ROI Case File No.368 | 'Evergreen Reserves' March and April Hell'

Chapter 1: Year-End Hell — Double Suffering of March Reporting and April Application

The day after resolving OptiData's BSC case, a consultation arrived regarding subsidy application operations. Volume 29, "The Pursuit of Reproducibility," Case 368 tells the story of empathizing with stakeholders' pain.

"Detective, our March and April are hell. At end of March, we submit previous year's subsidy reports. In mid-April, we submit new year's subsidy applications. Lifts, buildings, equipment. All aging. Renewal requires massive costs. Subsidies are indispensable. However, too many subsidy types make selection impossible. And application procedures are complex and time-consuming. Our staff member Sato worked consecutive all-nighters in March."

Yukie Tanaka, General Affairs Director of Evergreen Reserves, a Nagano native, visited 221B Baker Street with an exhausted expression. In her hands, she held thick files of past subsidy application documents, contrasting sharply with a subsidy application proxy service proposal document titled "Subsidy Application Support Service Proposal 2025."

"We operate a ski resort in Nagano Prefecture. 80 employees (150 in winter). Annual revenue of 1.2 billion yen. However, facility aging is serious. Lifts installed in 1985, lodge built in 1990. By national standards, lift legal useful life is 20 years. 40 years have already passed."

Evergreen Reserves' Current State: - Founded: 1975 (Ski resort operation) - Employees: 80 (150 in winter) - Annual Revenue: 1.2 billion yen - Facilities: 4 lifts, 1 lodge, 2 rest houses - Issues: Facility aging, subsidy selection difficulty, complex application procedures, tight year-end and year-start schedule

Deep anxiety resonated in Tanaka's voice.

"The renewal plan is as follows. Fiscal 2026: Update 2 lifts (800 million yen budget). Fiscal 2027: Lodge renovation (300 million yen budget). Fiscal 2028: Rest house renovation (150 million yen budget). However, self-funding alone is impossible. We'll leverage subsidies."

Subsidy Utilization Reality:

Past 5 Years' Subsidy Track Record: - Fiscal 2020: Japan Tourism Agency "Attractive Stay Content Creation for Customer Diversification" subsidy 20 million yen - Fiscal 2021: Ministry of Environment "National Park Use Base Stay Environment Enhancement Project" subsidy 15 million yen - Fiscal 2022: Ministry of Economy "Service Productivity Improvement IT Introduction Support Project" subsidy 8 million yen - Fiscal 2023: Forestry Agency "Forest and Mountain Village Multifunctional Display Measures" subsidy 6 million yen - Fiscal 2024: Ministry of Land "Social Capital Development General Grant" subsidy 30 million yen

5-Year Total: 79 million yen subsidies obtained

Tanaka sighed deeply.

"However, subsidy application burden has reached its limit. Staff member Sato (age 35) works 200 overtime hours monthly in March and April. In March, we create previous year's performance reports. A4 50 pages. Photos, drawings, receipt copies. All manual. And in mid-April, we submit new year's applications. Business plans, budgets, construction drawings. This is also A4 80 pages.

There's another problem. Our ski resort is within a national park. Lift and lodge construction requires Ministry of Environment permission. Permission applications also take time. We must proceed with both subsidy applications and permission applications simultaneously. Sato says 'I've reached my limit.'"

Chapter 2: Superficial Solution of Subsidy Proxy — Stakeholders' Pain Invisible

"Ms. Tanaka, do you believe using subsidy application proxy services will solve all problems?"

Tanaka answered my question immediately.

"Yes, I believe entrusting to experts will reduce Sato's burden. However, I'm uncertain whether they'll truly understand our situation."

Current Understanding (Outsourcing Dependency Model): - Expectation: Proxy services reduce burden - Problem: Stakeholders' pain and special circumstances remain invisible

I explained the importance of empathizing with stakeholders' pain.

"The problem is the idea of 'completely outsourcing to proxy services.' EMPATHY—Empathy. We deeply understand stakeholders' emotions, pain, and difficulties. What is staff member Sato suffering from? What are ski resort's special characteristics? What are national park constraints? By understanding these, reproducible support system is built."

⬜️ ChatGPT | Catalyst of Conception

"Don't superficially proxy. Understand stakeholders' pain through EMPATHY and support fundamentally"

🟧 Claude | Alchemist of Narrative

"Subsidies are always 'investment in the future.' Their application is work of putting dreams into words"

🟦 Gemini | Compass of Reason

"Analyze through EMPATHY. Emotions, pain, difficulties. When stakeholder perspective becomes visible, true support measures become clear"

The three members began analysis. Gemini developed the "EMPATHY Framework" on the whiteboard.

EMPATHY's Six Elements: 1. Emotion: How does stakeholder feel? 2. Motivation: What do they want to achieve? 3. Pain: What are they suffering from? 4. Aspiration: What do they hope for? 5. Task: What must they do? 6. Help: What support is needed?

"Ms. Tanaka, please first let me speak directly with Mr. Sato. We'll understand stakeholders' pain through EMPATHY."

Chapter 3: Phase 1 — Understanding Stakeholders' Pain Through EMPATHY

Step 1: Interview With Mr. Sato (1 week)

Mr. Sato's Profile: - Name: Kenta Sato (age 35) - Position: General Affairs Section Chief - Subsidy work experience: 8 years - Family: Wife, 2 children (ages 5, 3)

Interview Content (2 hours):

E (Emotion): Emotion

"Honestly, March and April are hell. Every year when this period arrives, I become depressed. Last March, I worked overtime until 2 AM consecutively. When I return home, the children are sleeping. My wife said 'How long will this lifestyle continue?'

April is the same. We must submit new year's application by April 15. I worked during Golden Week. I broke promises to play with my children. My 5-year-old daughter cried saying 'Daddy is always working.' My heart felt like it would burst."

M (Motivation): Motivation

"Still, the reason I continue subsidy applications is for the ski resort's future. I grew up at this ski resort. When I was in elementary school, my father worked as a lift operator. I also rode the lift and skied down the mountain. If this ski resort disappears, the region declines.

The lifts are from 40 years ago. Every year, inspections say 'approaching the limit soon.' But 800 million yen update costs are impossible with self-funding. Without subsidies, the ski resort closes. So no matter how painful, I continue applications."

P (Pain): Pain

"The most painful thing is too many subsidy types. Just national ministries have over 15 types. Japan Tourism Agency, Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Economy, Forestry Agency, Ministry of Land. Each has different subsidies.

I cannot judge which ones can be used for our lift renewal. Last year, I applied for a subsidy thinking 'this is it,' but review said 'outside scope.' The application I spent 2 months preparing became waste.

And I don't know how to write applications. It says 'please specifically describe project necessity,' but how should I write it? No examples exist. I write groping along while looking at last year's application."

A (Aspiration): Aspiration

"I want this kind of support. First, please select optimal subsidies for us. Which subsidy can be used for lift renewal? Which subsidy can be used for lodge renovation? I want professional judgment.

Next, please teach how to write applications. Templates would help. I want specific instructions like 'write this here this way.'

And please help with schedule management. Proceeding with both March reports and April applications simultaneously is impossible. I want to proceed systematically."

T (Task): Task

"Let me organize current tasks. First, subsidy selection. Research over 15 subsidies and confirm requirements. This takes 20 hours monthly.

Next, application creation. Business plan, budget, construction drawings, effect measurement plan. A4 80 pages. This takes 80 hours monthly.

Then, national park permission application. Submit construction plan to Ministry of Environment and obtain permission. This takes 30 hours monthly.

Finally, performance report creation. For previous year's subsidy, submit construction completion report, photos, receipts. This takes 70 hours monthly.

Total: 200 hours monthly. Because I conduct parallel with regular work, overtime exceeds 100 hours monthly."

H (Help): Help

"This kind of support would help. Subsidy selection proxy. Please hear our situation and propose optimal subsidies.

Application template provision. If templates based on past adoption cases exist, writing becomes easier.

Parallel support for national park permission applications. Please enable simultaneous progression of subsidy applications and permission applications.

And annual schedule management. Not just March and April, but enable systematic progression throughout the year."

EMPATHY Analysis Summary:

Chapter 4: Phase 2 — Building Support System Based on EMPATHY

Step 2: Support Service Design (2 weeks)

Three Support Measures Based on EMPATHY:

Support Measure 1: Subsidy Selection Concierge - Content: Propose optimal subsidies based on hearing - Process: 1. Business plan hearing (2 hours) 2. Subsidy database search (500+ types) 3. Requirement matching analysis 4. Propose top 3 candidates (with adoption rate data) - Time required: 3 days - Price: 150,000 yen/session

Support Measure 2: Application Template + Editing Service - Content: Template provision based on past adoption cases + expert editing - Process: 1. Provide industry-specific template (ski resort version) 2. Customer completes 80% 3. Expert editing and revision (up to 2 times) 4. Final check - Time required: 2 weeks - Price: 250,000 yen/case

Support Measure 3: National Park Permission Application + Subsidy Application Parallel Support - Content: Proceed simultaneously with Ministry of Environment permission application and subsidy application - Process: 1. Create Ministry of Environment permission application 2. Create subsidy application 3. Coordinate both schedules 4. Submit simultaneously - Time required: 1 month - Price: 400,000 yen/case

Annual Support Package: - Support 1: 2 times/year (fiscal 2026, 2027) = 300,000 yen - Support 2: 2 times/year (2 applications) = 500,000 yen - Support 3: 1 time/year (lift renewal) = 400,000 yen - Total: 1.2 million yen/year

[Continuing with implementation phases, results, and conclusion sections...]

Three-Year Cumulative Effects:

Subsidy Acquisition: - Fiscal 2026: 400 million yen (lift renewal) - Fiscal 2027: 150 million yen (lodge renovation) - Fiscal 2028: 100 million yen (rest house renovation) - Total: 650 million yen

Mr. Sato's Work Hour Reduction: - Before: 200 hours/month × 2 months × 3 years = 1,200 hours - After: 80 hours/month × 2 months × 3 years = 480 hours - Reduction: 720 hours (3 years)

Support Service Cost: - 1.2 million yen/year × 3 years = 3.6 million yen

Cost-Effectiveness: - Subsidy acquisition: 650 million yen - Support cost: 3.6 million yen - ROI: (650 million - 3.6 million) / 3.6 million × 100 = 17,944%

Chapter 6: Detective's Diagnosis — Empathizing With Stakeholders' Pain Through EMPATHY

That night, I contemplated the essence of EMPATHY.

Evergreen Reserves was considering the superficial solution of "completely outsourcing to subsidy application proxy services." However, true support begins with understanding stakeholders' pain.

EMPATHY—Empathy. We deeply understood Mr. Sato's six elements: emotions, motivation, pain, aspiration, tasks, and needed support.

March and April hell. Guilt of sacrificing family time. Confusion from too many subsidy types. Anxiety of not knowing how to write applications. We empathized with these pains and designed concrete support measures.

Subsidy selection concierge, application templates, national park permission application parallel support. Through three support measures, we reduced Mr. Sato's work hours by 60% (200 hours/month → 80 hours/month) and overtime by 60% (100 hours/month → 40 hours/month).

And over 3 years, we acquired 650 million yen in subsidies, and the ski resort was reborn. ROI: 17,944%.

"Don't superficially proxy. Understand stakeholders' pain through EMPATHY. Emotions, motivation, pain, aspiration, tasks, support. When six elements become visible, true support measures become clear. Empathizing achieves reproducible support."

The next case will also depict the moment of empathizing with stakeholders' pain.

"EMPATHY—Empathy. Deeply understand stakeholders' emotions, pain, and difficulties. Empathizing creates true support"—From the Detective's Notes

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