Turning Change into Growth

Hello, this is Ichiki from Sync Logistics.

Today, I’d like to talk about an essential ability for growth—turning change into growth. I’ll also share some of my experiences on how both organizations and individuals can deal with change.

As a business leader, I constantly face changes in our environment—market trends, global affairs, technological advancements, and more. These changes happen whether we like them or not, and they cannot be avoided. What truly matters is how we respond to and accept these changes. Here, I’d like to share my perspective on building an organizational culture that empowers challenges and cultivating the mindset required to face change.

■ Building a Culture That Empowers Challenges

People are strongly influenced by their surroundings. When a team has people who genuinely enjoy challenges, their energy spreads, and the whole team gradually becomes tolerant against change. On the other hand, one person alone can’t drive change effectively. That’s why it’s crucial to bring in people who see change positively and help shape the organizational culture.

Of course, those who enjoy challenges normally have a natural disposition for it. But relying only on such individuals isn’t enough to foster change across the organization. That’s where the follower—people who can be trained and guided through experience and education—become essential. They understand the intentions of those leading the challenges, interpret them to others, and help embed them into daily practices. The strength of the follower lies in making actions replicable, rather than relying solely on individual intuition.

Both challenger and the follower are essential for organizations to respond to societal changes. However, it’s not enough to leave it to individual traits—we need to consciously cultivate this as an organization. At Sync Logistics, our credo emphasizes values like “Respect people’s challenges” and “Focus on how it can be done, rather than why it can’t”. We incorporate these values into daily behavior, education, and development. This way, we build a foundation for an organization that embraces change and continues to challenge itself positively.

■ How Individuals Can Face Change

Alongside building a supportive culture, it’s equally important for individuals to face change proactively. I once had an employee say to me, “I’m afraid of change. I feel anxious about the future.” This is natural—society and we ourselves are constantly moving, and unexpected change is inevitable. Sometimes it seems as a “crisis” and is often portrayed negatively in the news, so feeling anxious is understandable.

However, the same event can also be viewed as an opportunity. whether it becomes a chance or a crisis? it depends on two things:
Accepting the facts just as they are – Instead of being pessimistic about things we cannot change, acknowledging the reality is the starting point.
Remembering our purpose – Knowing why you work and what you want to achieve allows you to turn events into meaningful challenges.
When both are in place, you can focus on “what to do” instead of being consumed by anxiety.

Change is inevitable, but only if you accept it and take proper steps, tremendous learning and growth would be brought. As an organization, you should nurture a culture that supports challenges to change. As individuals, we cultivate the perspective to turn change into opportunity. Only when both align can sustainable growth be truly achieved.

Thank you very much for reading.