-
Someone asked Nintendo President Satoru Iwata to lay off workers, and his response was awesome
投稿日 2020年11月28日 00:00:14 (ニュース)
-
続・お知らせ。海外セレブゴシップ&ニュース
-
お知らせ
-
We spot the legendary dekotora Aki Kannon, dedicated to actress and singer Aki Yashiro
-
New Pokémon GU collaboration dresses all the family, including babies for the first time
-
How do European Cup Noodles taste to a Japanese palate?
-
We’ve been doing it wrong – Japanese genius shows us how we should all be making sandwiches【Pics】
-
The future is now with full face sunglasses
-
Natto-infused ramen is a thing — we tried it, we love it【Taste test】
-
Jellyfish and Halloween in perfect harmony at Sumida Aquarium event
-
Japanese toilet paper collection opens our minds as we open our butts
-
Aomori police on the lookout for man shouting unsolicited advice at kids about dating and ramen
-
Former Arashi members Sho Sakurai and Masaki Aiba get married… Wait, that didn’t come out right
-
Creator of Japan’s longest-running manga, Golgo 13, passes away, leaves fans one last gift
-
Crazy cheap cosplay at Daiso? How to transform into Dragon Ball’s Vegeta at the discount shop
-
7 Halloween-themed afternoon teas you won’t want to miss this year
-
Krispy Kreme Japan creates doughnut burgers that are a meal and two desserts all in one【Photos】
-
Get in the damn drift car, Shinji? Evangelion Tomika toy brings D1 machine home in miniature form
-
Demon Slayer Nichiren Blades ready for new duty: Slicing through your sweets as dessert knives
-
Man in Japan arrested for breaking into ex-girlfriend’s apartment to steal her Nintendo Switch
-
The Japanese Internet chooses the top too-sexy-for-their-own-good male voices in anime
-
First-ever Studio Ghibli x Russell Athletic range pays homage to My Neighbour Totoro
-
Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Japan announces first expansion with new Donkey Kong area
-
Cup Noodle pouch satisfies our never-ending need for instant ramen
-
Retro Japanese train is our new favourite office space
-
How do Japanese fans feel about Netflix’s live-action Cowboy Bebop opening sequence?
-
We try Uniqlo coffee at first-ever cafe inside Ginza flagship store
-
The number of elderly people in Japan this year has yet again smashed multiple records
-
Mr. Sato broadens his home drinking horizons at Kaldi【Japan’s Best Home Senbero】
-
We try Japanese Twitter’s newest trend the Penguin Egg, end up hatching something very disturbing
-
Takoyaki makers surprisingly good at grilling meat for yakiniku too
Sponsored Link
Late video game boss said the words every employee wants to hear.
Nintendo’s Satoru Iwata was a unique presence in the video game world. Most of the famous figures in the industry are designers, directors, artists, and musicians, but Iwata is best loved not for his direct involvement with any particular game, but for his stewardship of Nintendo as a whole during his tenure as the company’s president, which lasted from 2002 until his death in 2015.
Admirable business decisions may seem like an odd way to earn fans in a community where the end goal is, above all else, having fun, but an anecdote from a Nintendo stockholder conference provides a crystal-clear example of why Iwata remains so loved and respected, even five years after his untimely passing.
First, a bit of history. In the early 2010s, Nintendo was taking a beating financially. Starting in 2010, sales were dropping year after year, and the ordinarily profitable company suffered operating losses in 2012, following the lackluster launch of the Wii U. All of these were on investors’ minds during the shareholder meeting that took place in June of 2013, as was, no doubt, the looming threat of rival Sony’s PlayStation 4, which was scheduled for release later that year.
▼ “I’m coming for you, Nintendo!”
During the meeting, someone brought up the fact that Nintendo’s sales for the year, while down, were about what they had been in 2000. The company had managed to make a respectable profit in 2000, though, so if they were now experiencing losses, isn’t that a sign that their costs were too high? Iwata was even directly asked:
“Don’t you think it would be best for us to have a round of layoffs?”
Sponsored Link
“If I’m understanding your question, you’re asking why we’re not making a profit now, when in the past we did make one with the same amount of revenue,” Iwata calmly replied. He then proceeded to explain that one major factor was the weakening of foreign currencies, particularly the U.S. dollar and Euro, against the yen that year, meaning that Nintendo’s overseas sales, when converted back into yen, would have been lower than usual even if they had been selling the same amount of games and consoles that year. At the same time, the majority of the company’s development was done in Japan, where salaries, naturally, were paid in yen, resulting in a situation where much of their revenue was in depressed currencies while their expenses stayed the same.
But that’s all the more reason for Nintendo to lay off some of its Japanese staff, right? Nope, because as Iwata told the stockholder who’d asked about firing people:
“If the people working in our company are afraid of losing their jobs, they won’t be able to make games that will move gamers’ hearts.”
That’s not to say Iwata wanted workers to not feel any drive to create good products. But he firmly believed that layoffs would crush employee morale, and the more your mind is focused on the question of “Am I going to have a job tomorrow?” the harder it is to come up with answers to “What would be a cool power for Mario in his next game?”
Iwata continued:
“Obviously, we need to reduce needless expenses and search for more efficient ways of working, and there are cases of companies out there who say ‘We’re going to get back to profitability by firing a lot of people.’ But at Nintendo, it is the individual contributions of each worker in each division that makes our company what it is. I do not believe that cutting out a part of ourselves, saying ‘The company is in a tough spot, so we’d like you to leave,’ is a way to achieve a long-term strengthening of the company.
My intention is for us to reduce unnecessary expenses, operate more efficiently, and create revenue that exceeds those costs.
Thank you for your question.”
Nintendo’s turnaround wasn’t quick or easy, as the company’s operating losses continued throughout 2013 and 2014. However, in 2015, it was back to making a profit, and it’s now arguably in the best shape financially that it’s ever been in, vindicating Iwata’s attitude and adding to his legacy as a class act up until the very end.
Source: Nintendo via Twitter/@hirosan_3 via Hachima Kiko
Photos ©SoraNews24
● Want to hear about SoraNews24’s latest articles as soon as they’re published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
Source: SORA NEWS24
Sponsored Link
最新情報