Surpass myself to create an airport
full of more smiles.

I did a short-term study abroad program in Perth, Australia when I was in university. While my English wasn’t very good, I did my best to communicate with people from other countries. As someone who wasn’t confident speaking English, I’ll never forget the joy I felt when I could convey something and how kind people were. That sparked my interest in wanting to help people who come from overseas and make people smile at an airport location. As I was researching different companies, I found NRTAS appealing. I had originally wanted to work at a different airport, but I was drawn to NRTAS because of its friendly employees and warm and relaxed atmosphere, and I decided that I wanted to work with these people. I had also repeatedly failed and tried again to improve my English, and ANA’s corporate DNA of “Endeavor” also resonated strongly with me.

In the Passenger Services Department where I work, new employees start out by checking in passengers and working at boarding gates. After gaining experience working in the Business Class and First Class lounges, you build up to the jobs of Controller and In Charge (who’s the responsible person on duty). The ultimate goal is to become the Supervisor, who oversees everything for domestic and international routes. 

I started working as the In Charge (responsible person) in 2024 and am the one who decides that the conditions allow all departing flights to leave safely and on time. For example, when a customer shows up after the boarding cutoff time, while normally they are not allowed to board, I might decide to allow it depending on the situation. I try to provide service that meets the needs of each customer. When there is an irregularity such as a delay due to weather, I try to provide accurate and straightforward information so customers are not confused and can feel comfortable until they board their flight.

In addition to the In Charge duties, I have also recently been put in charge of VIP customer service. Taking on new challenges each day is stimulating and fulfilling.

My favorite job is providing information out in the terminal. I make a point to approach customers who look or act like they are having difficulty and ask them if they need any help. Some customers are flying for the first time or visiting a foreign country or Japan for the first time. I get asked questions not just from ANA customers but also from customers of other airlines, and I try to help all the customers who come to Narita Airport. I’m really happy when I think that my service and assistance that I have steadily worked to improve as an ANA Group employee has exceeded the customer’s expectations. Moments when I get to directly see the heartfelt happiness of overseas customers are moments when I feel rewarded for choosing the career path that I did. Moments when customers tell me thank you at the boarding gate for something I did earlier make me happy, because I feel like my service touched them on a personal level. I hope that the time customers spend at Narita Airport becomes a good memory from their trip.

In my first year at NRTAS, I repeatedly made mistakes and was cautioned about things, and sometimes felt disappointed in myself. However, NRTAS has firmly established a corporate culture where individuals are not assigned blame for failures and where colleagues talk through and think together how to do things better the next time. You are never made to take all the blame for a failure. I have a lot of senior peers who enjoy helping others, like to get involved in your business in a positive sense of the phrase, and care more about what’s going on with the people around them than themselves. 

My direct boss in my first year at NRTAS always paid attention to the mood in our work area and at the company. Since then, in addition to focusing on my own tasks, I have also tried paying more attention to what people are saying around me and to the workplace atmosphere inside our company.

The culture of employees calling out to one another is also a hallmark of NRTAS. We greet other people in our own department, and when we see colleagues who have transferred to other departments for the first time in a while, we always ask how each other is doing. This atmosphere that makes it easy to ask people for advice at any time, even about small things, transcends our different departments. The warm atmosphere at NRTAS helps support individuals’ growth.

Being sent on assignment to work in another field was a valuable opportunity to have realizations and gain insights that I otherwise would not have had in my normal work. Rather than being a specialist with expertise in one area, I sometimes think I want to get actively involved in training and supporting junior staff and build up experience in various departments while challenging myself if the opportunity arises in the future. I want to continue attempting all kinds of things with a positive outlook and while feeling excited about my future.