SIMA：Japan【Systematic/Systemic Innovation Management Award】

Roundtable Statement on Executive Innovation (2025)

This Executive Innovation Roundtable (RT) is a place for practical leaders to envision the next era and generation of society and industry that “has never existed before” beyond the barriers of industry, government, academia and the public.

We will make recommendations on the outcomes of this event and link them to specific activities such as the Innovation Management Award (SIMA). We hope that this will be an opportunity to form an ecosystem for the future.

The purpose of the dialogue is not to discuss individual measures or solutions, but to discuss and share the direction of major changes in Japan as well as the will and vision of the leader.

And it is the first step in a leadership package for change that will serve as its foundation, as well as charting a path to thematic round tables.

Systematic/Systemic Innovation Management Award　(SIMA): Awards in Japan

Based on ISO56002, the international standard, and ISO56001 (IMS), which will be issued this year, the first awards (two categories) in Japan based on global standards have been established to honor organizations that have established and implemented systematic innovation.

In addition to the Award for Excellence in Innovation Management and the Award for Excellence in IMS Maturity and Results, special awards will be established for outstanding IMS activities.

The selection will be made by the SIMA Jury consisting of prominent experts and practitioners from home and abroad, based on a transparent evaluation that conforms to the international standard.

*Instead of focusing on new businesses and products, it focuses on systematic attempts at innovation in organizations and regions.

*Companies and startups, ecosystems, and regional revitalization can also be considered.

*Organizations that contribute to the advancement of the innovation management system, such as advanced human resources development in educational institutions, are also targeted.

Our Vision for the Systematic Innovation Management Award (SIMA) – Good Innovation Award

From 2019 to 2024, the ISO56000 series of international standards for innovation management systems (IMS) was issued one after another, and the global innovation environment is facing a major turning point. In particular, the era of innovation management systems began in earnest with the issuance of ISO 56001, a certification standard, on September 10, 2024. This standard has made it possible for external institutions to objectively evaluate companies and businesses that have introduced and implemented IMS, and has laid the foundation for innovation initiatives to be positioned as the core of management.
European countries and other countries are actively developing certification systems based on this standard with the strategic intention of improving productivity at the national level. On the other hand, Japan has yet to develop a certification system, and is lagging behind international trends. On the other hand, under the idea of innovation, it is necessary to explore new ways of certification that promote innovation, rather than the “administrative and conservative” approach of traditional quality management. Therefore, this award was conceived.
For the sustainable growth of Japan, which is facing a society with a declining population, efforts to increase productivity are essential in parallel with measures such as human resource education and start-up investment. This productivity improvement depends on the implementation of a wide range of innovative management practices, including from large companies to small and medium-sized enterprises and industry-academia collaboration.
The essence of IMS is “to enhance the ability to realize new value under uncertain conditions,” and it includes not only new products and services, but also processes, business models, and ecosystems. In other words, it is important to build “a system in which innovation occurs systematically,” rather than “innovation occurs accidentally.” In Japan, the Japan Innovation Network (JIN) provides a comprehensive program called IMSAP based on the ISO 56000 series to support the improvement of corporate innovation capacity, but nationwide efforts are still in development.
The Systematic Innovation Management Award is a new award system that promotes innovation management from an international standard perspective that is different from the past in order to incorporate these international trends into the Japanese context and raise awareness. This award does not simply evaluate the introduction of a superficial standard, but evaluates efforts to enhance the innovative capabilities of companies. The practice of innovation management is essential for Japanese companies to maintain and strengthen their international competitiveness and achieve sustainable growth. Through the establishment of this award, we aim to promote Japanese companies’ efforts in innovation management and to keep up with, or rather, lead global trends. By building a mechanism for creating systematic innovation, we will be able to sustainably create new value and strengthen our international competitiveness even in a highly uncertain environment.

Review Advisor, Systematic Innovation Management Award (SIMA)

井上英之
Hideyuki Inoue

社会イノベーション・実践的リーダーシップ教育研究者 / SSIR Japan 共同発起人

Researcher in Social Innovation and Experiential Leadership Education / Co-founder of SSIR Japan

大嶋洋一
Yoichi Oshima

東京科学大学執行役副学長（産学官・地域連携担当）兼産学共創機構機構長教授

Executive Vice President for Global Partnerships and Community Engagement, Director of the Center for Innovation Management, and Professor at Institute of Science Tokyo