037 - Turning People into a Company’s Greatest Knowledge Asset with Yumi Kimura, CEO & Co-Founder, LEAD

What if the most valuable knowledge in your company isn’t in your documents, but in people’s heads?

In this episode of Pitch, Build, Scale, Yumi Kimura, CEO & Co-Founder of LEAD, shares how her AI-powered platform transforms Fortune 500 companies from siloed and inefficient to connected and collaborative.

From building Meitu Japan to tackling the “attention gap” in knowledge management, Yumi’s journey spans billion-user apps, billion-dollar IPOs, and deep research into organizational behavior. She explains why most companies mistake “information” for “knowledge,” the five pillars of true knowledge management, and how AI can make invisible expertise visible without invading privacy.

Whether you’re scaling a SaaS, running a dev shop, or leading a large enterprise, Yumi’s insights will change how you think about collaboration, culture, and the future of work.

Chapters

00:00 - Intro & Yumi’s Background

03:33 - Scaling Meitu in Japan & Global Expansion

07:25 - The Frustration That Led to Founding Lead

09:21 - The Five Pillars of Knowledge Management

11:17 - How LEAD’s Products Work in Slack & Teams

13:34 - The Role of PLG in Enterprise Sales

15:30 - Integration Examples with Fortune 500 Clients

20:59 - AI’s Real Role in Knowledge Flow

26:15 - Why Digital Transformation Fails Without Culture

32:20 - LEAD’s Go-To-Market & Growth Strategy

34:54 - The Magic Wand to Fix Market Education

37:21 - Where to Learn More

Resources:

Lead: https://www.lead.app

Big North Marketing: https://bignorthmarketing.com