Background

Small and medium-sized businesses make up 99.7% of Japanese companies. Their leaders support the country's economy, yet there are very few opportunities to hear about their lives or values. The people who appear in the media are mostly executives from large corporations, so for many people the word "president" or "CEO" feels distant and exceptional. In reality, though, there is something deeply relatable in the lives of people who keep taking on challenges from places with no title, no status, and limited resources. With that in mind, we created an exhibition that presents the real lives of business leaders in a way anyone can connect with personally. Our goal was to deliver it not only to people interested in entrepreneurship or management, but also to those looking for hints about how to live.

Objective

The goal of this exhibition was to use design to make the lives and values of small-business leaders visible, and to create a place where anyone could engage with the realities of management.

• Share each leader's way of life as a story grounded in interviews
• Connect the values behind business decisions with the visitor's own point of view
• Help visitors understand what it really means to build and sustain a company through experience
• Create opportunities for younger generations about to enter society to encounter new role models

By reinterpreting the profession of company president not as a distant or special existence, but as a human story full of charm, struggle, and conviction, Minnano Shacho Showcase set out to make leadership feel personal and approachable.

Experience

Nine Personal Stories

Why did these individuals become company presidents, and what kind of paths did they take to get there? This installation traces the lives of small and venture-business leaders through personal narratives and visual life graphs.

AI CEO

An AI trained on the real words and thought processes of nine different company leaders. It responds to your concerns from a distinctly "presidential" perspective.

Management Trolley Problem

Which choice would you make? Visitors can step into the dilemmas of executive decision-making and experience the tension of choosing between competing outcomes.

Quote Capsule Machine

Keychains containing memorable quotes drawn from the lives of these company leaders. Visitors can enjoy a chance encounter with words that stay with them.

Conclusion

Minnano Shacho Showcase received many comments from visitors such as:

• "I used to think company presidents were intimidating, but they felt very human."
• "It made me rethink why I work."
• "It was fascinating to see my own values reflected back to me."
• "Talking with the AI CEO was genuinely encouraging."

We also heard positive responses from the presidents who took part in the exhibition, including:

• Their employees and families gained a deeper understanding of their lives
• The exhibition could also be used as material for recruitment and public relations

These responses showed that the significance of the exhibition extended beyond the venue itself.

CurioSwitch's Role

Planning / Overall Direction / UX Design / Engineering