Shigenobu Tanaka on cultivating curiosity, community, and a culture ready for transformation.
Some transformations begin with technology. Others begin with a conscious decision. For Shigenobu Tanaka, Head of Digital Transformation and IT Infrastructure at Yanmar Compact Equipment (Yanmar CE), that pivotal decision came after 35 years in international engineering, planning, and software development.
“I felt it was the right moment to change direction before turning 60,” Tanaka says with calm confidence. “I wanted to apply everything I had learned to a new environment with fresh challenges.”
Tanaka’s global career spans engineering roles in Japan, two years in the United States supporting service operations within a sales organization, and hands-on manufacturing assignments in the United Kingdom. He later transitioned into software development, partner programs, and product planning during a long tenure at Panasonic. Across each role and geography, he developed a talent for connecting people with differing perspectives, an ability that would later shape Yanmar CE’s digital evolution.
“I learned how important it is to stand between viewpoints and help people understand one another,” he explains.
A fresh start with clear purpose
Tanaka joined Yanmar CE in 2020 within the Quality Planning Group. At the time, teams were managing increasing volumes of customer and quality data, much of it exported into spreadsheets and compiled manually into reports. The work was meticulous but inefficient. To address this, Tanaka helped introduce Dr. Sum, a Japanese-developed database, along with MotionBoard, a business intelligence platform, creating centralized dashboards that reduced days of preparation to minutes.
As data from across the organization came together in real time, teams gained clearer visibility and alignment. “Data compilation shouldn’t be a human task, decision-making should be,” Tanaka recalls hearing. The philosophy quickly became foundational. Quality Assurance teams across Japan, Europe, and the United States began operating in sync. “I wanted the system to feel like one Yanmar CE,” he says.
The success of these early initiatives led to the creation of the Digital Transformation Department in 2022, which Tanaka was appointed to lead.
People at the center of progress
From the outset, Tanaka believed digital transformation must grow from within. The approach became known internally as “grassroots DX,” blending mindset, culture, and community. He launched internal working groups to encourage shared learning, experimentation, and peer support. Today, more than 200 Yanmar CE employees are part of the digital community he helped establish.
“People’s mindsets have shifted dramatically,” Tanaka notes. “The community played a major role in that change.”
His influence extends beyond Yanmar CE. Tanaka leads regional manufacturing data utilization working groups in Japan and contributes to UiPath’s global automation community. He has also been recognized as a Data Driven Meister, an honor awarded by WingArc1st Inc. to individuals advancing data-driven practices that “bring smiles to the world through data utilization.”
Exploring AI with balance and clarity
Generative AI now represents the next phase of Yanmar CE’s digital journey. Tanaka emphasizes faster, better-informed decisions rather than automation for its own sake. AI initiatives are anchored within the Yanmar Group’s feedback loop—collecting data, making decisions, taking action, and reviewing outcomes.
He is equally realistic about AI’s limitations. “Generative AI isn’t omnipotent,” he says. “It’s like a new employee, you guide it and help it improve.” He encourages adoption even when accuracy is imperfect, emphasizing learning through use. “AI supports the work, but people provide the judgment.”
Practical applications are already underway. HR teams are piloting natural-language search tools that allow employees to instantly locate policy information, while back-office workflows such as invoice matching are being digitized through data-driven automation.
Shaping the future mindset
For customers, the benefits are clear: faster insight, earlier action, and improved reliability. Issues are identified and addressed before escalating, strengthening both performance and trust.
Tanaka believes the broader manufacturing industry is moving in the same direction, with increasing emphasis on real-time data, AI-supported workflows, and citizen development. “Technology evolves,” he says, “but people carry the organization.”
Now focused on mentoring the next generation, Tanaka remains deeply engaged in internal and external communities. “Organizations are living systems,” he reflects. “They change with time.” For Tanaka, digital transformation remains an ongoing journey guided by curiosity, collaboration, and the courage to choose change.
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