Careers outside academia: How Shinichiro Takezawa’s PhD and diverse work experiences helped him become an entrepreneur

Shinichiro Takezawa completed his PhD from the Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences at the University of Tokyo. After working for the Japan Science and Technology Agency and Inspire Co., Ltd., he established Bioimpact Co., Ltd. in 2006 and General Healthcare Co., Ltd. (currently GH Co., Ltd.) in 2007. After managing the company for more than 10 years, he founded Setsuro Tech Co., Ltd. with Tatsuya Takemoto and others in February 2017 and assumed his current position of CEO in May of the same year.

The interview responses were originally provided in Japanese and have been translated into English.

Could you tell us a little bit about your professional journey so far and the type of work you have done outside the typical academic career path?

I acquired my bachelor’s degree from the College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, my master’s degree from the College of Science, and my doctoral degree from the Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences at the University of Tokyo. As for employment, I think it is common for most PhD graduates to work in teaching positions at universities or in research positions at pharmaceutical or food companies. In my case, after graduating from the doctoral program, I worked as a postdoctoral fellow for two years, then went to work for a consulting company, and later started my own business.

There were twists and turns in that journey. When I was looking for a job during my master’s program, I considered working for a strategy consulting firm and got an interview. I made it as far as an interview with a board member, but I decided to decline it. I decided not to go for it because I thought I would do more research after weighing the pros and cons of working in industry and pursuing research within academia.

Later, when I was a first-year PhD student, I was given an internship that involved research work at an investment bank. I had the opportunity to do research for a biotech venture company and experience firsthand how a PhD graduate was starting a biotech venture. I had the option of going straight to work for the company after the internship if I liked it. However, after seeing the bio-venture, I became interested in starting a bio-venture firmly rooted in technology after I’d obtained my PhD, and I decided to further deepen my research.

Later, when I was completing my doctoral studies, I received an offer to work for a general trading company. It was of interest to me because I believed that sales skills were essential to the success of a business. However, a few days before I was to join the company, I was told that I would be assigned to the accounting department. At the time, I was not interested in a career in accounting, so I declined the offer and asked a professor in my laboratory if I could work with them as a post-doctoral researcher. I loved research so much that I thought about continuing my position at the university, but when I turned 30, I decided it was time to explore entrepreneurship, so I got a job at a consulting firm. Soon after I joined the company, a friend decided to start a business, and I was asked to join him as a founding member. Since this aligned well with my long-term goal of establishing my own business, the decision was easy.

What helped you make this transition? Did you face any challenges?

The first and second companies I started were media companies specializing in the life science and medical fields. By having bio-specialists handle the media, we were able to create a niche for ourselves where we could easily get specialized work. The third company I started, which I now represent, is a biotech company that creates genome-editing technology, and what I learned in graduate school has been most directly useful to me. I think that those who have advanced to doctoral programs acquire good organizational and problem-solving skills—which are excellent transferrable skills in any environment.

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What types of opportunities can PhD students and researchers explore in the non-academic domain you are currently working in?

I think you can be anything you want to be, so it is important to try different challenges. I think the experience of working part-time during high school and college will also be useful. Ideas for new businesses are often born with the interplay between the expertise you gain in your doctoral program and a diversity of other work experiences you have.

On the basis of your experience, what would you say are the 3–5 most important points a PhD student or researcher should consider when exploring non-academic career paths?

Completing a PhD program is like aiming for an Olympic medal. You are aiming to be recognized as one of the best experts in a certain field, even in a very niche or small field. I think it is important to broaden your horizons by taking an interest in things other than research. In my case, during the first year of my master’s program, I conducted experiments from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. and studied business administration and economics while doing household chores until 2:00 a.m. I find that what I learned then is valuable today. My experiences from my internship, too, have been equally useful.

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Anyway, I think it is important first of all, as a researcher, to do your best in your research. If you can conduct it systematically, creatively, and efficiently—and if you maintain good communication with your peers and collaborators—you will be an asset even if you venture into non-academic fields. So, if you get bored with research, you can switch to another field more easily.