Forward Inc. acquires business from PORT Inc., a high-level talent introduction company; Representative Minato joins Forward

Forward Inc. (Headquarters: Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Kohei Nagoya; hereinafter referred to as "Forward"), which provides the recruitment support service "Ace Job" utilizing generative AI with the mission "Unleash talent worldwide," announces that it will acquire the talent introduction business from PORT Inc. (Headquarters: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Yui Minato; hereinafter referred to as "PORT"), a company specializing in high-level talent introduction, including PE funds, VCs, hands-on consulting, and executive talent domains. With this transfer, Yui Minato, Representative Director of PORT, will join Forward.

◾️ Business Transfer Overview

- Business to be transferred: Talent introduction business operated by PORT Inc. (Executive search business specializing in high-level talent, including PE funds, VCs, hands-on consulting, and executive talent domains)

- Transfer method: Business transfer

- Effective date: July 1, 2026

◾️ About PORT Inc.

PORT has specialized in talent introduction for high-level professionals with the motto "Accompanying the client's management." Its strength lies in proposals that deeply understand the potential of each candidate through specialization in its domain, and it has built a unique position in the executive talent market by building long-term relationships with clients even after転職支援 (career change support).

Representative Director Yui Minato

After working at an HR startup, she moved to a foreign life insurance company. She was promoted to branch manager at the youngest age, established a sales office from scratch, and was involved in recruitment, training, and management for 10 years. She has recruited an average of 10 individuals per year through headhunting. Driven by the desire to "be in a position to support ideal careers, rather than being on the hiring side," she transitioned to an agent and established PORT Inc. With the motto of "listening" and "empathy," she excels at supporting candidates to maximize their career and life potential.

◾️ Future Development (New Entry into High-Level Talent Introduction Domain)

Through this initiative, Forward will enter the executive and high-level talent introduction domain and the AI talent introduction domain.

Forward has so far focused on the mid-career recruitment domain, promoting scout optimization and operational efficiency using generative AI. On the other hand, the executive and high-level talent recruitment market faces structural challenges such as:

- The absolute number of candidates is small, making it difficult to form a candidate pool.

- The criteria required for each candidate are highly advanced and individualized.

- Support is needed based on long-term relationship building, not short-term matching.

- A stable business structure that does not rely solely on success fees is required.

Ms. Minato has accumulated expertise in highly specialized domains and a track record in agent work that deeply engages with candidates through career support for high-level professionals. She also has a track record of introducing and placing numerous candidates using Ace Job.

Furthermore, Forward is experiencing rapid business growth by deploying "LLM-native" services that incorporate AI, particularly LLMs, into products from the design stage. Based on the know-how gained during this rapid growth, Forward will also launch a talent introduction business for companies that deploy products and services fully incorporating LLMs.

With this business transfer and participation:

1. New entry into the high-level talent introduction and AI talent introduction domains

Forward will implement Ms. Minato's proposal methods and network for executives into Forward's recruitment support platform and establish a new organization specializing in executive talent introduction. Leveraging Forward's strength as an AI product owner, it will also launch a high-level AI talent introduction business.

2. Fusion of AI recruitment and specialized agent services

An optimized support model for executives will be built by combining Ace Job's AI technology for candidate analysis and matching logic with hands-on support specialized for high-level professionals.

3. Establishment of a position in the executive talent market

Forward Group aims to establish its presence in the executive talent market and expand its long-term customer base.

◾️ Representative Director Comments

Kohei Nagoya, Representative Director and President, Forward Inc.

Forward has been working to evolve its recruitment support centered on generative AI to realize "Unleash talent worldwide." Ms. Minato's deep understanding of high-level professionals and her dedication to each candidate have led to significant achievements for our customers using Ace Job.

Through this business succession, we aim to deliver value in new domains such as executive talent introduction and AI talent introduction, and to create a system for reproducing recruitment success.

Yui Minato, Representative Director, PORT Inc.

I am delighted to be able to further develop the career support based on "listening" and "empathy" that I have valued through PORT in a new environment at Forward. Leveraging the network and expertise I have built with high-level professionals, I will strive as a member of Forward to help more executives and AI professionals achieve their ideal careers.

◾️ Company Overview

Company Name: Forward Inc.

Representative: Kohei Nagoya, Representative Director

Location: Frontier Shinjuku Tower Room 322, 3-9-7 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo

Business Activities: HR Tech (AI SaaS) business, Paid Employment Placement Business

Established: March 1, 2023

Capital (including capital reserve): 420 million yen

Paid Employment Placement Business License Number: 13-ユ-315438

Inquiries regarding this matter:

Forward Inc.

Contact: Public Relations / Alliance Desk

Email: [email protected]

Address: Frontier Shinjuku Tower Room 322, 3-9-7 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo

Related URLs

Forward Official Website

https://forward-career.jp/

Ace Job (Service Site)

https://lp.acejob.jp/

Ace Job Inquiry Form

https://lp.acejob.jp/contact

Forward Inquiry Form

https://forward-career.jp/contact