From the Director

The Director: INNES-TAYLOR Akiko Ryu Professor

Aiming to be a hub for executive education and management research—originating in Japan, co-creating with Asia, and contributing to the world—in the era of the hundred-year lifespan
Prof. INNES-TAYLOR, Akiko Ryu Director, Institute for Business and Finance, Waseda University

Leadership required in an era of discontinuous change
Uncertainty in the business landscape is reaching unprecedented levels, propelled by technological innovations such as AI, AX, and DX, escalating geopolitical instability, growing requirements for sustainability, and significant changes in social and industrial structures. What businesses therefore need in this era is management approaches that surpass previous successes. They require leadership that can envision uncertain futures and steer them in the right direction by integrating diverse values.
For businesses to sustain their competitiveness, they must transform into organizations that foster autonomy and creativity. To achieve this, they need to develop and train management executives who are capable of redefining their organization’s vision, mission, and values in line with changes in the social environment. Inspiring and motivating both employees and the organization to realize the goal are also essential.

Beyond reskilling
In the new era of the hundred-year lifespan, learning is now a lifelong, continuous process rather than something we do only in our youth. However, the vision of the Institute for Business and Finance, Waseda University (WBF) transcends the scope of using reskilling simply as a way to update knowledge. Since AI can now deliver knowledge and options instantaneously, business leaders are under rising pressure to demonstrate the competency to:
　• ask the right questions;
　• envision and choose the future to pursue;
　• make decisions in uncertain situations; and
　• take responsibility for the decisions made and lead their employees and organization accordingly.
This parallels the concept of “holistic leadership” promoted by Waseda Business School (WBS). We are committed to developing business leaders who can navigate the era of the hundred-year lifespan with both resilience and adaptability—not only by acquiring knowledge, but also through learning experiences that build character strengths, reinforce core values, and improve the critical decision-making skills that effective leadership demands.

WBF’s mission in “WBS NEXT 10”
Working in partnership with WBS, we at WBF have grown into one of Japan’s leading hubs for executive education.
Our goal, however, is not simply to be a provider of non-degree programs.
Through integrating executive education, research, and practice, we aim to serve as a hub for creating new management knowledge while developing both today’s management executives and the next generation of leaders. This represents our core mission as we work to achieve “WBS NEXT 10,” WBS’s vision for the decade ahead.
In AY2025, we provided learning opportunities for approximately 5,000 CEOs, corporate executives, and the next generation of leaders by organizing open programs and customized training courses.
Going forward, we seek to establish ourselves as one of Japan’s leading hubs for creating management knowledge, while enhancing our academic offerings and strengthening collaborative relationships with industry partners and the public sector.

Not students, but co-creators of knowledge
We do not regard those CEOs and business professionals who enroll at WBF simply as “students.”
They are “co-creators of knowledge” who bring their frontline business issues into the university, and together with our faculty members and researchers, explore the challenges and generate new management knowledge.
We believe that WBF’s greatest asset is the community where faculty members, researchers, CEOs, and the next generation of leaders learn from each other to create new value.

Learning from the world’s leading business schools and introducing knowledge from Japan and Asia to the world
WBS and WBF have collaborated with the world’s leading business schools, including Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford, the International Institute for Management Development (IMD), and The Wharton School.
We will continue to strengthen our endeavors to deliver world-class executive education to Japan. However, our goal involves more than adopting knowledge and insights from abroad.
Based on the principle of “Japan Origin – Asia Engaged – World Relevant,” we intend to introduce new approaches to executive education and management knowledge from Japan and Asia to the rest of the world. Bringing together the proven management experiences of Japanese companies and new knowledge and insights emerging from Asia’s growing markets is how we will achieve it.

Aiming to be one of Japan’s top global hubs for co-creating management knowledge
In the era of the hundred-year lifespan, learning is no longer a one-time-only pursuit; it has evolved into a lifelong, continuous endeavor to learn and manage our growth and development.
WBF will continue to connect world-class executive education, cutting-edge management research, and frontline practical business knowledge. In doing so, WBF will develop as a platform where businesses and the University learn together, co-create knowledge, and jointly contribute to society. In the age of the hundred-year lifespan we strive to be a hub for executive education and management research, originating in Japan, co-creating with Asia, and contributing to the world, and remain committed to challenging ourselves to generate new management knowledge. We truly look forward to your continued support and partnership as we pursue this mission.

Reference: Overview of WBF’s Executive Education