Sustainable Management of Japanese Entrepreneurs in Pre-War Period from the Perspective of SDGs and ESG

This book features 13 Japanese entrepreneurs who made a significant contribution to the development of society from 1868, when modernization in Japan began, to the 1950s, after World War II. They worked on solving social issues at the time through their businesses and succeeded in creating social value by solving social issues and economic value through the development of their businesses.

The business philosophies they practiced have been passed on to their successors, and the companies they founded are now providing value to consumers around the world. Those 13 entrepreneurs anticipated the integration of solving social issues into corporate management, which modern companies are expected to realize under the umbrella of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by United Nations in 2015. Their trajectories provide a wealth of practical knowledge necessary to survive in a changing society and provide many valuable lessons for modern companies and their managers.

Masaatsu Takehara is a specially-appointed associate professor, Faculty of Sustainability Studies, Hosei University, Japan. He completed his doctoral course at the Graduate School of International Social Sciences, Yokohama National University.

Naoya Hasegawa is a Professor at Faculty of Sustainability Studies, Hosei University, Japan. His research focuses on business and sustainability, entrepreneur history. He obtained Ph-D at the Graduate School of International Social Sciences, Yokohama National University. He serves as Sustainability Senior Advisor at Sapporo Holdings Co., Ltd.