In April 2026, we ran an online training using the Map of Accounting as part of a joint program for new employees of a major manufacturing group. It was a half-day (five-hour) session that new employees of the group's companies joined from home or from their workplaces. For this training we built new material in which participants follow three years of a company by making choices.

Background

The request was to give all new employees of the group the basics of company numbers. The participants would be assigned to different workplaces and came from different educational backgrounds, and they would all take the session online at the same time. No knowledge of accounting could be assumed.

We set four aims.

  1. Participants feel less intimidated by accounting
  2. They can see the whole picture, including the balance sheet as well as the income statement
  3. They can explain the flow in which cash becomes assets, produces sales and profit, and builds up as net assets
  4. They can picture how business decisions affect the future shape of a company

What we made

The material is a simulation in which participants relive a company's first three years. At each scene, each participant picks one of the options. Depending on the choice, the blocks of the "Map of Accounting" on screen move, and participants can watch the income statement and the balance sheet change together.

  • Year 1: a practice year in which everyone follows the same path. It covers founding the company, borrowing, buying and selling goods, advertising, and closing the books
  • Year 2: a choice between two options. It covers investment in equipment and fixed costs
  • Year 3: a choice among three options with conditions. It covers reinvestment, sales growth, and the build-up of profit

So that the long session would not become monotonous, the range of choices widens a little each year.

We developed the material in-house to run in a browser. Participants open it on a computer or smartphone and answer there. Collecting the answers is built into the material, so the session can run without preparing polls in the meeting tool in advance. The instructor's screen and the participants' screen are separate.

The "Map of Accounting" is the framework introduced in the book The Map of Accounting. ZUKAI has also released Kaikei, a game for learning with the Map of Accounting.

How we worked

  • February 2026: we met the client online and presented an outline of the plan. We also held an internal session to work on the plan
  • March 2026: we made a review page listing every question and scenario, and the client checked the content
  • The day before and the morning of the session: we rehearsed internally and fixed display problems
  • On the day: we began with a lecture on how to read the "Map of Accounting," went through the three years of work, and ended by looking back at how the company changed over the three years

Our CEO, Tetsuro Kondoh, was the instructor. Makoto Okiyama, co-author of The Map of Accounting, and other members supported participants through the chat.

Overview

  • When: April 2026
  • Format: online
  • Our role: planning, developing the material, instructing
  • Deliverables: simulation material (instructor and participant screens), lecture slides
  • Published at: none (an in-house training)