Japan's Top Business Interviews Podcast By Dale Carnegie Training Tokyo Japan

"I listen and I also am always very transparent." "Who cares about what people think about me?" "If my boss, my future boss, thinks that I'm capable, I must be." "Leadership is really defining where we're going, whether it's the end state or whether it's a goal."

Mika Matsuo is a Japan-based executive and former AIG Japan CHRO known for repeatedly stepping into unfamiliar roles and delivering change. Born and raised in Japan but educated in an international school environment in Yokohama, she took an early decision to build a global career, studying at Tufts University in Boston and completing an MBA at the University of San Francisco. She began her career at Citibank Japan during the build-out of its retail business, where exposure to strong, international leaders shaped her standards for integrity, preparedness, and opportunity-taking. After earning Six Sigma Master Black Belt credentials, she moved into an internal consulting role at JPMorgan Chase during the post-merger integration period, then joined Tokyo Star Bank as Head of HR without prior HR experience—learning labour law, restructures, and culture change in real time. She later expanded her scope as Head of HR for Asia Pacific at Moody's and returned to Tokyo Star Bank to lead the retail business, navigating crisis leadership after the March 2011 earthquake. She joined AIG to help integrate AIU and Fuji Fire & Marine, later serving nearly a decade and attributing successful integration to clear leadership direction and a "build a new company" mindset. Today, she contributes through board and advisory work, drawing on a career defined by adaptability in Japan's complex corporate environment.

Mika Matsuo's career arc reads like a deliberate challenge to the usual Japanese corporate script: international education, overseas degrees, and then a sequence of high-stakes roles where she often began as an outsider to the function, the business line, or both. Rather than treating those gaps as liabilities, she used them as leverage—asking questions early, leaning on strong teams, and creating trust through transparency. The result is a leadership style that is calm under uncertainty, candid about limitations, and built around listening as a strategic discipline rather than a soft skill.

Her formative years in global finance gave her two lasting advantages. First, mentors who rewarded capability over status helped her internalise a belief that many professionals—especially women—struggle to adopt: if the organisation has decided she can do it, she can. Second, she saw how quickly culture shifts when leaders normalise openness, practical delegation, and continuous learning. Those lessons mattered most when she moved into Japan's banking transformation era, where legacy norms around hierarchy, gender expectations, and "we've always done it this way" thinking still dominated.

At Tokyo Star Bank, she helped introduce practices that would be routine in many gaishikei firms but were disruptive inside a traditional Japanese bank context—removing women's uniforms, supporting spousal transfers to preserve women's careers, and encouraging leave for study and volunteering. The aim wasn't cosmetic modernisation; it was building a more transparent, sustainable system that could attract and retain talent. That commitment to sustainability becomes a recurring theme in her advice: organisations that still depend on extreme overtime, weekend obligations, and performative busyness are not structurally built for the future workforce Japan needs.

A defining moment of her leadership development came during the March 2011 earthquake response, when she saw high-performing teamwork replace individual heroics. With a Sendai branch that had to reopen under Ministry of Finance expectations, her role shifted to decision-making, prioritisation, and supporting a team that was independently executing critical actions. That experience reinforced her belief that leadership is not doing everything—it is creating clarity, building trust, and letting capable people run.

Across roles—from HR transformation to business leadership to post-merger integration—she returns to the same core: authenticity paired with respect, vulnerability as a trust-builder, and an open mind that actively checks bias. In Japan, where consensus-building (nemawashi) and formal approval flows (ringi-sho) often shape outcomes, her approach offers a practical bridge: respect the process, accelerate it through clarity, and build followership by being transparent about goals, trade-offs, and constraints.

Q&A Summary What makes leadership in Japan unique? Leadership in Japan is uniquely shaped by the need for trust, respect, and collective alignment. Decision-making often relies on consensus-building through nemawashi and formal pathways such as ringi-sho, meaning leaders must manage time, stakeholders, and expectations while maintaining harmony. Matsuo's emphasis is that respect for Japanese ways of doing business is non-negotiable, but understanding the process helps leaders make it faster and more effective once they know how the pieces fit together.

Why do global executives struggle? Global executives often struggle because they misread capability through the lens of English fluency and underestimate how much "invisible coordination" is happening beneath the surface. They may also push for rapid decisions before alignment has formed, mistaking slower Japanese pacing for resistance. Matsuo's warning is blunt: don't be deceived by language skill, and don't accept "not possible in Japan" as a default answer—often it means someone simply doesn't know how to do it legally, respectfully, and in an organised way.

Is Japan truly risk-averse? Japan is frequently labelled risk-averse, but a more accurate framing is uncertainty avoidance. Leaders may appear cautious because they are working to reduce ambiguity and prevent downstream disruption. Once a decision is made, execution can move quickly—especially if the leader has done the groundwork to secure buy-in.

What leadership style actually works? The leadership style that works is clarity plus trust. Matsuo's playbook is listening deeply, being transparent (including about personal constraints), and staying respectful regardless of personal affinity. She also models vulnerability—admitting what she doesn't know, asking teams to teach her, and reframing "not knowing" as a normal condition in modern complex work.

How can technology help? In environments overloaded with information and stakeholder constraints, technology can support better leadership decisions by improving visibility and scenario planning. Approaches such as decision intelligence can help leaders prioritise key risks and opportunities, while tools like digital twins can model operational impacts before changes are rolled out—reducing uncertainty and supporting consensus-building without relying on endless meetings.

Does language proficiency matter? Language helps, but it is not decisive. Making the effort can signal commitment, and language learning can accelerate cultural understanding, but many successful leaders in Japan remain effective without high Japanese proficiency. The critical requirement is respect for culture, discipline in stakeholder management, and the ability to avoid confusing language ability with professional capability.

What's the ultimate leadership lesson? Leadership is defining the destination clearly and moving the whole team along a believable path. Whether leading from the front or supporting from behind, the leader's job is to simplify the goal, align the top team, and create the conditions for the organisation to move together—especially in times of uncertainty.

Author Credentials Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results. He has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have also been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban "Hito o Ugokasu" Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー).

In addition to his books, Greg publishes daily blogs on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, offering practical insights on leadership, communication, and Japanese business culture. He is also the host of six weekly podcasts, including The Leadership Japan Series, The Sales Japan Series, The Presentations Japan Series, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews. On YouTube, he produces three weekly shows — The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews — which have become leading resources for executives seeking strategies for success in Japan.

"I think curiosity is very important. When you're curious about something, you listen." "You have to be at the forefront, not the back. You can't, hide behind and say, 'hey, you know, guys solve it', right?" "When they trust you, beautiful things happen." "Ideas are welcome. You know, ideas are free. But it's got be data driven."

Tomo Kamiya is President Japan at PTC, a company known for parametric design and CAD-driven simulation that helps engineers model, test, and refine complex products digitally before manufacturing. He began his career in sales at Bosch, covering Kanagawa and Yamanashi with a highly autonomous, remote-work style that was ahead of its time, learning early that trust and relationship continuity—not brand alone—move outcomes in Japan.

He later joined Dell during its disruptive growth era, moving from enterprise sales into marketing and broader regional responsibility, including supporting Korea marketing and later leading the server business, where his team hit number one market share in Japan.

After a short consulting stint connected to Japan Telecom, he joined AMD to grow the business in Japan, then relocated to Singapore to run a broader South Asia remit and strategic customers. He subsequently led a wide Asia Pacific portfolio at D&M Holdings across multiple markets, navigating shifting consumer behaviour as subscription and streaming changed the fundamentals of product value.

That experience led naturally into Adobe during its historic shift from perpetual software to subscription, where he led the Digital Media business in Japan (including Photoshop, Illustrator, and Acrobat) for almost a decade. Across this cross-industry arc, he has repeatedly adapted to business model change, regional cultural differences, and the practical realities of leading people in Japan—especially the need to listen deeply, build trust patiently, and step forward decisively when problems hit.

Tomo Kamiya's leadership story is, at its core, a story about compressing complexity—first in products, then in organisations. At PTC, he sits at the intersection of engineering reality and digital abstraction: the ability to take something massive—a ship, an engine, an entire manufacturing system—and "frame" it into a screen so it can be simulated, stress-tested, and improved before any physical cost is incurred.

That same instinct shows up in the way he talks about people and performance. In his earliest Bosch years, he learned that Japan's reliability culture does not eliminate the need for continuous trust-building; even a global brand can stall if the relationship energy disappears. His answer was to create value where the buyer's uncertainty lives—showing up, demonstrating, educating, and, as he put it, "sell myself," because credibility travels faster than product brochures.

That bias for action stayed with him through Dell's high-velocity era, where "latest and the greatest" rewarded leaders who could anticipate market timing and organise teams around speed without losing discipline. Later, running regional remits outside Japan, he saw the contrast between Japan's "no defect" mindset and emerging markets that prioritised pace.

Rather than treat one as right and the other as wrong, he learned to search for the productive middle ground: the discipline that prevents future failure, paired with the pragmatism that prevents paralysis. It is a useful lens for Japan, where uncertainty avoidance and consensus expectations can slow decisions unless the leader builds momentum through listening and clear intent.

In his most practical leadership shift, an executive coach forced a hard look at his calendar: too much time on objectives, not enough time on people. The result was a deliberate reallocation toward one-on-ones, deeper listening, and clearer delegation—creating what amounts to a management operating system that improves decision speed because the leader knows what is really happening.

He sees ideas as abundant but insists that investment requires decision intelligence: data points, ROI thinking, and a shared logic that gives teams confidence to commit. In Japan's consensus environment—where nemawashi and ringi-sho-style alignment often determine whether execution truly happens—his approach is to build trust through presence, make it safe for the "silent minority" to contribute, and then move decisively when critical moments arrive.

Technology, including AI as a "co-pilot," can help leaders think through scenarios and prepare responses, but he remains clear that empathy and execution in the worst moments cannot be outsourced. The leadership standard, as he defines it, is simple and demanding: when things go south, step to the front.

Q&A Summary What makes leadership in Japan unique? Leadership in Japan is shaped by trust-building, restraint, and the practical demands of consensus. Even when products are high quality and risk reduction is strong, outcomes often hinge on relationships and continuity. Japan's consensus culture—often expressed through nemawashi and ringi-sho-style alignment—means leaders must invest time in listening, building internal confidence, and demonstrating respect for the context that teams and customers protect.

Why do global executives struggle? Global executives often arrive with a headquarters lens and try to "fix" what looks inefficient before understanding why it exists. When they change processes or people without learning the customer rationale, they trigger resistance and lose credibility. The gap is not intelligence; it is context. Japan requires deliberate time in the market and inside the organisation to decode what is really being optimised—often customer trust, stability, and long-term reliability. Is Japan truly risk-averse?

Japan can appear risk-averse, but much of the behaviour is better described as uncertainty avoidance. The goal is to reduce surprises and protect relationships, not to avoid progress. Kamiya's early sales experience shows that buyers will pay for reliability when the cost of failure is high. The leadership challenge is to move forward while lowering uncertainty—through data, clear rationale, and predictable communication—rather than forcing speed without alignment.

What leadership style actually works? The style that works is visible, empathetic, and action-oriented. Trust grows when leaders walk the floor, create everyday touchpoints, and listen in detail—especially because many Japanese employees will not speak up easily. At the same time, Kamiya argues that in critical moments—big decisions, business model shifts, major complaints—the leader must be "at the forefront," not hiding behind delegation. Delegation matters, but stepping forward in the hardest moments is what earns trust.

How can technology help? Technology helps leaders compress complexity and make better decisions. In product terms, simulation and digital-twin style approaches reduce risk by testing before manufacturing. In leadership terms, data-driven thinking improves idea selection, investment confidence, and ROI clarity. AI can function as a co-pilot for scenario planning—offering options and framing responses—but it does not replace human judgement, empathy, or the social work of building consensus.

Does language proficiency matter? Language matters because it shrinks distance. Full fluency may take years, but even small efforts signal respect and closeness, making it easier to build rapport and trust. Language is not just vocabulary; it is an everyday bridge that reduces friction with teams and increases the leader's ability to read nuance—critical in a culture where people may be reserved. What's the ultimate leadership lesson?

The ultimate lesson is that trust is built through time, listening, and decisive presence. Leadership is revealed when trouble hits: the leader who listens, takes action, and stands in front earns durable commitment. Once trust is established, the organisation can move faster—because consensus forms more naturally, delegation improves, and decisions carry less uncertainty.

Author Credentials Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results.

He has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have also been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban "Hito o Ugokasu" Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー).

In addition to his books, Greg publishes daily blogs on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, offering practical insights on leadership, communication, and Japanese business culture. He is also the host of six weekly podcasts, including The Leadership Japan Series, The Sales Japan Series, The Presentations Japan Series, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews. On YouTube, he produces three weekly shows — The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews — which have become leading resources for executives seeking strategies for success in Japan.

"Leading a team is every time challenging, to be honest." "We need to make a small success every time." "There is no official language of the company. The most important is communication." "It's not if we will do or not. It is how we will do it." "Only people who are not doing nothing are not taking risk."

Benjamin Costa is the Representative Director and Managing Director of La Maison du Chocolat Japan, overseeing a luxury chocolate brand founded in Paris in 1977. Trained in civil engineering, he moved early into action sports retail, becoming a pioneer in European e-commerce and customer trust-building systems during the internet's formative years. After senior roles growing multi-sport retail and online operations in France, he relocated to Japan with his Japanese wife, driven by a long-standing personal connection to the country developed through annual travels over two decades. In 2015, he became General Manager of the French Chamber of Commerce's Osaka office, then co-founded an international business development firm supporting market entry for European and Japanese companies across sectors including luxury, high-tech, culture, and food and beverage. He joined La Maison du Chocolat Japan in January 2020 to lead a strategic transformation—reconnecting with Japanese consumers, strengthening alignment with headquarters, and reshaping internal ways of working—while managing an all-Japanese team as the sole foreigner in the subsidiary.

Benjamin Costa's leadership story in Japan is built on an unusual combination: an engineer's analytical structure, an entrepreneur's appetite for experimentation, and a deep respect for the social mechanics that underpin Japanese workplaces. As Managing Director of La Maison du Chocolat Japan, he is not merely "running the shop"; he is running change—balancing the expectations of a French luxury heritage brand with the uncompromising standards of Japanese customers. His approach begins with a clear premise: in luxury, "not perfect" is still not acceptable. For him, Japan is not a constraint on excellence; it is the benchmark that can lift the whole organisation. If a product, service, or process meets Japanese expectations, he argues, it will travel well globally.

Costa treats trust as an operational asset, not a soft concept. Internally, he speaks about building credibility through "small success every time"—a practical rhythm that mirrors nemawashi and ringi-sho dynamics, where progress is stabilised through incremental validation and consensus. He also recognises that trust must be built in two directions: with the local team and with headquarters. In subsidiaries, he notes, distance and lack of informal contact can weaken confidence and slow decision-making. His solution is to tighten the relationship through evidence, responsiveness, and direct communication between functional experts—so Japan is not an isolated "castle," and headquarters is not an untouchable authority.

He leads with a deliberately flat management style. Ideas can come from anywhere, and he is comfortable letting his original concept be reshaped into something better by the team. At the same time, he rejects the paralysis that can come from over-consensus. When deadlines are short, he reframes the discussion: the debate is not whether to do the project, but how to do it. That combination—openness paired with decisiveness—becomes his method for working with Japan's uncertainty avoidance without letting it harden into inaction.

Risk, for Costa, is inseparable from growth. He encourages experiments, protects people when outcomes are imperfect, and focuses on learning to prevent repeat mistakes. Yet he is also candid: some people thrive in the former business model and struggle to keep pace with transformation. He treats that as fit, not failure. Ultimately, Costa defines leadership as elevating others—creating conditions where the team can move alongside the leader, not behind him, and where capability expands through responsibility, clarity, and shared wins.

Q&A Summary What makes leadership in Japan unique? Costa emphasises that trust and credibility tend to be earned in small, visible steps. Rather than grand announcements, progress is reinforced through incremental wins that allow people to align safely—an approach closely related to nemawashi and ringi-sho style decision-making, where consensus is built before execution. He also highlights Japan's high expectations for quality and reliability, which shape how teams think about accountability and reputational risk.

Why do global executives struggle? He points to a common clash: headquarters urgency versus local reality. Executives arrive as change agents under pressure to deliver quickly, but Japan's organisational habits—consensus-building, precision, and risk sensitivity—slow the apparent pace. His advice is to listen first, move thoughtfully, then return to HQ with a strong, evidence-based case for what will work and why it will take time.

Is Japan truly risk-averse? Costa sees risk aversion as real, but not absolute. Japan's uncertainty avoidance often expresses itself as a desire for clarity of responsibility and avoidance of public failure. His workaround is to create psychological safety: he takes responsibility for outcomes, reframes "failure" as collective learning, and builds confidence through repeatable wins. Over time, people take more initiative because the consequences feel manageable and fair.

What leadership style actually works? He blends empowerment with selective firmness. He runs flat, encourages ideas from the team, and keeps his door open for long, individual conversations until an agreement is reached. But he also breaks silos by design—treating inventory, priorities, and performance as "one Japan" rather than separate departmental territories. When speed is required, he makes the decision structure explicit: the question becomes "how," not "whether."

How can technology help? Costa is cautious about AI adoption, arguing that tools can save time but still require verification of sources and critical thinking. In practice, leaders can use decision intelligence concepts to improve judgement, scenario planning, and trade-offs, and they can explore digital twins to test operational changes virtually before rolling them out—while still maintaining human accountability for decisions and customer experience.

Does language proficiency matter? He values Japanese ability, but he prioritises communication over perfection. He notes there is "no official language" if the team leaves the room aligned. His experience is that effort matters: speaking Japanese—even imperfectly—invites support, and colleagues often help translate intent into precise business language.

What's the ultimate leadership lesson? Costa defines leadership as raising others. The leader is not the genius; the leader creates the conditions for strong people to contribute, grow, and own outcomes. The best outcome is a team capable of moving the business forward with confidence—because trust, responsibility, and momentum have been built together.

Author Credentials Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results.

He has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have also been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban "Hito o Ugokasu" Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー).

In addition to his books, Greg publishes daily blogs on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, offering practical insights on leadership, communication, and Japanese business culture. He is also the host of six weekly podcasts, including The Leadership Japan Series, The Sales Japan Series, The Presentations Japan Series, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews. On YouTube, he produces three weekly shows — The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews — which have become leading resources for executives seeking strategies for success in Japan.

"If you trust people, your life is very nice."

"The bringing people together with one common objective needs to be carefully thought out and defining the processes very carefully needs to be thought out and don't imagine that the process will be figured out by the people themselves."

"They are looking for a leader who is responsible, who can make the decision."

"Be transparent."

Brief Bio Armel Cahierre is a French-trained engineer who built a multi-country career across R&D, turnaround management, consulting, private equity-adjacent deal work, and consumer retail.

After early technical work in Japan (including R&D exposure through Thomson during Japan's 1980s electronics peak), he returned to Europe for an MBA at INSEAD and moved into industrial leadership roles, taking on high-responsibility turnaround assignments in his late 20s across France, Italy, Germany, and Switzerland.

He later helped open a European office for a US firm pioneering semantic analysis for qualitative market research, working with major global brands. That experience led to entrepreneurship in eyewear (ski goggles and sunglasses), a subsequent exit to an Italian group, and executive-level work tied to licensing and Western European markets.

After a period in California doing pre- and post-M&A consulting (including carve-outs linked to the Vivendi break-up), he returned to Japan, became President of Paris Miki, and later pivoted after a Cerberus transaction collapsed on the day of the Lehman shock.

He then founded B4F in Japan, building a members-only, online flash-sales model that sources only through official brand channels and emphasises simplicity of operations, trust, and process discipline.

Armel Cahierre's leadership story, is less a straight line than a sequence of deliberately chosen reinventions anchored by one constant: clarity of purpose and an intolerance for unnecessary complexity. As Founder and President of B4F, he operates a members-only flash sales platform focused primarily on fashion and lifestyle brands, with time-limited sales and controlled visibility designed to protect brand equity.

The proposition is simple for customers and brands alike: members access discounts without prices being exposed to the wider web, and brands clear excess inventory without training the mass market to wait for markdowns. Operationally, the model leans toward discipline—no grey market sourcing, no parallel imports, and minimal exposure to foreign exchange or customs friction by buying and selling in yen.

That preference for simple systems was shaped long before e-commerce. Early in his management career, Cahierre was sent into difficult turnaround situations and learned that the fastest route to recovery often begins with information-sharing and dignity.

In one formative case, he arrived at a unionised boiler manufacturer with a catastrophic defect cycle and discovered frontline employees had never been told the company's true position. Once he made the economics and the problem visible, alignment followed—less because of charisma, more because people could finally see the same "game board".

In Japan, he argues, the same outcomes are possible, but the route is slower and more socially coded. Ideas rarely appear instantly in open forum; trust must be earned, roles must be read correctly, and influence may sit away from formal hierarchy.

Where some foreign leaders push targets and individual incentives, he sees higher leverage in process: process KPIs, well-defined routines, and a shared understanding of "how work is done"—a philosophy that maps cleanly onto kaizen, consensus-building, and the reality that nemawashi often precedes the formal ringi-sho.

He also warns against confusing "culture" with "excuses": claims that "Japan can't do X" frequently hide uncertainty avoidance, fear of accountability, or simple inertia rather than any immutable national constraint.

On technology, Cahierre is pragmatic and a little provocative. If AI is framed as replacing white-collar work, the CEO should not imagine immunity. The agenda, in his view, is training and judgement: equip teams to use AI well (as companies should have done with Excel and PowerPoint years ago), understand where it accelerates work, and retain human decision intelligence where context, responsibility, and ethics matter.

Q&A Summary What makes leadership in Japan unique? Cahierre frames Japan's leadership challenge as less about "mystical difference" and more about how alignment is formed. Teams often respond best to clearly defined processes and shared routines, rather than blunt target pressure. Consensus is frequently built informally first—akin to nemawashi—before decisions become visible through formal approval mechanics (the ringi-sho mindset), meaning leaders must manage the unseen steps, not just the outcome.

Why do global executives struggle? He sees many global leaders bringing a KPI-and-bonus playbook that freezes people rather than mobilising them. When targets are pushed without an equally clear process map, staff can become defensive, quiet, and risk-minimising—especially in environments where standing out carries social cost. He also calls out a "guru layer" of advice that over-indexes on etiquette and language theatre while ignoring business fundamentals.

Is Japan truly risk-averse? His view is more nuanced: behaviour can look risk-averse, but it often reflects uncertainty avoidance and accountability anxiety. Autonomy can feel like exposure. The leader's job is to reduce ambiguity with system clarity, make responsibility safe, and remove the fear that initiative will be punished.

What leadership style actually works? He advocates clarity-first leadership: leaders must know why they are in Japan, be able to "cover" for head office rather than hiding behind it, and set simple, easy-to-grasp goals. The style is firm on direction, generous on trust, and disciplined on processes. Praise is handled carefully: group praise in public is often safer, with individual recognition delivered in ways that do not isolate the person.

How can technology help? Technology (including AI) is framed as a productivity multiplier when paired with training. Cahierre argues organisations underinvest in capability-building, then pay the price in wasted hours. AI can support decision intelligence, scenario work, and even "digital twins" of operations if used thoughtfully—but banning it is usually counterproductive, especially when younger workers adopt it as a learning partner rather than a shortcut.

Does language proficiency matter? Language and cultural literacy help, but Cahierre's sharper point is that leaders should not let "Japan is different" become a shield for poor execution. Credibility is built more through transparency, consistency, and the ability to explain goals and trade-offs than through performative cultural fluency.

What's the ultimate leadership lesson? He returns to trust as a strategic choice. Trust creates speed, openness, and a healthier workplace, even if it occasionally leads to disappointment. Distrust creates paralysis. In Japan especially, he argues that trust must be paired with a simple system: clear rules, clear processes, and a leader willing to be transparent about risks without being ruled by worry.

Author Credentials Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results. He has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have also been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban "Hito o Ugokasu" Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー).

In addition to his books, Greg publishes daily blogs on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, offering practical insights on leadership, communication, and Japanese business culture. He is also the host of six weekly podcasts, including The Leadership Japan Series, The Sales Japan Series, The Presentations Japan Series, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews. On YouTube, he produces three weekly shows — The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews — which have become leading resources for executives seeking strategies for success in Japan.

"Leadership is staying ahead of change without losing authenticity".

"Trust is the real currency of sales, teams, and Japan's business culture".

"Zeiss's foundation model is a rare advantage: patient capital reinvested into R&D".

"Japan is less "risk-averse" than "uncertainty-avoidant" when decisions lack clarity and consensus".

"Language is helpful for connection, but not the primary qualification for leading in Japan".

Brief Bio Vincent Mathieu is the CEO of Carl Zeiss Japan, leading a multi-division portfolio spanning semiconductors, medical devices, microscopy, industrial quality solutions, ophthalmic lenses, and imaging optics. Originally from the south of France near the Basque Country, he studied business in Toulouse, then spent several years travelling and working across Morocco, Denmark, Ireland, Chile, and South America—discovering along the way that his core strength was building trust in sales. He first came to Japan in 2001 to launch and grow a new division, learning the realities of hiring, selling, and leading without fluency in Japanese. After returning to Europe for global and country leadership roles—including navigating a corporate receivership in the UK—he was recruited to Zeiss and returned to Japan for a second stint. There, he led a turnaround in the vision care business by rebuilding the team, premium positioning, and distribution strategy, then expanded to broader regional responsibilities before taking the top role in Japan, leading a larger organisation through compliance, regulatory, structural change, and remuneration reform.

Carl Zeiss is often mistaken as "just cameras", yet the company's real gravity sits elsewhere: precision optics, industrial measurement, medical equipment, and the advanced semiconductor ecosystem that powers modern computing. Vincent Mathieu, CEO of Carl Zeiss Japan, uses that breadth as both a strategic advantage and a leadership test—because leading a portfolio business demands credibility across wildly different technical domains, from microscopy used by Nobel Prize-winning researchers to X-ray inspection systems supporting EV battery quality control. He also points to a structural difference that shapes Zeiss's long-term posture: the company operates as a foundation rather than a classic shareholder-led public entity, enabling sustained reinvestment into R&D and the patience required to develop complex innovations that may run at a loss for years before they become indispensable. In semiconductors, that mindset shows up in partnerships and breakthrough optics supporting lithography and EUV pathways tied to ever-smaller chips and AI-era demand.

Mathieu's personal story mirrors the adaptive leadership he advocates. He describes an early uncertainty about career direction, a formative period of travel and "odd jobs", and a gradual shift into commercial roles where trust, not extroversion, became his sales engine. His first Japan assignment was a tough entry: conservative hiring conditions, limited language ability, and the slow build of distributor confidence—where one relationship took years to convert. Returning later via Zeiss, he expected a smoother "global" environment and instead found a familiar friction point: leadership without a shared language, competing internal politics, and the need to earn followership through visible effort. His approach was practical and gemba-oriented—going into the field with salespeople, learning enough Japanese to observe and debrief well, and leading by example rather than relying on title or hierarchy.

In his current role, the leadership challenge is no longer a small turnaround team but a larger organisation navigating regulatory scrutiny, compliance expectations, talent gaps, and a shift from "box-moving" to workflow and digital solutions. He frames Japan's organisational reality as deeply sensitive to trust, transparency, and consistency—especially when change touches taboo areas such as pay. Whether the topic is performance-based remuneration, AI adoption, or organisation redesign, Mathieu returns to the same idea: leadership is change management plus authenticity. The most durable influence, in his view, comes from understanding who the leader is, then showing up coherently—because Japanese organisations may not offer immediate feedback, but they do evaluate whether words and actions match.

Q&A Summary What makes leadership in Japan unique? Leadership in Japan is uniquely shaped by trust, time, and social proof. Decision-making often relies on nemawashi (pre-alignment), the ringi-sho approval flow, and a preference for consensus that reduces future friction. Feedback can be indirect, and the "real signals" may appear later, after relationships deepen.

Why do global executives struggle? Global leaders often struggle when they arrive expecting predictable "rules" about Japan, or when they assume a corporate title will create followership. Without local credibility, language bridges, and contextual awareness of honne/tatemae dynamics, even good strategies can stall. Impatience can be read as shitsukoi (pushy), yet excessive patience can also lead to inertia—forcing leaders to balance consistency with restraint.

Is Japan truly risk-averse? Japan is frequently labelled risk-averse, but a more useful lens is uncertainty avoidance. When ambiguity is high, organisations increase process and consensus to control outcomes. Once clarity exists—shared numbers, shared logic, shared stakeholders—Japanese teams can execute decisively and at high quality, often outperforming more improvisational cultures.

What leadership style actually works? A field-based, trust-building style works: lead by example, show operational commitment, and invest in relationships. Mathieu's experience suggests credibility is built through visible contribution—being present with customers, coaching sales behaviours, and demonstrating consistency. Authenticity matters: employees may accept difficult change if the leader is transparent, coherent, and reliably delivers on commitments.

How can technology help? Technology helps when framed as decision intelligence rather than novelty. AI tools, automation, and even "digital twins" for process and manufacturing can reduce reporting burden, strengthen compliance, and redirect scarce talent towards analysis and customer value. The warning is "AI for AI's sake": capability must be learned, prompts must be mastered, and use cases must be chosen with discipline.

Does language proficiency matter? Language matters for connection and cultural nuance, but it should not be the primary criterion for leading in Japan. A leader can choose English for clarity at scale—especially when communicating strategy—while still building trust through effort, respect, and selective Japanese usage in day-to-day engagement.

What's the ultimate leadership lesson? The ultimate lesson is that leadership is managing change while staying true to oneself. As confidence grows, leaders feel less pressure to perform to other people's expectations and more capacity to act with authenticity. That inner coherence becomes a stabiliser for teams navigating uncertainty, consensus-building, and transformation.

Author Credentials Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results. He has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have also been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban "Hito o Ugokasu" Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー).

In addition to his books, Greg publishes daily blogs on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, offering practical insights on leadership, communication, and Japanese business culture. He is also the host of six weekly podcasts, including The Leadership Japan Series, The Sales Japan Series, The Presentations Japan Series, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews. On YouTube, he produces three weekly shows — The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews — which have become leading resources for executives seeking strategies for success in Japan.

"Come as you are works in Japan when leaders are also willing to read the air and meet people where they are".

"Japan isn't as risk-averse as people think; it is uncertainty avoidance and consensus norms like nemawashi and ringi-sho that slow decisions".

"In Japan, numbers are universal, but how people feel about those numbers is where real leadership begins".

"For foreign leaders, kindness, patience, and genuine curiosity are far more powerful than charisma or title".

"Women leaders who embrace their own style, instead of copying male role models, can quietly transform Japanese workplaces".

Joanne Lin is Senior Director, APAC, for Deckers Brands, the American company behind UGG, HOKA, and Teva. Born in Taiwan and raised in Canada, she later completed her MBA at Boston University and began her career in Boston, working in a trading company and then at Merrill Lynch Investment Company. In 2000, she moved to Japan for family reasons and has since built a 25-year leadership career in this complex market.

In Japan, Joanne first held senior finance roles, including Head of Finance for Reebok Japan and CFO for Aegis Media, where she worked on mergers and acquisitions. She joined Deckers over thirteen years ago as CFO for Japan and was later asked to step in as interim Country Manager for Deckers Japan. Today she is back in an APAC-wide role, responsible for finance and strategy across 15 markets, including Japan, China, South Korea, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand. Her remit covers subsidiaries and distributor markets alike, requiring constant adaptation across cultures.

Throughout her journey, Joanne has learned to reconcile a direct, North American style with Japan's more implicit, consensus-driven culture. Often mistaken for Japanese because of her appearance, she calls herself the "invisible gaijin", using that ambiguity to observe carefully, read body language, and bridge cultural expectations. Her leadership story is one of resilience, curiosity, and the quiet confidence to lead as herself in a country that often expects conformity.

Joanne Lin's leadership journey began far from Japan. Born in Taiwan and raised in Toronto, she grew up immersed in North American directness, meritocracy, and straight-talking feedback. After completing an MBA at Boston University, she started her career in Boston, first at a trading company and then at Merrill Lynch Investment Company, building a strong foundation in finance. Numbers, ratios, and cash flows were her native business language long before she ever heard the phrase kūki o yomu — "reading the air" — in Japan.

In 2000, she moved to Japan for family reasons, expecting to build a career but not realising how deeply the culture would challenge her assumptions about leadership. She entered the corporate world here without Japanese language skills and without local experience. Physically, many colleagues assumed she was Japanese, or at least of Japanese descent, and treated her accordingly. She jokes that she became an "invisible gaijin": expected to understand unspoken rules despite never having grown up with them.

Early on, she discovered that in Japan, silence often speaks louder than words. Concepts akin to nemawashi — the quiet groundwork of building consensus before meetings — and the unspoken pressure to align with the group meant that decisions rarely came from a single, charismatic leader. Instead, she had to watch faces, posture and micro-reactions around the table. While she came from an environment where people said "yes" or "no" clearly, in Japan phrases like "I'll think about it" could mean "no" 80% of the time. Learning to interpret these signals became as important as reading the P&L.

Her career advanced steadily through senior finance roles: Head of Finance for Reebok Japan, CFO for Aegis Media leading M&A, and later CFO for Deckers Japan. Over thirteen years at Deckers, she helped steer the growth of brands such as UGG and the fast-rising performance brand HOKA in one of the world's most competitive footwear markets. Eventually, she was asked to serve as interim Country Manager for Deckers Japan, an opportunity that tested her ability to go beyond numbers and lead entire functions including sales, marketing, HR and retail.

Joanne's leadership philosophy is grounded in being genuine and transparent. She believes in explaining the "why" behind decisions, giving context, and aligning people rather than simply seeking agreement. She spends time helping non-finance colleagues understand what gross margin, discounts and operating income mean in practical terms, translating finance into everyday language rather than using it as a gatekeeping tool.

Engagement surveys, where Japan often scores modestly compared with global benchmarks, have been a recurring theme in her work. Rather than blaming culture, she looks at how questions are worded, how norms shape responses, and then uses those insights to design practical remedies — from "lunch and learn" sessions to cross-functional gatherings and new-joiner lunches with senior leaders.

As a woman leader, Joanne has wrestled with impostor syndrome yet chosen to step forward anyway. She sees many high-potential women in Japan holding back, waiting to be "perfect" before raising their hand. Her message to them is clear: trust yourself, recognise your natural strengths in communication and empathy, and accept that no leader — male or female — is ever fully ready. In the end, her story is about blending global experience with local nuance, leading with kindness and clarity, and proving that one can honour Japanese culture while still bringing a distinct, authentic leadership style to the table.

Q&A Summary

What makes leadership in Japan unique?

For Joanne, leadership in Japan is defined by what is not said. The real meeting often happens before and after the official meeting, through nemawashi, where stakeholders quietly shape outcomes. In the room, kūki o yomu — reading the air — is critical: leaders must observe body language, side glances and subtle hesitations to interpret what people truly think. Formal tools like ringi-sho workflows, built on stamped approvals and consensus, reinforce a collective approach to decision-making. Japanese employees often assume the leader should already know their needs without them having to say it. That expectation of intuitive understanding, combined with a strong norm of harmony, makes empathetic listening and patience indispensable leadership skills.

Why do global executives struggle?

Global executives often arrive with a Western template: clear targets, rapid decisions, direct feedback. In Japan, that can clash with a culture that prizes stability, seniority and group consensus. Leaders may misinterpret indirect communication as indecisiveness or lack of ambition, when in fact people are carefully weighing the impact on the group. Engagement surveys then show Japan at the bottom of global rankings, and headquarters misreads this as disengagement, rather than a reflection of conservative scoring norms. Many foreign leaders also underestimate how much time must be invested in trust-building, one-on-one conversations, and slow-burn relationship work before people feel safe to share ideas or challenge the status quo.

Is Japan truly risk-averse?

Joanne sees Japan as more uncertainty-avoidant than risk-averse in the pure financial sense. As a finance professional, she knows that commercial risk can be quantified — through scenarios, ratios and forecasts. But in Japan, the social and reputational risks loom equally large: who will be blamed if this fails, what will it do to group harmony, how will customers react? These uncertainty factors slow decisions more than the numbers themselves. Leaders who introduce tools like decision intelligence platforms, scenario simulation or even digital twins of supply chains can help Japanese teams see risk in a structured way, reducing the emotional fear around uncertainty and making experimentation feel safer.

What leadership style actually works?

The style that works for Joanne is grounded in transparency, modesty and consistency. She leads by example, explaining not only what must be done, but why, and what it means for individuals and teams. She tries to give her people "airtime", resisting the urge — common to many finance leaders — to jump straight to the solution. In practice, that means listening to ideas without immediate judgement, thanking people publicly for their input, and celebrating small wins as much as big milestones. She maintains high standards but increasingly recognises that not everyone should be held to the same work rhythm she sets for herself. Alignment, not forced agreement, is the goal: people may disagree but still commit to the path once they feel heard.

How can technology help?

Technology, in Joanne's world, is not just about efficiency; it is a bridge between data and human behaviour. Advanced analytics, dashboards and decision-support tools can make trade-offs between margin, volume and investment more tangible for non-finance teams. AI-driven text analysis of engagement comments can surface themes that traditional surveys miss, helping leaders understand sentiment behind Japan's modest scoring patterns. Scenario modelling and digital twins of operations can turn abstract risks into concrete options, making it easier for consensus-driven teams to move forward. At its best, technology supports nemawashi by giving everyone a shared, data-informed picture, rather than replacing dialogue.

Does language proficiency matter?

Joanne arrived in Japan with no Japanese language ability and was forced to become an intense observer of body language and context. That experience convinced her that leadership is possible without fluency — but far more sustainable with it. Learning Japanese shows respect, reduces distance, and makes informal conversations and humour possible. Even basic proficiency helps leaders understand nuance in ringi documents, hallway chats, and customer feedback. She encourages foreign leaders to invest in language learning not as a checkbox, but as a signal of commitment to the market and to their teams.

What's the ultimate leadership lesson?

Her core lesson is simple yet demanding: be kind, be open, and be yourself. Leaders should stop expecting perfection from themselves and from others, especially in a country where external shocks like currency swings, tariffs and pandemics can derail even the best-laid plans. Instead, they should focus on doing their best, communicating clearly, and treating people with respect. For women leaders especially, Joanne's message is to step forward even when self-doubt whispers otherwise — to recognise that their strengths in empathy, communication and cultural sensitivity are not "soft" add-ons but central to effective leadership in Japan. In the long run, success here is less about heroics and more about steady, human-centred leadership that people genuinely want to follow.

Timecoded Summary

[00:00] The conversation opens with an introduction to Deckers Brands, the American company headquartered in Santa Barbara and best known in Japan for UGG, HOKA and Teva. Joanne explains that Deckers historically functions as a holding-style company, acquiring and growing footwear brands, and that Japan is a key market where three major brands are active. She outlines her current role as Senior Director, APAC, overseeing finance and strategy across 15 countries, including both subsidiaries and distributor markets.

[05:20] Joanne traces her career arc: Taiwanese by birth, raised in Canada, MBA from Boston University, then finance roles in Boston with a trading company and Merrill Lynch Investment Company. In 2000 she relocates to Japan for family reasons, later becoming Head of Finance for Reebok Japan and CFO for Aegis Media, working on M&A. She joins Deckers over thirteen years ago as CFO for Japan and eventually steps into an interim Country Manager role, before returning to a wider APAC mandate based in Japan.

[12:45] The discussion shifts to cultural adjustment. Because she "looks Japanese", colleagues initially assume she understands Japanese norms. She describes becoming an "invisible gaijin", held to local expectations without having grown up here. She learns to read the air, focusing on facial expressions, body language and context. Phrases like "I'll consider it" often conceal a "no", and she gradually becomes adept at interpreting such indirect communication. Her direct North American instincts must be tempered by Japanese expectations for restraint and harmony.

[19:30] Finance and human reactions to numbers come into focus. Joanne notes that while sales, gross margin and SG&A appear objective, different functions interpret them in varied ways: finance may celebrate high margins while sales may worry they are under-investing. She stresses the importance of explaining financial concepts in simple terms, almost as if speaking to a 10-year-old, so that everyone can understand consequences. Her temporary shift from CFO to GM broadens her empathy for non-finance views and deepens her appreciation for cross-functional tension.

[26:10] Attention turns to team engagement and communication. Japan's engagement survey scores routinely trail global averages, a pattern she attributes partly to cultural modesty and translation issues. Instead of accepting low scores as fate, she focuses on post-survey action: leaders are asked to talk openly with teams, understand expectations, and co-create remedies. Concrete initiatives such as "lunch and learn" sessions and new-joiner lunches with directors help break silos, humanise leadership and create informal nemawashi-like spaces where people can ask questions and share concerns.

[33:40] Joanne discusses culture-building under the umbrella of Deckers' "Come as you are" value. She supports self-expression — even store staff in gender-fluid fashion — as long as it's tasteful and customer-appropriate. Her own leadership style is to be genuine, transparent and open about vulnerabilities. She balances the efficiency of top-down directives with the long-term benefits of participation: while consensus-building and alignment take time, they reduce turnover, re-training costs and disengagement.

[40:15] Gender and leadership come into sharper focus. Joanne recounts her own bouts of impostor syndrome and the temptation, earlier in her career, to doubt her readiness for bigger roles. She notes that many women hesitate to raise their hands until they feel almost 100% qualified, while men may step up with far less. She encourages aspiring women leaders to recognise their strengths in empathy and nuanced communication, to "give it a try" even when not fully confident, and to view setbacks as learning rather than final verdicts.

[47:30] The interview closes with advice for foreign leaders coming to Japan. Joanne emphasises being open, respectful and kind — to oneself and to others. She urges leaders to accept that Japan's deep-rooted culture will not change in a short posting, and that success depends on adapting rather than trying to remodel the country. Learning Japanese, even imperfectly, is both a sign of respect and a practical tool for building trust. Ultimately, she argues, effective leadership in Japan is about balancing data and humanity, global standards and local nuance, ambition and empathy.

Author Credentials

Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results. He has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have also been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban "Hito o Ugokasu" Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー). In addition to his books, Greg publishes daily blogs on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, offering practical insights on leadership, communication, and Japanese business culture. He is also the host of six weekly podcasts, including The Leadership Japan Series, The Sales Japan Series, The Presentations Japan Series, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews. On YouTube, he produces three weekly shows — The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews — which have become leading resources for executives seeking strategies for success in Japan.

Deliver the win, then ring the bell.

Make small mistakes fast; make big learnings faster.

Think global, act local — but don't go native.

Do the nemawashi before the meeting, not during it.

Your salary is earned in the stores: go to the gemba.

A 28-year Domino's veteran, Martin Steenks began at 16 as a delivery expert in the Netherlands. He rose to store manager, multi-unit supervisor, then franchisee, building his operation to eight stores by 2019. After selling his stores, he became Head of Operations for Domino's Netherlands, then CEO of Domino's Taiwan in 2021, and subsequently CEO of Domino's Japan. Previously he was Chief Orchestrator in Japan, focusing on operational excellence, culture, and scalable execution in one of Domino's most exacting service markets. He is known for hands-on store work, cross-training, "Friday F-Up" learning rituals, the Grow & Prosper bell for micro-wins, and quarterly "Go Gemba" days that connect HQ functions with frontline realities.

Martin Steenks' leadership arc runs from a three-minute job interview at 16 to orchestrating Domino's Japan — one of the brand's most demanding markets for service quality. The connective tissue is execution discipline: he has run stores, supervised regions, built and exited an eight-store franchise, owned national operations, and led two country P&Ls. That breadth gives him pragmatic empathy for franchisees and HQ alike, which he leverages to align incentives, simplify operations, and insist that every back-office salary is ultimately "earned in the stores."

Japan sharpened his leadership. Coming from low-context, fast-moving Dutch and Australian business styles into high-context Japan, he learned that meetings signalling agreement can still stall without prior nemawashi — the groundwork with middle management and other stakeholders. He now invests in pre-alignment, translating intent into culturally legible action: fewer big-room debates, more quiet lobbying, more ringi-sho style consensus building for irreversible decisions, and a clear bias to test-and-learn for reversible ones. Rather than trying to "change the culture," he adjusted himself — becoming more patient while preserving speed by separating decision types and sequencing alignment before action.

His operating system is human and tangible. He set a weekly rhythm of learning with a "Friday F-Up" session, where leaders share mistakes and what was learned — a radical move in a high uncertainty-avoidance culture. He celebrates micro-wins with the Grow & Prosper bell to make progress visible, sustaining morale during long transformations. He bridged HQ–store gaps with Go Gemba: each quarter, every function works a store shift; IT discovers why a workflow fails at the point of sale, marketing sees campaign friction at Friday night peak, finance hears cost-to-serve realities. He personally worked in stores four to five days a month, especially during crunch periods like Christmas, leading by example and rebuilding trust through competence.

Marketing localisation is equally pragmatic. Deep discounting can signal poor quality to Japanese consumers; "customer appreciation weeks" preserve value perception while rewarding loyalty. Community building is pushed to the store level — managers engage local clubs and schools to turn footfall into fandom. Cross-training makes delivery experts confident product explainers at the door, restoring a human touch in a world where >90% of orders arrive online.

Ultimately, Steenks' playbook blended cultural fluency with decision intelligence. He aligned stakeholders through nemawashi, codified learning rituals, chose language and campaigns that respected local signals, and keeps strategy tethered to the edge where pizzas are made, boxed, and delivered hot. The title "Chief Orchestrator" wasn't just whimsy; in a business of many specialists, he conducted tempo, harmony, and timing — the difference between noise and music.

What makes leadership in Japan unique? Japan's high service standards and high-context communication demand leaders who are both exacting and empathetic. Success depends on pre-work: nemawashi with middle managers, thoughtful ringi-sho style consensus for high-impact choices, and visible demonstrations of respect for the frontline. Uniforms (like Domino's iconic race jacket for store managers) and rituals create shared identity that motivates in a group-oriented culture.

Why do global executives struggle? Low-context leaders often misread meeting "yeses" as commitment. Without groundwork, nothing moves. Impatience backfires in high uncertainty-avoidance environments; public criticism shuts people down. Leaders must separate reversible from irreversible decisions, secure alignment offline, and then move decisively. They should also avoid copy-pasting global marketing: in Japan, steep discounts can be read as "lower quality," eroding trust.

Is Japan truly risk-averse? Japan is less risk-loving than many markets, but teams will take smart risks when safety and learning are explicit. Stanks normalises small, fast experiments, celebrates micro-wins, and protects people when bets misfire. This reframes risk as controlled uncertainty with upside — a shift from avoidance to improvement.

What leadership style actually works? Lead from the front and the shop floor. Work stores every month. Tie HQ metrics to store impact. Use rituals — Friday F-Up, the Grow & Prosper bell — to institutionalise learning and momentum. Celebrate teams more than individuals, and praise privately when cultural norms warrant it. Think global, act local, but don't "go native": retain an outsider's clarity about pace and standards.

How can technology help? Digital tools amplify decision intelligence when paired with gemba reality. Store-level dashboards, route optimisation, and digital twins of peak-hour operations can test scenarios before rollouts; telemetry from ovens, makelines, and delivery routes can reveal bottlenecks that nemawashi then resolves across functions. Tech should reduce operational complexity, not add it.

Does language proficiency matter? Fluency helps, but intent matters more. Demonstrating effort — basic greetings, store-floor Japanese, and culturally aware email etiquette — earns trust. Tools that translate bidirectionally unlock participation, but leaders still need to read context and invest time with the middle layer.

What's the ultimate leadership lesson? Do the cultural homework, orchestrate alignment before action, and keep your hands in the dough — literally. When people see you respect their craft, protect their learning, and tie strategy to execution, they'll go all-in.

Timecoded Summary [00:00] Origin story: hired at 16 as a delivery expert in the Netherlands; stayed through school; first — and only — job interview; early leadership as store manager, then multi-unit supervisor. [05:20] Entrepreneurship chapter: buys a struggling store; builds to eight locations with his wife's support; sells in 2019 to become Head of Operations for the Netherlands, trading entrepreneurial freedom for strategic impact. [12:45] Asia leadership: becomes CEO Taiwan in 2021, then moves to Japan; discovers that despite common Domino's DNA, markets differ; Japan's service bar is the highest. [18:10] Cultural recalibration: early meetings show apparent agreement but slow follow-through; learns nemawashi and middle-layer alignment; patience becomes a leadership muscle; adopts "Chief Orchestrator" title to reflect cross-functional reality. [24:00] Store-first operating system: cross-training (makeline ↔ delivery ↔ service); >90% of orders online makes the delivery interaction critical; community outreach by store managers; hands-on leadership with 4–5 store days per month and peak-period shifts. [31:30] Learning rituals: Friday F-Up meeting reframes failure as fuel; Grow & Prosper bell celebrates micro-wins to sustain momentum; public recognition calibrated to cultural comfort; Domino's manager jacket signals identity and pride in Japan. [38:05] Marketing localisation: avoid pure discounting (quality signal risk); position as "customer appreciation"; test premium, limited campaigns; keep operations simple for peak. [43:20] Bridging HQ and field: quarterly Go Gemba embeds IT/Finance/HR/Marketing in stores; internal surveys (anonymous) surface issues; visible follow-through flips scepticism to trust. [49:40] Leadership philosophy: lead by example, protect experimenters, separate reversible vs irreversible decisions, and use decision intelligence (telemetry, digital twins) to derisk change while moving faster.

Author Credentials Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results. He has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have also been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban "Hito o Ugokasu" Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー). In addition to his books, Greg publishes daily blogs on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, offering practical insights on leadership, communication, and Japanese business culture. He is also the host of six weekly podcasts, including The Leadership Japan Series, The Sales Japan Series, The Presentations Japan Series, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews. On YouTube, he produces three weekly shows — The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews — which have become leading resources for executives seeking strategies for success in Japan.

"Care and respect aren't slogans; they're operating principles that shape decisions and client experiences". "Lead by approachability, using nemawashi-style one-to-ones to draw out quieter voices and better ideas". "Calm, clarity, and consistency beat volume; emotion never gets to outrank the message". "Consensus isn't passivity—done well, it's disciplined alignment that accelerates execution". "Confidence grows by doubling down on strengths, seeking honest feedback, and empowering the team".

Akiko Yamamoto is the President of Van Cleef & Arpels Japan, leading the French maison's jewellery and watch business in a market it has served for over fifty years. She began her career at L'Oréal Japan, spending twelve years in marketing across brands including Kérastase, Helena Rubinstein, and Kiehl's, ultimately managing multi-brand teams. Educated in Japan with formative childhood years in the United States, she later completed a master's degree at the University of Edinburgh. Having led primarily in Japan, she now manages a multicultural team, drawing on international exposure, bilingual communication, and deep local insight to harmonise global brand culture with Japanese expectations.

Akiko Yamamoto's leadership story is anchored in a simple premise: people follow leaders they can trust. That trust, she says, is earned through care, respect, and steady examples—not declarations. After a foundational run at L'Oréal Japan, where she learned the rigour of brand building and the mechanics of marketing leadership, Yamamoto stepped into the jewellery and watch world at Van Cleef & Arpels. There, she refined an approach that blends global standards with local nuance, ensuring the maison's culture of care resonates in Japan's relationship-driven marketplace.

Her leadership style is deliberately approachable. Rather than "planting the flag" at the summit and expecting others to follow, she prefers to climb together, side-by-side. In practice, that means creating psychological safety, inviting dissent early, and spending time—especially one-to-one—to surface ideas that might be lost in large-group dynamics. She embraces nemawashi to build alignment before meetings, recognising that consensus in Japan is less about avoiding risk and more about creating durable commitment.

Yamamoto's calm is a strategic asset. She is explicit that emotion can crowd out meaning; when leaders perform anger, the message gets lost in the display. In a culture where visible temper can be read as immaturity, she chooses composure so that the content of decisions remains audible. When missteps happen—as they do—she follows up, explains context, and converts heat into learning. The aim is not perfection but progress with intact relationships.

For global leaders arriving in Japan under pressure to "turn things around," she recommends two immediate moves: become intensely reachable and cultivate a few candid truth-tellers who will share the real story, not just what headquarters wants to hear. Language helps, but fluency isn't the barrier; respect is. A handful of sincere Japanese phrases, consistent aisatsu, and an evident willingness to listen can narrow social distance faster than chasing perfect grammar.

On advancing women, Yamamoto rejects tokenism yet underscores representation's practical value. Visible female leadership signals possibility; it tells rising talent that advancement is earned and achievable. Her own leap to the presidency required an external nudge, plus a disciplined shift of attention from self-doubt to strengths—past wins, trusted relationships, and demonstrated team outcomes. That reframing, combined with empowerment of capable colleagues, made the role feel both larger and more shared.

Ultimately, Yamamoto treats "client experience first, results follow" as an operating model, not a motto. Decision intelligence—clear context, decisive action, and empathetic execution—converts consensus into speed. In her hands, culture is not a constraint; it's compounding capital.

What makes leadership in Japan unique?

Japan prizes harmony, preparation, and earned consensus. Leaders succeed by combining decisiveness with empathy, using nemawashi to socialise ideas before meetings and ringi-sho-style documentation to clarify ownership and next steps. Calm conduct signals maturity; approachability creates safety for frank input.

Why do global executives struggle?

Many arrive with urgency but little social traction. Defaulting to big-room debates and top-down directives can silence contributors and slow execution. The fix is proximity: sustained one-to-ones, visible aisatsu, and a small circle of candid advisors who translate context and sentiment. Uncertainty avoidance exists—but it's often rational; people hesitate when they haven't been invited into the reasoning.

Is Japan truly risk-averse?

It's less "risk-averse" and more "uncertainty-averse." When leaders reduce ambiguity—through pre-alignment, clear criteria, and explicit trade-offs—teams move quickly. Consensus done well accelerates delivery because dissent was handled upstream, not deferred to derail execution downstream.

What leadership style actually works?

Approachable, steady, and standards-driven. Yamamoto models care and respect, sets crisp direction, and empowers execution. She avoids theatrical emotion, follows up after tense moments, and insists that client experience lead metrics. Clarity + composure + collaboration beats charisma.

How can technology help?

Technology should reduce uncertainty and amplify learning: shared dashboards that make ringi-sho approvals transparent, lightweight digital twins of client journeys to test service changes safely, and collaboration tools that capture one-to-one insights before group forums. The goal is not more noise but better signal for faster, aligned decisions.

Does language proficiency matter?

Fluency helps but isn't decisive. Consistent courtesy, listening, and reliability shrink the distance faster than perfect grammar. A capable interpreter plus leaders who personally engage—in simple Japanese where possible—outperform hands-off translation chains.

What's the ultimate leadership lesson?

Lead with care, earn trust through example, and turn consensus into speed by front-loading listening and clarity. Focus on strengths, empower capable people, and keep emotion from overwhelming the message. Do this, and results follow.

Timecoded Summary

[00:00] Background and formation: Early years in the United States, schooling in Japan, master's at the University of Edinburgh. Marketing foundations at L'Oréal Japan across Kérastase, Helena Rubinstein, and Kiehl's; progression from individual contributor to team leadership.

[05:20] Transition to Van Cleef & Arpels: Emphasis on a maison culture of care and respect that maps naturally to Japanese expectations; client experience as the primary driver with sales as consequence. Expanding to lead multicultural teams.

[12:45] Approachability and trust: Building durable followership by remaining accessible after promotion; maintaining continuity of relationships; modelling aisatsu and everyday courtesies to embed culture. Using one-to-ones to surface ideas that large meetings suppress.

[18:30] Calm over drama: The communication cost of anger; how emotion eclipses meaning. Post-incident follow-ups to turn flashes of heat into alignment and learning. Composure as credibility in a Japanese context.

[24:10] Working the consensus: Nemawashi to prepare decisions; ringi-sho-style clarity to memorialise them. Consensus reframed as disciplined alignment that speeds execution once decisions drop.

[29:40] Global leaders in Japan: Close the distance quickly—be reachable, secure truth-tellers, and learn enough Japanese for sincere aisatsu. Don't over-index on perfect fluency; prioritise respect, listening, and visible learning.

[34:15] Women in leadership: Representation without tokenism; the confidence gap; how sponsorship and a focus on strengths help leaders step up. Empowerment as the multiplier—no president wins alone.

[39:00] Closing lesson: Decision intelligence = context + clarity + care. Reduce uncertainty, empower teams, and let client experience steer priorities; results compound from there.

Author Credentials

Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results. He has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have also been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban "Hito o Ugokasu" Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー).

In addition to his books, Greg publishes daily blogs on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, offering practical insights on leadership, communication, and Japanese business culture. He is also the host of six weekly podcasts, including The Leadership Japan Series, The Sales Japan Series, The Presentations Japan Series, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews. On YouTube, he produces three weekly shows — The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews — which have become leading resources for executives seeking strategies for success in Japan.

"Get your hands dirty: credibility in Japan is built in the field, not the boardroom". "Bridges beat barriers: headquarters alignment turns local problems into solvable projects". "Make people proud: structured "poster sessions" spark ownership, ideas and nemawashi". "Decisions at the edge: push market choices to those closest to customers, then coach". "Trust travels: clear logic, calm feedback, and consistency convert caution into commitment".

Belgian-born power-electronics engineer turned global executive, Erwin Yseijin leads Semikron Danfoss in Japan with more than three decades across Japan, Germany, and Taiwan. Beginning as a hardware engineer in switch-mode power supplies and motor drives, he joined a Japanese semiconductor firm in Munich in 1989 and relocated to Japan in 1992, learning operations, production planning, quotations, and logistics from the inside. Subsequent leadership roles at Infineon included Japan and a five-year post-merger integration in Taiwan overseeing ~50 R&D engineers and close OEM relationships across PCs, routers, and wireless. After a gallium-nitride startup stint in Dresden, he joined Semikron, later Semikron Danfoss, leading APAC reorganisation, factory consolidation, and a direct-plus-distribution sales model, before becoming Japan President. Fluent in the technical, commercial, and cultural languages of the region, he specialises in aligning headquarters and local teams, and in building pragmatic, customer-led organisations in Japan.

Erwin Yasvin exemplifies the hands-on leader who earns trust in Japan by showing up where problems live. His credo—"get your hands dirty"—is not metaphorical. When customers escalate issues, he goes with sales to uncover root causes and secure head-office commitments on the spot. That credibility shortens cycles in a market where 100% quality is table stakes and where the service "extra mile" extends even a decade beyond a nominal warranty. A European by training and temperament, he learned Japanese corporate practice from the inside in the early 1990s, when multilayered hierarchies still defined decision flow. Rather than railing against the pyramid, he mined its upside: leaders who rise through layers bring practical judgement and empathy for shop-floor realities. Yet he also streamlined speed by bridging headquarters and Japan—translating commercial logic, technical constraints, and customer detail into decisions the field can act on. He builds voice and pride through "poster sessions": monthly forums where team members present customers, markets, wins, and bottlenecks to peers. That design triggers nemawashi—quiet pre-alignment—and fosters cross-functional curiosity. By picking one or two ideas from each session and ensuring execution, he turns speaking up into visible impact. Decision rights sit with those closest to the market. Each salesperson owns one or two verticals—motor drives, wind, solar, energy storage, UPS—with accountability for target customers, competitive intel, product needs, and pricing. Headquarters supports with budgets for samples and after-warranty analysis, signalling trust with money. Where ambiguity or urgency is high—such as the 2022 exchange-rate shock—he decomposes the "working package" into digestible actions, avoiding paralysis. Mistakes are coached privately and framed as leadership accountability: if an error occurred, expectations weren't clear enough. Monthly one-on-ones, written agendas, and evidence-led conversations establish a durable logic chain that travels across language boundaries. Culture-wise, he neither copies a Japanese firm nor imposes a foreign pace. Instead, he articulates values—efficient workdays, transparent processes, skill development—while adapting compensation to local norms through a hybrid bonus model that blends guaranteed and performance-tied elements. Asked how outsiders should lead in Japan, Yasvin stresses credibility, example, and constancy: be present in the hard moments, don't over-promise, and speak in clear, digestible steps. In a country where consensus and detail orientation are prized, leaders win by aligning logic with respect—turning caution into momentum without sacrificing quality.

Q&A Summary

What makes leadership in Japan unique? Japan blends layered hierarchies with high expectations for managers to understand field-level problems. Leaders gain status less by slogan and more by track record. Consensus is built through nemawashi and formalised via ringi-sho, with detail-rich documentation that honours uncertainty avoidance while preserving quality. The upside of layers is decision empathy; the downside can be speed—unless leaders bridge across functions and headquarters.

Why do global executives struggle? Many push headquarters logic without translating it into local realities: customer expectations of zero defects; service beyond written warranty; and process fidelity (e.g., traceability standards) that must integrate into Japanese customers' own systems. Leaders also misread how "pride" shows up—quietly, not publicly—and miss mechanisms (like poster sessions) that let people contribute without confrontation.

Is Japan truly risk-averse? Not exactly; it's uncertainty-averse. When leaders clarify the "box" and broaden it gradually, teams will step forward. Decomposing problems (e.g., FX pass-through frameworks) turns ambiguity into executable steps. Decision intelligence—structured data, clear thresholds, defined triggers—reduces uncertainty and enables action without violating quality norms.

What leadership style actually works? Lead by example; be visibly present at customer flashpoints. Push decisions to the edge (market owners), back them with budgets, and coach in private. Use structured forums to surface ideas, then implement a few to prove that speaking up matters. Keep corporate values intact (efficient workdays, skill building) while tuning incentives to local practice.

How can technology help? Operational dashboards that tie customer issues to root-cause analytics, plus digital twins of power-module reliability and logistics flows, elevate conversations from anecdote to evidence. Traceability systems aligned to global standards reduce manual re-entry and delays, while decision thresholds (e.g., FX bands) automate price updates and ensure fair, consistent application.

Does language proficiency matter? Helpful, not decisive. Clear logic, written agendas, data, and diagrams travel farther than perfect grammar. Leaders who frame problems visually, confirm next actions, and close the loop consistently can overcome linguistic gaps, while continuing to study Japanese accelerates trust and nuance.

What's the ultimate leadership lesson? Credibility compounds. Show up in the hard moments, keep promises small and solid, convert ideas into implementation, and protect quality while increasing speed through better alignment. Over time, trust becomes a structural advantage with customers and within the team.

About the Author

Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results.

He has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have also been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban "Hito o Ugokasu" Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー).

In addition to his books, Greg publishes daily blogs on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, offering practical insights on leadership, communication, and Japanese business culture. He is also the host of six weekly podcasts, including The Leadership Japan Series, The Sales Japan Series, The Presentations Japan Series, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews. On YouTube, he produces three weekly shows — The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews — which have become leading resources for executives seeking strategies for success in Japan.

"Leading is easy. Getting people to follow is the hard part". "Listen first; don't pre-decide the outcome". "Japan is a Swiss watch—change one gear and the whole movement shifts". "Do nemawashi before decisions; ringi-sho is the runway, not red tape". "Bring people back to Japan—networks mature with the country".

Chris LaFleur is Senior Director at McLarty Associates, the Washington, D.C. based strategic advisory firm. A career U.S. Foreign Service Officer, he served multiple tours in Japan—including Sapporo, Yokohama language training, and Tokyo in political and politico-military roles—worked on the staff of Secretary of State Al Haig, at the U.S. Mission to the UN, and at the U.S. Embassy in Paris focusing on Asia during the Soviet war in Afghanistan. He later became Deputy Director of the American Institute in Taiwan, returned to Tokyo as Deputy Chief of Mission under Ambassador Tom Foley, and served in Washington as the No. 2 in the Bureau of East Asian Affairs as well as a negotiator on alliance modernisation with Japan and South Korea. He was U.S. Ambassador to Malaysia in the Iraq War era, then Vice Chairman of JPMorgan Japan, and repeatedly served as President and Chairman at the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan (ACCJ). Today, he advises global firms on policy, regulatory, and political risk across Japan and the region.

Chris LaFleur's leadership journey tracks the evolution of U.S.–Japan relations and the realities of making decisions inside complex systems. Beginning as a vice consul in Sapporo, he learned that listening precedes leading in Japan. Hokkaidō's standard Japanese, the step-by-step pace of regional life, and daily immersion built linguistic and cultural pattern recognition. That foundation scaled when he rotated through Yokohama language training and the Tokyo Embassy, where politico-military work brought alliance management into focus: with bases, communities, and bilateral policy layered together, decisions were not events but processes requiring consensus and continuity.

Shifting to Washington to staff Secretary Al Haig offered a crash course in how policy gets made, while the UN posting and a Paris portfolio on Asia sharpened his systems view across capitals. Taiwan unlocked dormant Chinese language skills and reminded him that capability compounds with context. Returning to Tokyo as Deputy Chief of Mission under Ambassador Tom Foley, he saw that organisational power is distributed: success hinged on local staff with deep networks, continuity across rotating Americans, and steady, trust-building communication with home offices that wanted speed while Japan required sequence.

As Ambassador to Malaysia during the second Iraq War, LaFleur had to explain and persuade amid public scepticism—learning again that legitimacy is earned by hearing concerns first. Transitioning to the private sector as Vice Chairman at JPMorgan Japan validated a surprising constant: large companies decide like large governments. He expected neat, calculated choices; he found coalitions, trade-offs, and path dependence. The lesson for leaders: map stakeholders, solicit ideas early, and let nemawashi do its work before the ringi-sho formalises momentum.

In consulting today, he helps global executives reframe "risk" in Japan as uncertainty to be worked through with decision intelligence—aligning goals, mapping interdependencies, and testing scenarios before locking in. Japan, he says, is a Swiss watch: its precision is an asset, but every gear is linked. Leaders succeed by respecting that system—sequencing conversations, checking downstream effects, and ensuring consensus is genuine, not assumed. Technology can accelerate this work—digital twins for processes, collaborative platforms for traceable sign-offs—but tools must fit culture. Above all, bring people back to Japan; networks—and trust—rise with time.

What makes leadership in Japan unique? Japan's operating model is sequence over speed. Nemawashi aligns stakeholders in advance; the ringi-sho codifies consensus; and downstream interlocks across compliance, customers, and partners mean details matter before decisions. Leaders must treat decisions as journeys, not moments, and recognise local staff as the critical path to progress.

Why do global executives struggle? Headquarters often assumes top-down approvals equal action. In Japan, meetings with "the top" rarely move the machine unless the working levels are engaged. Foreign leaders also underestimate uncertainty avoidance embedded in tightly coupled processes—the "Swiss watch" effect—so a small tweak can ripple across functions and clients.

Is Japan truly risk-averse? It is more accuracy-seeking than risk-averse. The system prizes predictability because errors propagate widely. What looks like reluctance is often prudent scenario-testing. Reframe risk as uncertainty management: clarify assumptions, run premortems, and build reversible steps that preserve harmony while enabling change.

What leadership style actually works? Listening first. LaFleur emphasises not pre-deciding outcomes and actively soliciting ideas from Japanese colleagues. Credibility grows when leaders translate Japan's logic to HQ (and vice versa), sequence approvals, and sponsor inclusive consensus. Authority helps; empathy and patience deliver.

How can technology help? Use decision intelligence to visualise interdependencies and simulate impacts. Digital twins of processes reveal where approvals, compliance, and client commitments intersect. Collaborative tools can make nemawashi transparent, while structured knowledge bases preserve networks as staff rotate. Tech should speed alignment, not bulldoze culture.

Does language proficiency matter? Fluency amplifies effectiveness but isn't binary. Even partial competence builds sensitivity to context, omissions, and implied meaning. Leaders who grasp how Japanese sentences carry subject and object through context better "hear" what a yes might actually mean in terms of readiness.

What's the ultimate leadership lesson? Inspire people to move together. Map the system, honour the culture, and turn listening into aligned action. Keep bringing talent back to Japan so relationships mature; in a consensus economy, trust is compounding capital.

Author Credentials Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results.

He has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have also been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban "Hito o Ugokasu" Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー).

In addition to his books, Greg publishes daily blogs on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, offering practical insights on leadership, communication, and Japanese business culture. He is also the host of six weekly podcasts, including The Leadership Japan Series, The Sales Japan Series, The Presentations Japan Series, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews. On YouTube, he produces three weekly shows — The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews — which have become leading resources for executives seeking strategies for success in Japan.