What Growthwell does

Growthwell (株式会社グロースウェル) is a Tokyo-headquartered professional services firm founded in November 2016 by Ohshiba Yoshinobu, a former CTO who led AppBank through its IPO, that provides fractional CTO advisory, executive training, EQ-based organizational consulting, specialized CTO/VPoE executive search, and system development services. The firm serves Japanese technology companies and growth-stage organizations that lack internal technical leadership or suffer from CTO-CEO misalignment, with engagements spanning all 47 prefectures from a Minami-Aoyama office. Its core services are Spot CTO (スポットCTO事業) embedded advisory, Development and Creative Production, Training and Executive Development using MBA-based curriculum, EQ Organizational Management applying emotional intelligence methodology, and CTO/VPoE Specialized Recruitment through the GW Career Agent sub-brand launched in October 2023. The company also operates the AI-powered CTOマインド診断 (launched November 2023) and a media portfolio including THE Keyperson, KEYPRODUCT, and EQ BANK.

The firm's underlying technology stack is light on proprietary software and heavy on proprietary methodology: the EQ Framework Integration combines emotional intelligence assessment and coaching with technical leadership consulting, and the CTOマインド診断 service is the only generative-AI component, applied to a text-based CTO capability assessment. Custom-quoted monthly retainers and project-based engagements are the primary commercial mechanism; an initial consultation is offered free, after which scoping and pricing are negotiated. Distribution is content-led: a corporate blog with 30+ articles on CTO, organizational management, and EQ topics; multiple media brands; published books (including "感情リテラシー事典" reaching a 21,000-copy, 6th printing milestone in October 2024); and appearances on NewsPicks and FM radio.

Growthwell operates a bootstrapped, founder-led model with seven employees including partner consultants, EQ trainers, tech leads, marketers, and directors. No external funding rounds are disclosed, ownership is concentrated with the founder, and the company has accumulated 100+ Spot CTO engagements and 1,000+ individuals receiving EQ-based organizational support since 2016. Strategic partnerships include NマイナスのIPO支援コミュニティ for IPO-track company referrals (November 2022) and a joint development with ポジウィル for the ポジキャリ診断Lite career diagnostic tool (September 2023).

Name

Growthwell

Legal name

株式会社グロースウェル

Website

https://growthwell.co.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Growthwell is a Tokyo-based professional services firm founded in 2016 that provides fractional CTO advisory, EQ-based organizational consulting, CTO/VPoE executive search, and executive training to Japanese technology companies and growth-stage businesses.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Technology Management Consulting

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Services-Computer Programming Services (7371)

akta.pro primary industry

Innovation Leadership & Leading Growth (EDABAAAO)

akta.pro secondary industry

Executive Leadership & C-Suite Development (EDABAAAA)

Keywords

• Fractional CTO services
• Technology advisory consulting
• Executive leadership training
• Organizational development consulting
• EQ management consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Tokyo

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Spot CTO / Technical Advisory Services: Core revenue stream providing part-time or intermittent CTO services to companies that need technical leadership without hiring a full-time CTO. Services include system vendor selection and management, technical strategy development, product roadmap consulting, and organizational design for technology teams. Pricing based on engagement scope and consultant seniority.
2. Management Training and Executive Development: Corporate training programs including logical thinking workshops, MBA-based executive development, and EQ-focused leadership training. Targets executives, CTOs, VPoEs, and engineering managers seeking to develop organizational leadership capabilities.
3. EQ Talent Development and Coaching: Individual and group coaching using EQ frameworks for personal development, team building, and organizational culture transformation. Includes emotional assessment and follow-up coaching sessions.
4. GW Career Agent (CTO/VPoE Executive Search): Specialized recruitment service for CTO and VP of Engineering positions, launched October 2023. Leverages founder's CTO experience and industry network to source candidates not available through general recruiters. Fee-based placement service.
5. System Development and Creative Production: Full-stack development services including system planning, development, operations, web production, and digital marketing support. Addresses client needs when internal development capability is insufficient.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Growthwell provides part-time or fractional CTO services to companies that lack internal technical leadership, covering system vendor selection and management, technical strategy, product roadmap, and development team building. It also delivers system planning, development, operations, and digital marketing services; logical-thinking and MBA-based executive training programs; EQ-based organizational management consulting and coaching; specialized CTO/VPoE executive search; and an AI-powered CTO Mind Diagnosis assessment service.

Product overview

Growthwell is a consulting and advisory firm offering a portfolio of services centered on fractional/external CTO (Spot CTO), organizational development, and executive training. The core offerings include スポットCTO事業 (fractional CTO services), 開発・クリエイティブ制作事業 (development and creative production), 研修・幹部育成事業 (executive training), EQ組織マネジメント事業 (EQ-based organizational management), and CTO・VPoE専門の人材紹介事業 (specialized CTO/VPoE recruitment). Supporting these are media brands including THE Keyperson, KEYPRODUCT, and EQ BANK, plus the GWキャリアエージェント recruitment service and CTOマインド診断 AI diagnostic tool. The company was founded in 2016 and is led by CEO Ohshiba Yoshinobu, a former CTO who led an IPO at AppBank.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• GWキャリアエージェント: CTO/VPoE専門の人材紹介サービス
• EQバンク
• THE KEYPERSON
• KEYPRODUCT
• YouKeyPerson
• The Sideline

Products and services

• Spot CTO Services (スポットCTO事業) Part-time or fractional CTO services that embed Growthwell's partners into client organizations to resolve problems in development organizations, technical strategy, and product management for companies lacking internal technical leadership. Engagements include system vendor selection and management, technology strategy development, product roadmap planning, and development team building. Target buyers are founders and CTOs of startups and growing Japanese companies.
• Development and Creative Production Services (開発、クリエイティブ制作事業) Full-stack development and creative services covering system planning through development, operations, web production, and digital marketing support for clients whose internal development capacity is insufficient.
• Training and Executive Development Services (研修、幹部育成事業) Corporate training programs using logical-thinking curricula and MBA-based content to develop self-sufficient leaders. Programs target executives, CTOs, VPoEs, and engineering managers and include leadership training, logical thinking workshops, and customized executive development programs.
• EQ Organization Management Consulting (EQ組織マネジメント事業) Organizational management consulting using Emotional Intelligence (EQ) to support the formation of self-directed organizations. Engagements include EQ assessment, analysis of results, and individually tailored coaching to optimize behavior through one-on-one interviews.
• CTO/VPoE Specialized Recruitment / GW Career Agent (CTO・VPoE専門の人材紹介事業) Fee-based executive recruitment service specialized for CTO and VPoE positions. Led by former CTOs, the service targets closed-market and off-market senior engineering candidates and manages post-placement expectation alignment to prevent mismatches.
• CTO Mind Diagnosis (CTOマインド診断) AI-powered diagnostic service that uses generative AI to analyze text-based responses and generate assessments of CTO mindset and competencies, helping organizations evaluate technical leadership capabilities.

Quantifiable outcome

• Decisions that previously took weeks now completed in days through role clarification and decision structure design
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• позиウィル (Poziwill)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 September 2023Joint development partnership for career diagnostic tool 'ポジキャリ診断Lite' specifically designed for consultation-seekers, integrating EQ methodology with career development assessment.
• Nマイナス (IPO Support Community)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 November 2022IPO support community partnership. Operates community for entrepreneurs targeting IPO within 5 years, run by former SBI Holdings executive Ito Masahito. Partnership provides mutual referrals and integrated service offerings for portfolio companies needing technical leadership.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Accenture: Global professional services firm with a major Japan business covering technology strategy, organizational consulting, and DX advisory. Increasingly active in interim/fractional CIO-CTO offerings, posing a competitive threat to Growthwell's boutique positioning.
• Robert Walters Japan: Global executive recruitment firm with established Japan operations placing senior technology and engineering leaders. Adjacent competitor in the CTO/VPoE search market where Growthwell's GW Career Agent is positioned.

Emerging players

• Six Seconds: Global non-profit network certifying emotional intelligence practitioners and producing the EQ-i assessment. Comparable methodology backbone to Growthwell's EQ organizational management service, with overlapping consulting partners delivering EQ-based leadership development.

Broad incumbents

• Bain & Company: Global management consulting firm with an active technology and organizational practice serving Japanese clients. Overlaps with Growthwell on executive advisory and tech leadership development but at vastly larger scale and broader scope.
• Future Corporation: Tokyo-headquartered IT consulting and digital transformation firm with hundreds of consultants. Serves the same Japanese enterprise and growth-company segments as Growthwell but with broader DX and system implementation capabilities.
• ABEAM Consulting: Japanese-origin global management and technology consulting firm with deep enterprise and DX practice. Comparable as a broad incumbent operating in overlapping CTO advisory and tech strategy advisory segments for Japanese corporates.
• McKinsey & Company: Global management consulting leader with a dedicated McKinsey Technology and Organization practice. Comparable at the strategic-advisory level for Japanese tech companies seeking CTO-level guidance, though operating at a much larger engagement scale.

Direct peers

• Skylight Consulting: Tokyo-based tech advisory firm focused on technology talent and engineering organization transformation. Comparable to Growthwell's CTO advisory and developer-team-building offerings, serving Japanese enterprises and growth-stage tech companies.
• BizReach: Japan's leading direct-recruitment platform for senior executives and specialized professionals, including CTO/VPoE roles. Directly comparable to Growthwell's GW Career Agent recruitment arm, with overlapping customer base of senior engineering hires.
• TRYOUT: Japanese platform matching fractional executives (CxO/VP roles) with growth-stage companies. Closest direct peer to Growthwell's Spot CTO service, operating a similar interim-leadership model for the same Japanese startup and growth-company customer base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/growthwell1

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Growthwell