It's been a while. This is Katori from the Sales Department.
One day, the editor-in-chief came to me and said, "There's something I'd like to ask of you."
I immediately thought, "This is a Monosas website!", but I never imagined that Sakuyama, a Monosas executive and director, would be asking me to introduce his team members.
I feel humbled. Surely there is no one more qualified to take on the role? Above all, I was worried about whether I would be able to properly convey the appeal of Sakuyama, but after giving it some thought, I decided that it would be a great honor and accepted the offer.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, I asked for help to get some stories from members with a connection to the group, but they all said in unison, "Ah, but there's no way I can write that here."
This is bad.
In the past, we used to sit close to each other and it was easy to talk to him, but in recent years, his schedule has become so busy that it's become difficult to find time to talk to him at work. So, we decided to hold a lunch meeting and interview him for the first time in a while.
However, whenever I talk to Sakuyama, the conversation always tends to go off track. This is usually my fault, but I tend to get excited about other topics quickly, so there wasn't enough time to listen to what he had to say in a short time.
This introduction has been long, but Sakuyama is surprisingly rarely in the public eye. Currently, she oversees the headquarters, sales department, and quality control department, and is an indispensable member of Monosus. I would like to introduce her from my perspective.
The road to Monosus I've never seen anyone so arrogant
Born in Nagano, she was the eldest of three sisters and was a reliable presence at home and at school.
Surprisingly, he grew up in an athletic environment, being captain of the football team in elementary school and the handball team in junior high school. Then, in high school, he became captain of the after-school club.
Sakuyama then got a job at a company related to studying abroad.
After that, he worked for several companies before joining Monosus, but surprisingly little is known about how he got there.
Simply put, it's an introduction to someone's introduction, but the more I hear about it, the more complicated it becomes.
It turns out that Furuhat from the marketing department , who joined Monosus around the same time, holds the key.
My first encounter with Furuhat dates back about 25 years ago.
It must have been the time when both of them were into one-length bodycon hairstyles. (This is just my imagination.)
The two were colleagues at work, working as receptionists and general affairs staff, but after a few years they both quit their jobs and started working in different places.
At a time when personal computers had yet to become widespread in households, Sakuyama, who was already good at using computers, changed jobs to work at a support center (or Saposen for short), providing instructions on how to use the computers to general customers.
Sakuyama is a skilled worker who has been described as "the most arrogant person I've ever seen" (according to him). Naturally, his superiors were impressed with his work and asked him to become a leader, but he turned it down because he thought it would be too much trouble.
After mastering the work of the support center and aiming to become a computer instructor, he received an invitation from Furuhata to work at the call center. Although they had met frequently, they decided to work together again for the first time in several years.
Back in 2005, we worked together at the same company.
Because the picture is unclear, it doesn't seem like much has changed since then, but her skin seems a little brighter.
The job involved in-house PC support for companies. The content of the questions ranged from the basics of computers, such as "I can't print" and "How do I create an Excel table?" to questions using functions. Of course, he was promoted to a responsible position there and worked there for a long time, but once again, he left the company at the same time as Furuhat.
At the same time, through an introduction from a mutual acquaintance, he was hired by Monosus in 2006, almost entirely by face. (Details are omitted as they would be too long.)
After joining the company, he invited Furuhat to join him, and that's how they continue to work together to this day.
At that time, Monosus was just starting up a call center business in addition to web production. The presence of Sakuyama and Furuhat, who supported the early days of the support center (is that an exaggeration?), must have been huge.
Leaders in the good old days were benefactors who helped us at every stage
I joined the company as a call center staff member in 2007.
Soon after, the Coding Factory service was launched. He started checking the quality of web pages during his spare time from inbound call center work. Sakuyama himself also checked the pages together with the others.
When I talk with Sakuyama, we can't help but reminisce about those days.
Because I was answering the phone and checking the phone, I couldn't take a leisurely lunch and always ate at my desk. Also, the call center operates 365 days a year without a break, so I rarely had a day to relax, but for some reason, being surrounded by stable members made me feel happy and comfortable.
At the party to celebrate the first anniversary of our relocation in 2009. Everyone except Sakuyama and me was type B (from the left: Kikunaga from the Marketing Department, Murakami from the Quality Control Department, Okuyama from the Sales Department, Katori, and Furuhata from the Marketing Department).
As I wrote in the article introducing Murakami , the original members of the company have since dispersed to the Marketing Department, Sales Department, and Quality Control Department. However, the members who overcame the difficulties together still share something in common.
Some members even call them "comrades who have eaten from the same pot."
This was the forerunner of the current Quality Control Department, the check team led by the arrogant Sakuyama.
Actually, there is an incident that I will never forget.
At that time, the members of the Check Team served as the project consultation desk for Coding Factory, and even provided direction for coding projects.
Sakuyama asked me, as usual, something unreasonable, "Why don't you try directing, Kato-chan?" and without knowing what to do, I was engrossed in working on the project.
My debut project was quite difficult for a first project, and with my lack of knowledge, I quickly fell into a slump, complaining every day, "I can't do this anymore. I don't know what to do."
At that time, Sakuyama and another of his superiors, Tatsuta (currently the head of the marketing department), were there to give him advice on a daily basis.
"Kato-chan, there is no case that can't be completed."
I still can't forget what they said to me.
I felt like running away, but with the support of those two I was able to finish the project.
I'm not the only one. I'm sure there are many staff members who have been saved by Sakuyama when they were stuck at work. Whenever a subordinate is troubled, he always takes the time to understand the current situation together with them, what the problem is, and guides them step by step on what to do next.
Personally, I think that if Sakuyama had not been there at that time, I would not be here today.
After that, I moved from the check team to sales, and it has been almost 10 years since I joined the company.
The reason I wanted to return to work after my maternity and child care leave was largely due to the support I received from Sakuyama, who supported me both during my leave and when I returned to work.
It's important to have the same sense of humor, and we quickly became closer.
Looking back, the first time we met was during my interview.
He had a cool and somewhat unapproachable image, but it didn't take long for us to become closer.
Although he works meticulously, there is a sense of ease and a comfortable pace to the conversation.
That was the kind of boss I was looking for. Even though he was teaching me how to do my job, we ended up laughing, and I was convinced that we absolutely shared the same humor.
A fun-loving director at work
As you can see, she is a cute, no, beautiful woman. Even though she is busy, she never cuts corners on her nails and skin care to maintain her beauty. She also smells nice.
She is someone I admire because she is beautiful and good at her job, but she also has an endearing sense of humor.
The annual anniversary party. If asked, I'll do anything.
The comments are very sharp.
Anyone who gets a comment from Sakuyama is lucky! It makes it all the more funny.
There are countless stories. However, if I were to write them down, it would seem as if Sakuyama had slipped, which I feel bad for. I will share some stories, knowing that I will be scolded by him.
One day, a male employee was brushing his teeth after work when he suddenly asked, "Are we going to kiss now?"
On another occasion, a female employee came to work wearing her clothes inside out, and although she was already a bit clumsy at this point,
"Could this be a current trend?" he replied with a straight face.
Sakuyama also uses his expertise in Excel functions to create various lists and calculations.
There were several strange occasions when Okuyama from the sales department (my current boss and one of the people from the good old days) would call out to Sakuyama and say, "Sakuyama-san, something's wrong with Excel, please take a look at it," only for it to be fixed before he could check the problem.
Sakuyama dismissed him, saying, "Okuyama just wants to talk to me and pay attention to me."
Sakuyama's sharp comments always make people laugh. They are comments that are full of love.
Team Madam was formed on a company trip to Thailand. Sitting next to me in the back are Sakuyama and me.
We have also been on the company trip committee together on several occasions.
He has an extremely bad sense of direction. He hates running out of things, so he always carries a large amount of stock.
She sleeps without a pillow. She likes Fist of the North Star. She is actually very dexterous and is obsessed with making wool felt for her niece.
The thing I love the most right now is the floor-cleaning robot Braava.
I know it all.
Left: A mysterious creature made from wool felt
Right: The adorable Braava
He often went out drinking and would party until the morning. At first glance, he may seem like a heavy drinker, but he never had a drop of alcohol.
It's as if I'm drinking just to get a comment from Sakuyama.
When we go to karaoke, she is reluctant to sing as she acts pretentious, but when I choose a song for her, she always sings Princess Princess's Diamond in her cutest voice.
Beyond the relationship of boss and subordinate, I like Sakuyama Kumiko as a whole.
Just point the camera at them and they naturally strike a pose in perfect harmony. The cute form on the bottom right is Sakuyama.
So what's next for Sakuyama?
Usually, we are the ones who get asked questions by Sakuyama, but we were curious about the future of Sakuyama, who has trained so many members.
"Do what you can, within your capabilities," he said.
Apparently, there's no point in pushing yourself too hard. How cool.
He also said, "I want to train the next generation."
"I will retire before my boss, Hayashi, so I want to make sure he won't have any problems after that," he said, expressing his deep feelings.
Not only does he train his subordinates, but now that he has become a director, he is like a behind-the-scenes supporter.
He continues to support Hayashi and Vice President Nagai.
A three-shot with CEO Hayashi. On the left is Sakuyama, and on the right is Vice President Nagai.
What I have introduced this time is just one side of Sakuyama as I see it.
I'm afraid that if he reads this article he'll complain that it's not interesting, but I'd be happy if I've been able to convey even a little of the charm of my beloved Sakuyama.
If you have any comments or feedback about this article, please contact Sakuyama directly.
According to him, he thinks that no one would be able to keep up with what he has to say about American professional wrestling, as it is such a niche topic, but he would also be happy to talk to anyone who would like to talk about it.
I'm waiting for the day when he invites me to lunch again like he used to, asking, "Katchan, do you want to eat something delicious?"