What Lafool does

Lafool Inc. (株式会社ラフール) is a Japanese HR technology company founded in 2011 and headquartered in Nihonbashi Kayabacho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo. The company operates as a private Kabushiki Kaisha and sells a three-product SaaS portfolio targeting Japanese enterprises pursuing human capital management initiatives. Its core offerings are Lafool Survey (an organizational improvement and employee engagement measurement tool), Tekikaku (an aptitude assessment product for hiring), and Lafool Management (a management development tool supporting data-driven 1-on-1s and team cultivation). The underlying technology is the proprietary Mental Data Tech® methodology, which combines psychological/mental data with AI to enable organizational visualization, optimal placement, and behavioral change, supported by a research division (LAFOOL lab.) publishing analysis from 150M+ organizational data points.

The business model is subscription-based SaaS sold via a sales-led, consultative B2B go-to-market motion with direct enterprise engagement, free trial materials, and consultation services. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is presumed to be quote-based for enterprise contracts. Revenue is recurring through annual subscription engagements, with sub-brands (Lafcoins, Kansha no Kimochi) extending the product ecosystem. As of September 2025, Lafool reports 2,300+ client companies (including OEM), 250M+ cumulative survey response data points, and a 95%+ continuous usage rate, with named reference customers spanning manufacturing, food & beverage, retail, financial services, technology, and automotive sectors (e.g., Zojirushi, Kikkoman, Owndays, Shizuoka FG, GMO Internet, Hokuriku Coca-Cola, Kokusai Jidosha).

Lafool has cultivated regulatory and policy alignment with Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), including selection for the FY2024 supplementary budget 'Advanced Technology Mental Health Service Development' grant and consecutive Bright 500 Health Management Excellence certifications (2025, 2026). The company also holds ISO 27001, ISO 27017, and ISO 27018 certifications. Distribution is domestic Japan-focused with no disclosed international expansion, and the company has not disclosed external funding rounds, parent companies, or acquisition activity.

Name

Lafool

Legal name

株式会社ラフール

Website

https://lafool.co.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Lafool is a Tokyo-based HR tech company selling a three-product SaaS portfolio (Lafool Survey, Tekikaku, Lafool Management) that combines psychological data with AI to help Japanese enterprises measure engagement, improve hiring, and develop managers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

HR Analytics Software

NAICS

Human Resources Consulting Services (541612)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

People Analytics, Assessment & Psychometrics Consulting (BPAHAGAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

HR Analytics & Reporting Managed Services (People Analytics COE) (BPACAKAN)

Keywords

• HR analytics software
• Employee engagement platform
• Aptitude assessment tools
• HR tech SaaS
• Organizational diagnostics

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Subscription-based SaaS Products: Lafool generates revenue through subscription-based SaaS products including Lafool Survey (organization improvement), Tekikaku (aptitude testing), and Lafool Management (management support). These are sold as annual subscription services to corporate clients.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Lafool sells subscription-based HR tech SaaS products to Japanese enterprises: Lafool Survey (an organizational improvement/engagement measurement tool), Tekikaku (an aptitude assessment service for hiring), and Lafool Management (a management support tool for developing managers and autonomous teams). All three are powered by its proprietary Mental Data Tech® methodology, which combines psychological data with AI to visualize organizational issues, optimize placement, and drive behavioral change aimed at building "collective efficacy" within teams.

Product overview

Lafool offers a three-product portfolio focused on maximizing human capital value through AI and data analytics. The core platform includes: (1) Lafool Survey for organizational visualization and engagement improvement, (2) Tekikaku for aptitude-based hiring and talent retention, and (3) Lafool Management for management development and team cultivation. The products work together to foster 'collective efficacy'—a team's shared confidence that they can overcome challenges together—enabling sustainable corporate growth in the AI era.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ラフールサーベイ (Lafool Survey): 組織改善ツール - Organizational improvement tool for employee engagement measurement and workplace visualization
• テキカク (Tekikaku)
• ラフールマネジメント (Lafool Management)
• LAFOOL lab.

Products and services

• Lafool Survey (ラフールサーベイ) Organizational improvement tool that visualizes workplace challenges, measures employee engagement, and helps prevent turnover by enabling organizations to identify issues and build environments where individuals can thrive; for Japanese enterprises pursuing human capital management.
• Tekikaku (テキカク) Aptitude assessment service that identifies candidates whose attributes align with company culture and who can grow with the organization, enabling retention-focused strategic hiring; for HR and recruiting teams at Japanese enterprises.
• Lafool Management (ラフールマネジメント) Management support tool that uses data-driven 1-on-1 support to strengthen managers' capabilities and cultivate autonomous teams; for HR leaders and senior management at Japanese enterprises.

Quantifiable outcome

• 95%+ continuous usage rate indicates strong customer retention and satisfaction

Named customers7 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• 経済産業省 (METI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Active participation in METI research groups and survey projects including FY2023 'Healthcare Industry Infrastructure Enhancement Project'. Also selected for FY2024 supplementary budget mental health service development grant. Co-hosts seminars with METI.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Talentio: Talentio is a Japanese Applicant Tracking System (ATS) focused on hiring and talent acquisition. While its core focus is ATS rather than aptitude testing, it overlaps with Tekikaku's hiring use case for Japanese enterprise customers.
• MIIDEL: MIIDEL is a Japanese HR analytics and survey platform for employee engagement measurement. It is a regionally-focused direct competitor to Lafool Survey in the Japanese engagement analytics market.

Broad incumbents

• Workday: Workday is a global enterprise cloud HRIS and HCM platform with people analytics, talent management, and engagement survey capabilities. It competes with Lafool for large Japanese enterprise HR budgets, though as a much broader HCM suite rather than specialized people analytics.
• Qualtrics (EmployeeXM): Qualtrics EmployeeXM is an enterprise employee experience management platform with engagement surveys, analytics, and benchmarking. As a broad incumbent, it offers overlapping capabilities to Lafool but as part of a much larger experience management portfolio.

Direct peers

• Officevibe: Officevibe is an employee engagement survey platform focused on measuring and improving workplace culture. Its survey-centric engagement measurement approach mirrors Lafool Survey's core functionality.
• 15Five: 15Five is an employee engagement and performance management platform with continuous feedback and pulse survey capabilities. Its focus on engagement measurement and manager enablement overlaps significantly with Lafool's integrated product suite.
• SmartHR: SmartHR is a leading Japanese HR tech company offering cloud HRIS and employee management solutions. While broader than Lafool's people analytics focus, both target Japanese enterprises seeking digital HR transformation and compete for the same HR budget allocations.
• HRBrain: HRBrain is a publicly-listed Japanese HR tech platform providing talent management and people analytics. It is the closest direct competitor to Lafool, with overlapping products in HR analytics and organizational visualization targeting Japanese enterprise customers.
• Lattice: Lattice is a performance management and employee engagement SaaS platform combining surveys, 1:1 tools, and manager development. Its integrated approach to engagement and management development parallels Lafool's Survey + Management product combination.
• Culture Amp: Culture Amp is a global employee engagement survey and people analytics platform. While operating at much larger scale and broader geography, its core functionality—engagement measurement and analytics—directly parallels Lafool Survey's value proposition.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/lafool_PR
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@lafool4162
• Facebookfacebook.com/lafool.inc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lafool

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors13 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Lafool