From “Individual Management” to a “Shared Team Platform”
Project Management in Practice at the Japan Inclusive Football Federation

The Japan Inclusive Football Federation (JIFF) is an organization dedicated to creating an inclusive society through football. Working with a diverse range of stakeholders, JIFF operates multiple projects, including the Legacy Match program conducted under a partnership agreement with Minato City, Tokyo.

Guided by its vision, "Football can overcome any obstacle," JIFF has been promoting the creation of an inclusive society through football since its establishment in 2016. As collaboration with inclusive football organizations across Japan and with the wider football family, including the Japan Football Association (JFA), has continued to grow, JIFF has expanded its activities in pursuit of a more inclusive society.

At the same time, as its activities expanded and the number of projects increased, the organization encountered challenges in sustaining project operations. Different members managed their work in different ways, project progress became more difficult to track in a remote work environment, and handovers became increasingly challenging when responsibilities changed. To address these issues, JIFF introduced PROEVER and consolidated tasks and project progress into a single platform. As a result, the organization achieved not only greater visibility into project activities, but also improved communication, smoother handovers, and a continuous improvement cycle that carries lessons learned into the following year.

Advancing an Inclusive Society Through Football and Project Management

Together with its member organizations, JIFF promotes the creation of an inclusive society through football. In addition to supporting the development and growth of each inclusive football discipline, its activities cover a broad range of areas, including training programs and school education programs for people without disabilities.

Since 2023, JIFF has been working under a partnership agreement with Minato City, Tokyo, to use inclusive football as a catalyst for community development. One of the organization's flagship initiatives is the Legacy Match program. Children who spend the year learning about disability and inclusive football participate as volunteers at events such as powerchair football and blind football matches, putting their learning into practice through real-world experiences.

JIFF has also launched the Spectator Accessibility Project, an initiative aimed at improving accessibility for spectators with disabilities across Japanese football. As the organization manages both recurring annual projects and newly launched initiatives, PROEVER has become an important foundation for advancing them steadily and effectively.

Challenges Before Implementation: Information Existed, but the Current Situation Was Not Visible in Real Time

JIFF brings together members with different employment arrangements, backgrounds, and work locations. Prior to implementing PROEVER, tasks and schedules were managed using tools such as Excel and Google Sheets, with each individual developing their own methods and practices. As a result, information itself was available if someone took the time to search for it.

However, the existence of information and the ability to understand project progress in a timely manner are two very different things. Information was being shared, but only in the sense that people could find it if they looked for it. The organization did not have a way to follow project progress in real time.

"Information had always been shared, but it was only accessible if you actively searched for it; we were not in a position to track progress in a timely manner," Mr. Yamamoto explains. As remote work increased and opportunities for face-to-face communication decreased following the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a growing need for a shared platform that would allow us to check "what is currently progressing and how far along it is" and "whether the workload is overly concentrated on specific members."

The organization also recognized the risks associated with relying on individual management methods. When responsibilities change, important background information and knowledge about what needs to happen next may not be fully handed over. For recurring projects such as the Legacy Match, JIFF needed a mechanism for preserving past experience as organizational knowledge and carrying it forward into the following year.

Converting Task Lists into a WBS and Establishing Adoption Through Real Project Meetings

The implementation process began with the creation of a Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) based on existing task lists. This allowed the team to confirm that all necessary activities had been identified and that no important work had been overlooked. The team then established operational guidelines defining how PROEVER would be used within each project.

Since some members were unfamiliar with using such systems, a key point was that JIFF didn't just stop at explaining how to operate it. Instead, JIFF provided opportunities for members to experience firsthand 'what changes when you update specific areas' by actually navigating PROEVER during real meetings. JIFF initially conducted a trial with a small team, and based on the successful experiences gained there, gradually expanded the scope of its use.

Members of Management Solutions Co., Ltd. (MSOL) also participated in regular meetings, reviewing task progress, dependencies between activities, and the impact that delays could have on subsequent work. They also helped share meeting decisions and identified issues with relevant stakeholders, working alongside the project team to provide hands-on guidance in the overall project management process using PROEVER.

Result 1:
Project Visibility Created Peace of Mind Across the Team

By consolidating tasks, owners, deadlines, and progress updates within PROEVER, it became easier not only for managers but also for team members carrying out day-to-day work to understand the overall status of projects.

Even when managers were unable to attend meetings, they could still gain visibility into the overall project status and focus their communication on the areas that required attention. Team members also gained a way to make their work and progress visible to the rest of the team, creating a sense that their efforts were recognized and that they did not have to shoulder challenges on their own.

PROEVER's weather-based task status indicators also became a catalyst for conversation. According to Ms. Inoue, team members began checking in with one another based on the status displayed for a task, with comments such as, "I see this task is marked as cloudy. Is everything okay?" or "If it turns rainy, I'd get a little worried." These informal exchanges helped create opportunities to discuss project conditions openly.

Rather than asking, "Why hasn't this been completed?" team members could start the conversation by looking at the weather status and asking, "What's the current situation?" This made communication easier and less confrontational. By using project status as a shared visual signal, discussions shifted away from pointing out problems and toward constructive conversations about what support or actions might be needed to keep the project moving forward.

Result 2:
Smoother Handovers and Turning Annual Experience into Organizational Assets

For the Legacy Match, a wide range of information remains stored within PROEVER, including previous WBS structures, task information, and links to related materials. This makes it easier for new project owners to understand what needs to be done throughout the year and when each activity should take place.

In fact, when a new lead took over the Legacy Match, the transition was so seamless that Mr. Yamamoto did not even realize it was the individual's first time serving as the project lead. “By establishing a repeatable model for the annual Legacy Match within PROEVER, the handover process has become significantly smoother. In most cases, team members can simply follow the information stored in PROEVER to understand what needs to be done next,” said Ms. Inoue.

Because the platform contains not only tasks but also links to previous documents and related information, new project owners can review the history of the project and begin their work with a clear understanding of the year ahead. Sharing the project's repeatable model, rather than relying solely on the memory of individual team members, has been a key factor in enabling smooth transitions.

After each event, the team reviews its WBS and TODO items and incorporates newly identified issues and lessons learned into the following year's WBS. This allows knowledge gained in the field to be applied from the very beginning of the next cycle. The result is not only the prevention of oversights, but also a continuous cycle in which experience accumulates and project quality improves year after year.

Result 3:
A Shared Platform Supporting Collaboration Among Diverse Stakeholders

JIFF projects involve a wide range of stakeholders, including staff members, volunteers, government agencies, companies, and partner organizations. As the number and diversity of stakeholders increase, establishing a shared understanding of responsibilities and project progress becomes increasingly important.

By sharing necessary information through PROEVER, JIFF has made it easier for everyone involved, including those unable to attend meetings, to understand the status of projects. The platform does more than improve efficiency. It also serves as a foundation that supports JIFF's approach of involving diverse people and building projects through thoughtful and ongoing communication.

At the same time, opportunities for improvement remain. Establishing habits for continual updates and determining the appropriate level of detail for WBS planning continue to be areas of focus.

The goal is not project management for its own sake, but rather understanding how project management tools can be used to achieve better project outcomes. Through ongoing practice, JIFF continues to explore more effective ways to utilize PROEVER. The organization has also found that using PROEVER helps strengthen the project management skills of individual team members. As more members become capable of driving projects themselves, JIFF can launch more initiatives and expand its impact on society.

Looking Ahead:
Strengthening Each Member's Ability to Drive Projects and Expanding Social Impact

Looking toward the next decade, JIFF is committed to advancing social implementation under the theme of "Working Together, Learning Together, and Living Together." The organization plans to expand collaborative projects with companies and other organizations across a wide range of fields, including creating sustainable employment opportunities for people with disabilities, delivering programs that address disparities in access to experiences and opportunities, improving accessibility in educational environments, and promoting inclusion across everyday life and sport.

As its activities continue to expand beyond football and involve an increasing number of stakeholders, information sharing and project visibility will become even more important. By further expanding its use of PROEVER, JIFF aims to strengthen each member's ability to drive projects while ensuring that new initiatives with diverse organizations lead to meaningful results and greater impact on society.