Kitamoku: Reshaping Work Around People and Nature
In the forested foothills of Mount Asama, Kitamoku is building a new kind of enterprise: one that grows not by expanding output, but by aligning the rhythms of work with those of nature and human potential. Founded in1994 as a family-run campground, Kitamoku has since evolved into an ecosystemic business spanningforestry, firewood production, beekeeping, construction, and corporate training. In 2025, it began a new phase of transformation. No longer organizing around business lines, the company is redesigning itself around people.
This blog post is part of 80+ case studies of progressive organizations we created for the ZeroDX awards 2025. These organizations embody the principles of RenDanHeYi in their work structures:
Zero Distance to customer: Decision what to build is based on insights from the marketplace
Autonomy: Small teams with full decision-making autonomy enable speed in execution
Shared Rewards: Everyone in the micro-enterprise participates in its financial success.
This transformation builds upon years of experimentation with autonomy and decentralization across itsdiversified business units. From forestry to honey production, Kitamoku has long nurtured initiatives that reflect the natural interdependence of ecosystems. But now, a new frontier has emerged: aligning the future of the company with the evolving individuality of its people.
As CEO Keiichiro Tsuchiya explained, "Our diversification accelerated over the past decade, and ouremployee count grew from 30 to 60 full-time staff, or 120 including part-time employees. Naturally, it became necessary to transform our culture and management systems." Over the past three years, Kitamoku laid the groundwork for this change, studying models of decentralization and self-organization. In 2024, Tsuchiya was introduced to the RDHY model by a friend in organizational development. "I was greatly inspired to learn that the concept of 'self-management' can be implemented in organizations regardless of size".
Kitamoku was already feeling the constraints of its business-centric structure. Assigning people to roles based solely on operational needs often meant underutilizing talent. "Without staff, the business cannotfunction. But if the business dictates staff placement, personal potential is stifled," said Tsuchiya. The decision to reorganize from the bottom up was both strategic and deeply cultural. The company’s LUOMU philosophy,an ethic of harmony with nature—demands systems that are adaptable, inclusive, and regenerative.
LUOMU, derived from the Finnish word for organic, has long anchored Kitamoku’s operations. The company views its work as cultivating ecosystems of livelihood.
Tsuchiya often draws parallels between ecological management and organizational design: "We believethat building forests and building organizations follow the same principles. By taking good care of small ecosystems, the larger ecosystem becomes beautiful. But to achieve this, we must alternate between a bird’s-eye view and an insect’s-eye view."
This perspective aligns seamlessly with RDHY’s triad of principles: zero distance, autonomy, and shared rewards. Like Haier, which introduced independent micro-enterprises with full profit and loss (P&L) control, Kitamoku is also moving toward systems that encourage ownership and self-direction. The parallel lies not in structural replication but in shared intent: empowering people to take initiative, reducing hierarchical barriers, and enabling transparent decision-making through intuitive systems. Bothorganizations are experimenting with ways to let individuals and teams act with entrepreneurial freedom, grounded in purpose and accountability.
One of the most visible symbols of this shift is Kitamoku’s investment in a new generation. In 2022, the company hired six new employees at once—unusual for a business that typically hires one or two per year. This cohort now forms the core of a cultural transformation. Eight young staff, all with less than three yearsof experience, are receiving full visibility into the company’s inner workings. Tsuchiya noted that mid-level and veteran employees, even those relatively young, are often shaped by legacy habits. This was part of the rationale for focusing the transformation around newer staff who bring fewer preconceptions and can help shape the company’s future from a fresh perspective.
These staff are not passive observers. Since Kitamoku began sharing intuitive, visualized P&L data monthly with all employees, teams have launched self-initiated projects that are already contributing to revenue. Thecompany has designed new ways of presenting financial data, focusing on the flow of goods and money rather than abstract figures. "Since we began sharing it, frontline understanding has improved, and we have begun to see behavioral changes," Tsuchiya said.
The campground business illustrates the approach. Japan’s overall camping market is experiencing a decline, yet Kitamoku’s frontline teams have proactively responded. By developing new action plans focused on food, beverage, and merchandise offerings, they have helped offset stagnation in overnight stays. As aresult, while accommodation revenue has held steady at 98% of the previous year, revenue from these ancillary services has increased to 103%, demonstrating the tangible impact of team-led innovation.
Kitamoku’s version of zero distance goes beyond external customers; it also refers to internal proximity.Trust and transparency are emphasized over hierarchy. Teams are gaining a sense of ownership, if not yet formal independence. This mirrors RDHY’s safe-enough-to-try ethos. Leadership is distributed. Employees propose solutions, take action, and are treated as partners in organizational evolution.
Profit sharing reinforces this shared commitment. Despite differences in profitability between businesslines—some rooted in primary industry and others in services—profits are shared equally. Thecompany’s rationale is clear: value cannot be measured solely by margin. Profitable areas subsidize vital operations, like forestry, ensuring no one is left behind. "We continue to distribute profits equally, ensuring that no one is left behind," Tsuchiya emphasized.
At the structural level, Kitamoku is preparing to let go of certain long-standing businesses. Decisions will nolonger be made solely to preserve history but to align with energy, interest, and talent. The company is exploring emerging ventures in organic agriculture, local bathhouses, and new forms of regional revitalization. Kitamoku is also piloting AI tools in forestry management and internal coordination, though these are still in early stages.
The broader shift at Kitamoku is from operating as a traditional company focused solely on internal outcomes, to becoming a regional actor embedded in the life and future of Kita-Karuizawa—a rural highland area known for its forests, volcanic soil, and cultural connection to seasonal living. Rather than treating the business as an isolated entity, Kitamoku now sees itself as part of a wider social and ecological system. This philosophy is embodied in projects like TAKIVIVA, a community-centered initiative that invites reflection, dialogue, and reconnection with nature through shared experiences around food, fire, and space. By fostering these kinds of engagements, Kitamoku repositions business not as an end in itself, but as a platform for regeneration—of people, place, and purpose. Employees and guests alike are encouraged to "observe with curiosity," a foundational practice that, according to Tsuchiya, sharpens awareness and naturally leads to self-directed action and deeper alignment with shared values.
Kitamoku’s transformation is not just about redesigning work; it is about rediscovering purpose through nature. It brings together LUOMU’s naturalist discipline and RDHY’s entrepreneurial logic. It shows how businesses rooted in place and people can thrive without sacrificing freedom or ecological integrity. In thisforest enterprise, the seeds of a new management model are taking root and beginning to grow.
