SOMPO Cross-Training Challenge
One of the pillars of the talent strategy at Sompo Holdings is empowering each employee to think proactively about the purpose of life or meaning of work (“My Purpose”), as well as their career, and to grow through taking on challenges.
As part of this effort, the SOMPO Cross-Training Challenge program gives employees the opportunity to take on short-term assignments with partner organizations, such as startups and non-profit organizations. Through hands-on experience outside the company, participants develop objective, big-picture perspectives and strengthen their leadership capabilities. The program is designed to cultivate talent that can help lead changes in the years ahead.
Working in organizations and cultures different from their own also gives employees the chance to re- assess what they normally take for granted. Navigating a new environment through trial and error not only helps them recognize their own strengths and challenges, but also enables them to bring fresh thinking back to the organization.
We believe these experiences can do more than support individual growth. They can also enhance organizational flexibility, deepen the quality of dialogue, and help drive cultural transformation across the Sompo Group.
Value creation with Criacao Shinjuku
The local football club Criacao Shinjuku and the Sompo Group share more than just calling Shinjuku home. We also share a belief in the value of learning beyond the usual workplace. This is why the club has become one of the host organizations in the SOMPO Cross-Training Challenge program.
In March 2024, Sompo Holdings signed a partnership agreement with Criacao Shinjuku, with a focus on contributing to the local community, promoting coexistence, enhancing brand value, and developing talent through mutual exchange. The SOMPO Cross-Training Challenge program has further strengthened this partnership by turning collaboration into meaningful, hands-on learning opportunities.
Photo credit: Criacao Shinjuku
This program allows employees to learn on the job at the host organizations while keeping their positions in their current departments, giving them the opportunity to take on new roles in an external environment while staying connected to their day-to-day work. We hope that working in a setting different from their usual one will spark new perspectives and lead to changes in how they think and act.
A key part of this initiative is how participants reflect on what they learn outside the company and apply those insights to their own work and teams.
Rediscovering what matters through challenges
Through the SOMPO Cross-Training Challenge program, Saeko Yamanaka took on an assignment with Criacao Shinjuku while she was working at Sompo Holdings’ Sustainable Management Division. Having spent an extended period working at several different companies and environments within Sompo Group, she felt a renewed desire to step outside the organization and broaden her perspective.
She had also seen potential for collaboration with Criacao Shinjuku through her day-to-day work, and decided to apply because she believed the experience would contribute not only to her own growth, but also to the company. Through involvement in community activities and match operations, she was exposed to hands-on work and the energy of the field in ways that were very different from what she did at Sompo Group. The experience led to many new discoveries. What left the deepest impression on her was the way employees and players alike engaged wholeheartedly with local residents and fans, always with energy and passion.
Photo credit: Criacao Shinjuku
Through my experience at Criacao Shinjuku, I was reminded once again of the power of sports to inspire and give hope. Being in an environment different from what I am used to, gave me the opportunity to re-connect with the values and motivations that have always mattered deeply to me. That was incredibly meaningful.
Saeko Yamanaka
Planning & Marketing Department
Sompo Japan
Carrying that perspective into the next challenge
At the root of Yamanaka’s sense of purpose is her experience of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in 1995, Japan’s second deadliest earthquake in the 20th century. At a time when everyday life and the city itself changed in an instant, she was deeply moved by the Orix BlueWave baseball team, as they played under the chant “Ganbaro Kobe” (“Let’s do this Kobe”). Their determination left a lasting impression on her and inspired her to become someone who could bring that same kind of inspiration and emotion to others.
This experience gave me a clearer view of the values that matter most to me and the kind of contribution I want to make to people and organizations in the years ahead. I want to continue working closely with others and help create a ripple of challenge and inspiration for the better.
Saeko Yamanaka
Planning & Marketing Department
Sompo Japan
There was also a time in her professional life when she had quietly set aside the aspirations and hopes she once held close. But through meeting many people at Criacao Shinjuku and sharing moments of genuine inspiration, her “My Purpose” came into sharper focus: to create inspiration and pass it on as hope for others.
Photo credit: Criacao Shinjuku
