosoo’s researchers and craftsmen created from scratch. They were able to make Nishijin Textile with a width of 150 cm. The textile is now used for various interior products, etc. The walls and upholstery of the chairs are shown in a luxury shop in New York. They are all Nishijin fabric and textile. In the fashion industry, Hosoo’s fabric and textiles have been used relatively widely. Yasuhiro Mihara, a famous Japanese designer, used the fabric in a Paris collection, which was a very successful event. Masaya Kushino designed the shoes for Lady Gaga. Product design is another area where the industry could make some contribution. Leica, a very famous manufacturer in Germany, made their products with Hosoo’s yarn and fabric. In 2020, Lexus LS500, one of the most advanced and classic products of Lexus by Toyota, used Nishijin for interior decoration. Actually, this is the first time where and when Nishijin is used for the interior decoration of a classic car. Evidently, this pattern of the fabric and textile, especially with regard to the automotive industry, and product safety, is always the

Fig. 2.17 Loom developed by Hosoo with a width of 150 cm

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Fig. 2.18 GO ON project with Panasonic

most important. When Hosoo’s product is used inside, very high specification for the safety requirement has been overcome. It took more than one year for the research and development of this particular textile. Nishijin textile is often used in the art. New York based Teresita Fernandez is a modern-art artist. She came over to Kyoto, and visited Hosoo’s workshop, spending more than one year to work together. She further came up with a new artwork. In the performance by Yasuyuki Shuto, a world-famous ballet dancer, Hosoo’s product was used. In the stage and art, Hosoo’s fabric and textile can also be used. For the past 3–4 years, Hosoo integrates its product with a leading-edge technology in modern times. Panasonic, a very famous Japanese electronics manufacturer, together with Hosoo, developed the speaker (Fig. 2.18). On the surface of the speaker, you can find Hosoo’s product, which is actually used in a full audition speaker surface. By touching this Nishijin Textile on the surface, one can actually modulate the sound, make it softer and intensive and so on. There is a touchscreen type of a modulator of sounds. Sensors are actually embedded together with yarn. In the Nishijin Fabric, you can actually find sensors embedded at the head of the yarn (Hosoo, 2021).

2.8.3 Prospects for the Future Biotechnology can also be integrated with Hosoo’s silk technique. Jellyfish DNAs were transplanted into silkworm DNA. Consequently, fluorescent light was emitted from the silk, which was actually produced by the silkworm. By using new materials and capitalizing on new technology, new fabric and new textile are produced and

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created. It is an artwork based on using this fluorescent silk (Fig. 2.19). Sputniko, an art designer with whom Hosoo worked, exhibited an artwork in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. This particular work exhibited in that the museum, which actually gained accolades from various people appreciating the work. It was eventually bought out by the Victoria and Albert Museum. Hosoo is committed to the innovation by using the leading-edge technology in modern times. A fabric may change the color depending on the temperatures of the surroundings. It is actually the dyed material. The color of the silk is white. The temperature is lowered to colder, lower one, then the color changes from white to red. This is the temperature sensitive and temperature modulated in a color fabric. What can you use it for? Inside your room, you are wearing a white dress and enjoying the party. After the party, you go outdoors, where the temperature is always different, especially

Fig. 2.19 Art work using fluorescent silk

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during winter. The white fabric of the white dress you are wearing so far changes to red color. This is a new innovative technology embedded in the new material development work of Hosoo. There are three major structures in the fabric used to make weaving, i.e., Hira-Ori, Shizu-Ori, and Aya-Ori. By integrating those different structures in a complicated way, new weaving can be created. Especially in the Nishijin textile you can have a very complicated and intricate and exquisite type of structure and outcome. There are indeed fabric and a structure that young mathematicians and artists are very fond of and interested in. The computer graphics specialists who dedicated their research to a computer graphic project pursued a new innovative and capitalization of this technology and structural combination. As shown in their study, the integration of the fabric and the textile are infinite. In one fabric and in one textile, it is possible to see 1 cm as a unit pitch, and all potential structures can be actually placed in a layout and in the 1 cm pitch. The distance would be actually quite enormous. You can have 22 return trips between the Sun and planet Pluto. That is actually the number of integrations possible by integrating different structures of the textile. This infinite combination is now presented and actually materialized by Jacquard Loom, which is actually shown in the exhibition. By over 1,200 years, Hosoo has been dedicating our efforts to the pursuit of the integration. However, it is only part of such a huge intense and infinite integration potential. That is actually one important element of Hosoo’s philosophy of business operation. Hosoo does not stick to the conventional technology and the traditional techniques. Hosoo is very keen on incorporating innovative technology in the modern times as a tool, to further create a new value and a new fabric, a new textile to be presented to people in modern times. Its purpose is the pursuit of beauty so that the humans can live a happier life with more wellbeing. Hosoo would like to use leading-edge technology together with traditional technology.

2.9 Case: Eirakuya—A Deign Innovation for Tenugui (Plain Weave Cotton Cloth) 2.9.1 The History of Eirakuya The history of Eirakuya began when the company supplied Lord Oda Nobunaga with a silk fabric referred to as “Hitatare” to be worn under armor. Thereafter, the company received the trade name Eirakuya and the family name Hosotsuji from Lord Nobunaga, and was established in 1615 in Sanjo Karasuma Higashi (downtown Kyoto) as a silk fabric wholesaler mainly producing silk wares. In the mid to late Edo period, cotton products became popular and Eirakuya became a wholesaler selling products made of thick thread hemp or cotton, and grew significantly owing to the expansion of the market. Ihee Hosotsuji, the 4th successor, created the

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“Lessons Learned Daikokumai”, the Hosotsuji family motto, and passed it down to his descendants as well as to his family and other related people (Fig. 2.20). In the Meiji era (1868–1912), the company introduced spinning machines, which were the star product of the Industrial Revolution, and converted to a cotton cloth wholesaler. In the beginning, they mainly dealt with cotton kimonos, but they also began to deal with tenugui (hand towels made of cotton). In the early Showa period (around 1930), the company had an in-house organization referred to as “Momoirokai”, which produced more than 100 new tenugui patterns a year (Fig. 2.21). Since the products were for specific collectors, they were not often sold wholesale to retailers. However, they produced about 10,000 patterns and kept them in the company for safekeeping.

Fig. 2.20 The Hosotsuji family motto, “Lessons Learned Daikokumai”

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Fig. 2.21 “Momoiro-kai” sample tenugui designs

After the early Showa period (around 1930), Western culture was gradually introduced and the consumption trend shifted from tenugui to towels. When towels first emerged in the market, they were in short supply and sold well. However, these became more of a gift than a purchase for oneself as they became more popular among households. Owing to this change in the purpose of purchase, the market became more favorable to companies that had many brands and sales channels that were recognized by many consumers. In contrast, small and medium-sized companies without differentiating factors in terms of product design followed the path of decline. In 1959, Eirakuya was reorganized as a stock company with a capital of 4 million yen, but it was a difficult time for Eirakuya. It was during this time that Ihee Hosotsuji, the 14th successor, who is currently the president of Eirakuya, succeeded the company. After being adopted into the Hosotsuji family, he became a member of the board of directors in 1992, and was appointed to his current position as the representative director in 1999. Following this appointment, Eirakuya underwent a major transformation, as if the company’s past history had been a running start.

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2.9.2 Crisis of Eirakuya’s Survival As mentioned above, Eirakuya has been in business for 400 years, during which it has faced many crises. Like many other long-established companies, Eirakuya miraculously overcame each crisis it faced and has continued to do so to date. Additionally, the Great Fire of Tenmei (1788) and the Kinmon Incident (1864) damaged all of Kyoto, and Eirakuya was burned down twice. In the Meiji era (1868–1912), the capital was moved to Tokyo (1869), and Kyoto’s economy stalled. The Meiji era was an era of transitioning to Western-style clothing, after which cotton kimonos became difficult to sell. In the 20th century, the reactionary recession that followed the end of World War I (1914–1918) resulted in huge losses. Additionally, World War II (1939–1945) broke out, and the business was reversed owing to forced evacuations. After World War II, an international conference center was to be constructed in Kyoto. Therefore, it was necessary to build a new international telephone station in the city. Ihee Hosotsuji, the 11th successor, made a decisive decision for the development of Kyoto, and transferred the land that he had been familiar with for 350 years as a new facility for the international telephone station. Even in the midst of these numerous business crises, the company miraculously managed to keep its business afloat by selling off its real estate, including homes and stores, expanding into new businesses such as towels, and reviving the tenugui boom. Eirakuya is now celebrating 400 years of history as a truly resilient company.

2.9.3 Ihee Hosotsuji, the 14th Successor As a fresh start, Ihee Hosotsuji, the 14th successor, started by reviewing the entire process of making tenugui hand towels. In the beginning, the atmosphere in the company was not conducive to take on challenges. However, the manager himself made the decision to take the plunge. Together with craftsmen, he reviewed the basic processes of weaving tenugui fabric, mixing and stirring dyes, and dyeing the fabric, to complete the original fabric developed in-house. Using “combed yarn,” which is thin and does not fray easily, he was able to create Eirakuya’s original fabric, which is fine and strong. With this fabric, 76 warp threads and 64 weft threads are woven into a 1-inch square, making the tenugui stronger and smoother than conventional tenugui. Additionally, he introduced appropriate mechanization to promote high quality and stable production of tenugui, which had a traditional image of being inexpensive. Ihee Hosotsuji, the 14th successor, also put his passion into the design of tenugui and offered new products to the world. In other words, he took the many tenugui designs (Fig. 2.22) that he had accumulated as the “Momoiro-kai” and adapted them to the modern age, as well as creating new designs that fit the modern age. He also created award-winning works such as “Gion Festival and Maiko” (Fig. 2.23), the pattern for the year 2018. He also promoted awareness of Eirakuya’s business under

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Fig. 2.22 Tenugui design “Five-storied Pagoda” (patter from around 1930)

Fig. 2.23 Tenugui design “Gion Festival and Maiko” (pattern from 2018)

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the title of “Tenugurapher”, to become an evangelist of such design innovation, and received enthusiastic support from inbound tourists. Generally, there are no cotton weavers who make their own fabric for tenugui. However, Eirakuya kept in mind whether or not the product would be loved for 10 or 20 years, and furthermore, made every effort to create a unique product by investing in technology that would not be imitated. In other words, it was a shift to the SPA (Specialty store retailer of Private label Apparel) model, a retail business with manufacturing functions. Using this management philosophy, the desire to make the best products, and the strong will to survive without them, was put into the tenugui of long-established companies in Kyoto, the pillar of the business. The company has also collaborated with many famous traditional performing arts and artworks in Kyoto, breaking new ground as a design innovation for tenugui. For example, there is a hanging scroll referred to as “Hyounen-zu”, a national treasure owned by Taizo-in, the Rinzai sect of Zen Buddhism. There are also products featuring pumpkins and hachijo-na, paintings by Jakuchu Ito, a famous Edo painter. Eirakuya made new tenugui with these patterns. The company also collaborated with Seiemon Onishi, a kettle master of the Senke school of tea ceremony, the Japanese restaurant Kitcho, the traditional Japanese performing art of Noh, and the Kabuki actor Ebizo Ichikawa. Ihee Hosotsuji, the 14th successor, has also created and exhibited a 25 m-long tenugui art work using the atrium of the building (Fig. 2.24). Thus, tenugui, a product used in daily life has become a material for creating art by Ihee Hosotsuji.

Fig. 2.24 Tenugui art exhibition

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2.9.4 Addressing the Current Crisis Facing Eirakuya Like many other companies, Eirakuya is facing a crisis of survival owing to the impact of COVID-19, which spread worldwide in 2020. However, like his predecessors who have faced many crises in the past, Ihee Hosotsuji, the 14th successor, is trying to overcome the present crisis positively. First, he was shifting from a product that focuses on inbound tourists to a product that offers high quality and low prices to customers rooted in the local community. By combining the SPA model of high-quality, low-cost cotton products as a core competence with designs that can be used with affection in daily life, the company is appealing to target customers who are adapted to the environment. Tenugui’s inherent environmental friendliness, reuse of fabric, and its flexibility to be folded into a compact size that can be used to wrap anything and carry it around are concepts that are consistent with current lifestyles. This is also consistent with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the United Nations. Second, the design also incorporates the story of overcoming the contemporary crisis caused by COVID-19. For example, the “Eirakuya’s Lovely Crest” design offers a modern design based on the message that the heart-shaped pattern has been used since ancient times to ward off evil (Fig. 2.25). People are anxious in the face of evil, that is the COVID-19 virus, and hope to ward off the evil. Even in today’s world of advanced science, the provision of such psychological reassurance is valuable. For example, “Ichimatsu” which means prosperity because it continues without interruption, “Uroko” which means shedding one’s skin to get rid of bad

Fig. 2.25 Eirakuya’s lovely crest

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luck and regeneration, and “Seigaiha” which means eternal happiness, prayer, and peace. They are incorporated into the design of the heart. Third, it is also significant that in this time of economic stagnation, business leaders in the early Meiji period pointed out the importance of events such as the Kyoto Exposition, which was planned for the revival of Kyoto, and actually conducted such activities. The Kyoto Exposition was intended to make people aware of overseas trends in commerce and industry and to improve people’s industrial knowledge. Additionally, entertainment was planned to attract visitors in imitation of Europe. The dance performance choreographed by Yachiyo Inoue, the 3rd successor, was a breakthrough in the common sense of o-za-shiki dance (a dance by geiko or maiko in a traditional tatami room). It was well received by the audience, as the dance was performed by a group of people and the scene was changed by simply changing the background without lowering the curtain. This was the beginning of the “Miyako Odori”, a famous traditional dance event by the group of geiko and maiko, that continues to date. In light of this historical background, Ihee Hosotsuji, the 14th successor, organized the “Reiwa Kyoto Exposition”, a Kyoto exposition in the modern era, while taking care to prevent infection during the economic crisis caused by COVID-19. Experts from various fields of traditional Japanese culture and crafts participated in the event and focused on creating a mindset among the people involved to overcome the crisis. This kind of positive mindset and shared vision is another aspect of resilient hospitality management that should not be overlooked.

2.9.5 Eirakuya’s Resilient Hospitality Management The above is an overview of Eirakuya’s business over the past 400 years, from its founding to the present. The 400 years since its establishment is a history of a company that has overcome many crises. Therefore, it is not clear why Eirakuya overcome these crises and continue to do so to date. From the perspective of resilient hospitality management, Eirakuya, like any other sustainable companies, has a distinction between what it changes and what it does not change. Depending on the environment of the times, tenugui and towels as products, as well as their production and sales methods, have changed. However, the Hosotsuji family’s family motto “Lessons Learned Daikokumai” has always been the starting point of the company. This family motto is said to have been written by Ihee Hosotsuji, the 4th successor, during the mid-Edo period. It succinctly summarizes the essence of business in ten elements: get along well with your family, do not be extravagant in food, clothing, or housing, obey the law and morality, and do business without thinking of anything as a hardship, etc. Sharing and passing on the philosophy through the family motto, which is one of these intangible assets, is an advanced form of hospitality management that considers not only the stakeholders of the same era but also multi-stakeholders across time. With these intangible assets at its core, the company has overcome many crises since its founding and will continue to do so in the future.

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It is also interesting to note the Juxtaposition structure in the history of Eirakuya. The transition from silk to cotton textiles during the Edo period, the transition from kimono to towel business in the Meiji period, the transition from inexpensive towels and hand towels to high quality design hand towels in the modern period, and the provision of products from inbound tourists to local residents after the COVID-19 pandemic. These are just a few examples. Thus, it is clear that the company has been able to overcome the crisis and continue its business by juxtaposing seemingly opposing elements in terms of materials and target customer groups, and changing the balance point of these elements as the times change. It is safe to say that this is an example of the importance of dynamic stability, where a balance is struck in response to changes in the environment, rather than seeking a static stable solution. From the perspective of the meta-model, the starting point of the model would be a sample of the hobby of “Momoiro-kai”. This model can be said to express the “Eirakuya-ness” of the design. However, this design is not only reprinted as it is, but also updated according to the environment of the times, the development of materials, and the progress of mechanization owing to the development of weaving machines. Here, we can find the characteristics of a meta-model. The existence of meta-model allows us to recognize that the company is developing and providing products that are accepted by various stakeholders throughout the ages. A good example of Eirakuya’s narrative brand development is the creation of the “Eirakuya’s Lovely Crest”. People are anxious in the face of the evil of the COVID19 virus and wish to get rid of it. Even in today’s world of advanced science, it is worthwhile to provide such psychological reassurance. Using fabrics with this kind of design, the company is also focusing on products such as clothing for everyday use. When consumers use such products, they can also think about the meaning behind them and feel that they are more than just a cotton product. In marketing tenugui to meet the needs of today’s lifestyles, the company is not only improving the quality of tenugui and offering new designs, but also proposing new ways to use tenugui (Fig. 2.26). This means explaining and educating people on how to fold and use tenugui as a cover for plastic bottles, tissue paper boxes, lunch boxes, books, etc. It is not only about the value of tenugui as a product, but also about the value of using tenugui as a service that proposes usage scenarios. By presenting specific usage scenarios, the literacy of the users of the hand towels increases, which results in an increase in the number of users who can recognize that a good product is good. This kind of initiative can be considered a resilient business activity with hospitality at its core.

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Fig. 2.26 How to wrap using Tenugui

2.10 Case: Sasaki Shuzo—The Only Long-Established Sake Brewer in Downtown Kyoto 2.10.1 History of Sasaki Shuzo Sasaki Shuzo is the only sake brewer in Kyoto’s old town referred to as Rakuchu (Figs. 2.27 and 2.28). Founded in 1893, the company is currently managed by Akira Sasaki, the fourth-generation president. Sake brewing is based on fermentation technology. Moreover, there are not a few long-established companies in Japan that are based on fermentation, such as sake brewing and miso. Kyoto is surrounded by mountains on three sides and is blessed with good groundwater. According to a list of liquor stores in the 15th century, there were 342 liquor stores in Kyoto. Particularly, Fushimi, located in the southern part of Kyoto, has medium-hard water that contains a good balance of potassium and calcium, making it ideal for sake production. Fushimi’s sake industry overcame the devastation caused by the Battle of Toba-Fushimi on the eve of the Meiji Era (1868–1912), and developed during the Meiji Era as one of the two major sake production areas in Japan, along with Nada in Hyogo Prefecture. Under these circumstances, Sasaki Shuzo, which was founded in Kyoto’s Rakuchu district, was mainly engaged in manufacturing sake as a subcontractor supplying sake to major breweries in Fushimi, just like other small breweries in Rakuchu. This is because, at that time, the production of sake was limited to a certain number of basic production volume according to each brewer. Large sake brewers had to outsource the production of sake to other brewers to meet their sales volume.

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Fig. 2.27 Sasaki Shuzo in Rakuchu, Kyoto

For small and medium-sized breweries, it was not a bad business decision to focus on business with the major brewers, as small and medium-sized breweries were able to sell sake to the major brewers on a stable basis. This was especially true for small, family-owned breweries. Another advantage of having a large company manufacturer purchase their products was that they would provide technology and strict quality checks, and accumulate know-how for maintaining and improving quality. In contrast, this type of trade between sake breweries is done in the form of “vat sales”, from which the delivered sake is further blended. Consequently, it was difficult for the original brewers to know what kind of sake they were offering consumers. Moreover, it was also difficult for consumers to understand the characteristics of each original brewery’s sake. After World War II, when the law stipulating the basic number of volume was abolished, there was a decline in the amount of subcontracting from major sake brewers. Consequently, many of the breweries located in the same Rakuchu area began to close their businesses during this period. This is attributed to the fact that they were overly specialized in B2B business and it was difficult for them to immediately switch to B2C business where they sell directly to customers. One of the reasons for this was that it was difficult for the major breweries to obtain feedback from end

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Fig. 2.28 Sasaki Shuzo’s Sake

consumers and to innovate and improve the efficiency of their production and sales through blending. While many other breweries in the same industry have closed down from Rakuchu, only Sasaki Shuzo has survived. This probably because of the desire of the successive presidents to sell their own sake and the enthusiasm to pass it on to the next generation. Even in the days when the company was subcontracting manufacturing, Sasaki Shuzo never neglected its efforts to sell its own products. Another personal factor is that the third-generation president liked the act of selling his own products. For this reason, even as other companies were unable to develop their own sales channels and were closing down owing to declining profits, he responded by hiring people with wholesaler experience and continued his efforts to sell his own products. It is safe to say that these small differences have made a big difference in the continuation of the business to date.

2.10.2 Resilient Hospitality Management at Sasaki Shuzo The intangible value of Sasaki Shuzo’s management can be attributed to the sincerity and self-discipline of its managers. It is worth noting that even in the days of subcontract manufacturing, when sales channels were limited and profits were low, the

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company was able to sell about 30% of its products in-house. It is also important to note that the company has not only pursued short-term profits, but has also managed its business with self-discipline, considering its multi-stakeholders, including family, fellow brewers, and customers. Considering the most recent management of the third and fourth generations of Sasaki Shuzo, there is a particularly strong sense of mission to pass on sake brewing to the next generation. In other words, they do not think of the company as their own, but have a sense of purpose in passing it on. This is because the third-generation president came originally from his mother’s family that owned the Sasaki Shuzo, and when the family business could not be continued, he was adopted and took over the business. At the time, he felt that he was the only one among his siblings who had been adopted, and it was a painful experience for him. Additionally, the fourthgeneration president was supposed to be the heir to the family business. However, he did not take over the family business to become an actor, and as a result, his younger brother had to take over. Consequently, the younger brother had to take over the family business as the fourth-generation president. (The older brother is now one of Japan’s most famous actors.) In other words, he started as a pinch hitter. What both of them have in common is that the company does not belong to them, but is entrusted to them. “I don’t want to destroy the company in my generation, but I want to pass it on to the next generation in a good way”. They are always thinking about how to make it happen. It is a mindset that circulates the succession in a good way. Along with this mindset, one of the factors behind the resilient management is that the company has been able to balance B2B and B2C businesses according to the needs of the times. Sasaki Shuzo has not been overly focused on one or the other, and the company has juxtaposed seemingly contradictory activities. While maintaining good relationships with major sake brewers, the company has also balanced its desire to sell its own sake, changing its center of gravity according to the needs of the times. An interesting resilient initiative that Sasaki Shuzo has created along with the development of its B2C business is the development and sale of a non-alcoholic brewed beverage called “White Gin Meisui” (Fig. 2.29). As a sake brewer, to maintain the quality of sake, the president would like to employ Toji (master brewers) all year round. However, sake brewing is a seasonal job limited to winter. For this reason, it has been a challenge to commit to the toji on a long-term basis and to pass on their skills. For this reason, the development of this project was made from the perspective of creating a product that could be produced outside of winter and the product would be approved by consumers. Through many years of joint research collaborations with research institutes in Kyoto and other organizations, Sasaki Shuzo was able to develop a product using rice malt that can be produced even in summer. This has enabled the company to employ toji (master brewers) year-round, improve quality control in sake brewing, and provide new value to consumers. Sake production technology is the result of hundreds of years of technical improvements. Moreover, there is a strong production manual led by the toji. It is virtually impossible for a small to medium-sized company without engineers alone to create a manufacturing method for a new product with different characteristics, and from scratch using existing production facilities. Through many years of joint research,

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Fig. 2.29 Non-alcoholic drink “White Gin Meisui”

they were able to achieve efficient and safe product manufacturing with the current production facilities by selecting suitable rice and rice malt to achieve our goals, and optimizing saccharification temperature and time. Additionally, the awareness that there is no completion in sake brewing, but only the repetition of practices such as the improvement of raw materials and sake production techniques, may have been overcome with a sense of tolerance in the process of such long-term and diverse efforts. Unlike the production of wine, the process of brewing sake involves two stages of fermentation in parallel. In other words, the process of breaking down rice (starch) into sugar by rice malt and the process of fermenting the sugar into alcohol using yeast are carried out in parallel. Wine, on the other hand, only needs to be fermented into alcohol by yeast, as the sugar is already contained in the grapes. This means that in the production of wine, while the grapes are produced with care and a scientific approach is used to determine the time of harvest, little is done in the subsequent wine making process. However, in the production of sake, the brewer does not actively commit to the production of rice as a raw material, but has many years of experience

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in saccharification and alcoholic fermentation based on rice, and has established a production process based on a scientific approach. Thus, there is a longstanding model (manual) for the production of sake. However, it is essential to have a meta-level perspective to tune the production manual to the needs of the times. The development of non-alcoholic beverages was made possible by the existence of a manual for the sake fermentation process, and paradoxically, the development of new products was made possible by changes in the integration of rice and rice malt, temperature, and time management that did not follow the manual. It is also interesting to note that such updates at the meta-level resulted in collaborations with manufacturers of related products that use rice malt as a raw material, as described below. The Sasaki Shuzo produces and sells sake near the site of the former “Juraku-dai”, a government office and residence built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi at the end of the 16th century. It is not hard to imagine that there are many historical and cultural stories to be told from this. Sake is an alcoholic beverage that is difficult to distinguish in taste, except for the degree to which the rice used as a raw material is polished (how much of the surface of the rice is removed). Therefore, the story attached to each sake can be an added value that motivates the purchase and influences the taste. Akira Sasaki is the fourth-generation president to take over the presidency of Sasaki Shuzo as a pinch hitter for his older brother, who was supposed to succeed the company. His brother has become one of Japan’s most famous actors and has improved the brand image of his family’s brewery. This is a unique and irreplaceable branding through narrative consumption. Such factors are also resilient features in the face of crisis and environmental changes.

2.10.3 Responding to a Post-Pandemic and Investing in the Future The spread of the COVID-19 from 2020 onward will restrict the movement of people in Japan. Moreover, the food service industry, hotels, and other human service industries were hit hard. Eating out at night and serving alcohol were also restricted. Therefore, likewise, breweries have suffered a major decrease in sake sales. Sasaki Shuzo is no exception. In light of this pandemic situation, Sasaki Shuzo is also making various changes. The direct business response is to sell online. Like other industries and companies in the same industry, the company is expanding its e-commerce sales through the COVID-19 disaster. Overlapping with the scene of casual eating and drinking at home, this type of online sales has increased. Additionally, collaboration with manufacturers of related products that use rice malt as a raw material is also an interesting business innovation. The core competence of sake brewers can be said to be the production of sake as a final product, but when you get down to it, it is the complex fermentation technology using microorganisms

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such as rice malt. Using this rice malt technology, Sasaki Shuzo has developed new products by working with Japanese restaurants, Western-style confectionary stores, and Japanese-style confectionary stores to devise recipes. If dishes and desserts made with rice malt produced in Kyoto can be positioned as healthy and environmentally friendly foods, they can be expected to develop beyond the sake market. This approach of unbundling the functions of a product and rebundling it into a product with new value is an idea that has the potential to be applied not only to sake brewers but also to various other industries. Sake brewers are in the business of manufacturing sake products, but in the future, the experience and trust value based on episodes such as the manufacturing process and history of sake can also become a business. In other words, the manufacturing industry is becoming a service industry. Against this backdrop, areas where there is a concentration of breweries are considering more aggressive value-added tour projects such as brewery tours for the post-pandemic era. Because Sasaki Shuzo is the only brewery in Rakuchu, it is difficult to include it in such a brewery tour. However, if we consider it as an investment in the future, we are also working on a project to create value for the entire region as integrated hospitality, by collaborating with other historical heritage sites and tourist attractions in the Nishijin area of Kyoto. The rapid realization of such efforts to promote cooperation with other companies and organizations in the target area has energized a positive change in the awareness of the COVID-19 disaster. This may be one of the resilient factors. We look forward to future developments.

References Hall, J. (2020). Japan beyond the kimono: Innovation and tradition in the Kyoto textile industry. Bloomsbury Publishing. Hosoo, M. (2021). Nihon no biishiki de sekaihatsu ni nozomu. Daiya mondo-sha.

Chapter 3

Sustainable Society Following the Advancement of Technology

3.1 Issues on Sustainability and Scalability 3.1.1 Hospitality and Omotenashi Revisited As described in Chaps. 1 and 2, this section focuses on these characteristics and examples of the sustainable management of companies and organizations that utilize highcontext communication about Japanese culture, history, and life-style. While business succession is conducted by verbalizing the information where it can be verbalized, the source of value lies in the fact that stakeholders have shared implicit information that is difficult to verbalize and have managed various crises and difficulties. Omotenashi in Japan is a typical example of value creation using such highcontext communication. However, as we mentioned in the section of the Hiiragiya case study, the origin of Omotenashi can be traced back to the treatment at Fuseya, the first accommodation facility in Japan during the Nara period (7th or eighth century). The management of lodgings began to integrate the two functions of “staying” and “eating”, to provide a quality that can only be experienced through travel. This management philosophy is based on the Buddhist teachings of the “Seven Practices of Wealthlessness.” Here, economic factors and the need to improve the quality of service may not have been clear yet. In the 16 and seventeenth centuries, the tea ceremony of Sen no Rikyu began to incorporate new values in hospitality. In other words, the tea masters and their guests engaged in friendly competition on an equal footing, and came to embody a high level of hospitality. Based on the premise of the high level of literacy of the customers, the services were narrowed down and the creation of service value was realized in a limited world. The value created based on this kind of hospitality is resilient to subsequent environmental changes, crises, and disasters, and has been sustained to date. In Kyoto, companies, organizations, and cities that have been influenced by the development of Omotenashi have been able to maintain their resilience to changes in the environment, not only in the traditional ways of serving people, such as ryokan, tea © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2022 Y. Hara et al., A New Approach to Resilient Hospitality Management, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-1665-6_3

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ceremony, and ikebana. The juxtaposition of fine-grained granularity, meta-models (types of types), brand development based on stories, and long-term trustworthy among stakeholders are all factors that contribute to the sustainability of activities. In Kyoto, as mentioned above, the percentage of companies that have been in business for more than 100 years is the highest of any Japanese cities. It is probably the location with the highest concentration of sustain-able companies in the world. However, while these companies are sustainable, their scale is relatively small. Many of them are family businesses based on blood relations, and their trade area has been limited to a relatively small area. In other words, they have been sustainable but not scalable. If we compare hospitality management in Japan with that in the West, an interesting difference in the development process emerges. We mentioned that the word hospitality in the West is derived from the Latin word hospes, which means to protect guests on pilgrimage to holy places. In this respect, we can find similarities with the hospitality of the Fuseya of the Nara period in Japan. However, in recent years, many companies have prioritized satisfying the needs and expectations of their customers, paving the way for global expansion. Here, the emphasis is not on segmenting customers by their literacy level, but rather on growth (scalability) through tiered customer acquisition. Additionally, to prioritize such scalability, rather than utilizing local high-context communication, they are using low-context communication, which can be verbalized as much as possible, or they are aiming for universal value creation (context-free) hospitality management that has no regional differences in the first place.

3.1.2 Sustainability and Scalability Considering this recent situation, trying to run a company or organization sustainably and trying to run it in a scalable manner are not necessarily the same thing. Rather, there is a trade-off between the two. The globalization of Western companies does not necessarily mean that long-lived companies have become globalized. GAFA (an acronym for Google, Apple, Facebook, and Amazon) is a typical example. It depends on the future management of the company, but it would not be sure whether it will be sustainable for hundreds of years. In contrast, the well-established companies in Kyoto introduced in this book are superior in terms of sustainability, compared with companies and organizations in other regions. Rather than seeking short-term profitability, they are managing their businesses with the surrounding stakeholders and while considering the next generation of stakeholders. Rather than pursuing growth, they prioritize sustainability that is compatible with the environment and society as a management decision criterion. In this sense, in the past, the company has not been able to reconcile sustainability and scalability in its management policies. Consequently, many of the products and services produced by Kyoto’s long-established companies have been of high quality and long-lasting value. These have simultaneously been supported by a relatively

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small number of highly literate customers who understand such high-quality products and services. Digitization is positive for promoting scalability because it is easy to replicate. Further, following the advancement of IoT devices, potential customer needs and environ-mental information, which were previously difficult to digitize, it can now be stored and managed as digital information. The more digital information is accumulated and managed on a continuous basis, the more trends that cannot be obtained elsewhere can be obtained, contributing to the growth of the economic sphere as a platform. However, digitalization can create overproduction because it can bring marginal costs as close to zero as possible. Consequently, it is also exposed to a wave of commoditization, which can undermine the value of products and services.

3.1.3 Popularization of High-Quality Services Therefore, in the age of digital transformation and in the face of pandemics, the new types of resilience companies, organizations, and cities should develop in future are not clear. Following the advancement of AI and IT, there are predictions that human tasks will be replaced by robots and AI. However, resilient companies and organizations will use the time and resources left over by the replacement of robots and AI for tasks that they could not handle before. Simultaneously, the benefits of digitalization and AI are being over-reflected in some aspects, and in situations that require creative work and a high level of hospitality, the capabilities of people and organizations will remain dominant for the time being. Figure 3.1 shows the two axes of hospitality management to date, and suggests the direction in which it should go in future. The horizontal axis indicates whether the relationship between the service provider and the user is equal or relatively userdominant. The vertical axis indicates whether a high level of literacy is required of users (customers) (high priority of user literacy) or not (less priority of user literacy). Historically, Japan, Europe, and the United States have both been in the third quadrant (lower left, equality and less priority of user literacy). High quality services in Japan shifted to the second quadrant (upper left, equality and high priority of user literacy), emphasizing sustainable management. In contrast, the development of Western-style companies can be positioned as having evolved into the fourth quadrant (lower right, user superiority and less priori-ty of user literacy) and having become scalable, such as globalization. The implications of digital transformation and pandemics are a wake-up call that companies cannot sustain or grow by standing still and being satisfied with the status quo. It is essential to adapt to the environment and promote management that is always conscious of resilience. For resilient companies and organizations in Kyoto today, this means expanding the scope of management from the second quadrant of

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Fig. 3.1 Sustainability and scalability in the context of hospitality management

Fig. 3.1 to the first quadrant (upper right, user superiority and high priority of user literacy). In other words, the popularization of high-quality services. The popularization of high-quality services is an activity intended to maintain and develop sustainable business by effectively utilizing the limited resources of service providers without destroying the value created through value co-creation with literate users. Service providers with advanced technologies and skills that cannot be replaced by AI will continue to operate as before. Simultaneously, AI and robots are being used to provide high-quality services to the inexperienced people surrounding these experts. In the past, the implicit use of information, such as awareness, Omonpakari and Mitate, could only be passed down through years of experience. However, this process of business succession will be revolutionized in future. In contrast, the customer side has also acquired literacy through years of experience. However, with the use of digital data and the visualization of evaluation methods and results, an era is expected to arrive in which anyone who needs it can smoothly acquire information literacy.

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In the sections that follow, we delve into topics such as the enhancement of value through empathy between providers and users, and the application of digital technology.

3.2 Symbiosis and Mutualism 3.2.1 Symbiosis in Business For billions of years, living creatures have used symbiosis, a biological concept roughly defined as a partnership between organisms, to help them innovate and expand into new niches. Symbiosis occurs when two organisms of different species live in close physical contact for the benefit of both. Animals, plants, fungi, or any combination of these can form symbiotic relationships. Each organism contributes something that aids the survival of the other and, consequently, receives something that aids its own survival. This is the business equivalent of Symbiosis as a strategy. Symbiosis can be based on direct collaboration among a company and a customer or on companies working together to create value for the customer. According to Michael Porter’s shared value theory, there is a symbiotic relationship between society and business. Toni Keskinen (2015) describes the four models of the Symbiosis Relationship in the interaction between corporations and their customers. • Shared Value = A symbiotic relationship between society and business • Platform/standard-based = Interdependence of platform owner, partners, and customers • Customer + company = co-creation • A coalition is a group of companies that work together to serve a single customer.

3.2.2 The Four Models of Symbiotic Relationship in Business 3.2.2.1

Shared Value = A Symbiotic Relationship Between Society and Business

Businesses, particularly those whose customers are also their employees, must think about how they can improve the customer experience by investing in services and infrastructure that benefit them in other areas of their lives. This is especially true when entering new international markets. Examples outside the country include providing workers with educational opportunities to improve their skills or investing in better transportation options for workers to get to and from work. This concept also applies to domestic customers/employees. These kinds of investments in the society

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that the corporation serves generate shared value. Employees/customers have a better quality of life. Consequently, the company gains employee/customer loyalty. Porter and Kramer (2011) proposed a “Shared Value” theory. Gaining long-term competitive advantages through deeper engagement with societies is what shared value is all about. As an example, he used and examples comparing corporate social responsibility ideologies such as fair trade. Fair trade pays farmers a little more to improve farmers’ living conditions. Consequently, the products cost more in stores, where consumers eventually pay more as well. In the case of shared value, the company does not pay farmers more, but rather educates them, invests in better transportation capabilities, and provides farmers with more efficient production capabilities. Consequently, the company now receives higher-quality products at the same price as before, while farmers earn 200–300% more than before. The products are the same price as before, the company has secured production, and the farmer and society in which the production takes place benefit far more than fair trade could ever offer. According to Porter, over the last 30 years, companies have been completely focused on maximizing profits. In recent years, business has come to be regarded as a major source of social, environmental, and economic problems. Companies benefit their owners at the expense of the community as a whole. This has subjected the capitalist system under attack. The ecosystem of shared values was discussed in a recent study (Kramer & Pfitzer, 2016). Governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), businesses, and community members must all be involved in programs aimed at creating shared value. However, they often work in opposition rather than in collaboration. Collective impact is a movement that has facilitated successful collaborations in the social sector. Moreover, it can help businesses bring together the various actors in their eco-systems to help solve some of the world’s most pressing problems. Companies will discover economic opportunities that their competitors will miss as a result of this process. For a collective-impact effort to succeed, five components must be in place: (1) a shared agenda, which helps align the players’ efforts and defines their commitment; (2) a shared measurement system; (3) mutually reinforcing activities; (4) constant communication, which builds trust and ensures mutual objectives; and (5) dedicated “backbone” support, delivered by a separate, independently funded staff, which builds public will, advances policy, and mobilizes resources.

3.2.2.2

Platform/standard-Based = Interdependence of Platform Owner, Partners, and Customers

This model is exemplified by Windows. When Microsoft created a universal PC platform, it opened the door for other companies to innovate and improve the Windows experience for all users. Over time, the accessibility and commonality provided by Windows allowed companies like Oracle, IBM, and countless others to grow and earn profit. Furthermore, over the last two decades, the platform served as a vehicle for

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establishing protocols for the development of the Internet. Everyone benefits from this collaboration, from Microsoft to its partners to us, the end users.

3.2.2.3

Customer + Company = Co-Creation

Without the contributions of their users, Facebook and LinkedIn would not be the social media powerhouses that they are today. Similarly, popular online gaming forums such as World of Warcraft. The company creates a forum for people to enjoy and improve with their original content. Keskinen refers to this as “co-creation.” The benefits for each group are as follows: • Customers get a fun place to interact and play. • Advertisers get a lot of exposure to the platform’s users. • Companies that own the platform benefit from co-created content and added value for their advertisers. • Co-created content is an excellent way to boost your Symbiosis strategy. Co-creation has re-emerged as a new way of creating value and business concepts in the online environment, causing quite a stir. Most games and services in the online environment would be useless if no one interacted with them. Businesses actually rely on customers to create meaning for the frame, a platform. In these cases, the company provides a platform for customers to communicate, socialize, and have fun. Customers contribute to the meaning, and the company makes money by selling the users’ attention to advertisers. Advertisers, however, participate in value creation for users and co-create value in both directions. In these cases, each party acts selfishly and takes advantage of the opportunity to (a) enjoy a free and enjoyable communication platform as a customer, (b) enjoy great reach and dialogue opportunities as an advertiser, and (c) enjoy the scope and unrestricted generation of value by users and marketers, which allows for commercial success as a platform owner. The rise of mutual companies is another form of co-creation. These businesses are owned by their customers, and managed by representatives of the owners.

3.2.2.4

A Coalition = A Group of Companies that Work Together to Serve a Single Customer

The concept of working together to succeed is not new. Customer loyalty cards incorporating the concept of collaboration, however, is a new fantastic idea that is producing excellent results for both consumers and coalition partners. Keskinen (2015) illustrates his point with the popular Nectar card in the United Kingdom. The core concept of the Nectar loyalty program is to integrate the forces and relationships of several companies into a single program, to enable a stronger hold on customers in a variety of different contexts while also offering a higher reward for

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purchasing from this coalition. As a brand, the Nectar program is expertly positioned as a high value proposition for both coalition partners and customers. Nectar’s concept was aimed at spreading current customer relationships and tie them to new partners, allowing for effective cross-selling operations and increased sales for all partners, resulting in a tool for market growth in all participating partner categories. The concept of partner symbiosis was very well argued, both rationally and emotionally. This symbiotic relationship manifested as Nectar, which was positioned as a customer servant, supporting the individual needs and behavior of the customer in his personal life. Nectar’s role as a program was to provide personalized advice and hints based on your consumption and lifestyle. Nectar does its job by integrating new brands and companies into the lives of its customers and rewarding them for it. Nectar was also effective; it cut the cost of acquisition and customer care programs in half, and cut the cost of mailing in half when compared to before. Partner companies such as Barclaycard increased their revenue by 9% in the first year, while BP sold 4% more at a lower cost. According to Sainsbury’s report in Direct Magazine, their response rate to Nectar’s targeted mailings in paper and e-mail has increased by 300%; they estimate a 50% efficiency improvement in understanding and segmenting their customers. According to financial statements, after introducing Nectar to their customers, Sainsbury’s profit increased by 14.2% over the previous year and 10.8% the following year. Tesco responded by doubling their advertising spending and retaliating by recruiting new Clubcard members. The following year, Sainsbury’s profit decreased by 2.9%, compared with the previous year. However, through coalition Symbiosis and increased value for customers, Nectar benefited participating members, resulting in stronger steering power and pull toward program participants. Synergy is not a new concept. Companies have always collaborated and operated in win–win situations. However, we believe that most businesses settle for the secondbest value proposition rather than the best. The four symbiotic models, shared value, platform-based, co-created, and coalition models, frequently occur as integrations to some degree. Nonetheless, we believe that these four distinct models provide a comprehensive view of what can be done and where such opportunities should be sought. We predict and anticipate a new breed of corporate collaboration, which means a new wave of holding companies offering new value propositions based on synergy value from various companies focusing on their core business, but creating entirely new value in collaboration.

3.2.3 Business Mutualism Mutualism is a biological concept that refers to a relationship between two species or organisms that benefits both. A company’s relationship with its share-holders is based on a similar type of mutualism. Shareholders put their money or capital into a company. The capital is then used to fund the company’s operations. Consequently,

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the corporation’s and its shareholders’ investments can grow. This corporationshareholder relationship, like many others, is part of a larger ecosystem. When everything goes well, more employees and managers are hired. Further, the company produces more products or provides more services, all of which benefit the economy as a whole. Unfortunately, the mutualistic nature of the relationship between corporations and their shareholders may be fading. This may harm corporations and their shareholders, as well as those who rely on the health of the corporation-shareholder relationship. We further investigate how to re-establish mutualism in the relationship that supports our corporate ecosystem. Changes in the corporation-shareholder relationship are perhaps most visible when examining efforts to limit shareholders’ access to information and rights. Shareholders are interested in corporate practices of all kinds and how they affect the bottom line, from strategic plans to employee relations, to executive compensation, and much more. Shareholder activism can act as a necessary check on a company’s leaders. Alternatively, it can be an unnecessary expense for a company that ultimately yields no benefit. In recent years, shareholder activism has prompted myriad responses from corporate boards and management. Many simply try to fend off shareholders. Many engage with shareholders. However, because about 70% of the share ownership of U.S. companies is from huge investors, that is where they focus. Therefore, the entire battle is fought for the opinions of a handful of executives at large asset managers. Although the decision to engage institutional shareholders may appear to be purely a matter of numbers, the long-term consequences of this type of limited shareholder engagement for the company, what happens when a single group of shareholders’ opinions are considered, whether this is a form of short-termism, whether the possibility of blinders being put on by a company impact the company’s long-term financial performance and how a one-sided engagement with customers, suppliers, and other stakeholders impact the company’s position in the larger ecosystem, are not clear. This boils down to whether shareholder activism is a sign of a larger problem or a necessary component of a solution. To answer this question accurately, we must return to a more mutualistic relationship with each other.

3.2.4 GO ON Project in Kyoto Here’s an intriguing example of a collaboration: multiple firms concentrating on their main businesses while generating additional value via their collaboration. GO ON was founded in 2012 by the descendants of historic Kyoto artisan organizations. Its founders inherited businesses with storied histories; all six are dedicated to following their individual creative interests. Simultaneously, they established the project unit GO ON to serve as a platform, or rather atmosphere, for the generation of flexible, freed ideas. So far, many proactive initiatives have been accomplished. GO ON is relatively organic. Actions are conducted with the artisan’s spiritual attitude, utilizing physical movements of hand and body while also emitting an

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energy that pushes out from previous frameworks. They continue to explore the world of traditional artisan skill and spirit, extending its impact into new do-mains. GO ON connects craft with art, design, science, and technology, to create new creative expressions; its work has been praised both within and beyond the craft realms. Craft materials, methods, and procedures have been passed down through generations. However, GO ON puts them into touch with cutting-edge technology, resulting in previously unimagined creative insights. It is essential to emphasize that GO ON does not just broaden the scope of craft. Its members are also looking for current creative potential outside of that frame-work. Their approach is to call into question the fundamental assumptions of tradition. Surprisingly, the concepts generated by these studies are then applied to the area of craft practice and production. “We want to stand beyond the conventional sphere of craft, treading territory in places not typically regarded to be craft’s mainstream,” stated a GO ON member. “We never stop asking questions.” GO ON is nothing more than a quest for the future, for new ideas, and for their realization. It is a challenge given by six individuals who investigate foundations to support creative activity, as well as the value and process of object-making, as well as the meaning and richness of existence. GO ON is collaborating on a project with the Design Center of the Panasonic Appliances Company. The common theme is ‘Better Life in the Future,’ which aims to rep-resent the ever-increasing societal variety. GO ON inherits centuries of traditional, one-of-a-kind, and individual workmanship. Moreover, all of our products are designed to awaken people’s inner sense. They apply methods and ideas to electrical equipment, to improve the comfort and ease of modern living, but also to seek higher ideals. What could result from this meeting of traditional Japanese craft and cuttingedge technology? They think that the aesthetics, sensitivity, and culture fostered by Japanese craft over a long period contain a wealth of future possibilities. They have integrated exquisite material and meticulous skills with electrical technology, to create prototypes that mirror human memory and react to the five senses. GO ON showed in the Milano Salone in April 2017 under the motto ‘Electronics Meets Crafts’ and received the Best Storytelling Prize at the 2017 Milano Design Awards. The actions of GO ON are known throughout the globe.

3.3 Sustainable Transitions with Digital Technologies According to established historical precedent, technological and scientific modernization emerged following the Industrial Revolution, which was sparked in England during the late eighteenth century, by the invention of spinning machinery. The terms modernization and Westernization are frequently used inter-changeably in Japan and other Asian countries. This is because when modernization occurred in these countries, it frequently entailed the acceptance of Western culture, resulting in significant

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changes to daily life. In Asian countries, modernization can be defined as the process of redesigning an existing cultural system to conform to a new mode of expression. It has been discovered that the adoption of Western clothing, food, hair styles, and houses can be considered a form of Westernization in the case of Japan. Although these items provided Japanese people with some convenience and a whiff of new culture, the functions they performed were nearly identical to those per-formed by indigenous substitutes in the past. In contrast, the introduction of telephones, television, airplanes, mass communication, bureaucratic institutions, computer control systems, and so on can be considered part of modernization because they have the potential to broaden one’s outlook and enlarge one’s spheres of life, as well as transform ways of thinking, patterns of behavior, and world views. It unquestionably entails remolding a cultural system into a new form. This remolding does not always result in positive outcomes such as a dignified way of life and social stability, despite the fact that it is necessary and in-dispensable for raising the living standards of all citizens. This is attributed to the fact that introducing new elements into existing elements can occasionally cause serious friction and tension between the traditional system and cultures. In the following sections, we investigate how digital technologies have transformed business. Further, the lessons learned and the future course of action will be followed.

3.3.1 Digital Technology Adoption and Business Re-Engineering Business re-engineering became very popular in the 1990s, when digital technology was evolving rapidly and being adopted by businesses (Hammer 1990). However, this radical re-engineering strategy has been criticized as too radically dehumanizing the workplace, and it is contradicted by slow but incremental organizational changes using digital technology. This strategic thinking dichotomy was popular in the 1990s: radical re-engineering versus incremental improvement. Since the advent of business re-engineering in the 1990s, studies on organizational change and innovation have contrasted both incremental and radical changes as contrasting organizational change strategies. This can be traced back to strategy studies, where they were described as gradual versus dramatic, or small-scale versus large-scale (Fox-Wolfgramm et al. 1998; Newman 2000; de la Sablonnière 2017; Berente et al. 2019; Lewis 2019; Watad 2019). Table 3.1 summarizes these arguments. Another branch of organizational development research describes organizational changes caused by interventions such as the adoption of new digital technologies as a series of stages: first-, second-, and subsequent third-order effects of digital technology implementations (Bartunek & Michael, 1994; Riasanow, Soto Setzke et al. 2018). This process-oriented viewpoint depicts organizational development as progressing from the first- to the second- to the third-orders of change whenever organizations modify and develop in response to environmental pressure and/or strategic

Responses over time to ongoing activity with enterprise system implementation (second-order responses)

Systems implementation

Radical changes

Context

Technology change

Discontinuous change that poses a threat to the structures and capabilities

Incremental change that supports and strengthens the existing structures and competencies

(Lewis 2019)

Technology adoption

Change that alters the total system

Change that occurs within a system that remains unchanged

(Watad 2019)

Social change

Dramatic, gamma, abrupt, collapse, large-scale change

Incremental, beta, decline, gradual, small-scale change

(de la Sablonnière 2017)

Changes that occur within the system itself

(Fox-Wolfgramm, Boal et al. 1998)

Institutional change

Institutional change

Transformational and Changes in which radical changes at its the system itself core with strategic changes reorientation leading to an organizational metamorphosis

Incremental and convergent changes helping firms maintain internal reliability

(Newman 2000)

Lee and Han (2021). The Future of Service Post-COVID-19 Pandemic, Volume 1 Rapid Adoption of Digital Service Technology. Springer. Singapore

Initial responses to an enterprise system implementation (first-order responses)

Incremental changes

(Berente, Lyytinen et al. 2019)

Table 3.1 Two types of organizational transformation presented and contrasted in previous consulting literature

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needs. However, except for a few studies on work trans-formation using digital technology (Baptista, Stein et al. 2020) and digital system implementations, links between this processual view of organizational development and digital technology implementations have rarely been drawn (Riasanow, Soto Setzke et al. 2018). Rather than looking for radicalor incremental improvements, one can identify three levels of change (the first, second, and third orders) in sequence, using the concept of schemata developed in cognitive sciences (Bartunek & Moch, 1987; Bartunek & Michael, 1994). According to this theory, which is based on the results of various research disciplines, such as the design of work (Baptista, Stein et al. 2020), family therapy (McDowell, Knudson-Martin et al. 2019), classroom computing adoption (Makki, O’Neal et al. 2018), and digital transformation (Riasanow, Soto Setzke et al. 2018), a variety of other topics can be found in the research sphere. These three orders of effects exist in various domains; researchers selectively screen, summarize, and contrast their findings in Table 3.2. The first-order of change occurs in the context of digital technology adoption when digital systems are designed and simply implemented. Most digital systems are designed to reflect current business processes. Virtual processes are designed to be exact replicas of physical processes. Calculative routines in these processes are handled by numerical machines, allowing for significantly faster business operations with new digital systems (Riasanow, Soto Setzke et al. 2018). In this regard, firstorder changes include the routineization of calculative and numerical procedures such as receipt and bill of lading comparison. In this regard, first-order changes have an impact on specific parts of an organization, such as localized business processes (Bartunek and Jones 2017). Second-order changes occur when users realize that digital systems can do more than just automate tasks. Work patterns change and evolve in response to the characteristics of digital technology. Unnecessary steps and procedures are eliminated or modified, affecting the entire organization and potentially changing the core business concepts (Young, Mathiassen et al. 2016; Riasanow, Soto Setzke et al. 2018). For example, after the comparison of receipts and bills of lading is delegated to machines, humans may take on additional responsibilities for various processes that were previously handled by them. Routines are more easily changeable because digital technologies are more malleable and operate in real-time than physics-based technologies. Consequently, work processes are transformed, reflecting characteristics that may or may not have been anticipated in the initial design of digital systems. Third-order changes occur when the potential and depth of these digital technologies are realized in practice outside of the current organizational schemata and structural constraints. Third-order changes entail developing the ability to change schemata and structure (Bartunek & Moch, 1987; Riasanow, Soto Setzke et al. 2018). Because of the capabilities provided by advanced digital technology, organizational schemata can be changed on the fly as events occur and environmental conditions change. The impact of digital technologies and changes extends beyond organizational and industrial boundaries, capitalizing on the information’s synergistic nature. Further, new business models may emerge following these third-order changes.

(Second-order thinking) changes in the process level of relationships, for example, change in repetitive patterns and schemas

(Third-order thinking) take a meta perspective considering systems of systems, that is, sets of alternatives between schemas

2nd order (Transforming work) shift organizational schemata and social dynamics, and modify patterns of work and interactions

(Transforming the organization) emergence of entirely new schemata, reshaping views about the nature of work and corresponding organizational structures

Digital/human Family therapy and configurations of work relationship building

3rd order

Context

Classroom computing integration

(Third-order barrier) dynamic creation of knowledge and practice confronted with ICT and associated affordances

(Second-order barrier) attitudes and beliefs in predicting the effective integration of technology in classrooms

(First-order barrier) willingness to incorporate technological tools with limited computing resources

Digital transformation

Incremental changes occurring within particular schemata shared by members

Organizational development

Organizational development

Development of the capacity of the client system to change the schemata as events require

Changes in the deep Modifications in the structure and shared shared schemata schemata that generate themselves meanings to activities

Incremental change involving behavioral adjustments within established beliefs set

(Bartunek and Michael (Bartunek and Moch 1994) 1987)

Change that exceeds Changes transcending organizational and transforming boundaries affecting schemata business model and value network

Transformational or radical change involving entire organization

Incremental or convergent change

(Riasanow, Soto Setzke et al. 2018)

Lee and Han (2021). The Future of Service Post-COVID-19 Pandemic, Volume 1 Rapid Adoption of Digital Service Technology. Springer. Singapore

(First-order thinking) changes or solutions to problems that fit within existing relational frameworks

(McDowell, (Makki, O’Neal et al. Knudson-Martin et al. 2018) 2019)

(Convergent change) reinforce, enhance, and evolve existing practices and understandings of work in organizations

1st order

(Baptista, Stein et al. 2020)

Table 3.2 Studies used the theory of three-order effects in various fields

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Generally, the two approaches are considered to be two methods, with no other options. These contrasting extremes serve as analogies for showing how the two competing approaches for organizational development and changes differ, and are commonly employed by consultants. Generally, it is assumed that each partner has their own copy. While some of these might be interpreted as a change of order (e.g., “first-order change” or “second-order change”), the term order change does not reflect this. In the world of organizational development studies, new digital technologies have the capacity to trigger multiple stages of change. These can be labeled sequentially, with the first, second, and sub-sequent stages being referred to as the first-, second-, and third-order effects of the changes that follow in the wake of technology implementation (Bartunek and Michael 1994; Riasanow et al. 2018). The process-oriented perspective indicates that there are four orders of change for organizations. First, they undergo significant structural changes when under pressure from external forces and/or strategic necessities. Further, the second-order change follows, when they continue to trans-form and innovate in response to external pressures and/or strategic necessities. The third-order of change occurs when organizations modify and develop themselves, responding to environmental pressures and/or strategic necessities. The hospitality and service industries are undergoing massive transformations. These modifications are taking place in the ultimate deep structure of services. The service routines as well as the service meanings and goals are changing. In some cases, multiple layers of digital technologies, integrating algorithmic and routinizing features, may aid services. In other cases, technology may digitally automate tasks, eliminating the need for human intervention. In the following section, we specifically focus on the hospitality industry and its management with digital technology, as well as discuss the future direction of balancing human interaction and digital technologies.

3.3.2 Digital Technology and Hospitality Industry The hospitality industry has been one of the most reluctant to “digital transformation”. As an industry that must deliver a physical service at its core, digital technology has frequently been considered a requirement, or even a burden, rather than an enabler for a better customer experience and better business performance. Digital technologies are fundamentally altering the way many services are operated and delivered. The nature of services is changing faster as digital technologies mature, particularly following COVID-19. These changes brought about and exacerbated by digital technology are being exacerbated by the rapid advancement of technologies. Cloud computing, the Internet of Things, social media, mobile computing, and big data analytics were not available even a decade ago. Digital services can be conceptualized and implemented in hours and days rather than months and years. Following the forced rapid adoption of digital technology in the hospitality industry, this trend is accelerating even more. Because digital technologies

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are rapidly adopted, hospitality organizations did not have enough time to consider and digest the potential second- and third-order effects of digital technology in their services. Recently, most industries, including hospitality, have aimed to provide exceptional customer experiences. Moreover, related evidence shows that technology can assist enterprises in achieving this at scale and in a personalized manner. Personalization and AI technologies that take the guesswork out of the equation and auto-mate the entire process of creating personalized customer experiences have become increasingly popular among hospitality companies. These technologies help reduce costs, increase operational efficiency, and provide a better customer experience, to name a few advantages of updated technology systems. Legacy technologies are gradually giving way to new and innovative technologies that will assist the hospitality industry exceed customer expectations. For example, we’re seeing an increasing number of hotels recognize this reality and begin to integrate technology into the services they offer, to provide a better guest experience. Additionally, in recent years, customer expectations have shifted significantly. Previously in the case of hotel stays, customer expectations were centered on basic needs such as clean rooms, good value, good property location, and so on. Customer expectations now include the desire for an experience rather than a service, the ability to personalize their stay, data privacy, and other factors. Most travelers no longer want a standardized travel experience; instead, they want their trips to resonate on a deeper emotional level. These factors are already influencing the adoption of technology in the hospitality industry and will do so in future. While technology will continue to evolve for the hospitality industry, increasing efficiency and revenue, businesses must begin to prepare for the future so that they can continue to provide exceptional experiences to their customers. While we cannot predict the future or the technologies that will emerge, the hospitality industry cannot avoid adopting them in an attempt to remain competitive and provide the experiences that modern customers expect. This chapter presents a theory of three orders of effects in the adoption of digital technologies in business organizations and the hospitality industry. At a time when advanced digital technology is being used forcefully amid a pandemic, the theory of three orders of effects makes more sense. Rapid change is now the new normal, and decision-makers must act quickly and strategically. The adoption of digital technology is not a panacea. It necessitates a significant amount of effort, time, and investment, but does not guarantee success. However, this will be impossible to avoid. There are also employees who must learn a new way of working and manage all tasks at the customer interface. Consequently, a careful and thorough approach is required in considering both customers and employees; three E considerations are proposed here. Emotion. Demonstrate empathy for your customers and employees. Change always has unintended consequences. It may not always be welcomed. Consequently, it is critical to comprehend how customers and employees perceive the changes. Listening to and empathizing with changing customer and employee

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demands during the adoption of digital technologies will be smooth, ensuring that each participant actually follows the new processes. Experience. Determine and design a method for providing individualized and re-fined experiences. According to Forbes, “Customer experience is today’s business benchmark.” It is critical to understand your current target market and key consumer profiles, as well as what the “best” experiences are for them, without getting confused by un-expected digital transformation. Customers expect a constructive and enjoyable experience rather than a transactional occurrence. Any touchpoint, also known as the Moment of Truth, is the point at which a customer interacts with a brand, product, or service, to shape or change their opinion about that brand, product, or service. Consequently, it is critical to provide “the technology” they re-quire, consider which new technologies to incorporate into existing ways of working and how to seamlessly integrate new technologies. Engagement. Create a welcoming environment in which customers can immerse themselves and participate. Customer engagement is the first step to increasing customer loyalty. Many related studies show that if a dissatisfied customer complains, they are more likely to stick with the brand, and that quickly resolving a problem increases loyalty. One option for increasing customer engagement is to make good use of frontline employees. Customers become invest more in the brand when frontline employees receive excellent support. The significance of using social media (SNS) cannot be overstated. Encourage customers to use your company’s SNS to create their own community and participate in various events.

3.3.3 Advanced Technology as an Enabler to Provide Highly Delicate Services Technology is chosen and used in an attempt to maintain and not alter onstage interaction. One of the most distinguishing characteristics of traditional Japanese hospitality is that the service may seem basic at first sight, yet it is meticulously and artistically planned. This shift also means that the fundamental ideals that Japanese hospitality wishes to communicate have been effectively maintained. We consider how to integrate this with modern technology and make it available to future generations. The goal here is to utilize cutting-edge technology as a tool to safeguard this continuous connection while keeping the customer-employee contact point as consistent as possible. Service blueprints are diagrams that depict organizational processes to improve how a company provides a user experience. They are the most important instrument in service design. Service blueprinting, like trip mapping, should be the outcome of a collaborative effort guided by well-defined objectives and founded on research. Service designs that are successful promote alignment and organizational action.

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Fig. 3.2 Blueprint components with advanced technology for resilient hospitality management

Service blueprinting is effective when five essential high-level stages are followed (Fig. 3.2): 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Obtain support: Form a core cross-disciplinary team and garner stakeholder support. Define the objective: Define the scope of the blueprinting effort and agree on the goal. Gather research: Using a range of techniques, collect information from consumers, workers, and stakeholders. Fill in the blanks on the blueprint: Use this study to fill in the blanks on a low-fidelity blueprint. Refine and distribute: Add new information and refine to create a high-fidelity blueprint that can be shared with customers and stakeholders.

The diagram below shows how to use cutting-edge sophisticated technology in conjunction with the five components of the service design. 1.

Physical evidence

It is a real, tangible asset that customers can interact with by using all of their senses. This comprises the physical surroundings, as well as the layout or interior design, as well as the furniture, lighting, and tableware, among other things. The physical evidence that consumers come into touch with is specified at the very top of the service plan for each customer activity and every moment of truth. These are all the tangibles that consumers are exposed to that may affect their opinions of quality. Advanced technology can contribute to improving operational efficiency. Examples: Well-designed and easy-to-use website/reservation system.

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(connect to support processes as well). Keyless Entry (using smartphone or passcode). In-room IoT sensors (e.g., ambient lights, motion sensor, temperature and humidity control). 2.

Customer actions

This includes all actions taken by a customer throughout the service delivery process. Customer activities are often represented in order, from beginning to end, in a Service Blueprint. Because customer actions are so important to the Service Blueprint, they are described first. Facilitating smooth actions and better experiences. Examples: Kiosk Having a personalized tablet and smartphone available for use inside and outside the hotel. 3.

Onstage contact employee actions

This element is isolated from the customer activities by a line of interaction. These are face-to-face interactions between employees and customers. The line of visibility exists between frontstage and backstage activities. The line of visibility relates to the user; activities happening above the line are visible to the user, while those occurring below the line are not. The business truly aims to provide customers the core value and process of hospitality. How the company interacts with their customer, these can be reactions to customer actions or business generated actions. These interactions can take multiple forms including human-to-human (service offering, sales pitch, etc.) human-to-computer, (Chatbot, online service request, etc.) or an integration of the two. 4.

Backstage contact employee actions

The line of visibility divides the onstage and backstage activities. Customers can see anything above the line of sight, but everything below the line of visibility is invisible to them. A telephone conversation is an excellent example of an action in this category; it is an activity between an employee and a customer; however, they do not see each other. Unifying communication and utilizing resources. Examples: Making reservations for guests. Taking orders from guests and share with necessary departments and employees. Collecting bills. Cleaning and making guest rooms.

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5.

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Support processes

The internal line of interaction isolates the contact employees from the support procedures. These are all of the operations conducted by people and units inside the business who are not contact employees. These actions must take place for the service to be provided. Improving efficiency, collecting and managing data, providing services “what customer wants and when they want it,” keeping software/systems up-to-date. Examples Revenue management tools. Software. Better managing customer relationships with more sophisticated da tagathering tools, such as a customer relationship management software.

3.3.4 Toward Sustainable Future Technology has permeated every aspect of life today, from smartphones to automated border control gates. Moreover, it is transforming services and products everywhere. Consequently, we are living in a time of digital transformation. Technology drives significant shifts in professional, public, and domestic spaces in our homes and workplaces, across industries and government agencies. The world is becoming more digital. Further, businesses must adapt to these changes—just as the companies discussed have. After all, a digital transformation strategy embraces customer expectations, striving to meet them on a continuous basis, both now and in future. Kyoto City has been striving to promote stable, but innovative sustainability by introducing and adopting new technologies as a massive community. In the early stages of internet distribution, back in 1998, researchers from NTT and Kyoto University launched the project; The Digital City Kyoto Experimentation Forum. It was established in 1999. Several universities, local governments, major computer businesses, local media companies, historical temples, photographers, programmers, students, volunteers, and others are all represented at the forum. International researchers and designers have also joined the initiative. One distinguishing characteristic of Digital City Kyoto is that computer scientists from universities and businesses have continued to lead the organization. Consequently, Digital City Kyoto is built using cutting-edge technologies like as GIS, VR, animation, and social agents. The following three-tier architecture has been suggested for digital cities: (a) The information layer combines both Web archives and real-time sensory information about the city; (b) the interface layer offers two and three-dimensional views of the city; and (c) the interaction layer facilitates social contact among individuals who live in/visit the city. Later, Smart City Kyoto Study Group was established in December 2010 by the Industrial, Academic, and Public Corporation, as well as private businesses, to create a smart city unique to Kyoto. Based on Kyoto’s metropolitan features, ICT was to be

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utilized efficiently, to address energy optimization and other regional issues, and a smart social system was to be created to enhance the residents’ quality of life (QOL). The research group conducted demonstration experiments based on Kyoto City’s Green Industry Promotion Vision to optimize the use and transfer of company and business knowledge and technology, as well as to disseminate and create smart social systems. The utilization of modern technologies was the optimal goal to be realized a smart social system and a visually appealing com-munity development. The composition of new initiatives utilizing wisdom and technology were suggested by firms and enterprises to confront Kyoto’s different is-sues based on Kyoto’s challenges. Some of Kyoto’s Challenges were as follows: – The construction of disaster-proof cities, such as those resistant to earthquakes and floods – Succession and growth of Kyoto-style culture – A pleasant walking town that avoids traffic bottlenecks and emphasizes public transit – The enhancement of the city’s image as a tourism destination Advanced environmental system demos were designed to offer a broad variety of demonstrations in Kyoto for environmental advanced systems created by venture firms and SMEs. One of the initiatives was the “Kyoto City Green Industry Promotion Vision.” It was formed in May 2014 to organize the efforts and explain the fundamental direction, to further utilize Kyoto’s capabilities in the green sector and to revive the Kyoto economy and generate secure employment. Another example is “Eco-renovated Kyoto Machiya.” The Smart City Kyoto Study Group sought to popularize renovated homes as a model for “next generation eco-friendly housing” that integrates “contemporary state-of-the-art technology” with “the wisdom and creativity of the Kyoto family.” It was also a component of the disaster-resistant town development project. They intended to design a project to achieve disaster-resistant urban development using ICT and energy utilization technologies. The development of “Smart City Kyoto” reacted to changes in the social and economic environment. It was further the creation of an organization to research new technological development in the environment and energy sectors, changes in current systems, and changes in values. Aside from the initiatives listed above, organizations, businesses, and individuals in Kyoto City have attempted to achieve consistent growth toward a rich and living society by avoiding negatively impacting industrial and social life, particularly enterprises and SMEs. Details from the philosophy of the Japan Hospitality concept and structural mechanisms for resilience in intangible management, as discussed in earlier chapters, demonstrate this. Maintaining a sustainable society and keeping moving forward must be a difficult task. Keeping the fundamental principles and universal value that the local community agree and accept to re-serve would be the simplest and the hardest thing to achieve.

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3.4 A Sustainable Form of Culture that Can Be Found in Ikebana There is a record of Ikenobo disciples, the “Eidai Montei Cho” (Permanent Record of Disciples), which contains records dating back to 1678. It was at that time that, as the number of disciples was increasing, Ikenobo started recognizing and identifying them with an organized system (Fig. 3.3). Since then, there have been many more with the names of disciples inscribed under the titles of Second, Third, etc., many of which remain today. It was in the late Meiji era (early twentieth century) when many organizations were established by the disciples throughout Japan. Even now, the organizations (chapters) continue their activities such as ikebana exhibitions or workshops in their own local areas. Ikenobo has more than 400 chapters in Japan. It further has 122 chapters worldwide and study groups in 34 countries and regions. Beginning in 1968, as a strategy for the overseas expansion of ikebana, Ikenobo Sen’ei, the Headmaster of Ikenobo, conceived the idea of sending instructors to the United States for a period of six months to a year. Even before that, however, there were Japanese instructors who, after teaching it in Japan, and subsequently, moving overseas owing to marriages or jobs, kept teaching ikebana in their adopted countries. While such communities are blended into the life of each country or region, they were then supported by the Headquarters, and rapidly developed to contribute to the Ikenobo globalization.

Fig. 3.3 “Daiichi Eidai Montei Cho” (The First Permanent Disciples Record) (1678, Collection of Ikenobo Headquarters)

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The overseas chapter with the longest history is the Los Ange-les Chapter (U.S.), established in 1957. In the past, overseas chapters have been organized and hold their exhibitions and workshops in local communities. However, recently, some study groups have started expanding their activities across the regions or countries. The Zurich Study Group, for example, is based in Switzerland, but also has bases of operation in Brazil and the Netherlands, where instructors visit periodically. Others, such as the Hana no Wa London Study Group, are based in the UK but have a multinational membership that includes members from Malaysia, Singapore, and Fin-land. With the help of advancing digital transformation technology, many chapters in the world such as CIS Chapter (Russia), Eastern Europe Chapter (Ukraine and Moldova), and the California Pacific Chapter now perform online lessons or demonstrations in addition to their conventional face-to-face instruction. Some chapters even perform a hybrid style of the two, which may continue to take root in future. These examples suggest that the structure of chapters and their activities will continue to change from the past, becoming more flexible and diversified in response to changes in the social environment and needs. “Ikenobo4” is a group whose activities are only on the internet and has members from different chapters around the world. They post about ikebana by livestreaming the ikebana demonstrations and other activities via Instagram or Facebook, offering a wide distribution. We see many activities expanding beyond the limit of chapters; this is an interesting shift. Just as we are entering this era of digital transformation, we are also in a situation where people’s consciousness is being transformed by the current pandemic. The reality has been that we are obliged to stay at home. Cultural and other events are being either canceled or postponed. Moreover, it has become more and more difficult to conduct training in the conventional face to face manner. This could be a temporary phenomenon. However, in the midst of a situation that, so to speak, is perceived as negative from the perspective of traditional values, we can also see that our chapters have started new approaches in their operations and their means of dissemination that bring a new sustainability to ikebana chapters. Looking back over its long history, ikebana, as a traditional culture, has encountered many hardships and new developments have emerged as a result of responding to these. In 1879, recognizing the importance of women’s education, Ikenobo Sensho, the Headmaster of the time, responded to the request from Kyoto prefecture to visit the Kyoto Women’s School (Later Kyoto Prefectural Kyoto First Higher Girls’ School, and currently Kyoto Prefectural Oki High School) as a kado instructor (Fig. 3.4). This was a groundbreaking event considering the norms of the day because the Headmaster himself, who normally would teach only the leading disciples, was visiting a school to give his knowledge directly to a group of beginners. This was an opportunity for ikebana to take root in the education of girls. It led to opportunities through which women would become the majority of the population in-volved in ikebana. It was a breakthrough first achieved by the Japanese government of the time recognizing the value in the girls’ education, and then by Ikenobo responding to the request by dispatching the Headmaster. It exemplifies the success of ikebana

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Fig. 3.4 Certificate of Kado Instructor in the Kyoto Girls’ School (1879, Collection of Ikenobo Headquarters)

in properly interpreting and adapting to the needs in the con-text of that society. This attitude resulted in a significant increase in the number of Ikenobo learners as well as in the spread of ikebana culture. As social conditions and values change from moment to moment, ikebana has often faced difficulties. However, it has been able to build a sustainable system by responding to these difficulties in a timely and appropriate manner.

3.5 Toward an Autonomous Distributed Society with a Hospitality Mindset 3.5.1 Characteristics of Resilience in Kyoto According to Andrew Zolly, et al., resilience is defined as “the ability of a system, company, or individual to maintain its basic purpose and soundness in the face of extreme situational changes.” The first prerequisite for having such resilience is the ability to instantly detect dangerous changes and to respond appropriately. As an interesting example, a good proprietress at a ryokan can recognize at a glance

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whether a guest wants to be taken care of or not. It is also said that when the guest is satisfied, there is no particular difference. However, when the guest is anxious or dissatisfied, the proprietress is able to quickly detect it and take appropriate action. This kind of behavior is the feedback process that enables us to detect and respond to dangerous changes. Moreover, it is a clear indication of the characteristics of Japanese hospitality. These traits have been inherited as genetic factors for sustaining the systems of societies and organizations through years of experiencing natural disasters. Another necessary condition for resilience is that resources and processes should not be overly concentrated nor overly dispersed. Although concentrating resources and processes provides efficiency, it creates rigidness and makes the organization vulnerable to discontinuous changes. In contrast, excessive decentralization, while flexible, tends to complicate the decision-making process and create delays in response. In this respect, the structure of the Juxtaposition in Kyoto is not overly concentrated or dispersed, but maintains stability by shifting its center of gravity according to the situation. This structure has a dynamic and flexible mechanism that responds to change. In Kyoto, the politicians and the townspeople had coexisted, while taking for granted the fact that saving money is a virtue, but sometimes luxury was also practiced. The existence of tacit knowledge has a kind of exclusive-ness. However, it has the inclusiveness of being tolerant of “outsiders.” Whether it is manufacturing or providing services, they have differentiated their functions to provide value and avoid excessive concentration. Such activities have resulted in the de-concentration of resources and processes. Consequently, we have developed resilient capabilities that can withstand various disasters and environmental changes. Such a concept of resilience is different from robustness or redundancy. Resilience is the ability to recover in the face of difficulties, and not necessarily to re-turn to the original state. This ability to restore and maintain soundness has probably been honed by the Japanese aesthetic standards of authenticity (standards for determining what should change and what should not change). The Japanese sense of beauty is a process that aims for perfection from an imperfect state, and therefore, has no end. Consequently, it can be said that the basic goals and soundness have always been maintained through medium- and long-term thinking. However, we have also seen various examples of the limitations of Kyoto’s resilience, which is relatively closed and impersonal. Many companies in Kyoto place high priority on the continuation and succession of their business in society, and short-term profit maximization and growth are secondary. Despite the current hot topic of sustainability, there have been few attempts to expand out-side the region or scale up, except few cases including Ikebana Ikenobo. Typical companies in Kyoto have sustainable activities on a relatively small scale, based on community-based, blood-related family businesses, fixed partners, and customer relationships. In the era of digital transformation and post-pandemic, the underlying business environment and people’s sense of values have changed drastically. Historical facts have proven that sustainability cannot be guaranteed by continuing with the current activities.

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The mutualism that has been fostered in Kyoto, as exemplified by the phrase “Sanpo Yoshi” (good for the seller, good for the buyer, and good for the community), is more historically accumulated than in other regions. It is also essential to consider these good characteristics in the coming era of digital trans-formation.

3.5.2 Progress in Resilience Through Digital Technology As mentioned above, before the introduction of digital technology, resilience was realized in a way that depended on the context of the individual and the region. Consequently, long-established companies have survived, cultural and traditional arts have been inherited, and socially sustainable cities have been formed. However, it has been difficult to scale globally owing to the dependency on the local context. As shown in the horizontal axis of Fig. 3.5, digital transformation combined with the need to prevent the spread of COVID-19 has resulted in the rapid penetration of digitalization. The first order of change is the digitization of business processes that used to be handled in an impersonal and analog manner. Especially in many small and medium service industries, digitization is the first step. However, this level of change is not necessarily efficient, as it is a case of digitization while keeping the old business processes—for example, the business processes of the paper era.

Fig. 3.5 An Online Ikebana lesson. Photo Provided by SAKURA Experience Japanese Culture. https://www.sakura-kyoto.jp/kado/online-ikebana.html

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The second type of change is a phase in which business processes within a company or organization, or within a city or region, have changed, owing to digitalization. This is the change that corresponds to the original definition of digital transformation. Activities in this phase are currently the focus of attention. For example, in the case of Ikebana Ikenobo, in the past, ikebana activities were mainly conducted at a local chapter basis, which was divided by geographical region. As the COVID-19 epidemic spread around the world, each chapter was forced to conduct its activities through online communication (Fig. 3.5). Interestingly, digitalization has resulted in the spontaneous formation of communities of shared interests, rather than local communities. These communities of interest do not necessarily have to be local, but rather operate as dynamic virtual chapters on a global level, bringing a new breeze to the development of ikebana, while not changing the subject of traditional ikebana culture. The third-order changes that will be further developed in the future are not only innovations in business processes within a specific company or organization, but also innovations in business processes and integration of business processes in an open environment that eliminates the institutional and physical constraints of companies, organizations, cities, and regions. This will result in business process innovation and business process integration in an open framework. An interesting sign of change in Kyoto is the place of “QUESTION” developed by the Kyoto Shinkin Bank, a regional financial institution (Fig. 3.6). Originally, banks were primarily engaged in the settlement and intermediary functions of credit-based

Fig. 3.6 Kyoto Shinkin Bank “QUESTION”. Photo Provided by Kyoto Shinkin Bank. https://que stion.kyoto-shinkin.co.jp/articles/articles-652/)

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finance. In recent years, following the progress of digital transformation, banks have shifted from the traditional settlement and intermediary functions to problem-solving functions. The concept of “QUESTION” is to bring together people from various fields to solve problems that cannot be solved individually. The new encounters and changes that occur in the process, as well as the realization that one can be of service to others, bring joy and happiness to each person involved, and enrich the community. “QUESTION” is a fusion of the digital and the human, in which staffs focus on high-value work and try to act in the public interest before thinking about their own interests. They provide places for people to gather, such as co-working spaces, community kitchens, and studios. They also provide test-marketing for new products from local entrepreneurs and for products created through crowdfunding. In a sense, they play a supporting role in business creation and expansion, while helping to provide users with new encounters and discoveries. This provides an open space for banking (community banking) in the broad sense of the word, and aims not only to transform the business process of banking through the use of IT, but also to transform the business process in an integrated manner, including related stakeholders (individuals and organizations that have problems, individuals and organizations that can solve problems, etc.). This is a good example of third-order change. As shown in the vertical axis of Fig. 3.7, the advancement of mutualism is also an interesting future development direction. As seen in Michael Porter’s competitive advantage, clarifying competitive positioning has been important for business strategy. However, in the recent era of digital transformation, the idea of co-creation

Fig. 3.7 Resilient Hospitality Management in the Era of Digital Transformation (DX)

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among multiple stakeholders rather than competition has come to be regarded as a better management strategy. CSV (Creating Shared Value) and the concept of value co-creation in service science are positioned in this way, and so is the concept of mutualism. In this section, we discuss the future management by developing the concept of mutualism. First, this kind of mutualism is done among multi-stakeholders who are related by location or blood. As a regional bank, “QUESTION” is initially involved in recognizing and solving problems among local stakeholders and providing consultation. From this stage, the second stage would be to apply mutualism on a broader, global level, and eliminating geographical and organizational constraints. In this stage, the geographical and organizational constraints are released. However, the situation is still mutualistic within institutional constraints such as corporate boundaries. In the third stage, such institutional constraints are eliminated, and mutualism is applied to multi-stakeholders who participate under a genuine philosophy. In other words, this is the stage where individuals and organizations from different industries and sectors gather under a single philosophy and engage in mutualistic activities to enhance social value. The GO ON Project, introduced in Chap. 2, is a symbolic example of this (Fig. 3.8). This project started with the activities of six Kyoto-based people who had inherited traditional crafts (Hosoo, 2021). While each of them devoted themselves to their own production activities, they came together as a project unit, “GO ON,” and have been

Fig. 3.8 GO ON project (the same image as on Fig. 2.18)

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actively developing their activities, valuing an environment where they can stimulate each other with their autonomous and flexible viewpoints. The group has been active in bridging the gap between traditional crafts and other genres such as art, design, science, and technology, and has also been boldly working on expression as a result, drawing sympathy from other genres. By linking the inherited characteristics of craft materials, techniques, and manufacturing processes with cutting-edge technology, they have also brought about a movement that suggests the possibility of unprecedented creativity itself. These activities are at the forefront of cross-industrial collaboration, and are positioned in the upper left corner of Fig. 3.9. We have explained the degree of DX on the horizontal axis and the degree of mutualism on the vertical axis. The characteristics of Kyoto’s resilience will probably evolve from the state on the left to the upper right in accordance with the progress of DX and mutualism. The next step is the resilient hospitality management in the era of digital transformation, which we are focusing on. In the upper right state, the stakeholders gather based on a distinct and genuine philosophy (in this case, a philosophy based on intangible goods such as hospitality, which is the strength of human capabilities), and in an open “place”, the integration process among companies and organizations including these stakeholders is innovated. Figure 3.5 shows the relationship between the two. Figure 3.9 shows the plots of the GO ON project, the global community of flower arrangement based on the participants’ interests, and the Kyoto Shinkin Bank’s “QUESTION”.

Fig. 3.9 Future Resilient City Kyoto

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3.5.3 Kyoto as Resilient City We further investigate resilience at the city level. In 2016, the Rockefeller Foundation selected Kyoto as one of the 100 most resilient cities. The city of Kyoto has also formulated a resilience strategy and is promoting the creation of a flexible, strong, sustainable, and attractive city based on medium- to long-term goals (Fujita, 2021). As mentioned earlier, resilience is “the ability of a system, company, or individual to maintain its basic purpose and soundness in the face of extreme changes in circumstances”. Kyoto is a city of just under 1.5 million residents and has experienced many natural disasters, civil wars, big fires, and other extreme changes in circumstances. Kyoto’s unique strength is the resilience inherent in its residents and communities, which has enabled it to overcome these challenges in each case. Based on this historical background, the current city of Kyoto has been working to improve these capabilities from ordinary times by setting forth and implementing the following goals: a “city where people can live in affluence,” a “city where people support and help each other,” and a “city that is comfortable, safe, and secure”. On top of that, they are promoting an “environmentally friendly city” and a “disasterresistant city”, and aiming to become a “city where people can grow.” These visions and activities are probably the reasons the city was selected as one of the 100 most resilient cities in the world. The activities of “Walking Street Kyoto” are one of the concrete examples of such efforts. Kyoto has a long history of more than 1,200 years, and has protected and nurtured its atmospheric cityscape, natural landscape, traditions, and culture. The best way to get around in Kyoto is by walking, both by oneself and with the help of others. The people who come and go are the important source of the city’s liveliness and vitality. Moreover, walking is also desirable for health and the environment. With this in mind, they are promoting urban development based on the principle of maintaining soundness in the face of various extreme changes in circumstances and promoting “attractive urban development where people play a leading role” as a model for the world. Additionally, Kyoto’s unique social issues include the preservation and inheritance of traditional houses, consideration of borrowed scenery, and how to revitalize the economy. Moreover, 83% of the area of Kyoto City is covered with lush green forests, and the majority of people live and work within the limited urbanized area. The issues of coexistence with the environment and a decarbonized society will become increasingly important in the future. The dynamic equilibrium balance based on the aforementioned juxtaposition will become the focus for solving social issues.

3.5.4 Future Direction of Resilient Hospitality Management As evident from some examples in Kyoto, the Japanese sense of beauty places a high value on temporal and spatial margins. Margins here are a kind of freedom resulting

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from asymmetry, ambiguity, incompleteness, recall of details through simplification, tacit knowledge, pause, and process. Each stakeholder interprets such a margin of freedom in their own way, thereby co-creating value. We do not perceive the subject as a binary object, such as “inside” and “outside,” or “past” and “future,” but allow for the existence of intermediate states. It also allows for the juxtaposition of various interpretations of these states. In other words, it is an interpretation with duality, rather than dualism. Dualism is the state in which two elements go against each other, while duality underlies the state where those two elements coexist and bring value to each other. This interpretation results in a resilient scheme that can manage discontinuous changes in the environment. Consequently, the value is sustained. Omotenashi (Japanese hospitality) is an act of value co-creation through communication using non-verbal, high-context information based on the sharing of implicit information and experiences from nature, culture, religion, and lifestyle that form this Japanese sense of beauty. Although it has a strong genus element, the quality of hospitality is improved by learning kata or meta-models (kata of kata), or by passing on skills and knowledge to fellow workers and the next generation. The kata of hospitality is the mapping of appropriate patterns of hospitality to the patterns of expectations and problems that one perceives in the other person. In reality, the perception of the expectations and problems of the other party and the way to treat the other party are collected genetically. However, through the correspondence with the kata of hospitality, the other party is treated promptly. On the surface, it tends to be perceived as a non-reproducible, impersonal treatment, but in the background, there is the existence of such a kata. Enhancing kata and creating new kata as well as the existence of such kata contribute to the improvement of the quality of hospitality provision and its inheritance in organizations. Thus, the resilient value co-creation scheme based on the Japanese sense of beau-ty and the value co-creation scheme among stakeholders based on the hospitality represented by Omotenashi, are the characteristics of value creation in Japan, especially in Kyoto. Resilient hospitality management follows these value creation methods for the sustainable development of companies, organizations, and cities. Compared with companies, organizations, and cities in other countries, resilient hospitality management contains unique management elements. As digital transformation progresses, the situation of an influx of information is likely to further develop. In such an age where information access is critical, the time for users to access information is likely to become a bottleneck which is taken with high value. Nagata et al. focuses on the relationship between Dan-ShaRi (abandonment) and human resource development, and conveys suggestions for surviving in such an era. As shown in the left side of Fig. 3.10, the time and space of users accessing information is a scarce resource, so that we should first focus on recognizing the essential issues. By reviewing their human relationships and avoiding unnecessary decision making, we should “declutter” their time and space (make more time and space available). Then, make effective use of these spare time and space resources. The goal is to improve productivity and to provide quality of life by listing priorities, controlling emotions, and knowing contentment. The same process is then carried out by resetting goals and rediscovering new issues. As resilient hospitality

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Fig. 3.10 Dan-Sha-Ri and Human Resource Development

management, it is essential to have Taiyoku, a clear dream (larger mid- to long-term objectives and desires) and to run this kind of cycle in order to make such a process to proceed autonomously. Further, during the post-pandemic era of digital transformation, what form will the desired resilient hospitality management take? We summarize this book by indicating the direction of Resilient Hospitality Management from the following three perspectives: The first point of view is the liberation from information acquisition and information expression. Traditionally, good hospitality has been considered impersonal and difficult to scale. This is probably because it generally requires experience and meticulous sensitivity to share tacit knowledge and communicate smoothly through non-verbal information. Particularly, it is not easy to “estimate” the intentions of others based on their unconscious behavior, or to “express” your own feelings and the ambience around you. The support of “estimation” by sensing (information gathering) technology and “expression” by visualization technology using DX will expand the base of good hospitality based on such tacit knowledge and high-context communication. It can help newcomers and those who have not been good at treating with such Japanese hospitality in the first place. It can also shorten the time required to acquire the skills. In a society with a declining population, it would be useful to use DX to expand the base of such human resources and shorten the time required to acquire skills. For example, the basic principles of ikebana, such as “Shin, Soe, Tai,” are invisible to the naked eye. By combining 3D scanning technology for ikebana with 3D mapping technology for these principles, even beginners will be able to easily share intangible concepts and intuitively understand the acquisition of knowledge and skills in the near future (Fig. 3.11) (Ryokai et al., 2015). Additionally, if service outcomes are improved through the use of DX, the selfefficacy of the people engaged in the service will increase. If this process of increasing

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Fig. 3.11 Ikebana “Mitate” (Visualization) Mapping

people’s motivation becomes a regular occurrence, it will become possible for an organization to provide good hospitality in an “autonomous” manner without necessarily using DX. Consequently, we will be able to improve our hospitality capabilities and increase our resilience by detecting risks in advance, hence contributing to a sustainable society. The second perspective of the desired future form of Resilient Hospitality Management is the formation of an open and integrated community based on an un-changing philosophy that is free from the constraints of physical place and time. As mentioned earlier, following the advancement of DX coupled with pandemics, the formation of online communities has become the norm. Communities with common tacit knowledge and co-experiences are no longer necessarily limited to the framework of geographical or blood relations, or even corporate entities. Not just any community with any members will do. It is more important to have a shared philosophy and a shared purpose for the community. The community will be free from the constraints of physical place and time, but it will also progress toward the formation of a community based on a genuine and unchanging philosophy. A resilient city will be a place where people and organizations that resonate with this way of thinking can come together. Kyoto is expected to develop and evolve owing to its location. For example, one of the common philosophies of ikebana is the “Sen’ou Kuden” (Sen’ou oral tradition), “Even withered flowers have brilliance”. This means to deny beauty in terms of form and vividness, and to find the radiance and beauty of life in each flower. Moreover, it is not just about bringing flowers and plants to life. The person who arranges the flowers also becomes alive by arranging them. This is the heart of ikebana. This way of thinking affects not only ikebana, which

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expresses itself through flower materials, but also many other people who share the same idea. A community based on the philosophy, coupled with the development of social networking services, will be easy to form and will provide a place for a new type of Resilient Hospitality Management. The third perspective is to prepare for future resilience by considering future stakeholders. In Japanese folklore, there is a saying, “On-okuri.” The idea is not to return a favor received from someone to that person, but to send it to someone else. The person who received the favor further passes it on to another person. Thus, the word “On-gaeshi” (requital of a favor) refers to the fact that beneficence goes round and round in the world. Examples of this kind of us-age can be found in documents from the Edo period. “Pay it forward” refers to repaying the good deeds one has received by doing good things for other unrelated people. From the perspective of Resilient Hospitality Management, it is not about “paying it forward” between the generations concerned, but about “paying it forward” to future stakeholders. In the past, “Sanpo Yoshi” (three-way good) was the philosophy of “good for the seller, good for the buyer, and good for the community.” DX is expected to serve as a tool to facilitate and support the realization of the “four-way good” philosophy by coordinating the interests of the stakeholders who are expanding to such a time axis. It is also expected to be a tool to promote and support the realization of the “Sanpo Yoshi” philosophy. When you board a bus in Kyoto, you will hear announcements to the effect of “Let’s clean up the beautiful streets of Kyoto and pass them on to the next generation and the generation after that. This kind of announcement has basically not been heard in other cities. It is a small, but continuous effort of Resilient Hospitality Management. It is imperative that we set a new value axis and sustain such efforts continuously. In the DX era, it is important to distinguish between elements that should remain unchanged and those that need to change. The elements that should remain unchanged are the intangible values such as philosophy, religious origins, beliefs, raison d’etre, core competence, relationships with stakeholders. The elements that need to be changed are the means, tools, mechanisms, methods of use, applications that embody these unchanging elements. They act as buffers that can be adapted to the times and environment. In a post-pandemic society, the unchanging elements will still remain unchanged, while the elements that need to change will undergo major changes and innovations in a timely manner. In summary, sustainable companies, organizations, and cities have identities that are worth passing on. It is essential to create these identities, respect them, and pass them on to the next generation. The elements that need to be changed are al-so important for adapting to changes in the environment and, moreover, for maintaining relevance to nature and others over time. This book focuses on the case of Kyoto. However, this kind of constancy and changeability can be found not only in Kyoto, but also in every region, city, company/organization, community, and individual inside the world. The elements of resilience exist everywhere. Whether or not we can make use of them depends on our management mindset of observation, overview, and action.

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Acknowledgements Parts of this chapter has been cited and used in Chap. 1. Preparing for Accelerated Third Order Impacts of Digital Technology on Service Industry Post Pandemic: Steep Transformation and Metamorphosis, The Future of Service Post Pandemic COVID-19 (2021, Springer).

References Fujita, H. (2021). Rejiriensu Kyoto ima koso bunka o kijiku ni ch¯o esu d¯ı j¯ı zu shakai no mirai o kangaeru. Diamond Inc. Hosoo, M. (2021). Nihon no biishiki de sekaihatsu ni nozomu. Tokyo: Daiya mondo-sha. Keskinen (2015). https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/best-practice-how-map-customer-journey-tonikeskinen/ (accessed Dec. 2021). Porter, M. E., & Kramer, M. R. (2011). Creating shared value. Harvard Business Review, 89(1–2), 62–77. Ryokai, K., Misra, N., & Hara, Y. (2015). Artistic distance: Body movements as launching points for art inquiry. CHI 2015: Extended abstracts publication of the 33rd Annual CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems: April 18–23, 2015, Seoul, Republic of Korea (pp. 679– 686). Association for Computing Machinery.

Afterword

Looking for the Future The COVID-19 pandemic that began in 2020 has caused a global upheaval that has profoundly impacted our lifestyles, our values, and ultimately our social structure. In the past, discussions about concepts of hospitality have tended to be within a framework separating the West and Japan, or the West and Asia. However, reality has taught us that the discussion can no longer be contained within these frameworks. In 2021, The Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics were held. During the bid for the Olympics eight years ago, the Japanese phrase for hospitality “Omotenashi,” was picked up by many media outlets as a key phrase for the time that needed to be better understood (beyond just the pronunciation of the word). The current times are certainly a suitable time for a deeper understanding of what it means in its essence. In Japan, “continuity” has always been a highly valued quality. There is an importance placed on looking beyond the pursuit of transient high profits, but rather to gain trust and maintain it for generations. Long-established companies can be considered the culmination of the life-long efforts of individuals and families. That is inherently part of what it means to be a “long-established” company. Regarding the number of companies worldwide with a history of more than 100 years, Japan as a country can boast a remarkably high position in the world and within Japan. Kyoto in particular stands out for the strong sense of value it puts on that distinction. Another interesting aspect of Kyoto is how it has had some of its “long-established” companies become global companies, and how they still coexist in the same category as the others. In the turbulent modern world of rising and falling fortunes for businesses, one of the values that can be found in long-established companies is a sense of “resilience.” Just like bamboo endures the elements by flexing without breaking, a similar resilience seems to be the secret to the perpetuation of organizations. We suppose there is a lesson in that which people can learn as it relates to our existence on this planet as well.

© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2022 Y. Hara et al., A New Approach to Resilient Hospitality Management, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-1665-6

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Considering that our long-established companies have a strong sense of resilience, it is also safe to say that the roots of that resilience can be found in Japan’s unique sensibility and sense of beauty. The two things may seem unrelated. However, that sense of beauty resonates quite deeply. We hope the reader now understands that the philosophies of the companies discussed in this book are more than just individual stories and that they can be seen collectively as some key lessons in how to overcome various global challenges. This book is co-authored by Professor Yoshinori Hara and Associate Professor Spring H. Han of the Graduate School of Management, Kyoto University, a collaboration between Japan and Korea. It is also a collaboration that crosses the border between academic research and my field in the private sector. We hope that the addition of the reader’s perspective to this work will further inspire discussion. I also hope, particularly as a resident of Kyoto, that the reader will be inspired to take a moment to reflect on something that is sometimes taken for granted by those of us living in Japan, the sublime sensitivity one can find in many things here. Senko Ikenobo

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