You went into 2025 excited about AI. You ended it exhausted. You weren't alone. And this conversation knows exactly what that cost you.

There's a moment in this episode where everything clicks. It happens when Brittany and Adal land on the question most executives are quietly carrying: if everyone now has access to the same AI tools, who am I going to be? That question is the heartbeat of this entire conversation. And it might be the most important leadership question of 2026.

The Future Signals 2026 report isn't a list of predictions. It's a map built on patents, VC reports, financial data, and a two-layer signal system that separates what is happening now from where things are cooking. Last year's signals? 85% became reality. So when the signals show up in your industry, you'll already know what they mean.

THE FIVE SIGNALS

Signal 01 — The agent that handles it
AI isn't a new hire. It's infrastructure, like electricity. The question isn't who to replace. It's how to wield it.

Signal 02 — A fragmented world
Borders, regulations, and restrictions are multiplying. The companies that prepared for flexibility won't just survive. They'll sprint.

Signal 03 — Programmable biology
AI isn't just accelerating research. It's redesigning from the atomic level up. Every industry that touches living things is affected.

Signal 04 — AI beyond the screen
AI is developing a physical language. It's not smarter robots. It's AI that can understand and navigate the world around you.

Signal 05 — The human premium
When everything can be built, what you choose to build and why becomes the ultimate differentiator. Human intent is the scarce resource.

THE NUMBER THAT WILL STAY WITH YOU
88% of companies are just accelerating old workflows with AI.
6% are fundamentally redesigning how they work and who they are.

The conversation gets honest about something you've probably seen on LinkedIn. Influencers claiming their 37 agents made them millionaires overnight while you were just having breakfast. It's almost funny. Until you realize how much that noise is quietly eroding your confidence.

The point was never the number of agents. It's the right technology, in the right hands, pointed at something that actually matters.

"When execution becomes abundant, intent becomes scarce."

This episode ends with a question worth sitting with: where are you on the maturity map? Just starting? Building? Scaling? The signals meet you there, designed for the stage you're actually in. Not the stage someone's performing on LinkedIn.


GO DEEPER
→ Download the Future Signals 2026 report: https://designthinkingjapan.com/thinking
→ Explore the open methodology on GitHub : https://github.com/DesignThinkingJapan/future-signals-2026-report
→ AI Leadership Academy, executive fluency for real decisions: https://designthinkingjapan.com/academy

AI is a marathon but it can feel like a sprint. That's why it's important to go with intent.

Dr. Christopher Lamont is Professor of International Relations at Tokyo International University and Deputy Head of Program for AI and Global Governance at the Global Governance Institute in Brussels. His research career has been built around transitional justice, international criminal law, and how societies rebuild after institutional collapse. In this conversation, Brittany brings that experience to the AI age.

This is a conversation about trust. What destroys it, how societies rebuild it, and why it may be the most consequential word in the AI era that nobody is taking seriously enough.

IN THIS CONVERSATION

→ Whether societal change really has a before and after, and what that means for how we approach AI transformation

→ What digital sovereignty actually means in 2026, and why it is often being pursued with the wrong tools

→ Why which foundation model your company adopts is a values decision

→ What thriving post-crisis societies have in common, and how that applies to building AI-ready organisations

→ The accountability question that policymakers and business leaders are not asking

FIND US

→ Instagram: @businesskaraokepodcast

Human Centered AI | Ep. 010 | Why Netflix is paying $83 billion for the stories we watched before school.

Netflix has led AI in entertainment for over a decade. Personalized thumbnails, recommendation engines, rapid production. They're exceptional at it.

So why spend $83 billion on Warner Brothers Discovery?

Because they noticed something interesting about their own catalog.

Netflix makes series you watch once. Warner Brothers made the ones you watch with your kids because your parents watched them with you.

Emotional compound interest, built over 80 years. That's not a technology problem. It's a time problem. And Netflix decided it was easier to buy than to wait.

This got us thinking about what it means for everyone else.

Warner Brothers didn't have the best AI. They had something AI needed. Decades of stories, characters, and trust that couldn't be built faster with better technology.

Most organizations have a version of this. Customer relationships measured in decades. Institutional knowledge that lives in people, not systems. A reputation earned by showing up consistently.

That's not legacy to modernize away. That's your data. The real kind - built over years, not downloaded. And AI is only as good as what you feed it.

In this episode we explore:

✨ Human value in an AI world - what can't be replicated

✨ Infrastructure reality - the gap between AI's promise and today's reality

✨ Legacy as asset - reframing what "old" means

✨ New roles emerging - how jobs are shifting

✨ Shared responsibility - ethics and safety aren't one person's job

AI multiplies what exists. 

So let's ask, "what have you been building all this time that's about to become even more valuable?"

Human Centered AI: Ep.009 - The Iwakura Principle

See comments on where to listen 🎧

In 1871, Japan sent half its government overseas. For two years.

This isn't ancient history. It's a blueprint for AI transformation.

The Iwakura Mission included sitting cabinet ministers, future prime ministers, and a six-year-old girl who would later appear on the 5,000-yen note.

They didn't send junior staff to "figure it out." They sent the decision-makers.

The result? Mitsubishi. Mitsui. The Tokyo Stock Exchange. Nearly 500 companies founded by one mission member alone.

Most organizations today respond to AI with a pilot program and a steering committee.

The Japanese have two words for "leaving something to someone":

→ 任せる (makaseru) - entrusting 

→ 放置する (hōchi suru) - abandoning

One built modern Japan. The other builds slide decks nobody reads.

Three Critical Insights:

→ Send Decision-Makers, Not Researchers - The people who will implement change need to do the learning. Waiting for a summary is abdication, not delegation.

→ Give It Real Time - The mission lasted nearly two years. Most AI initiatives get a quarter to show ROI. That's not transformation—that's a pilot.

→ Study Systems, Not Just Technology - They visited factories, yes. But also schools, courts, prisons, slums. They learned what NOT to copy as much as what to adopt.

Four Implementation Principles:

→ Literacy Before Strategy. If leadership hasn't personally used the tools, they're not ready to set direction.

→ Document With Intention. The mission produced a 5-volume, 2,000-page report. Most AI pilots end with a deck nobody reads.

→ Filter Through Context. They studied multiple countries, then built something Japanese. "Best practices" from Silicon Valley won't work in Tokyo—or your organization.

→ Build the Next Generation. The young officials on that mission led Japan for 50 years. Who are your future AI leaders? Not the consultants.

The Iwakura Mission wasn't a project. It was a commitment.

150 years later, we're still talking about it because it worked.

In this episode, Nathan Paterson and Brittany Arthur explore what this 150-year-old voyage teaches us about taking AI transformation seriously and why most organizations are confusing delegation with abandonment.

How you commit matters more than how much you invest.

Microsoft Partnership, Academy Updates, and Spatial Intelligence | Human-Centered AI Ep. 008

Three signals from the AI frontier this week. Each one reshapes how we think about AI readiness.

SIGNAL 1: Microsoft Partnership
DTJ is now Microsoft's official training partner for AI education in Japan—working with government officials and policymakers. When governments invest in AI literacy (not just tools), it confirms: this skill is baseline now.

SIGNAL 2: Academy Confidence
Our graduates walk into interviews ready when asked "How do you think about AI trade-offs?" They've built conviction, not memorized answers. December and January cohorts now open.

SIGNAL 3: Spatial Intelligence Is Live
Dr. Fei-Fei Li's work on AI that understands 3D space just dropped. Take one photo, AI generates a navigable 3D environment. For manufacturing, logistics, robotics—the next wave isn't coming. It's here.

THREE CRITICAL INSIGHTS:

1. AI Literacy Moved From Vertical to Horizontal - This isn't specialized anymore. It's baseline. Every role. Every level.

2. Confidence Is the Competitive Advantage - Technical knowledge is optional. Strategic conviction about AI is not.

3. The Frontier Keeps Revealing Itself - While most organizations are figuring out ChatGPT, AI just moved from digital to physical.

We watch the frontier so you don't get blindsided. 37 minutes that translate what's coming into what it means for your work.

LINKS:
🔗 Human-Centered AI Leadership Academy: https://www.designthinkingjapan.com/ai-leadership
🔗 DTJ Website: https://www.designthinkingjapan.com/
🔗 Microsoft Elevate Japan: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/elevate
🔗 World Labs (Spatial Intelligence): https://www.worldlabs.ai/

ABOUT HUMAN-CENTERED AI PODCAST:
Weekly insights on AI, leadership, and what's actually happening on the frontier. Hosted by Design Thinking Japan (DTJ), a human-centered AI company in Tokyo.

We help leaders navigate AI strategy with clarity and confidence—not hype.

The Third Way - The Intrapreneur's Path from Inside with Junichi Yamashita

When people talk about innovation, they present two choices: leave and start fresh, or stay and accept the status quo. But there's a third way—proven in Japanese organizations by someone who's walked this path multiple times.
Junichi Yamashita built digital products used by millions—Coke ON (65M downloads), multiple Rakuten ventures—all from inside established companies. This isn't theory. It's how innovation actually happens in Japanese organizations, told by someone who's done it repeatedly.

✅ What You'll Learn

How to create momentum when starting with nothing
The two types of "no" in Japanese business—and why it matters
Getting beyond inspiration: the actual logistics of innovation
Creating scenarios that win stakeholder support
Being different as an advantage in your organization
DX lessons that matter for AI transformation

🎯 This Is For You If...

You have ideas but unclear how to move them forward
You're told "we need innovation" with no clear path
You're wondering if you need to leave to create something new
You're leading transformation but struggling with stakeholder alignment
You're preparing for AI and want to learn from digital transformation success

💡 Key Insights
"Start the ball rolling—once it starts, it doesn't stop easily"
The hardest part isn't execution—it's creating the first moment of momentum. When asked if something is possible: "I think so... shall I take a look?" This creates the next conversation.
"You don't have to do something differently—share what people aren't aware of"
Being different becomes valuable when you find the intersection between what's missing in your environment and what only you can offer.
"Japanese people are great at doing things right—few can show what the right things to do are"
Excellence in execution exists. What's missing is identifying the path forward through uncertainty. Once clear, collective power becomes extraordinary.
"Talk about the value, not the technology"
Don't explain what something is. Explain what it creates: "Coffee purchases go from 5 to 20 per month." People need to understand why it matters.

👤 Junichi Yamashita
Senior Director, Coca-Cola Japan | Coke ON Business Leader
Led: Coke ON (65M users, 500K+ vending machines), world's first vending machine subscription
Previously: Rakuten (Ecosystem Strategy, CEO direct report), Korean startup (Country Manager from zero), McKinsey & IBM
LinkedIn: /junichiyamashita

🎙️ Host: Brittany Arthur
Co-founder, Design Thinking Japan
Helping Japanese organizations innovate since 2012
designthinkingjapan.com

🎧 Business Karaoke Podcast
Authentic conversations with leaders navigating innovation in Japan. Real experience, not just theory.
Subscribe for more conversations
Connect: Hello@DesignThinkingJapan.com

The future isn't built by choosing between leaving or staying. It's built by finding the third way forward.

「イノベーションが必要」と言われても、実際どう進めればいいのか。多くの方が同じ悩みを抱えています。

今回は、コカ・コーラでCoke ON（6500万DL）を育て、楽天で複数の新規事業を立ち上げてきた山下純一さんをお迎えし、社内で新しいことを始める「現実的な方法」について語っていただきました。理論ではなく、実際の現場で使える具体的な知恵。成功も失敗も含めた、率直な対話です。

✅ この対談から得られること

この47分間の対談では、以下のような実践的な知見をお届けします：

・新規事業を始める際の、最初の具体的なステップ ・社内で味方（スポンサー）を見つけ、巻き込んでいく方法 ・経営層の理解を得るための「30％ルール」の活用法 ・デジタル専門家でなくても、DXをリードできる理由 ・本業を続けながら、新しい挑戦を持続可能にする工夫 ・外部パートナーやコンサルタントとの効果的な協働の仕方

すべて、山下さんご自身の経験に基づいたお話です。

🎯 こんな方におすすめです

この対談は、特に以下のような状況にある方にお役立ていただけると思います：

・組織の中で新しい取り組みを始めたいが、進め方に迷っている ・イノベーションプロジェクトを任されたが、なかなか前に進まない ・DXを推進する立場だが、周囲の理解や協力を得るのに苦労している ・起業するか、今の会社で挑戦を続けるか、選択肢を考えている ・アイデアや構想はあるが、承認プロセスや予算確保に課題がある ・伝統的な企業文化の中で、変革を起こしたいと考えているリーダー

もちろん、上記以外の方にも、組織内でのイノベーションに関心がある方であれば、何かしらのヒントを持ち帰っていただけるのではないかと思います。

📌 対談で触れているトピック

・イントラプレナー vs アントレプレナー：それぞれのメリット ・ゼロからの始め方：2-3人から始める理由 ・30％プロトタイプの威力と使い方 ・ステアリングコミッティーの作り方 ・スピード vs マラソン思考のバランス ・デジタルリテラシーの壁を越えるコミュニケーション ・DXの成功パターンと失敗パターン ・パッションと個人的な興味の重要性 ・外部コンサルタントとの効果的な協働 ・Coke ON 開発の舞台裏

💡 対談の中で印象的だった考え方

山下さんが実践してきた中で、特に印象的だったいくつかのアプローチをご紹介します：

「2-3人からスタートする」 最初から大人数を集めても、意見の集約に時間がかかってしまう。まずは本当に信じてくれる2-3人と始めて、徐々に広げていく方が結果的に早い。

「30％の完成度で見せる」 完璧を目指して時間をかけるより、30％程度の完成度でも具体的な形にして見せる。会議で話すだけでは忘れられてしまうが、何か「モノ」があれば、人は反応してくれる。

「社内の関係者こそ、最初のお客様」 最終的なエンドユーザーの前に、まず社内のステークホルダーに価値を理解してもらう必要がある。彼らが協力してくれなければ、プロジェクトは前に進まない。

「How（どうやるか）ではなく、Why（なぜ）から」 DXは技術論から入ると失敗しやすい。なぜこれが必要なのか、どんな体験を実現したいのか、目的から考えることが大切。

「お母さんに説明できるか」 デジタルの専門用語を使わず、誰にでも分かる言葉で説明できるか。これが、多様なステークホルダーを巻き込む上での鍵になる。

これらは、山下さんが実際の経験を通じて体得されてきたことです。

👤 ゲスト紹介：山下純一

日本コカ・コーラ株式会社 シニアディレクター

現在 ・Coke ON（自販機向けロイヤリティプログラム）事業責任者 ・6500万ダウンロード、50万台以上の自販機と連携 ・コカ・コーラ社で世界初の「自販機サブスク」Coke ON Passを2021年にローンチ

経歴 ・楽天：エコシステム戦略、メンバーシップ戦略を担当（CEO直下） ・楽天市場：スマホ事業、ROOM（ショッピングSNS）責任者 ・韓国スタートアップ：日本カントリーマネージャー（n=1から立ち上げ） ・マッキンゼー、IBM：戦略・ITコンサルタント

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/junichiyamashita

💬 皆さまのご意見をお聞かせください

コメント欄で、ぜひ以下のようなことをシェアしていただけると嬉しいです：

・この対談の中で、特に印象に残ったポイント ・ご自身の組織で新しいことを始めるとしたら、どんなテーマに取り組みたいか ・社内イノベーションで、現在直面している課題

皆さまの経験や考えを、ぜひお聞かせください。

📧 お問い合わせ

企業向けワークショップ、AI活用のご相談、イノベーション戦略に関するお問い合わせは、以下までお気軽にご連絡ください。

Design Thinking Japan Email: Hello@DesignThinkingJapan.com 

Website: https://designthinkingjapan.com

皆さまの組織の挑戦をサポートできることを、楽しみにしています。

The Legal Bridge: Technology to Trust | S3E8

Guest: Darryl Osuch - Unit Manager, Legal Operations at JERA Co., Inc. | Host of The Legal Ops Podcast

Episode Length: 51 minutes

Episode Description

"I feel like I'm fighting an education battle."

Darryl Osuch identifies what many organizations are missing about AI adoption. Not a technology battle. Not a process battle. An education battle.

In this conversation, Darryl shares what he's learning at the intersection of legal operations, AI implementation, and organizational trust. His perspective—both mechanic and driver of AI systems—reveals why the gap between capability and comprehension might be the real bottleneck.

Microsoft's research shows 70% of AI transformation involves people, 20% workflows, and only 10% algorithms. Yet many organizations find their resource allocation tells a different story. Darryl brings rare expertise: implementing generative AI at JERA while building frameworks that help people actually trust and adopt it.

Key Themes

The Translation Gap
Legal teams are discovering they're not gatekeepers—they're translators between technical capability and human comprehension. When technical concepts get explained but not understood, that's where adoption stalls.

Trust as Architecture
Trust operates in layers: data, algorithm, company. When one layer doesn't hold, the entire stack can struggle—regardless of technical capability.

The Education Battle
The real challenge isn't teaching people to use AI tools. It's making complexity accessible without losing truth. Translation capability is becoming strategic, not supplementary.

Democratization with Guardrails
"Vibe coding" enables people who've never coded to build solutions. The question becomes: How do you create frameworks that enable exploration while maintaining standards?

The Soft Skills Advantage
When everyone has access to similar AI tools, what creates distinction? Humanity, authenticity, judgment, empathy, wisdom—the entirely human elements.

Key Insights from Darryl

💭 "I feel like I'm fighting an education battle. That's literacy. It's not technical, it's not procedural."

💭 "If a company does it right and allows democratization with simple guardrails, users have more autonomy, feel more in control, and stay connected to the process."

💭 "I think one of the necessary roles and powerful functions of a lawyer is to be some kind of translator."

💭 "The technology almost always outpaces regulation."

💭 "People will start actively putting humanity and authenticity first when they are looking for something."

The Reframing Question

"What is the impact of the work you're doing right now, and how can you improve or magnify that impact?"

Not "should we use AI?" but "what am I trying to accomplish, and could AI help me accomplish it better?"

Purpose first. Tool second.

About Darryl Osuch

Darryl Osuch solves problems most organizations don't see yet. As Unit Manager of Legal Operations at JERA Co., Inc. in Tokyo, he automates workflows, implements generative AI, and helps legal teams understand what their technology actually does.

Host of The Legal Ops Podcast and fluent in both law and code, Darryl's philosophy is simple: be both mechanic and driver. Know how it works, not just that it works.

Connect with Darryl:

• The Legal Ops Podcast on Spotify
• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/daryl-osuch

Validation Architecture, Not Validation Effort | Human Centered AI Ep 007

Deloitte Australia delivered a $440,000 AI-assisted report. The client discovered fake citations, non-existent authors, and books that were never written.

This isn't about criticizing Deloitte - they're tackling what we're all facing. How do you validate AI output without destroying the speed advantage?

The Speed Paradox
AI generates a 100-page report in 3 hours. Human validation takes 2 weeks.
You can't slow back to human speed (defeats the purpose). You can't trust blindly (Deloitte proved that costs $440,000).

So what's the answer?

In This Episode:
→ What actually broke at Deloitte (and why it's a process problem, not a technology problem)
→ Why LLMs are eloquence engines, not truth engines
→ The validation architecture we use for AI-assisted reports
→ How to build checkpoints that preserve speed advantage
→ Why transparency about AI use becomes competitive advantage
→ Managing AI agents vs. managing humans (completely different principles)
→ Four implementation guidelines you can use immediately

Key Insights:
The validation bottleneck is real. If you're reading every word, you're back to human speed with added risk.
Transparency must come first. The AI conversation happens before the project, not after someone finds hallucinations.
Speed without checkpoints is just risk. Build validation milestones throughout creation, not just at the end.

Our Approach:
- Declare sources first (set boundaries or you'll get books that don't exist)
- Cross-validate patterns, not sentences
- Build checkpoints throughout (like data packets - check key milestones, not every byte)
- Human expertise where it matters (evaluate output quality, not proofread words)

Three Questions for Your Practice:
- What's your validation framework that doesn't require reading every word?
- Have you told clients HOW you use AI before they discover it themselves?
- Are you validating during creation or only after?

How you validate matters more than how much you validate.

Deloitte paid $440,000 for this lesson publicly. Learn it here for free.

RESOURCES:
📊 AI Future Signals 2025 Report (with full methodology): https://www.designthinkingjapan.com/#futuresignals

"This is the next generation AI-powered convenience store that will become the standard."

When Lawson and KDDI made this bold claim about their Real Tech store in Tokyo, we had to see it ourselves. As AI implementation practitioners, we learn as much from ambitious attempts as we do from polished successes.

The press releases promised, 14 AI cameras for personalized recommendations, intelligent avatars, robot food prep, adaptive shopping experiences.

Unfortunately, what we found was No camera disclosure, "AI avatar" was a human on video call, branded Roomba, staff manually counting inventory beside computer vision equipment, non-interactive screens, zero personalization.

We spoke English to the "smart avatar." It replied, "A little." That's when we realized we were talking to a person, not AI.

This isn't about criticizing Lawson or KDDI, they tackled an impossible challenge. Japanese convenience stores are already efficiency masterpieces.

The promise gap between AI marketing and AI reality is widening across industries.

Three Critical Insights

1. Marketing promises can sabotage good work. Customers felt misled by "AI-powered" experiences that were actually human-powered—even though human solutions might be better.

2. Integration trumps innovation. 14 cameras don't automatically create personalized experiences. The hard work is connecting cameras to inventory systems, recommendation engines, and displays in ways that actually help customers.

3. Expectation management matters. When you promise "the future," customers expect something genuinely different from everywhere else.

The technology exists: facial recognition for greetings, real-time inventory tracking, gaze detection, automated checkout. The challenge isn't capability, rather it's system integration and user experience design.

Here's Four Implementation Guidelines

1. Start with specific friction. Not "AI-powered store," but "What customer problems can technology solve? Long lines? Product discovery? Language barriers?"

2. Test quietly, announce loudly. Build it, validate it works, then tell people. Order matters.

3. Be honest about automation. Customers handle knowing humans help remotely. They can't handle feeling deceived.

4. Under-promise, over-deliver. Surprise beats disappointment every time.

Lawson and KDDI deserve credit for pushing boundaries publicly. Most companies play it safe.

But their experience reminds us that customer trust comes from honest, valuable experiences and not impressive press releases.

The future of retail will involve AI. But it'll be shaped by companies solving real customer problems, not showcasing impressive technology.

Security expert Jonathan Baier joins Brittany Arthur to explore how business leaders can approach AI security strategically. Learn practical frameworks for implementing AI while protecting what matters most to your organization.

What You'll Learn

Reframe Security as Strategy

• How security teams can accelerate AI initiatives rather than slow them down
• The three types of AI security every executive must understand: of AI, from AI, and with AI
• Moving from "we need AI" to identifying specific value-creating opportunities

Bridge the Gap Between Business and Security

• Practical frameworks for non-technical leaders to have meaningful security conversations
• Why 70% of AI success depends on people, not algorithms
• How to ask the right questions when you don't have deep technical knowledge

Master the Innovation-Protection Balance

• When to take calculated risks vs. when to proceed more cautiously
• Real examples of companies navigating AI security decisions
• Starting with business problems rather than AI solutions

Key Takeaways

✅ Security becomes a competitive advantage when technology access is democratized

✅ Your differentiators are data, process, and people—not the technology itself

✅ Every business question becomes a security question at scale

✅ Curiosity and mindful experimentation beat both paralysis and reckless confidence

✅ Small companies need shared security understanding, not dedicated security officers

3 Power Quotes for Sound Bites

1. On AI's Limitations

"AI gives us what we ask for and not necessarily what we need."

2. On Taking the Right Approach

"You actually shouldn't start with AI. You should start with what is your problem that you're trying to solve?"

3. On Security Team Partnerships

"I think many security teams want to be helpful, but they've sort of gotten stereotyped as they're going to get in the way. And so they're not used to someone coming and saying, hey, let's work together and figure out how to do this. But I think they're very much excited to do that."

Connect with Jon: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanbaier/

We're living through what Dr. Staples calls "an inflection point with the global political economy"—a moment when the assumptions that guided business strategy for decades no longer apply. For senior executives, this creates both unprecedented complexity and extraordinary opportunity.

This 50-minute conversation offers something rare: the strategic depth to understand not just what's changing, but how to think about change itself.

The Questions That Shape Strategy

On Transformation

"The space for not doing anything has gotten smaller and smaller. The opportunity to make excuses for not innovating has diminished."

We explore why innovation has shifted from "nice to have" to existential necessity across Asia-Pacific, and what this means for organizations still approaching AI as incremental improvement.

On Geopolitical Reality

"Don't make us choose between China, our biggest trading partner, and America, our biggest investor."

Dr. Staples illuminates how middle powers are navigating an increasingly complex world where your technology choices have become geopolitical decisions—and why understanding this is crucial for any global executive.

On Strategic Ownership

"You have to take ownership of AI because it could be fundamental to what your business becomes."

We examine why the most successful organizations are treating AI as a strategic capability to own, not a service to outsource, and how this shapes everything from board composition to operational planning.

What You'll Discover

Historical Context for Modern Challenges
How past technological transformations offer frameworks for navigating today's complexity, from the Industrial Revolution to containerization to electrification.

Regional Opportunities in Plain Sight
Why Vietnam is becoming the quiet beneficiary of US-China tensions, how Malaysia is threading the needle between superpowers, and what Singapore's digital government reveals about the art of the possible.

The Three Models of AI Governance
How America's "unfettered innovation," China's "state control," and Europe's "individual sovereignty" approaches are creating different competitive landscapes across regions.

Practical Frameworks for Uncertainty
Dr. Staples' approach to "controlling what you can" while geopolitical forces settle, and why scenario planning has become an essential leadership skill.

This isn't about predicting the future—it's about developing the strategic thinking to navigate fundamental uncertainty. Whether you're making technology architecture decisions, planning market entry strategies, or simply trying to understand how global forces shape local opportunities, this conversation provides frameworks that transcend immediate headlines.

As Dr. Staples notes: "We've had waves of disruption before and we've adjusted and adapted. The question is whether this time is fundamentally different—and how do we think about that?"

For leaders who prefer depth over speed, context over quick fixes, and strategic thinking over tactical reactions.

Sometimes the most practical thing you can do is step back and understand the forces shaping your decisions.

Connect with Andy:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/andystaples/

https://geopolasia.com/

塚本奈々美さんに迫る - モータースポーツとビジネス界のあらゆるルールを打ち破った女性。ブラジル生まれ、日本育ちの移民の子として育ち、レーシング・ドリフト・ラリーの3分野で活躍する世界唯一の女性プロドライバー（有名な「三刀流」）でありながら、大陸をまたぐパーソナルブランド帝国を築き上げた彼女の物語。

このエピソードで学べること

✨「人と違う」ことを最大のビジネス武器に変える方法

✨ 男性社会でスポンサーシップを獲得した個人ブランディング戦略

✨ なぜ専門化ではなく「アンド」アプローチを選んだのか（あなたも実践可能）

✨ チャンス評価とブランド保護のための意思決定フレームワーク

✨ 高速モータースポーツから学ぶ驚きのビジネス教訓

人生を変える洞察

💡 「あなたのような人」が存在しない業界での生き抜き方

💡  日本のビジネス文化における本物の関係構築術

💡  なぜ彼女が自動車メーカーになろうとしているのか（本当です！）

💡  東京にモータースポーツ施設建設の戦略

💡  工場労働者の娘から国際的レーシングスターへのマインドセット転換

🎯 このエピソードは起業家、ビジネスプロフェッショナル、パーソナルブランド構築中の方、そして「それは無理」と言われたことがある全ての人に最適です。

これは単なるレーシングストーリーではありません。障害をチャンスに変え、本物の関係を築き、予想外の方法で価値を創造するマスタークラスです。奈美さんは、時として最も強力なビジネス戦略は単に「本物の自分でいること」だと証明しています。

 今すぐ視聴して、可能性の再定義を発見しよう！🚀

合同会社デザイン思考日本の2025年の未来シグナルの研究について、2人の特別な共同ホスト、つまり2つのAI音声と共に深く掘り下げます。ビジネスのやり方を再構築する4つの重要なトレンドを探求していきます：

🔸 AI + Human - AIと人間の知性が協力パートナーとして機能 

🔸 Autonomous Partnerships - 戦略的独立性を持って動作するAIエージェント

🔸 Immersive Reality - 物理世界とデジタル世界のシームレスな融合 

🔸 Biological Interactions - 人間の生物学的反応に応答するテクノロジー

我々のAIゲストが、先進的なリーダーたちの戦略的決定を既に推進している研究を分析します。これは、テクノロジーが実際にどこに向かっているのかについて、内部者の視点を得ることと考えてください。

Signals研究は、我々の戦略的業務における内部指針として始まりました。我々が発見したのは、AIのハイプサイクルを越えた明確さ、つまり競争優位性に直接変換できる洞察に対する、業界全体に渡る広範囲な渇望でした。

我々の洞察は伝統的にクライアントやパートナー向けに限定されてきましたが、今日のAI環境はより透明性のあるアプローチを求めています。そのため、我々はこのレポートを公開することを選択しました。我々のコミットメントは、Human Centered, AI Accelerated™が実践においてどのような意味を持つかについて有意義な議論を推進することです。

このレポートは、先進的な経営陣がAIの変曲点を戦略的優位性に転換し、人間の叡智とAI能力の融合点で前例のない価値を創造している様子を明らかにします。

あなたのシグナルへようこそ。

We're diving deep into Design Thinking Japan's Future Signals 2025 research with two special co-hosts, two AI voices exploring the four critical trends reshaping how business gets done:

🔸 AI + Human - AI and human intelligence as collaborative partners 

🔸 Autonomous Partnerships - AI agents operating with strategic independence 

🔸 Immersive Reality - Physical and digital worlds becoming seamless 

🔸 Biological Interactions - Technology responding to human biology

Our AI guests break down research that's already driving strategic decisions for forward-thinking leaders. Think of it as getting the insider perspective on where technology is actually heading.

The Signals research began as an internal compass for our strategic work. What we discovered was a widespread hunger across industries for clarity beyond the AI hype cycle—insights that translate directly to competitive advantage. 

While our insights have traditionally been reserved for our clients and partners, today's AI landscape demands a more transparent approach. That's why we've chosen to share this report publicly. Our commitment is to drive meaningful conversation about what Human Centered, AI Accelerated™ means in practice. 

This report reveals how forward-thinking executives are turning AI's inflection point into strategic dominance—creating unprecedented value at the convergence of human wisdom and AI capability. 

Welcome to your signals. 

...

Resources:
* Full Future Signals 2025 report: designthinkingjapan.com
* Strategic consultations: hello@designthinkingjapan.com

Welcome to the Business Karakie Podcast. Today's episode reveals the untapped potential of AI through design leadership. Design expert Fede Ponce shares how multimodal design systems - not just visual interfaces - are the key to building trust in AI. From autonomous vehicles to daily digital interactions, Fede offers surprising insights about how emotions and cultural context shape successful AI adoption. Join us for a thought-provoking journey into the future of AI and design leadership.

Key Points and Takeaways 

✨ Redefining AI Implementation Through Design

• Key Point: The success of AI initiatives depends on design leadership, not just technical capability
• Takeaway: C-suite leaders must prioritize design thinking in their AI strategy to ensure meaningful adoption

✨ The Trust Imperative

• Key Point: Trust in AI systems is built through sophisticated design transparency
• Takeaway: Organizations need to invest in design systems that make AI decision-making visible and understandable

✨ Cultural Intelligence in AI Design

• Key Point: AI interfaces must adapt to cultural contexts, particularly in Asian markets
• Takeaway: Success in global markets requires culturally-informed design systems

✨ Future of AI Interaction

• Key Point: Next-generation AI interfaces will be dynamic and context-aware
• Takeaway: Organizations need to prepare for a shift from static to adaptive AI systems

✨ Leadership in the AI Age

• Key Point: Design leaders must focus on meta-level thinking rather than just tools
• Takeaway: C-suite executives should champion design in AI strategy

Five Strategic Insights from Fede Ponce

1. "The automation paradox shows us that as user perception of automation increases, their cognitive effort decreases. Without proper design for transparency, this creates significant business risks."
2. "Leaders need to move beyond thinking about AI as a tool and focus on meta thinking - understanding how AI arrives at solutions and how humans interact with these processes."
3. "Future design systems must be multimodal, considering all human senses and cultural contexts. This is particularly crucial in markets like Japan where user expectations are sophisticated."
4. "The future of business interfaces lies in dynamic, context-aware AI systems that adapt to user needs and organizational contexts."
5. "Design leadership in the AI age isn't about mastering tools - it's about understanding how to create meaningful human-AI collaboration frameworks."

Connect with Fede here; 

Welcome to this episode of the Business Karaoke Podcast, where we delve into the transformative world of design thinking and change management with Ryan Hart, a seasoned expert in customer experience and innovation. Ryan's journey spans multiple industries and continents, bringing a wealth of knowledge from his work with global giants like PwC, HSBC, and Pacific Life.

In this episode, Ryan shares his insights on how organizations can successfully navigate the complex landscape of innovation by reframing problems, empathizing with users, and fostering both top-down and grassroots change. Whether you're a leader seeking to drive organizational transformation or an individual aiming to make an impact from within, Ryan's practical advice and compelling stories offer invaluable guidance. Join us for an engaging conversation that uncovers the secrets to unlocking innovation and achieving lasting success in today's fast-paced business world. Don't miss out on these powerful lessons that could change the way you approach business challenges!

Key Points and Takeaways

✨ Reframing Problems for Innovation

• Key Point: Organizations often focus on solving the wrong problems due to misidentified issues.
• Takeaway: Start by reframing the problem to understand the core issues, often through customer research and usability testing, to drive innovation effectively.

✨ Importance of Customer-Centric Design

• Key Point: Empathizing with user needs is essential for successful change management and design thinking initiatives.
• Takeaway: Conduct deep research to understand customer and employee needs, ensuring that solutions are aligned with their expectations.

✨ The Role of Change Management in Design Thinking

• Key Point: Change management is integral to implementing design thinking and innovation strategies.
• Takeaway: Approach change as a collaborative process, involving stakeholders at all levels to ensure initiatives are adopted and sustained.

✨ Challenges and Opportunities in Transformation

• Key Point: Transformation efforts must consider organizational maturity and readiness for change.
• Takeaway: Be aware of the "frozen middle" in organizations and work to engage all employees in the change process.

✨ Balancing Leadership and Grassroots Initiatives

• Key Point: Successful change requires both top-down and grassroots support.
• Takeaway: Encourage leadership to be accessible and foster grassroots initiatives that empower employees to drive change.

Five Key Quotes from Ryan Hart

1. "Reframing the problem is often the first step in truly understanding the core issues organizations face."
2. "Empathy is at the heart of successful design thinking and change management; without it, initiatives often fail to resonate."
3. "You can't change the direction of an oil tanker on a dime; transformation takes time and commitment."
4. "Grassroots initiatives, driven by passionate employees, can be just as powerful as top-down strategies in driving change."
5. "Always keep an eye on the needs of the customer; they will guide you toward the right direction."

Connect with Ryan here.

Welcome to this episode of the Business Karaoke Podcast, where we explore the intricate dynamics of manufacturing in Japan as a foreign-led startup. Today, I am incredibly proud to introduce Beau Becker, a unique mix of entrepreneur, executive, and engineer, who is making waves in Japan's business landscape. Beau is the Founder of Reiwa Pharmaceuticals and brings a wealth of experience in international business development, strategic partnerships, and manufacturing operations, with notable experience in both Japan and China. His journey from the United States to Japan, and his dedication to cultural integration and linguistic proficiency, offers invaluable insights into building strong manufacturing relationships in Japan. Join us as we dive into Beau's experiences, challenges, and the lessons he's learned along the way.

Key Points and Takeaways

✨ Trust in Manufacturing Partnerships
👉 Key Point: Trust is the cornerstone of successful manufacturing partnerships in Japan.
🎯 Takeaway: Building trust requires direct communication and frequent visits to manufacturing sites to foster mutual understanding and reliability.

✨ Cultural Integration and Language Proficiency
👉 Key Point: Mastering the Japanese language and understanding cultural nuances are crucial for effective business operations.
🎯 Takeaway: Invest time in learning the language and culture to build stronger, more respectful business relationships.

✨ Flexibility in Product Development
👉 Key Point: Flexibility and adaptability in product design are essential when working with Japanese manufacturers.
🎯 Takeaway: Be prepared to make adjustments based on manufacturing capabilities and quality standards to achieve successful outcomes.

✨ Challenges for Startups
👉 Key Point: Finding reliable partners and maintaining quality are significant challenges for startups in Japan.
🎯 Takeaway: Approach initial product designs with flexibility and adapt them to align with manufacturing capabilities.

✨ Long-Term Vision and Commitment
👉 Key Point: A long-term commitment and vision are vital for sustained success in the Japanese market.
🎯 Takeaway: Cultivate enduring relationships with partners and continuously strive for improvement and innovation.

Five Key Quotes from Beau Becker

1. "Trust is the cornerstone of successful manufacturing partnerships in Japan. Without it, you can't build anything lasting."
   • Emphasizing the fundamental role of trust in business relationships.
2. "Learning Japanese and embracing the culture are not just beneficial; they are essential for anyone serious about doing business here."
   • Highlighting the importance of cultural and linguistic integration.
3. "Flexibility in product design and development is crucial. You have to adapt to the manufacturing capabilities and standards here."
   • Stressing the need for adaptability in product development.
4. "Startups face the dual challenge of finding reliable partners and maintaining high-quality standards. It's not easy, but it's possible with the right approach."
   • Discussing the challenges and opportunities for startups in Japan.
5. "A long-term commitment to your vision and partnerships is what will ultimately lead to success in the Japanese market."
   • Advocating for a sustained, long-term approach to business.

These insights and more await you in this episode of the Business Karaoke Podcast. Tune in to learn from Beau Becker's rich experiences and gain a deeper understanding of building successful business relationships in Japan.

先日のビジネスカラオケポッドキャストでは、Beau Becker氏が日本の製造業について語りました。彼は、成功するためには製造パートナーとの信頼関係が欠かせないと強調し、工場を直接訪問して信頼を築く重要性を説きました。また、スタートアップにとって、信頼できるパートナーを見つけることや品質を維持することが大きな課題であることも共有しました。そのため、初期の製品デザインに対して柔軟性を持ち、製造能力に合わせて適応させることが求められると述べました。

外国人でもあるにもかかわらず、Beauさんは私にもっと日本語のエピソードを復活させるよう勧めてくれた。だから、久しぶりの日本語エピソードとして彼を紹介できることをとても嬉しく思う。

さらに、彼は日本語スキルの重要性にも触れ、日本の製造業者との円滑なコミュニケーションのためには日本語が不可欠であると強調しました。Beau Becker氏は、日本の製造業は高品質と信頼性で知られており、円安が外国企業にとって大きなチャンスを提供していることから、「メイド・イン・ジャパン」ブランドの強みを活用するべきだと語りました。

最後に、製品開発においては妥協が必要であり、最も重要な側面を優先しつつも柔軟に対応することが成功の鍵であると述べました。Beau Becker氏の経験と洞察は、日本の製造業と協力する際の課題と機会を深く理解するための貴重な指針を提供しました。

以下は、ビジネスカラオケポッドキャストのエピソードのハイライトと学びです。

✨ 製造パートナーとの信頼構築の重要性
👉 ポイント: 製造パートナーとの信頼関係が成功の鍵。
🎯 学び: 工場を訪問して直接コミュニケーションを取り、信頼を築くことが大切。

✨ 製品開発の課題
👉 ポイント: 信頼できる製造パートナーを見つけ、品質を維持するのは困難。
🎯 学び: 初期デザインを製造能力に合わせて適応させる柔軟性が必要。

✨ 日本語スキルの重要性
👉 ポイント: 日本の製造業者と取引する際には日本語スキルが不可欠。
🎯 学び: 交渉やコミュニケーションを円滑に進めるために、日本語を学ぶか、日本語ができるチームメンバーを参加させることが重要。

✨ 日本の製造業への楽観視
👉 ポイント: 日本の製造業は高品質で信頼性があり、円安が外国企業にとってのチャンスを提供。
🎯 学び: 「メイド・イン・ジャパン」ブランドを活用し、成長機会を探る。

✨ 製品開発の柔軟性
👉 ポイント: 製造能力に適応し、実現可能性を維持するために妥協が必要。
🎯 学び: 製品の重要な側面を優先し、成功するために柔軟性を持つことが重要。

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beaubecker/
Website: https://www.reiwaseiyaku.co.jp/

Matthew Kyle is the Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer of weConnect and Co-Founder of Arigato Travel. Matthew shares his remarkable skill in taking a vision to venture, not as the No. 1 but as the No. 2. This important story highlights the often underappreciated role of the second-in-command in business success.

Matthew's career is a testament to the power of adaptability, having transitioned from professional basketball to strategic business roles. Known for his genuine curiosity and dynamic communication skills, Matthew has driven impressive growth throughout his career by making his supportive roles incredibly impactful.

Tune in to learn how supportive leadership, trust, and effective communication can transform visions into thriving ventures. Whether you're a founder or a supportive leader, this episode offers valuable insights on scaling businesses, managing expectations, and leveraging personal strengths for success. 

8 Key Points and Takeaways

✨ Importance of Adaptability and Finding Your Place
👉 Key Point: Matthew emphasized the significance of finding a role that suits you, even if it's not the founder or CEO.
🎯 Takeaway: It's crucial to understand your strengths and passions and align them with a role that allows you to thrive, regardless of titles.

✨ The Value of Being a Supportive Number Two
 👉 Key Point: Matthew highlighted that you don't have to be the founder to make a significant impact and find fulfillment in your work.
🎯 Takeaway: Embrace roles that allow you to support and amplify the vision of the founder, contributing to the company's success.

✨ 3. Expectation Management
👉 Key Point: Mismanaged expectations can lead to disappointment and disengagement.
🎯 Takeaway: Set realistic expectations and strive to under-promise and over-deliver to build trust and maintain motivation.

✨ 4. Transition and Evolution
👉 Key Point: Recognize when it's time to pivot or evolve in your career to find fulfillment and happiness.
🎯 Takeaway: Evaluate your current role and assess if it aligns with your long-term goals and personal fulfillment. Don't be afraid to make changes if necessary.

✨ 5. The Power of Trust and Communication
👉 Key Point: Trust and clear communication are essential in both professional and personal relationships.
🎯 Takeaway: Cultivate strong, trust-based relationships with your colleagues and partners. Communicate openly and clearly to avoid misunderstandings and build a cohesive team.

✨ 6. Balancing Multiple Roles
👉 Key Point: Navigating multiple roles, such as being a spouse and business partner, requires clear boundaries and communication.
🎯 Takeaway: Identify and acknowledge the different hats you wear and communicate effectively to balance personal and professional dynamics.

✨ 7. Leveraging Personal Skills for Business Success
👉 Key Point: Matthew's experience as a professional athlete and his ability to adapt played a crucial role in his business success.
🎯 Takeaway: Leverage your unique experiences and skills to add value to your business and differentiate yourself in the market.

✨ 8. Embracing Continuous Learning and Improvement
👉 Key Point: Matthew emphasized the importance of continuous learning and creating standard operating procedures to scale businesses effectively.
🎯 Takeaway: Commit to continuous improvement and learning. Develop clear procedures to ensure consistency and scalability in your business operations.

Connect with Matthew on LinkedIn: https://www.linkehttps://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewkyle/

Welcome to another episode of the Business Karaoke Podcast! Today, we have Kyoko Takeyama joining us. Kyoko is a distinguished communication coach with a rich background in helping professionals articulate their unique stories by overcoming their limiting beliefs. With her Japanese heritage, American upbringing, and nearly two decades in Spain, Kyoko brings a truly global perspective to her work and I'm sure lots of you BKP listeners can related to this duality or trinity.  She’s the creator of the CLEAR method, a transformative framework designed to help individuals communicate with confidence and clarity. Kyoko's inspiring journey and expertise in communication will leave you equipped with actionable insights to elevate your professional and personal interactions.

8 Key Points and Takeaways from this week's Business Karaoke Podcast with Kyoko!

✨ 1. Value of Unique Perspectives
👉 Key Point: Everyone has a unique story and perspective, which is valuable and worth sharing.
🎯 Takeaway: Recognize that your personal experiences and viewpoints are valid and can offer significant insights to others.

✨ 2. Overcoming Limiting Beliefs
👉 Key Point: Limiting beliefs, such as feeling "not enough" in various aspects, can hinder your communication and professional growth.
🎯 Takeaway: Identify and challenge your negative self-talk. Understand that your story is just as valuable as anyone else's.

✨ 3. Personal Journey and Motivation
👉 Key Point: Kyoko's journey from the US to Spain and her transition from teaching English to communication coaching was driven by her desire to help others communicate effectively.
🎯 Takeaway: Significant life events, like the loss of a loved one, can be catalysts for pursuing your true passion and committing fully to your goals.

✨ 4. Embracing Accents in Communication
👉 Key Point: An accent is a part of your identity and can add depth to your story. It should not be seen as a barrier.
🎯 Takeaway: Focus on the expertise and unique perspectives you bring to the table, rather than striving for perfect language proficiency.

✨ 5. Kyoko's very own CLEAR Method for Communication
👉 Key Point: Kyoko's CLEAR method helps individuals articulate their strengths and create impactful messages.
🎯 Takeaway: Use the CLEAR method to gain clarity on your strengths and improve your communication skills.

✨ 6. Building in the Light
👉 Key Point: Sharing personal stories and struggles can build authenticity and stronger connections with your audience.
🎯 Takeaway: Don’t be afraid to show vulnerability. It can make you more relatable and trustworthy, enhancing professional relationships.

✨ 7. Importance of Travel and Empathy
👉 Key Point: Traveling and experiencing different cultures can broaden your perspective and enhance your empathy.
🎯 Takeaway: Step out of your comfort zone and explore new environments to grow personally and professionally.

✨ 8. Actionable Steps for Addressing Limiting Beliefs
👉 Key Point: To tackle limiting beliefs, start by identifying them and brainstorming what makes you a great professional.
🎯 Takeaway: Write down your skills and qualities

Get in touch with Kyoko: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyokotakeyama/

Why This Chat with Tyson Batino is a Must-Listen

Ever find yourself wondering how some entrepreneurs seem to effortlessly scale their businesses, transforming from solopreneurs to leaders of thriving enterprises? Or perhaps you've hit a plateau in your growth trajectory and are searching for that breakthrough strategy? If so, our deep dive with Tyson Batino is your treasure map.

Here's what we talk about:

Unlock the Scaling Code: Tyson doesn’t just share the what of scaling; he gets into the nitty-gritty of the how. This isn’t your average pep talk; it’s a masterclass in actionable strategies, tailored for real-world application.

Leadership Transformation Insights: Whether you’re a born leader or a reluctant manager, Tyson’s journey from front-line doer to empowering leader is packed with relatable insights. It’s about finding the confidence to step back, trust your team, and achieve more by doing less.

Personal Growth = Business Growth: If you’ve ever doubted the power of personal development in driving business success, this conversation will make you a believer. Tyson and I delve into how evolving as a person can unlock new levels of business achievement, offering a fresh perspective on what it means to grow.

Content Creation with Impact: In a world overflowing with content, Tyson’s approach to creating meaningful, valuable material stands out. Learn how to craft content that not just attracts attention but makes a tangible difference in people’s lives.

Democratizing Knowledge: Tyson's commitment to making high-quality information and tools accessible is more than just admirable; it’s a blueprint for any entrepreneur looking to make an impact. This chat is a reminder of the power we hold to contribute to a wider community, beyond our immediate business goals.

In short, the conversation with Tyson Batino is an essential listen for anyone in the entrepreneurial space looking to level up. It’s not just about the success stories; it’s about the failures, the pivots, and the unlearning that pave the way to real, sustainable growth. Whether you’re just starting out or looking to scale new heights, there’s something in this dialogue for you.
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And here's some great news for BKP listeners. You're among the first to know what Tyson is launching a sales pamphlet accelerator course for the Japan market. Due to the community based decision making process in Japan, the sales pamphlet is SUPER CRUCIAL for anyone wanting more sales in Japan. His live cohort group course is for those who already have sales and are growth minded and want to do even better. Our judge has more than 30 years and has brought in more than 5 companies successfully to Japan. Starting in the middle of May. https://scalingyourcompany.com/salespamphlet/

Episode Overview: In this enlightening episode, we sit down with Tim Romero, the driving force behind the "Disrupting Japan" podcast, to explore the intricate tapestry of Japan's startup ecosystem. Tim shares his rich journey of continuous innovation, the joy of engaging with Japan's most passionate entrepreneurs, and the critical insights he's garnered from transforming passions into impactful projects.

What You'll Learn:

• The Power of Passion Projects: Discover how Tim's love for deep conversations with Japan's change-makers has fueled the success of "Disrupting Japan."
• Adaptation and Value Creation: Gain insights into Tim's philosophy on the importance of adapting in the fast-paced startup world and finding where you can add the most value.
• Cultural Nuances in Business: Understand the significance of navigating Japan's unique business culture for startups looking to make their mark.
• Government's Role in Startups: Learn about the crucial role government signaling plays in elevating the importance of startups in Japan's economy.
• Seizing Opportunities: Hear Tim's advice on not being afraid to pivot or embrace new challenges when something more exciting comes along.
• Combining Skills for Unique Value: Find out why blending diverse skills and interests is the key to carving out a unique niche and becoming the best in the world at what you do.
• Embracing Rapid Transformation: Reflect on Japan's potential for swift change under the right conditions and what this means for future innovators.

Why Listen: Whether you're an entrepreneur, a business enthusiast, or someone fascinated by the fusion of culture and innovation, this episode offers a treasure trove of insights on navigating the complexities of Japan's startup scene. Tim's journey from podcasting to green tech and beyond exemplifies the spirit of innovation and the importance of adapting to thrive in today's ever-evolving business landscape.

EMBRACE THE WHOLENESS OF YOUR JOURNEY with Sarah Furuya

Diving into the heart of business innovation, my latest chat with Sarah Furuya on the "Business Character Podcast" unfurled the beautifully complex layers of intertwining personal growth with the fabric of our professional lives. Sarah, with her candid openness and profound insights, shared her journey and the lessons that are reshaping the landscape of her business and coaching practices.

Here's what we unwrapped:

• The Essence of Authenticity: Sarah’s narrative is a compelling reminder that the soul of our business is mirrored in our personal evolution. She eloquently speaks to the notion that businesses thrive not just on the skeletal framework of skills but on the flesh and blood of our personal stories and values. It’s a dance of authenticity where every step is a reflection of who we are.
• Resilience as Our North Star: Amidst the storms of health challenges and personal milestones, Sarah’s resilience shines like a beacon for all of us navigating the tumultuous seas of entrepreneurship. Her journey underscores the power of embracing our vulnerabilities and using them as a pivot to realign our business compass.
• The Foundation of Financial Independence: One of the golden nuggets from our conversation was the emphasis on financial security. Sarah’s advice to gradually build a financial cushion speaks volumes about its role as the bedrock on which we can freely experiment and innovate within our businesses.
• Navigating with Intuition and Incremental Shifts: Tapping into intuition and embracing the magic of small, yet consistent changes in our approach can lead to monumental shifts in our business trajectory. Sarah’s practice of integrating intuition into her business decisions serves as a masterclass in steering through the entrepreneurial fog with an inner compass.
• The Power of Storytelling: Our dialogue ventured into the realm of storytelling, highlighting its potency in connecting, healing, and inspiring. Sarah’s experiences remind us that our stories are not just narratives but are the very threads that connect us to our audience and to the deeper parts of ourselves.

Sarah Furuya’s reflections are a mosaic of resilience, authenticity, and the transformative power of personal stories in the business domain. As we weave our own tapestries, let's remember the value of integrating our personal journeys into our professional narrative. The conversation with Sarah is a beacon, illuminating the path to a business that doesn’t just exist but truly lives and breathes the essence of who we are.

Dive into the full conversation for a treasure trove of insights on melding the personal with the professional in the most harmonious ways.

Get in touch with Sarah here; https://www.sarahfuruya.com

Welcome to an insightful episode of "Business Karaoke," where Brittany Arthur and Matthew Scott Waldman delve into the heart of innovation in Japan. With a critical eye, they explore the nuanced challenges and cultural intricacies shaping Japan's innovative landscape. The discussion ranges from tackling bureaucratic constraints to embracing the rich tapestry of diversity and artistic expression. This episode isn't just a talk; it's an immersive journey into understanding how societal norms, inclusivity, and the creative spirit intersect to shape business and innovation in Japan. Join us to unravel the threads of Japan's potential as a beacon of innovation, where traditional structures meet modern creativity.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewswaldman/

Podcast Episode: "2 Births: My Journey of Motherhood and Entrepreneurship"

🌍 "Join me on an extraordinary journey across continents and through the transformative realms of motherhood and business creation in my latest episode, '2 Births: Welcoming My Son and Incorporating in Japan.' This isn't just my story about embracing new life and new ventures; it's a heartfelt exploration of balancing the personal and the professional.

👶 In the first part of this episode, I invite you into my intimate and life-changing experience of becoming a mother. From the joys and challenges of breastfeeding to juggling remote work with caring for my newborn, I share my honest, and sometimes humorous, insights into the world of a working mom. I delve into how I navigate the intricate dance of professional ambition while deeply committing to my child, challenging myths and societal expectations along the way.

🌸 Then, journey with me to Japan, where I embark on a bold entrepreneurial adventure. Hear about my captivating experiences of setting up a business in a foreign land, the cultural challenges I faced, and the invaluable lessons I learned in adapting to a new way of life. It's more than a business story; it's about prototyping a life that values flexibility, innovation, and the courage to follow unconventional paths.

💡 Throughout the episode, I share practical wisdom for anyone navigating similar paths. From involving your partner in decision-making to finding the right work-life balance, and embracing the concept of living 1% of your dream every day, these insights have been game-changers for me.

🌟 Whether you're a new parent, an aspiring entrepreneur, or someone who loves stories of personal growth and resilience, this episode offers a piece of my world. Tune in to '2 Births: Welcoming My Son and Incorporating in Japan' for an inspiring, thought-provoking, and heartwarming tale of navigating life's most beautiful and challenging adventures.

🎧 Available now on all major podcast platforms. Join me in this blend of personal anecdotes, professional insights, and global adventures!"

In this episode we are joined by Dr. Serkan Toto, CEO and founder of Kantan Games, a Japan game market consultancy.

As you know, I approach any conversation we have on the Business Karaoke Podcast as if we're on a learning journey together. With all of the conversation around the Metaverse, NFTs, Crypto currencies  and a 2021 study showing that consumer gaming is bigger than movies and music combined, I thought it about time to dive into this topic that I've always known to be synonymous with Japan with a very real business case but that was about where my awareness ended. Which is why I invited Dr. Serkan Toto, a native of Germany but a local of Tokyo with extensive experience in gaming advisory, to walk the Business Karaoke community through this introduction of how in fact the business of gaming is everything but a game.

In this episode we explore;
The players in the current gaming climate - from the big brands to the amateur game developer,
Drivers of change and new business models,
Lessons for industry (from gaming),
If we will ever see a virtual Olympics,
The changing faces of athletes; Ninja and Lando Norris and
The next content wave - Metaverse, NFT and gaming.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. I've linked all of Serkan's info in our show notes so feel free to connect with him and follow his work directly. Let me know your thoughts on this episode by reaching out to me on LinkedIn or over on Instagram under @Business Karaoke Podcast.
___
Follow Serkan and more of his work here:
Website  |  https://www.serkantoto.com
LinkedIn  |  https://www.linkedin.com/in/serkantoto/

In this episode we are joined by Jennifer Shinkai. You may know Jennifer as the founder and host of the Ikigai podcast or of the on-line community, Make March Matter. Today she joins us wearing yet another hat. This time of diversity and inclusion workshop facilitator.

Jennifer walks us through both the how and the why of metaphor being a powerful tool for communication in your team. I wanted Jennifer to join us on the Business Karaoke Podcast to learn about how she uses metaphor as a tool for divergent thinking. I've spoken quite a bit that in my work with Design Thinking and innovation we use a specific structure to explore the problem and the solution. We diverge and then we converge, that means that we first go wide, go broad, go deep on a subject and then only after doing that do we synthesize.

As I am always on the look out for how other facilitators, industries or methodologies provide structure to divergent conversation, my hope was to learn something. Perhaps that I could add metaphor to my divergent facilitator tool kit. And I can happily report that was absolutely the case. Not only did I learn about metaphor as a communication tool but I've used it in workshops since with some surprising results. Hold on to the end of the episode when I test out my own metaphor skill, in real time.

If we only ever have a conversation the way we've always had it, we will only ever yield the results we've already seen.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did! Don't forget to share you feedback with me on your favorite social media platform 🙏✨

Let's begin!

💡Key Conversations
04:50 | The development Make March Matter from idea to community of 400+ people
12:00 | Authenticity in multi-cultural environments
23:00 | Points of View - if an image is worth 1000 words a metaphor is 1000 meetings
36:15 | Examples from the field and a stand out story for Jennifer 
45:30 | Creating the space need to explore new perspective
53:15 | Jennifer's own Ikigai

---
Here's where you can find out more about Jennifer ⬇️
Website  |  https://jennifershinkai.com
Make March Matter | https://www.facebook.com/groups/makemarchmatter2020/
LinkedIn  |  https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifershinkai/

In this episode we are joined by Jakob Knutzen. Jakob is one of 3 founders and the CEO of Butter - a full workflow for complex collaborative sessions which supports facilitators.

Here's the story of how I connected with Jakob and why I wanted to introduce him to you, too. A few weeks ago, I posted my remote facilitator set up on LinkedIn and I asked for others to share any other of their favorite facilitator hacks or tips and almost instantly I had people tagging Jakob in the comments , asking "have you tried butter?" Hop forward a week, I connect with Jakob and he walks me through the most engaging, thoughtful and attentive space for collaboration I have ever personally experienced. It made me realize, after achieving participant comfort in remote sessions, it's now time shift the focus to the driver's seat, the facilitator. Where maybe, just maybe, we should have begun all along.

Anyhow, I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did and be sure to share you feedback with my on your favourite social media platform.

Let's begin!

💡Key Conversations
09:00  |  Start Up 1 to Start Up 2: How learning from past failure can set you up for future success.
21:10  |  The undesigned-for user is remote work is... the facilitator!
32:20  |  Building the right it and building it right: designing and prioritizing for user engagement
42:25  |  Inspiration from extreme users
43:50  |  Leadership style changing over time and holding space for feedback
54:20  |  The next tech-steps in enhancing

Here's where you can go to connect with Jakob or know more about butter
LinkedIn  |  https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakobknutzen/

Welcome to our firs power pair guest appearance at the Business Karaoke Podcast. We're joined by Kristy Ishii, a bi-cultural career transition & wellness coach for expats in the USA and Japan and Nina Cataldo, DEI facilitator, identity coach and the founder of Hafu Ladies (a worldwide community for hafu and mixed-Japanese womxn).

In this episode we deep dive into how to navigate the challenges of growing up and now running businesses in a mix of cultures and languages. Then to reframe these challenges in a way to use them to your advantage.  

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. I'd invite you to go ahead and share this episode with anyone in your network who might benefit from it.

💡Key Conversations
07:25  |  The impact of environment on your growth
14:05  |  Leaning into our difference culture inspired personalities to navigate the world
24:00  |  Pivoting your business in the face of challenges
41:30  |  Leveraging your stories as your toolkit
49:30  |  Creating the conditions for collaboration

Connect with Kristy & Nina here:
Kristy  |  Instagram, LinkedIn
Nina  |  Instagram, LinkedIn
Brave, Bold Mastermind  |  Website

In this episode we are joined by Fuminori Gunji. Gunji was a founding team member of Softbank Robotics from 2013 to 2016, leading Softbank's domestic B2B businesses and overseas expansion efforts. In 2017, Fuminori Gunji headed business development for MakeLeaps. By the end of 2018, Gunji had successfully closed MakeLeaps’ M&A deal with Ricoh and went on to lead MakeLeaps in 2019 as COO until resigning in 2021. Fuminori is an adviser at Blue Circle and a mentor for 500 Startups, a global VC firm.

In this episode we do something different. Rather than having an English and a Japanese episode we are promoting a new model and mixing it all up in the one episode. The first half is in English and we dive in Gunji-san's journey of being raised in German, Japanese and English and how he leveraged his unique background to ever be creating new opportunities and value for his customers and then we switch to Japanese and talk about everything from reverse culture shock to the challenges surrounding the Japanese model of 'copy paste' when it comes to global expansion and about the mindset shift that happens when you think of every single person around you as a customer.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. I'd invite you to go ahead and share this episode with anyone in your network who might benefit from it.

Key conversations
🇬🇧  04:35  | Gunji-san's Journey
🇬🇧 16:00   |  Lessons applicable from big corporations that served Gunji-san well in his startups
🇯🇵 35:55  |  Reverse culture shock
🇯🇵 46:40  |  Reflections on Japanese management practice

To learn more about Gunji-san, connect with him here:
LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/fuminori-gunji-38a22589/
Blue Circle | https://www.bluecircle.co.jp/

In this episode we are joined by Takuma Iwasa. Iwasa-san is the founder and CEO of IOT consumer electronics company, Shiftall Inc.

I first met Iwasa-san when I visited his Tokyo offices with a mural friend. I say office but it really is more like a buzzing lab. Each person uniquely designed their own workplace with things that inspire them and it's not uncommon to see people walking around wearing prototypes. When Facebook changed their named and unveiled the concept of the Metaverse and VR as the next phase of the internet, I thought who better to talk to about all this than someone who already lives there.

In this episode, Iwasa-san shares his journey from being a curious student of computers to his role as the founder and CEO of Shiftall. We explore the gaps in expectation of VR, the Metaverse as the internet 2.0 and the kinds of contributions Iwasa-san sees his company making to build that reality.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and moreover, I hope it brings you value and is worth your time.

Let's begin!

Key Conversations
05:45  |  When did you fall in love with computers & Intro to Iwasa
17:05  |  Shiftall current team and how they come up with new products
23:40  |  Gaps; Localization and exhibition and end user
31:43  |  Metaverse as Internet 2.0
36:05  |  Halitrax and preparing for the Metaverse
45:48  |  Metaverse use cases
53:35  |  What's the Japanese pulse on privacy and Iwasa's hope looking forward

This episode is also available on YouTube ⬇️
https://youtu.be/2cTqyIkD1OI

Find out more about Iwasa-san here:
Website | https://ja.shiftall.net
Twitter | https://twitter.com/warenosyo
LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/warenosyo/

In this episode we are joined by the Co-Founder and CEO of LUMA Institute, Chris Pacione. Chris leads a highly-skilled, multidisciplinary team of designers and practitioners located around the world who are passionate about fostering the practice of design thinking among individuals, within teams, and across entire organizations. He is co-author of the LUMA System and the book “Innovating for People” and has been awarded numerous US and EU patents for his work.

This episode is quite special for me for a few reasons; as I referenced on the podcast but maybe not gone into too much detail, Human Centered Design, or HCD and Design Thinking, is a cornerstone of my work igniting the change I wish to see in the world. And I use the LUMA System, which Chris as part of developing, to do it. This episode is the beautiful collisions of my Business Karaoke World, Human Centered Design World and Design Thinking Japan World and I couldn't be happier to share it with you.

We'll define Human Centered Design and make the case that everyone is a Designer. We'll explore how that Design literacy may become as important as Math literacy for the modern knowledge worker. We'll talk about the innovation environment leadership will need to build in order to see a return on investment of up-skilling their people to a basic level of Design literacy.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and moreover, I hope it brings you value and is worth your time.

Let's begin!

💡Key Conversations
05:00  |  With the definition of Design, everyone is a Designer.
15:30  |  The role of Design literacy in the economy may become as important as Math literacy in the industrial revolution
23:30  |  The evolving dialogue and misconceptions between Business & Design
32:35  |  What does change look like in organizations with long and richer histories
42:25  |  Is there a HCD metric we can look to?
46: 55 |  The Karaoke Innovation Mindset
51:00  |  How Leadership can create an environment for innovation
57:35  |  The daily business of creating extraordinary things
----
To know more about Chris or the LUMA System, have a look here:
LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-pacione-ceo-luma/
Website | https://www.lumaworkplace.com

In this episode we are joined by Jayne Nakata. Jayne is the creator of PodLaunch with Jayne and the host of the Transformations with Jayne Podcast.  Jayne story's  one day noticing that there was no voice of other women like herself: foreign, a mother and living outside of the major cities in Japan, feeling isolated and alone in their daily lives to not only publishing over 100 episodes but empowering other women in Japan to overcome the challenges of bringing their voices to the podcasting world.

I wanted to share the lessons of; curiosity, listening and overcoming perceived circumstance to create something new and become an industry thought leader in the process, with the Business Karaoke community as even if you're not building a podcast, I'm sure' you're facing similar situations in your businesses, teams or departments. 

We dive into what it means to lead by listening, the difference between those who do and those who don't after having a "I should have a podcast moment," the opportunity for women to name and claim a niche dialogue and if the best tools result in the best podcasts.

I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did. Please go ahead and share your thoughts with me on your favorite social media platform.

Also, I have some news for you, the Business Karaoke Podcast is now also on Instagram. Follow us over at @BusinessKaraokePodcast to be the first to see our memorable moments from each episode.

Let's begin!

Key Conversations 💡
05:40  |  Leading by listening
10:55  |  Beyond the "I should have a podcast moment"
23:25  |  Where are the women in podcasting?
33:55  |  Do the best tools make the best podcasts?
41:45  |  Moving from downloads to KPIs with context

This episode is also available on YouTube ⬇️
https://youtu.be/tix4W9biFc0

To know about out more about Jayne, follow these links ⬇️
Website  | https://www.jaynenakata.com/podcastconsulting
Facebook  |  https://www.facebook.com/transformationswithjayne
Instagram  | https://www.instagram.com/transformationswithjayne/
LinkedIn  | https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaynenakata/ 

このエピソードで堀江愛利さんあ来ていただきました。堀江愛利さんはWomen's Startup Lab（WSUL）の創設者兼CEO。 WSULはシリコンバレーにあるアクセラレーターです。 WSULは、イノベーションとコラボレーションを通じて女性の成功に取り組んでいます。堀江愛利さんは情熱、結果、そして人前で話すことで国際的に有名です。 さらに、堀江愛利さん最近、アントレプレナー誌によって2020年の100人のPowerful Woman の1人desu。

この会話では、色々な面白いテーマについて話します。例えば、なぜ堀江愛利さんは大企業から起業家精神に移動したのか、どうやって堀江愛利さんはシリコンバレーの風景を影響しているのか、堀江愛利さんとWSULのチームは、どうやって女性のスタートアップ創業者が成功するために独自にサポートしているか。

10代の留学生の経験でも、現在のシリコンバレーの成功でも、やっぱり同じ一生懸命を頑張っている、笑っている、堀江愛利さんのですね。

この会話を楽しんでいただければ幸いです。 InstagramやLinkedInでみなさまの考えやコメントを是非是非共有してください。

愛利さんをもっと知りたい方へ、以下のリンクをご覧ください。
LinkedIn  |  https://www.linkedin.com/in/arihorie/
WSUL  |  https://womenstartuplab.com

In this episode we are joined by Ari Horie. Ari-san is the Founder and CEO of Women's Startup Lab (WSUL). A Silicon Valley based accelerator dedicated to creating a world where women thrive and succeed through innovation and collaboration. Ari is internationally recognized for her passion, results and public speaking prowess and was recently listed as one of the 100 Powerful Women of 2020 by Entrepreneur magazine.

In this conversation we dive into Ari's unique reason to move from corporate to entrepreneurship, why Ari is working so tirelessly to change the landscape of Silicon Valley and how she and her team at WSUL create opportunities for female startup founders to accelerate their path to success and funding. What I found so interesting about the decision to focus on female founders was not that Ari was deeply passionate  about women's issues, rather she saw a target group suffering under an unmet need, and in the true spirit of an entrepreneur, she flew in solved it.

Listening to Ari's share her story, whether it's the formative experience of her time as an student exchange or the impact she's created with WSUL; it's all been done with the same can-do, laugh so before we attitude. Ari-san really is the image of how we do one thing is how we do everything.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. Please share you thoughts or comments with me over on Instagram or LinkedIn.

💡 Key Conversations

04:25  |  The courage to share when it's not going well
07:35  |  Ari's move from corporate to entrepreneurship
12:50  |  The pushback from old systems on new businesses
22:40  |  Balancing structure and uncertainty
31:40  |  The business of investing in women

To know more about Ari or WSUL follow the links below:
LinkedIn  |  https://www.linkedin.com/in/arihorie/
WSUL  |  https://womenstartuplab.com

In this episode, we have the rare pleasure of welcoming back a guest and its all the more special as its close friend of the Business Karaoke Podcast, Evan Burkosky. Evan is a Digital Transformation (DX) expert in Japan helping  businesses adopt new technologies and improve productivity via AI, automation, eCommerce, and retail logistics. He has worked both agency-side and vendor-side selling to Japan’s Fortune 500, co-founded several startups, and is a Senior Advisor to several others. Currently he is the Country Manager for Dynamic Yield, Board Director at TELL, and Senior Advisor at Fast Track Asia.

If you haven't yet had the pleasure of hearing Evan's first episode, I'd recommend you do. As to understand where we are and where we are going, which is the focus of this episode, it's valuable to understand the factors that brought us here in the first place. For example; Evan's theory that Japan's reluctance to move completely to the cloud has more to do with the fear of natural disasters than immaturity of digital transformation. In this episode we dive into Japan's digital scorecard, the pandemic and other accelerators to change, the 2025 Digital cliff and Evan's personal predictions about what's ahead. I love this episode because its full of the kind of actionable ideas and information that get you focused and excited on a challenge, not confused overwhelmed.

Also, the day this episode is live is Evan's birthday so feel free to head over to LinkedIn and say happy birthday!

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform.

Let's begin!

💡 Key Conversations 
02:55  |  Intro to Evan and why DX is important to him personally
07:53  |  Japan’s Digital Scorecard
14:05  |  If the benefit of investment is obvious, what's the hold up?
27:55  |  Pandemic and other accelerators
52:30  |  Recommendations and projections to jump the 2025 "Digital Cliff"
1:20:35  |  The role Design Thinking may play

Here are some places for you to learn more about Evan and his work:
Evan's first Business Karaoke episode | https://www.buzzsprout.com/1009438/5248537
LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/evanburkosky/

In this episode we are joined by Kayo Tokumaru. Kayo-san is the founder of AndAssist, a Tokyo-based bilingual virtual assistant company. Like all inspirational businesses, the reason WHY they exist outshines WHAT they do to exist. It became quite clear to Kayo-san that there simply weren't enough hours in the day to invest in both an, at times rigid, corporate career and a new growing family. So she moved from the corporate world to started her own business to give both herself and other working mothers the flexibility the need to thrive in both work and life.

This episode is what we call in Design Thinking, the problem space of the double diamond. We are not yet in the solution space; we're simply trying to map the territory and understand the issue better before we jump into how we can solve it. Now we, as a society, are moving past the "working from home due to COVID restrictions" to rethinking, redesigning and reorganization new ways to collaborate, I am personally committed to investing more time and energy to creating conversations around work-life balance for working families. I hope you'll find some value in it.

Kayo-san shares with us the founding story of AndAssist, we explore  the historical image of a strong Japanese woman and learn about some memorable moments along Kayo-san entrepreneurial journey.

I hope you enjoyed this episode as much as I did!

💡 Key Conversations

00:45  |  AndAssist founding story
03:20  |  Working with working mothers and what actions can corporations take to support re-entry
07:40  |  The image of a strong Japanese female - Queen Himiko and the current underutilized female workforce. 
12:05  |  Changing traditions and 5 years from now
16:00  |  Standout AndAssist story

Here are some places for you to learn more about Kayo-san or AndAssist;
LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/kayo-tokumaru-239612187/
Website | https://andassist.jp

このエピソードで And Assistの德丸佳世さんが来ていただきました。佳世さんは東京にあるバイリンガルのバーチャルアシスタント会社の創設者です。佳世さんからどうのようにAnd Assistを始めたとか、女性が離職する一般的な理由とか、将来への希望についてなとを聞きます。

この会話を楽しんでいただければ幸いです。お気に入りのソーシャルプラットフォームでフィードバックを共有することを忘れないでください。

じゃ、始めましょう！

💡 Key Conversations
03:20  |  And Assistのストーリー
10:45  |  女性が離職する一般的な「もったいない」理由
18:30  |  AndAssistの思い出に残る瞬間
23:20  |  働く母親に対する認識と「訳わからないルール」を変える
30:30  |  働く母親を支援するための行動

德丸さんについてもっと知りたい方へ以下のリンクをご覧ください ⬇️
LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/kayo-tokumaru-239612187/
Website | https://andassist.jp

In this episode of the Business Karaoke podcast, we have the pleasure welcoming back Ryan Hart. Ryan first joined us in episode 34 to talk about Customer Experience and today he joins us to dive deeper into solving Japan’s Customer Experience Dilemma and why better Research, leads to better Design and better CX.

Ryan currently empowers a team of talented creative and strategic doers to help accelerate experience, digital, and cultural transformations for organizations in Japan at the PwC Experience Center in Tokyo.

In this episode Ryan leads us on a journey to explore the importance of elevating Research and Design to have an earlier seat at the decision making table, the consequences of improving user research to progress from design for functionality to design for emotion (or not) and most exciting Ryan shares with us a string of stories from the field.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. Please leave your feedback with me on you favorite social media platform. It absolutely makes my day to know what you enjoyed and more importantly, WHY, so that I can bring you more of what you'd like to see in future episodes.

Let's begin!

Key Conversations 💡
02:08  |  How Ryan got started in CX and his personal mission in Japan
10:08  |  Elevating Research and Design to have an earlier seat at the decision making table
20:40  |  Redesigning from form follows function to function follows feeling and the current state of user research
28:58  |  A surprising piece of data a skin care company uncovered through research
31:25  |  How to small with research and the 5 persona guide
37:20  |  A memorable research success story and the power of agile communication in the design process
45:40  |  The consequences of product and service design in Japan lacking both meaningful human centered research and design

Here's a few more places you can learn more about Ryan ⬇️
Ryan's previous BKP episode  |  https://www.buzzsprout.com/1009438/6567415
LinkedIn |  https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-hart-a9254b4/

In this episode we are joined by Robin Doenicke. Robin is the founder and CEO of Zensho, paradigm-changing ‘blue ocean’ platform that would liberate and reward recruitment professionals to a degree previously unseen. What Robin calls, "being in business for yourself but not by yourself." The market responded with awarding them with “Best Company to Work For” and “Best Newcomer.” And in 2020, APAC Entrepreneur magazine featured him as one of the “20 Most Influential Entrepreneurs in Japan.”

Robin's passion for embracing and  reimagining the potential of his industry is only surpassed by the passion has to his people, who he calls his tribe. This episode is personal journey of one martial artist turned entrepreneur on how focus, being present and not arguing with reality can bring you closer to your why and the real work you were put on this planet to do.

I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did and please share your feedback with me on your favorite social media platform.

💡 Key Conversations
08:00  |  Unlikely inspirations and reimagining your own business
15:45  |  The influence of martial arts on business
20:26  |  Building a "yes" tribe
26:40  |  Leveraging the individuality of a team
33:35  |  Memorable entrepreneurial moments and the impact of changing your story
38:07  |  Letting life flow and looking forward with peace in your heart

Have a look at these links to connect with or learn more about Robin:
LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/robindoenicke/
Zensho | https://www.zenshoagency.com

このエピソードでVenture Café Tokyoオペレーションマネージャーの漆原琢雄さんが来ていただきました。

Venture Café Tokyoオペレーションマネージャー。米Northeastern University卒業後、Boston Red Soxのビデオ部とマーケティング部に7年間勤務。Babson CollegeにてMBAを取得の他に、アート、イノベーション、不動産等の多様なビジネス背景を持ちいます。自由な時間には、スポーツを楽しみ、東京に戻ってからは美味しい食事を楽しんでいます。

琢雄さんから、多様な人々やアイデアが集まったら、想像したことがない機会が発生する経験について私たちと共有しています。

この会話を楽しんでいただければ幸いです。お気に入りのソーシャルプラットフォームでフィードバックを共有することを忘れないでください。

じゃ、始めましょう！

💡 Key Conversations
01:45  |  することは良いこと
06:50  |  みんなはイノベーターです
15:15  |  イノベーションと若者（教えてくれる人が大事）
20:35  |   デジタルと伝統的な文化のバランス
25:00  |   ガイドラインの一番、楽しむこと
31:05  |  タイプ「C」の人のメリット

琢雄さんについてもっと知りたい方へLinkedInかTokyo Venture Cafeのウェブサイトをご覧ください。

In this episode we are joined by Takuo Urushihara, who just goes by Tak. Tak wears many hats; not only is he the director of Operations at Venture Café Tokyo but  he also leads a long standing traditional family business in Japan.

In this episode, we take a deep dive into the importance of embracing unlikely connections in the service of others and how they can provoke new opportunities. And who better to walk us through through this topic with a string of personal stories, than Tak! Tak was born in Japan but raised globally; having spent portions of his life in Malaysia and the United States. Diversity is not only a theme in this personal life but also most certainly also in his professional life, having done creative work for the Boston Red Sox to now building one of the most prominent innovation communities in Japan with Venture Café Tokyo.

In the Business Karaoke community, we, like you and I, we're also in a way like Tak. Striving to make our Japan "and" stories somehow worthwhile maybe not even for ourselves but at least for somebody else.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. Please share your feedback with me on your favorite social medial platform.

Let's begin!

💡 Key Conversations
03:33  |  Failure is good enough for a t-shirt
08:05  |  The unlikely start of building Venture Cafe Tokyo
15:09  |  Returning to Japan with new challenge
25:30  |  Type "C" people and building communities where diversity is an advantage
44:30  |  Putting the "I" in innovation - contributing to a community in your own way
53:40  |  Future hopes
 
To learn more about Tak and Tokyo Venture Cafe  and CIC Tokyo follow the links.

In this episode we are joined by Boris Jitsukata. Boris is the Managing Director of the German entity of Goodpatch, a Design Studio, and an executive board director at their HQ in Tokyo. Goodpatch went public in 2020 at Tokyo Stock Exchange, making it Japan's first IPO as a design firm.

In this episode Boris shares with us the power of leaning into uncertainty like a designer, his journey of not only growing a company but also growing with a company. We also explore the power of duality; both in Business and Design but also in a Japanese HQ and international sister studios and look the the future and learn about what trends Boris is most excited about including; life beyond the screen.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. Please share you feedback with me on your favorite social medial platform.

Let's begin!

💡 Key Conversations
09:05  |  From Startup to IPO; diversifying revenue streams and managing talent
27:05  |  Prototyping in and on your business
39:00  |  Managing multi-city studios; siblings not twins
51:20  |  Future trends; Planet-Centric Design, XR & life beyond the screen
01:01:40  |  Role of co-creating in tackling complex problems

Learn more about Boris here or Goodpatch here.

---

In this episode, we are joined by Azarel Chamorro. Azarel is the Smart Mobility Lead at Mirai Share and transport consultant based in Japan with passion for Mobility-as-a-Service, public transport and new mobility technologies.

I have been an avid LinkedIn follower of Azarel's work and commentary on mobility for some time now. When I shared with him that I love how he brings fun and excitement to mobility he quickly responded, "I bring no fun to mobility, mobility brings fun to us!" And this is very much the tone of the conversation.

Over the next hour we're lucky enough to leverage Azarel's International experience in everything from mobility startups to public or established companies to cover everything; from life as a mobility consultant during global lockdowns, how the world class Japanese railway system was largely founded on their research tours to early 20th century Europe and trends to look for in the next 12 - 24 months.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. Please share you feedback with me on your favorite social medial platform.

Let's begin!

💡 Key Conversations

04:28  |  Development of world class Japanese railways
14:33  |  Train stations as ecosystems that drive new business models
25:44  |  Is there a maturity gap between mobility and digitalization?
32:48  |  Privatisation; a unique success story
40:22  |  How the Bullet Train (Shinkansen) began as failure
48:15  |  Trends to watch

Want to know more or connect with Azarel?

LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/azchaob/
Website | www.miraishare.co.jp

In this episode we are joined by Helen Iwata. Helen is the Founder and President of Sasuga Communications and is dedicated to helping professional women to excel in their work without being exhausted through the power of the Sasuga! Success Cycle. She's a bilingual Brit, wife, and mother, with a 3-decade corporate and entrepreneurial career in Japan, including 10 years with McKinsey & Company in Tokyo. 

I was so interested in having Helen join us on the Business Karaoke podcast because as much as I love talking with global leaders who are passionate about innovation, transformation and doing business in Japan in our digital world, after listening to Helen's Sasuga podcast I recognised we haven't spent as much time talking about things like; mental health, being kind to yourself and quality self dialogue as equally important components to running an impactful business as perhaps we should.

Thinking that we are now clicking over to a year of isolation and remote working and I wanted to reflect and recharge on how we can not only be well in times of COVID but also excel.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. Please share you feedback with me on your favorite social medial platform.

Let's begin!

Key Moments
💡Helen's passion of supporting women in business and strategies on stepping up
💡Moving from survive to excel during remote work and when you're not sure if your best is really good enough
💡Creating micro-moments to live your best life
💡Podcasting and how consistency can grow into passion

If you'd like to connect with or find out more about Helen, here are some places to do that:
Website: sasugacommunications.com
Podcast: sasugacommunications.com/podcast
Facebook: facebook.com/sasugacommunications
Instagram: instagram.com/heleniwata
YouTube: youtube.com/heleniwata
Clubhouse: @heleniwata

<Women’s Success>
Sasuga! Cafe: sasugacommunications.com/cafe
Sasuga! VIP Women’s Coaching: sasugacommunications.com/vip

このエピソードでは星野ファビアンさんがきていただきました。ファビアンは人事ストラテジストであり、異文化コミュニケーションの専門家であり、世界最高の人材を引き付けて維持するための最善の方法について日本企業に相談したことから得た気づきを共有してもらいます。多様性のビジネスケースと、文化のギャップを克服する戦略についても説明します。

この会話を楽しんでいただければ幸いです。お気に入りのソーシャルプラットフォームでフィードバックを共有することを忘れないでください。

じゃ、始めましょう！

Key Conversations

02:30  |  多様性のビジネスメリット
10:05  |  職場で外国人の才能を活用する
15:15  |  日本に貢献したいファビアン

 
星野ファビアンさんについてもっと知りたい方へ：
LinkedIn  |  https://www.linkedin.com/in/fabian-hoshino/
Website  |  https://fabianhoshino.com

In this episode we are joined by Fabian Hoshino. Fabian is an HR strategist and cross cultural communication expert who share his insights from consulting Japanese companies on the best ways to attract and retain the world's best talent.  We deep dive into the business case for diversity, the opportunities that exist in engaging a diverse talent pool and some strategies in how to bridge the gaps.

I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did! Please leave your feedback with me on your favourite social media platform.

Let's begin!
 
Key Conversations:
04:45  |  The changing expectations of professionals in our post-COIVD world and creating a remote employee experience
12:50  |  The deeper story of diversity in Japanese companies
25:00  |  Digital transformation and HR
32:55  |  Foreign companies contributing to better places to work
40:00  |  The business case behind culture

Want to know more about Fabian?
LinkedIn  |  https://www.linkedin.com/in/fabian-hoshino/
Website  |  https://fabianhoshino.com

In this episode we are joined by Kana Akagi. Kana is a multi-faceted entrepreneur on and off who leads with passion and a big heart. To give you an idea of just how deeply she lives this mantra, Kana wrote a book on how business success, particularly her business success, follows making family a priority. In this episode we learn about challenges and opportunities of founding the first ever hackathon in Japan. And Kana shares how creating communities not increasing followers is the key to building a robust business in a digital age.

I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did! Please leave your feedback with me on your favourite social media platform.

Key Conversations

03:20  |  Leveraging success from other fields to lead a new venture - Japan's first ever Hackathon
14:15  |  The value in community over followers
16:50  |  3 pillars of creating engaged communities

---

If you want to know more about Kana:
Japan Hackathon  |  https://www.japanhackathon.com
LinkedIn  |  https://www.linkedin.com/in/kana-kanako-akagi-4255861a0/

このエピソードでは赤城賀奈子さんがきていただきました。 賀奈子さんは情熱と大きな心でリードしている起業家です。このおかげでビジネスの成功が家族を優先することに続く方法の本も書きました。

賀奈子さんは日本で初めてのハッカソンをゼロから設立した方法を共有していました。 あとは、デジタル時代にフォロワーを増やすよりも、コミュニティを作ることはビジネスを立ち上がるための鍵であることについて話します。

この会話を楽しんでいただければ幸いです。お気に入りのソーシャルプラットフォームでフィードバックを共有することを忘れないでください。

じゃ、始めましょう！

Key Conversations
03:35  |  日本でハッカソンを設立するモチベーション
13:50  |  コミュニティービルディング
26:45  |  ビジネスの成功が家族を優先する
36:10  |  人々に力を与える
43:40  |  多様性による改善

赤城さんについてもっと知りたい方：
Japan Hackathon: https://www.japanhackathon.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kana-kanako-akagi-4255861a0/

In this episode we are joined by Jared Campion. Jared is the founder of DreamDrive, a company based in Tokyo who are leading the way for people to experience Japan by camper van. Join Jared and I on this road trip as we explore how Jared's childhood passion of camping with his family evolved into a business which is now part of a movement that is challenging not only how we think about travel but also is challenging the current model of living in big cities. In his journey as a foreign founder, Jared shares how he's continuously testing and validating his product and business model to ensure he's providing the best possible experience to his customers, the importance of gathering the right team and developing the ability to recognize and execute on opportunity.

I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did! Please leave your feedback with me on your favourite social media platform.

Key Conversations

05:10  |  Going from an idea to a business
17:25  |  Evolving DreamDrive business model
23:25  |  Role of Mentors
29:50  |  Challenges of being s foreign startups founder
36:50  |  Building a the right startup team
42:45  |  Importance of validating your startup idea
55:05  |  The future of travel; post population and the evolving form vehicles

---

More about Jared and DreamDrive ⬇️

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaredcampion/
https://www.dreamdrive.life

今回のエピソードでは、保坂隆太さんが参加していただきました。 シアトルでデータおよびマーケティング分析分野のチームリードを10年務めた後で、隆太さんは日本に戻り、日本のスラロームの新しいマーケットを主導しています。

この会話では、隆太さんがクラウドキャピタルから東京への移行と彼の2つの理論について説明します。 デジタルトランスフォーメーションにはマインドセットのトランスフォーメーションです。あとは、現代のソフトウェアエンジニアリングにおける「物づくりカルチャー」を再発見するベネフィットです。隆太さんのテクノロジーへの情熱を超えるのは、彼の人々への情熱だけです。

この会話を楽しんでいただければ幸いです。お気に入りのソーシャルプラットフォームでフィードバックを共有することを忘れないでください。

じゃ、始めましょう！

Key Takeaways:

03:50  |  シアトルから東京家の逆カルチャショック
10:25  |  デジタルトランスフォーメーションにはマインドセットのトランスフォーメーション
20:00  |  テックエコシステムを作り事
23:45  |  現代のソフトウェアエンジニアリングにおける「物づくりカルチャー」
29:30  |「物づくりカルチャー」を大事にするための必要な変化
34:05  |  将来に楽しみにしてるテックの変化

---

隆太さんについてもっと知りたい方へ
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rhosaka/
Slalom: https://www.slalom.com/locations/tokyo

In this episode we're joined by Ryuta Hosaka. After a decade in  Seattle leading teams in the data and marketing analytics space, Ryuta is back in Japan and leading the new market launch for Slalom in Japan. In this conversation Ryuta walks us through the transition from the Cloud Capital back to Tokyo and his two theories that; Digital Transformation is really a transformation of the mind and the great opportunities that lie in rediscovering "Craftsmanship (Monozukuri) Culture" in modern software engineering. The only thing that surpasses Ryuta's passions for technology, is his passion for people.

I hope you enjoyed this episode as much as I did and please remember to share your feedback with me on your favourite social media platform.

Let's begin!

Key Takeaways:
03:30  |  Reverse culture shock and hidden opportunities in the market.
07:40  |  Digital transformation is a transformation of the mind and thinking.
19:30  |  "Craftsmanship (Monozukuri) Culture" in Modern Software Engineering
31:40  |  Changes to look forward to in a post COVID world.

---

Connect with Ryuta here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rhosaka/
Learn more about Slalom here: https://www.slalom.com/locations/tokyo

このエピソードで松永 エリックさんが参加していただきました。我々の一般社 団法人デジタル・イノベーションの活用でエリックさんと出会いました。

エリックさんは非常に非伝統的なプロファイルを持ってますが、さまざまな業界で成功を収めていました。現在エリックさんは大学教授だったり、プロフェッショナルミュージシャンだったり、コンサルティング会社最高顧問もやっています。この会話では、ビジネスにおける共感、価値観、文化の役割と、自分おの人生をデザインする事について話します。

この会話を楽しんでいただければ幸いです。お気に入りのソーシャルプラットフォームでフィードバックを共有することを忘れないでください。

じゃ、始めましょう！

Key Takeaways:

04:15  |  人生のモットーについて
16:10  |  困難な環境でDXの最初の一歩
24:20  |  DXはCIOではなく、CEOの役割だ
31:30  |  ビジネスで共感、価値観、文化の影響
46:10  |  変化をするための必要な勇気
51:55  |  ライフデザイン

松永 エリックさんについてもっと知りたい方：
Website | http://ericmatsunaga.jp

Bio |  1967年、東京生まれ。青山学院大学大学院 国際政治経済学研究科修士課程修了。バークリー音楽大学卒業（JAZZ専攻）。幼少期を南米（ドミニカ共和国）で過ごし、15歳からプロミュージシャンとして活動。大手メーカーのシステムエンジニア、AT&Tを経たのち、コンサル業界に。エンターテインメント＆メディアに特化したビジネスコンサルタントとして、アクセンチュア、野村総合研究所、日本IBMを経て、DXコンサルタントの草分けとしてデロイトトーマツ コンサルティング メディアセクターAPAC統括パートナー・執行役員に就任。PwCコンサルティングではデジタルサービス日本統括パートナーとしてデジタル事業の立ち上げを行い、エクスペリエンスセンターをコンセプトデザインからリードした。2018年よりアバナード(株) デジタル最高顧問。2019年4月より青山学院大学 地球社会共生学部 (国際ビジネス、デジタルイノベーション) 教授。2020年4月より事業構想大学院大学 客員教授。

In this episode we are joined by Makoto Shibata. Shibata-san leads FINOLAB which was ranked in the top 10 innovation labs in APAC in 2020. The FINOLAB community consists of 50 startup members and 16 corporate members to stimulate innovation in Financial Technology in one of the most prominent international financial centers, the Otemachi area in Tokyo.

I was keen to invite Shibata-san to share his insights on FinTech and Open Innovation not only because of his experience with startups and accelerators but because of his remarkable experience in leading emerging technology, FinTech initiatives and digital banking at MUFG.  This unique balanced perspective that Shibata-san provides, balance not only between the traditional corporate world and the startup world but also between global and domestic markets is exactly the kind of insights that can equip us in the Business Karaoke Podcast community to understanding what kind of opportunities and disruption await us in the future.

This interview with Shibata-san is broken up into to parts; English and Japanese, where we explore the issues surrounding Open Innovation and Fintech from a global and local perspective, respectively.

I hope you enjoyed this episode as much as I did and please remember to share your feedback with me on your favourite social media platform.

Let's begin!

Key Takeaways

04:10  |  オープンイノベーションって何ですか？
06:40  |  イノベーションに慣れてないマネジメント
09:15  |  DXとフィンテクとオープンイノベーションの関係性
14:20  |  スタートアップとのコラボ
17:35  |  "Give and Take"

Find out more about Shibata-san and FINOLAB here:
LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/makoto-shibata-0aa0b33/)
FINOLAB (https://finolab.co.jp/index.html)

In this episode we are joined by Makoto Shibata. Shibata-san leads FINOLAB which was ranked in the top 10 innovation labs in APAC in 2020. The FINOLAB community consists of 50 startup members and 16 corporate members to stimulate innovation in Financial Technology in one of the most prominent international financial centers, the Otemachi area in Tokyo.

I was keen to invite Shibata-san to share his insights on FinTech and Open Innovation not only because of his experience with startups and accelerators but because of his remarkable experience in leading emerging technology, FinTech initiatives and digital banking at MUFG.  This unique balanced perspective that Shibata-san provides, balance not only between the traditional corporate world and the startup world but also between global and domestic markets is exactly the kind of insights that can equip us in the Business Karaoke Podcast community to understanding what kind of opportunities and disruption await us in the future.

This interview with Shibata-san is broken up into to parts; English and Japanese, where we explore the issues surrounding Open Innovation and Fintech from a global and local perspective, respectively.

I hope you enjoyed this episode as much as I did and please remember to share your feedback with me on your favourite social media platform.

Let's begin!

04:00  |  Defining open innovation 
07:00  |  Competitiveness of  Tokyo as a global FinHub
11:00  |  Overview of Major stakeholders and Fintech Initiatives 
22:30  |  What makes a strong FinTech community?
25:15  |  Foreign Startups becoming trusted business partners
27:15  |  Opportunities to serve underutilized personal assets
33:00  |  Looking to the next 3-5 years  

Find out more about Shibata-san and FINOLAB here:
LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/makoto-shibata-0aa0b33/)
FINOLAB (https://finolab.co.jp/index.html)

In this episode we are joined by Jason Ollison. In August of this year, Jason was quoted in an article from the Financial Times on a $6bn investment made by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway across Japan’s five biggest trading houses so I reach out to him to understand more. If there is another person as crazy about understanding the Japanese approach to international investment I simply must know them and talk to them.  Very early in our zoom coffee, it became clear that these trading houses turned global venture capital and private equity businesses may not be as simple and well-run as Buffet's mantra may suggest. So I asked Jason to come on the podcast so I wasn't the only one to benefits from his insights.

Now on a bit about Jason. Jason is a Global Business, Strategy, Risk Management, Political Economy, and International Investment professional with 20 years of experience as an award-winning Consultant. Jason has lived in Asia, Europe, Africa, and North America and is proficient in Japanese, with some Spanish ability. We are in GOOD HANDS, people.

Currently, Jason spend his time in New York where he is the Co-Founder and Global Managing Director of Asialantic Global Advisors, a boutique global business & investment advisory firm focused on real economy sectors, impact investing, small & medium enterprises, and corporate strategy.

We cover a lot of turf in this conversation; Evolution of Trading Houses (Sogo Shosha). So take your time, pause when you need to, come back when you can but most importantly, enjoy it! Enjoy these kinds of conversations that the Business Karaoke Podcast brings you - a modern lens on doing business in and with Japan.

Key Takeaways:

05:05  |  A historical look into how trading companies (Sogo Shosha) came to power.
18:46  |  The 3 revolutions.
31:10  |  Balancing resources with Human Resources in paving a path to success and the people behind the trading companies (Sogo Shosha).
43:45  |  Issues around foreign talent, diverse workforce, rotating workforce and retention  in long-term investment projects.
55:30  |  Skills sets required for trading companies' (Sogo Shosha) talent of the future.
1:26:30  |  Leveraging balance over diversity in closing the chasm.
1:40:20  |  The value of trading companies (Sogo Shosha) today and future investment opportunities.

To find out more about Jason, follow him on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-ollison-2b96341/).

In this episode we are joined by Nathan Paterson. Prior to his current role of Director at IDEO Tokyo, Nathan led the research and design team at Disney Interactive Labs in Los Angeles, crafting immersive experiences with emerging technologies for Disney Guests around the world. In addition to his corporate experience Nathan built a design studio in Tokyo and co-founded an online education startup.

At IDEO, Nathan's main focus is on client Learning Programs but as you'll soon discover helping individuals, teams, and organizations learn how to navigate change through design, creativity, and play is not only a career but a calling for Nathan. Over the next hour Nathan leads us through a dynamic dialogue on the importance of fostering curiosity and learning to develop people who can lead in an innovative future. We cover everything from how to design meaningful and personalized learning opportunities, the role of community and data, to a story of how Nathan and 6 year old daughter climbed Mount Fuji and what what lessons exists for organizations to re-think their learning experiences.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform.

Let's begin

Key Takeaways

02:55  |  A new take on ABC; from always closing to always curious. 
04:15  |  Where do the inspired find inspiration?
07:40  |  Designing and empowering learning experiences. 
12:15  |  Maturity of learning in organizations in Japan on a global spectrum. 
15:15  |  Adopting a growth mindset and the role rituals play in becoming a learning organization.
25:05  |  Creating unique rituals authentic to your organisation.
31:00  |  Emerging metrics in education and striving for "aha" moments.
40:05  |  Role of community in education.
49:40  |  Flexibility and exploration in learning catalyzed by COVID-19.
1:00:20  |  The fabric of organizations 5 years from now.

Learn more about Nathan here:
Personal website / Twitter / LinkedIn

Learn more about things important to Nathan here:
IDEO Tokyo
Learning at IDEO Tokyo
IDEO’s Emergent Futures document
Creative Difference
Tokyo Community School 

In this episode we are joined by Ryan Hart. Ryan leads teams who are innovating at the intersection of experience design, brand, and digital for international markets at PwC in Tokyo. I first was introduced to Ryan when researching the business case behind Human Centered Design and found his work on the ROI of Design Thinking. It was by far, some of the most forward thought leadership in the industry.

In this conversation, Ryan not only leads us through core themes of CX; like the importance of aligning your CX strategy with your corporate strategy or CX being only one of the experiences we need to design for in our business; there are many more, employee experience but also, he explores topics that many of us are trying to navigate right now such as; how do we balance  global best practice with the maturity of Customer Experience in Japan or what are the opportunities for CX in a post COVID world.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform.

Let's begin

Key Takeaways

04:40  |  What to differentiate when every one is doing CX?
08:40  |  Aligning your corporate goals with your CX metrics and why to be weary of "beacon metrics"
18:20  |  Where does Japan sit in terms of global maturity in CX?
25:20  |  The affect of employee experience on customer experience and your bottom line.
31:35  |  Ryan's hypothesis on why there is a natural gravitation to Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning over Customer Experience
37:30  |  Bringing the Design conversation upstream in business conversations
42:20  |  In 5 years we know we've done a good job when...
48:25  |  Opportunities for CX in a post-COVID world
50:55  |  How to develop CX allies in your business

Here's a few more places you can learn more about Ryan;
LinkedIn | (https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-hart-a9254b4/)
Previous work at Forrester | (https://go.forrester.com/blogs/author/ryan_hart/)

In this episode, John Kojiro Moriwaka, returns to share his insights of building  a new kind of innovation ecosystem in Japan; one where  Zebra Companies, Family Businesses & Start-Ups not only co-exist but thrive in the presence of one another. And really, who better to have share some insights than John-san who wears all 3 hats; leading his family-owned business Moriwaka Medical, Silicon Valley Ventures and Startup GRIND Fukuoka. 

Before we jump into the episode let me quickly share with you what a Zebra company is and why they've gained traction in Japan. Zebra companies take pride in doing real business, not aiming to disrupt current markets and aim achieving profitability and sustainability all the while helping to solve a societal problem. Read more here (https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/322407).

Also,  if you're listening to this episode before Nov. 29th 2020, you are warmly invited to join the the kick off of Startup Grind Fukuoka; here. 

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform.

Key takeaways;
09:30  |  Zebra Companies
15:40  |  Transforming Japanese economy through growing global citizens
18:15  |  Partnering with Startups and Family business
27:10  |  Learning from founding SCV
37:45  |  Bringing the Startup to Fukuoka
50:55  |  Inspiring others to join

Extra:
Startup Grind Fukuoka | Silicon Valley Ventures | Moriwaka Medical | John's Rap

日本でのDXを考えましたら、我々の次のゲスト、石川恵理香さんを考えないといけません。恵理香さんは16歳の時にアメリカで最初のハイテク企業を設立しました。

その時から、恵理香さんは世界最大のコンサルティング会社を代表したり、またはは50以上のDXプロジェクトをリードしたりしました。このエピソードでは何でデジタルトランスフォーメーションをする時に、デジタルとトランスフォーメーションも両方に優先するべきだについて色々話します。

この会話を楽しんでいただければ幸いです。お気に入りのソーシャルプラットフォームでフィードバックを共有することを忘れないでください。

じゃ、始めましょう！

Key Takeaways:

16:40  |  現在の現場は変えたいでしょうか？
20:05  |  デザイン思考でDXのメリットを経験する
24:00  |  DXに新型コロナウイルスの影響 
28:25  |  DXの将来を準備するために、今どうすればいい？
39:15  |  新型コロナの機会は？
42:35  |  デジタルの未来のためにGen-Zを教育する
48:15  |  起業家または大企業としてデジタルを実装する手順

石川さんについてもっと知りたい方:
LinkedIn, FaceBook, YouTube & Twitter.

In this episode we're joined by Jonathan Hiroshi Rossi. Jonathan is a co-founder and investor of cybersecurity & compliance awareness e-learning platform (Saya University). He is a trusted commentator and leads converassiotn around cybersecurity & compliance awareness through his serval shows  LLM Law Review, The Saya Awareness Show, Tokyo Summit series

Jonathan shares his mission to build a safe and secure digital experience for every man, woman & child and he is beginning with the 126 million people in Japan. Jonathan generously shares both his technical insights about Cybersecurity but also the role education and human centered design plays in building a safe world in which all of us can engage. 

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform.

Let's begin!

💡02:25   |  An introduction to Cybersecurity and building a "safe" home office in the shadow of COVID-19.
💡06:25   |  Security by Design.
💡09:15   |  Who's doing Cybersecurity well and where does Japan sit?
💡14:45   |  Human element in Cybersecurity.
💡20:36   |  Build Cybersecurity systems to reduce 'human error' and increase productivity.
💡24:20   |  First steps in designing Cybersecurity principles and how  "NOW" is the time for opportunity.
💡31:30   |  Saya University being driven by both a social purpose and large market market opportunity.
💡36:15   |  Creating relevant stories to educate on Cybersecurity.
💡41:20   |  Educating children about on-line bullying.
💡44:30   |  "Trust but Verify."
💡54:07   |  The role government and policy can play in Cybersecurity.
💡56: 25  |  Looking ahead to educating 126 million people.


To learn more about Jonathan:

Website | https://www.sayauniversity.com
LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanhiroshi/

In this episode, we explore the story behind the "Business Karaoke" name. We simple can't go on if we don't talk about it!

So what are the parallels between innovation and Karaoke? What is it about a Karaoke box that can evoke the psychological safety for a Japanese team when their office can’t?

• Empathize with the stakeholder
• Show, don’t tell
• Radical collaboration 
• Embrace experimentations
• Seek quick wins to build momentum 
• Get out of the building

You can follow me and the Business Karaoke Podcast LinkedIn or on Instagram.

このエピソードで 森若 幸次郎(John Kojiro Moriwaka)さんに来ていただきました。森若さんは海外と日本を繋ぐイノベーションプロバイダーです。森若さんは、海外と日本を繋ぐエキスパートだけではなくて、スタートアップと伝統的な企業を繋ぐエキスパートです。この１時間で森若さんの信条である「Innovations for a healthier life」と日本の経済と社会についてすぐく重要な質問、我々はどうしたら、ファミリービジネスでイノベーションを起こせるだろうかに話します。

私と同じようにこの会話を楽しんでいただければ幸いです。お気に入りのソーシャルプラットフォームでフィードバックを共有することを忘れないでください。

じゃ、始めましょう！

Key Takeaways:
💡10:20  |  イノベーションは近所から始まること
💡20:10  |  スタートアップと日本の企業の機会
💡26:40  |  グローバルなスタートアップエコシステム 
💡29:55  |  ゼブラ企業ってなんですか？
💡34:05  |  バランスをとること
💡38:45  |  イノベーションカルチャーを作ること
💡47:45  |  日本でのイノベーションの役割
💡51:30  |  海外とコラボをするためのアドバイス

森若さんについてもっと知りたいですか？
Website | https://moriwakamedical.wixsite.com/home or https://siliconvalleyventures.site
LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-kojiro-moriwaka-431a334a/
FaceBook | https://www.facebook.com/kojiro.moriwaka/
Twitter | https://twitter.com/KojiroMoriwaka

森若 幸次郎 (John Kojiro Moriwaka)：
海外と日本を繋ぐイノベーションプロバイダー、ゼブラ企業経営者、Nextユニコーン支援者、講演家

シリコンバレースタートアップの顧問、グローバルテクノロジーコンサルティング企業のアドバイザーとして、デジタルトランスフォーメーション支援、外資大企業顧問

株式会社シリコンバレーベンチャーズ 代表取締役社長兼CEO

株式会社モリワカ 専務取締役兼CIO
Startup Grind Fukuokaを２０２０年９月に設立し、ディレクターに就任
シリコンバレーを始め国内外の１０社のアクセラレーターのメンター
情報経営イノベーション大学 (iU) 客員教授

Myanmar Institute of Business (MIB) 客員教授
医療機器イノベーション企業 株式会社モリワカ経営者
Forbes JAPANコラムニスト

毎月、フォーブス、りそな銀行、Dream Gateでコラムを寄稿
1. Forbes JAPAN 「イノベーション·エコシステムの内側」https://forbesjapan.com/author/detail/1115
2.りそな銀行「イノベーションの哲学」「イノベーションの森」
3.Dream Gate 「グローバルスタートアップの作り方」

著書「ハーバードのエリートは、なぜプレッシャーに強いのか？」学研プラス

1972年創業医療機器イノベーション企業モリワカは、MRIやCTなどの医療機器、特別浴槽などの福祉·リハビリ機器からガーゼ、シリンジなどの消耗品、白衣まで販売
個人のお客様にもストーマ製品、電動車椅子、ベッドの販売·レンタル
コロナ対策関連商品（AIサーモカメラ、オゾン発生装置など)販売
海外の医療機器

海外の医療機器、デジタルヘルススタートアップの日本でのMarketing調査、PoC支援
https://moriwakamedical.wixsite.com/home

シリコンバレーベンチャーズ : http://siliconvalleyventures.site 

1. スタートアップから大企業の経営戦略支援 
   スタートアップ✖️大企業 = Open Innovation支援
2. シリコンバレーの著名ピッチコーチと共に、スタートアップ企業に対しピッチトレーニング
3. シリコンバレーやNextシリコンバレー（イスラエル、インド、フランス等）から、ディープテック、医療機器、SaaS、AI、ドローン等のスタートアップ企業や中堅企業等を日本に紹介
4. C2Cなどのアプリ開発（ベトナム、東京、アメリカ）、ブロックチェーン·ソフトウェア開発（エストニア）のご紹介
5. SDGs経営支援

趣味：ラップ（Gifted名義で「Down Wiz Us（feat. Dirty R.A.Y.）」をリリースし、全国ダウンロード第一位）、絵画、詩、社交ダンス、将棋、ワイン、家族との時間

このエピソードでは、ロッシェル・カップさんが参加します。 ロッシェルさんは、多文化環境でのコミュニケーションと仕事上の関係を改善することにより、クライアントの収益性と従業員の関与を高めるために取り組んでいます。 ロッシェルさんは現在、効果的な人的資源管理の実践と組織開発を支援することにより、日本企業がグローバルな事業でより成功するのを支援することに焦点を当てています。 このエピソードでは、ロシェルさんの最新の仕事である、日本企業がシリコンバレー企業のスピードをエミュレートするための8つの習慣を探ります。

ショーノートにロッシェル・カップさんからのe-Bookへのリンクを含めました。 私と同じようにこの会話を楽しんでいただければ幸いです。お気に入りのソーシャルプラットフォームでフィードバックを共有することを忘れないでください。

じゃ、始めましょう！

Key Takeaways
02:15  |  アメリカと日本のイノベーションモデルの違い。
04:00  |   チームのパフォーマンスにおける心理的安全性の役割。
08:23  |  会社と仕事でのフレキシビリティー の必要性。
14:00  | 新しいリーダーシップ方法として、サーバントリーダーシップ。
16:15  |  チームでサーバントリーダーシップを実装する。
20:05  |  自分からスタートする。

ロッシェル・カップさんについてもっと知りたいですか？
Website | https://japanintercultural.com
LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/rochellekopp
Free e-book | https://japanintercultural.com/free-resources/e-book

In this episode we are joined by Rochelle Kopp. Rochelle works to help clients increase profitability and employee engagement through improved communication and working relationships in multicultural environments. She is currently focused on helping Japanese companies be more successful in their global operations by supporting effective human resource management practices and organization development. In this episode, we explore Rochelle's most recent work, the 8 habits for Japanese companies to emulate the speed of Silicon Valley firms.

Also, I've included a link to  free e-book from Rochelle in the show notes. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform.

Let's begin!

Key Takeaways:
💡05:45  |  Younger generations driving organizational cultural change.
💡10:50  |  Influencing the decision making process when you're new to the organisation and THE skill Rochelle says you need to have.
💡13:10  |  Adopting user centricity and agile in Japan.
💡18:00  |  The 8 habits for Japanese companies to emulate the speed of Silicon Valley firms.
💡43:55  |  Psychological Safety as the differentiating factor behind high-performance teams.

To learn more about Rochelle:
Website | https://japanintercultural.com
LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/rochellekopp
Free e-book | https://japanintercultural.com/free-resources/e-book

In this episode we are joined by Garr Reynolds. Garr is an internationally acclaimed communications consultant and the author of best-selling books including the award-winning Presentation Zen, Presentation Zen Design, and the Naked Presenter. Garr’s approach to communication takes the principles and lessons from simplicity and traditional arts in Japan to reveal clear, concrete tips for communicating — and living — better. His approach has inspired people all over the world to communicate more clearly, creatively, and visually. In this episode, we explore what has and has not changed since he first launched Presentation Zen in 2007 and authentic storytelling in the age of Corona.

Before I knew Garr as a sought-after speaker and consultant, I knew him as ガー先生 and my professor at Kansai Gaidai University. Garr was perhaps the first person to point me in the direction of Design Thinking. My life would be drastically different if I had not attend his classes all those years ago, and I hope that the next hour has somewhat of the same affect on you.

Please share you thoughts, comments and takeaways with me on your social media platform.

Let's begin!

💡 04:00  |  An introduction to storytelling and
💡12:30  |  Presentation Zen 2007 and today.
💡20:20  |  Storytelling as a core competency in business; marketing is not just for the marketing department.
💡27:00  |  Winning someone's attention; What's in it for them?
💡31:06  |  Building trust as a storyteller
💡34:30  |  If you want to do a TED talk you probably shouldn't do a TED talk
💡37:30  |  Telling your story; people with disabilities have greater access
💡40:30  |  Solicited creativity and developing buying (nemawashi) for your idea
💡43:10  |  Know your audience; how building presentations is like a Beethoven symphony
💡50:40  |  Your audience wants to feel smart; help them get your point.
💡55:00  |  Points for telling a better story in your next presentation.
💡57:30  |  Humor in Japan; yes or no?


Follow Garr on:
Twitter (https://twitter.com/presentationzen)
Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/garrreynolds)
Books via his website (https://www.presentationzen.com)

In this episode we are joined by Rieko Uesaki. Rieko has leveraged her superpower of empathy into building 2 complementary businesses. She the founder of both ISSHONI, a partner to eCommerce merchants from various businesses on how to succeed in Japan and Mindox, where in her role as the resident therapist and life coach, she provides a safe space and the clarity required for her clients to heal from their past experiences and design a life that works for them. Being part of the team that launched Shopify in Japan in 2017 and having worked side by side local merchants, Reiko generously shares her insights on what it takes to launch a successful e-commerce strategy in Japan as well as future trends we can expect over the next 18 - 24 months. We then dive into, how empathy is not an isolated gift we apply to our customers but rather, empathy when first applied to ourselves, in our own lives, is the foundation necessary to create and contribute to our businesses and to the wider community.

Also, I've included some of free resources from Reiko in the show notes. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform. 

Let's begin!

💡 05:35  |  Launching Shopify in Japan
💡08:50  |  Building empathy for an unknown client
💡14:00  |  What do merchants need to succeed?
💡17:21  |  Why Japan has not implemented the problems that have been solved
💡21:30  |  An iterative approach to roll outs
💡27:00  |  Successful e-commerce strategies; trust and copy, automation and marketing
💡30:50  |  What's on the horizon for ecom; amazon luxury
💡34:45  |  The connection between tech and therapy
💡36:30  |  COVID and mental health
💡45:57  |  Plan who you want to be, not what you want to do.
💡50:16  |  Common COVID issues; self doubt and staying in your own thoughts
💡56:56  |  Similarities of living abroad and COVID; anger, divorce
💡1:00:53  |  Anger in your business life and how to control it before it controls you.

Free Toolkit: https://mindox.co/collections/tools
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rieko-uesaki/
E-commerce: https://isshoni.cc/en/ (English), https://isshoni.cc (Japanese)
Therapy: https://mindox.co
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Sign up to our newsletter: www.designthinkingjapan.com

In this episode we're joined by Tracey Northcott. Tracey is an Australian serial entrepreneur in Japan who created her successes in identifying and serving highly niche customers. She first came to Japan in the 90s to support her brother in building their software business which focused on solving problems related to the lack of multilingual mobile solutions and content. More recently, Tracey expanded her business portfolio to include a 7 figure minpaku, aka short-term rental, business, which she grew from 1 to 24 properties over a 5 year period. Tracey described 2020 to be THEIR year, the rental business was booming, their properties were fully booked as Japan and the world were excitedly waiting the Olympics until... Well, we all know how that ended but as a pure-bread entrepreneur, Tracey has taken 2020 in her stride to now grow a digital marketing consultancy.

This conversation is filled with both the strategy and the heart required to building and design a life and business on your terms.

Also, Tracey has a present for us. Go to the show notes and download her ebook for "ebook “7 Mistakes You’re Making Right Now (And How To Fix Them)” for free.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform. 

Let's begin!

💡08:34  |  Success in niche markets
💡13:05  |  Market changes and riding economic waves
💡16:25  |  Building a working culture and managing a multi-cultural teams.
💡25:22  |  How to keep moving in tough times
💡28:35  |  Short term rental business
💡38:56  |  How to sell and maintain mutual benefit
💡43:10  |  Staying motivated as an entrepreneur and designing a lifestyle
💡48:48  |  Creating "your" life in Japan
💡56:32  |  Doing the next right thing
💡1:00:40  |  Strategies on failing forward

Download your free copy of Tracey's book here.
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In this episode we're joined by Esben Grøndal. Esben co-founded the Japanese subsidiary of Danish Healthcare and welfare agency Public Intelligence, where he is responsible for everything from generating sales to delivering service design and innovation consultancy between Denmark and Japan. Over the course of this hour Esben uses his service design lens to walk us through the opportunities and challenges of the relatively untapped Japanese Welfare and Preventive Healthcare market. Together, as two Human Centered Design professionals, Esben and I explore how might we use Japanese cultural assets; such as omotenashi or teinei to accelerate the design process rather than hinder it. 

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform. 

Let's begin!

💡06:35  |  The business case for a Danish service company to open in Japan.
💡13:15  |  Dichotomy of "Japan = Technology."
💡18:58  |  What I wish someone had told me to when I started.
💡27:50  |  Conducting user research in Japan
💡31:38  |  ThHurdles in a fragmented Japanese healthcare system
💡37:51  |  Design Arbitrage in Japan; the COCOA app.
💡41:35  |  Denmark-Japan Collaboration; role of research and participants in an efficient design process
💡1:03:15  |  Channeling Japanese assets building into well designed services
💡1:06:10  |  Defining a model on how to involve citizens

To connect with Esben on LinkedIn here or to find out more about Public Intelligence, visit their website. 

Welcome back Business Karaoke Podcast community. As you know, I do my absolute best to bring you the most innovative, impactful and all around good people from our very niche Japan-Global community and this episode is no different. We're lucky enough to be joined by, renowned marketer and communications coach, Anthony Griffin. Anthony founded Saga Consulting, a boutique agency that supports small to mid-sized Japanese companies market to global audiences. Over the next hour, Anthony takes on a insight-rich, yet, personal entrepreneurial journey to address topics like; building a quality network of trusted partners, managing expectations clients who are used to white glove service, the importance of not only leading a healthy business but a healthy life abroad and the opportunities that exist on the horizon for those who can effectively communicate and then charge for the "plus alpha."

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform. Also, go and connect with Anthony Griffin on LinkedIn, he's got to be one of my most new yet most valued connections.

Let's begin!

05:50  |  Networking in COVID times; less quantity and higher quality.
08:30  |  The changing management mindset of "Foreign Curious" Japanese Small-Medium Businesses.
17:05  |  Managing scope and expectations in white glove Japan.
22:30  |  Surprising willingness to change.
27:00  |  Process of creating value based content and deploying equal empathy for your client and their client.
33:40  |  Illustrating commitment to the Japanese market.
36:55  |  Role of technology in cross border collaboration and a case study for global expansion.
41:15  |  How to prioritize projects both for clients and as a entrepreneur.
45:30  |  Business and personal health as an entrepreneur.
52:10  |  Plus alpha and charing for your USP in Japan.
58:05  |  Opportunities on the horizon for Japanese SMEs and entrepreneurs.

Find out more about Anthony Griffin here;
https://www.consultsaga.com/en/the-team
https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonygriffin/

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In this episode we're joined by Matthew Scott Waldman. Matthew is best known as the founder of NOOKA – the lifestyle design brand that bought the revolution of interface design to physical products and the founder of a “evolution by design” research lab at Keio University's Graduate School of Media Design. 

This conversation with Matthew left me, as how all good innovation conversation should, both with more questions than answers and with a motivation to be part of creating an innovation ecosystem in Japa n, to rival that of any other global hub. We explored the cyclic nature of design and linguistics; that is, how our language affects design that design affects our languages. Then we explored innovation in Japan from policy lens; we talked about LGBT rights, maternity leave and how to affect real change in Japan and some how we also touched on psychedelics. I don't know how it happened but it did and I loved it. 

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform. 

Let's begin!

02:55  |  Techno-progessivism and its relationship to Design.
06:15  |  Storytelling via Design.
08:50  |  Design as a language.
16:45  |  Matthew's Research Lab & Circular Design at Keio University.
24:18  |  Innovation in Japan.
28:15  |  Cultural Barries to Innovation; including positive policy for LGBT rights, parental leave and foreign talent.
51:45  |  Finding you voice in innovation.
56:00  |  Storytelling being equally important to tech innovation.
1:00:15  |  What innovation to expect next.

Connect with Matthew here:
→ www.kmd.keio.ac.jp/faculty/matthew-waldman
→ www.matthewwaldman.com
→ www.nooka.com
→ www.myuta.design

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@designthinkingjapan
@_brittanyarthur

Michael (Mike) Howard was a journalist-turned-businessman in Los Angeles before he joined the Tokyo salaryman brotherhood in 2008 where he now works full-time as a product manager at an American technology company. In this episode, we explore the stories and experiences behind Mike's book and now manga, The Salaryman, which is a humorous memoir from a Tokyo American who tried and failed to fit into Japanese office culture for almost a decade. The Salaryman is an immigrant's story from a land where there are few immigrants, with even fewer being crazy enough to do what the Mike did: become a real train-cramming, brow-wiping, late-night overtime-working, passed-out-drunk-on-the-train-ride-home salaryman. 

Mike's book serves as a partner to anyone striving to do meaningful work in foreign environment. A particularly interesting moment in this episode for me, was the story of reverse culture shock when Mike was sent to America as an expat from Japan.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform. 

Let's begin!

Below are some timestamps of our conversation so you can quickly navigate the topics most relevant for you.

Key Takeaways:
💡03:15  |  Salaryman Book and transforming a blog to a book
💡09:10  |  Navigating the complex ecosystem of traditional Japanese companies as a foreigner.
💡15:30  |  When to move on; being able to identify and then execute on what's important to you.
💡20:15  |  Navigating contracts in a "contract-fluid" environment and negotiating non-financial benefits.
💡32:18  |  How to identify and connect with mentors who see value in your work.
💡37:30  |  Connecting with manga artist and a surprising partnership.
💡43:30  |  The lessons of reverse culture shock and what we can learn when we"go home" to a city that may be not "home" anymore.
💡51:45  |  Future of a Salaryman in Japan.

Find Mike's book here; https://www.thesalarymanbook.com.

In this episode, we're joined by Tomomi Hainu from Career Fly. Tomomi supports international women who, as the name suggests, are looking for their career to take off in Japan. In this episode we explore how she leads a business-based dialogue with C-level leadership on the benefits of diversity in their workplaces, as well as, share strategies for both, foreign talent and the Japanese companies who hire them, on how to build an ecosystem of collaboration where everyone has a voice and uses their unique strength for the good of the group.

This episode is in Japanese but if you're interested in the insights. Check out the show notes for a link to an English article.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform.

Let's begin!

Below are some timestamps of our conversation so you can quickly navigate the topics most relevant for you.

Key Takeaways

💡03:00  |  What is diversity and reflections on why Japanese brands have a strong international presence yet, low international diversity in their talent pools.
💡07:48  |  Leading a dialogue around diversity as a leader in Japan.
💡14:00  |  How to model leadership to your domestic employees around foreign talent.
💡24:30  |  Responsibility foreign talent plays and actionable strategies to aid in a smooth transition.
💡44:11  |  Recommendations for both foreign talent and Japanese companies in moving forward.

Thank you so much to Tomomi for so generously donating her time and expertise to this on-going discussion. Connect with Tomomi, on LinkedIn or visit the Career Fly website.

In this episode, we sit down with Evan Burkosky and take an anecdotal approach to exploring the evolution of e-Commerce and digital transformation in Japan. Evan is the Japan country manager for Dynamic Yield, where he channels 2 decades of e-commerce insights to improving the customer experience (CX) by digitalizing the internationally renowned customer service concept of Omotenashi. We begin the conversation with a very candid recap of entrepreneurship and learn about Evan's experience as being one of the first evangelists of e-commerce and the digital economy. We then dive into the some of the non-obvious influencers behind the slow adoption of technology among Japan Inc. while giving equal focus to the tangible opportunities that present themselves to businesses who can stomach risk.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform.

Let's begin!

Below are some timestamps of our conversation so you can quickly navigate the topics most relevant for you.

Key Takeaways

💡 03:30  |  A personal journey of almost 2 decades in e-commerce
💡 35:05  |  10 years of growth in 90 days & the internet democratizing the playing field in Japan.
💡 40:00  |  Social shifts and the wider impact on consumer behavior.
💡 45:30  |  Challenges for Japan Inc. in responding to the pressure of COVID-19.
💡 51:00  |  Non-obvious barriers to digitalization; natural disasters.
💡 55:40  |  The ultimate goal of a corporation and trust ecosystem of the sub-contracting structure.
💡 1:02:50  |  New business opportunities and mindset barriers to digital transformation 
💡 1:20:20  |  What's next?

Connect with Evan on LinkedIn.

In this episode we are joined by Angel Guevara. Angel is the founder and creative lead at HYPERMILK where they strive to make marketing become art. They do this by supporting companies in Japan to create exciting and innovative social media content. In this conversation, we explore insights and strategies of how bi-lingual and tri-lingal professionals, can use their unique gift of empathy for diversity of thought to drive innovation and build creatively confident communities in Japan. And somewhat ironically, we also leave behind the cultural and language lens for a moment and simply explore what it means to tell a deeply meaningful human story.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform.

Let's begin!

Below are some timestamps of our conversation so you can quickly navigate to find what is most relevant for you.

Key Takeaways

💡 07:15  |  How mastering culture broadens your view of the world to create empathy.
💡 12:05  |  Spirituality in business and withstanding adversity.
💡 17:45  |  Importance of understanding what you REALLY selling.
💡 23:45  |  Managing the uncertainty present in Japan when inspiring people to create.
💡 27:55  |  Disagreeable people and mobilizing teams in a consensus driven society.
💡 38:45  |  Encouraging action in the present where the long term is valued.
💡 40:05  |  The true value of diversity.
💡 44:35  |  Benefit for Japan to attract global talent.
💡 46:05  |  Importance of community when creating a movement.
💡 51:30  |  Service as a motivator.

To learn more about Angel or join his Japan-preneur Nightcrawler community, follow him on LinkedIn or  Instagram.

In this episode, we're joined by product manager, growth expert and former Kansai Gaidai classmate of mine, Jon Clemons. Jon builds solutions to problems faced by Japanese job seekers in Indeed’s Tokyo incubator. There, he is also founder and product manager of an app for Japanese job seekers. In the next hour, Jon synthesizes a decade plus of insights from working at Indeed, Google and Groupon into tangible strategies for you, on how to leverage both your unique value as a global professional in Japan and empathy-driven design to build products that really mean something to people.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform.

Let's begin!

Below are some timestamps of our conversation so you can quickly navigate to find what is most relevant for you.

Key Takeaways

💡07:40 |  2 Myths exposed: Is a meshi (business card) still important? And is Japanese your superpower?
💡25:00  |  Design Sprints in Japan and ensuring you understand your WHY before launching.
💡31:05  |  How pain of first-hand experience in applying for jobs in Japan resulted in a new product.
💡35:40  |  Are we confusing politeness for user experience?
💡41:43  |  Suggestions for making a career change in Japan.
💡47:25  |  Sharing Marketing & Growth Hacking lessons.
💡49:00  |  If you're about to begin in marketing and product development, keep this in mind.
💡54:00  |  Giving up vs a well-thought though no.
💡55:50  |  A first step getting into new ways of product development.

---

To learn more about Jon, sign up for his free 1 hour marketing training.
https://growthlesson.com/

In this episode, we're joined by Donny Kimball. Donny is a Tokyo based digital marketing and PR maverick with a penchant for exploring the lesser known sides of Japan. This conversation is a unique opportunity to hear insights and strategies from someone who is somewhat of a unicorn - someone who deeply understands the needs of both the corporate AND influencer world when it comes to social media marketing. Join us as we explore that change in Japan is possible when you begin with deep curiosity and follow through with data.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform. 

Let's begin!

Below is the list of our conversation so you can quickly navigate to find what is most relevant for you.

Key Takeaways

💡 02:55  |  Recognition in the agency world from the perspective of an employee vs an influencer.
💡10:40  |  Japanese consumer identity in a post-global world.
💡14:43  |  The marketing industry shifting from PR to integrated communications.
💡20:10  |  Using micro AB testing to gain investment and stakeholder buy-in.
💡26:52  |  Telling a story in Japan today and the importance of user-testing.
💡34:30  |  Growth hacking strategies for influencer marketing and e-commerce in Japan.
💡41:10  |  Staying motivated to innovate and explore new strategies while moving fast and slow.
💡45:37  |  Why choose Japan as the use case for Donny's marketing endeavors.
💡47:25  |  Future opportunities for Japan; the imminent generational change in leadership.
💡54:10  |  What's next; learning new skills and identity bending.

---

Connect with Donny on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/donnyjkimball
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/donnyjkimball
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/donnyjkimball

Katheryn Gronauer, of Thrive Tokyo, is an executive coach who supports high-level professionals to understand Japanese work culture and how to live a better life in Japan. Katheryn walks us through both the environmental and emotional drivers connected to life as an expat and more importantly, suggests strategies for you to try today that could bring you greater joy and success at home at and the office in Japan. This episode was full of learning, even for a seasoned Japanese based professional like me. One of my biggest takeaways was to re-design conversations around performance metrics by using examples rather than one liners. Listen on to know the full context.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favorite social platform. 

A deep thank you to Katheryn for not only so generously donating her time but also for the important work that she does to help people live their best life in Japan, both on and off the clock.

Let's begin!

Below is the list of our conversation so you can quickly navigate to find what is most relevant for you.

Key Takeaways

💡11:30  |  Navigating the "Expat Life Cycle" and life after the honeymoon period.
💡12:40  |  Challenges around implementing change and achieving speed as a foreign executive.
💡21:08  |  Balancing your unique role to catalyze change with expectations of the local office. 
💡24:20  |  Is the goal to develop a truly global organization when local processes are so influential?
💡28:30  |  The changing face of the working environment and global talent in Japan.
💡31:42  |  The 4 common expat headaches; communication, meetings, performance metrics and relationships building.
💡38:00  |  Redesigning conversations; explain with examples of success stories to manage expectations.
💡42:45  |  Managing unsaid expectations with your Japanese team, even in times of COVID-19 and social distancing.
💡47:30  |  The role Japan can play in building your global career.
💡49:30  |  Insights for expat who were to start their journey today.

To know more about Katheryn, connect with her via LinkedIn (katheryngronauer).

Take Katheryn's Free 3-Part Masterclass on Business Culture in Japan here:
https://bit.ly/2V58klG

Ken Takayanagi is a graphic facilitator and uses visualization to guide people toward a goal. Takayanagi-san is also a certified scrum master and in our conversation you'll see how he leverages his IT prowess to extract the human element from his interactions. This conversation is a deep dive into how we can use the opportunity of COVID-19, forcing companies into remote work, to scale online facilitation and collaboration to re-write traditions that often got in the way of employee autonomy and creativity.

This episode is recorded in way that it's not necessary for you to have the video in front of you but in order to appreciate how impactful graphic facilitation is, I'd encourage you to go to the show notes have a look at the 3 minute video summary (https://youtu.be/y5_qJtPG1sQ).

Thank you to Takayanagi-san for sharing his talent, of using the power of visualization to bring the unseen into reality. If you enjoy this episode as much as I did make sure to let me know on your favourite social media platform.

This episode is in Japanese.

はじめましょう。

💡 03:20  |  Experience of building a Work From Home environment in Japan where clients are often unfamiliar with collaboration tools and you have very little personal space at home.
(06:00 Worthwhile Quote, "Don't explain yesterday, explain what you're doing.")
💡 14:40  |  Role of building trust and understanding your participant relationships to drive the 'human experience' and success in an online meeting.
💡 23:42 |  Strategies for reading the room and reactions in the land of no camera and mute meetings.
💡 32:30  |  Define the purpose of a meeting and redesigning 30+ people meetings, new people using their voices.
💡 36:30  |  Role of facilitator in online meetings and setting expectations.
💡 42:20  |  Leveraging online tools to drive focus and clarity and the difference between a PPT and a graphic facilitation when inviting participation.
💡 51:30  |. What do to when you don't have a graphic facilitator?
(56:50 Worthwhile quote: "Design meetings by goals not by time, 決まったら、終わり！")
💡 1:07:10  |  Importance of role modeling new values and behavior at a senior leadership level.
💡1:12:20  |  Designing new values in organizations and how starting with yourself.

If you'd like to know more about Takayanagi-san, follow him on:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gaoryu
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DiscoveryCoach

In this episode we are joined by Daiki Nakajima. Daiki leads two initiatives for JETRO, the Japan External Trade Organisation; he leads their Invest Japan division, and Japan - US bilateral relationships. We dive into insights and a success story around bilateral investment and international expansion all rooted in over a decade of experience. To me, Daiki, represents the future leadership potential of a JETRO leader. He is, for what you may consider for a 'traditional' Japanese government employee, extremely young and as a New Jersey native, Daiki is perfectly positioned to leverage his bilingual and bicultural abilities to lead the dialogue around creating an open innovation ecosystem in Japan.

Thank you to Daiki who not only so generously donated his time but for his commitment and contribution to moving the needle for foreign companies to do business in Japan.

If you enjoy this episode as much as I did make sure to let me know on your favourite social media platform.

Let's begin!

Key Takeaways:

💡 05:30 | Pivoting to a 'Work from Home' model as a government organisation in a COVID-19 hotspot.
💡09:45 | Changing landscape of investment and business expansion between US-Japan in the decade 2010 - 2020.
💡17:30 | Government of Japan Implementing technology and policy changes in response market needs.
💡19:35 | Success Story; inbound marketing startup, Hubspot, goes to Japan.
💡27:17 | What are the "gaps" around doing business in Japan and how can we navigate them.
💡36:38 | Lessons from COVID-19 in diversifying your supply chain.
💡43:00 | Benefits of working with JETRO and why you should look outside Tokyo.
💡53:00 | Telling your story as a Japanese company expanding to the US and other insights.
💡58:23 | Don't expect to sell your product on the first day as a US company and expanding to Japan and other insights.
💡1:09:20 | Reverse engineering bilateral success with research as entrepreneurs.

To find out more about Daiki or JETRO, connect with him on LinkedIn.

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About this Podcast
The Business Karaoke Podcast, sponsored by Design Thinking Japan, modernizes the dialogue around doing business in and with Japan for the modern global leader. Through sharing stories of both failure and success, we give global leaders with a passion for Japan, and Japanese leaders with a passion for the global market, the tools they need to operate more effectively and with impact.

The Business Karaoke Podcast, sponsored by Design Thinking Japan, modernizes the dialogue around doing business in and with Japan for the modern global leader. Through sharing stories of both failure and success, we give global leaders with a passion for Japan, and Japanese leaders with a passion for the global market, the tools they need to operate more effectively and with impact.

In this episode we a joined by Shotaro Uehara, Head of Japan Marketing at Dropbox. Uehara-san is a marketing pioneer with history of successful product launches and marketing initiatives for the Japanese market. Uehara-san not only shares with us his industry insights about leveraging cloud technologies in Japan, especially in our post COVID-19 world, but also the ups and downs of building an international presence in Japan for Dropbox.

Thank you so much to Uehara-san who so generously donated his time to share his experience not only as a professional but as a person.

Let's begin!

🇯🇵
💡 02:00 | Working in Japan at foreign company after growing up in US and the perceived risk joining a "startup."
💡 12:10 | Strategies on leveraging cloud tools to better collaborate with a foreign HQ as a Japanese subsidiary.
💡 16:50 | The changing consumer profile from the initial launch in 2017 to 2020 and our post COVID-19 world.
💡 23:50 | Building confidence and managing fear in customers reluctant to adopt cloud technology.
💡 28:10 | Supporting Kumamoto Prefecture in their shift to cloud technologies.
💡 30:50 | The wider societal benefits of cloud technologies and how it can transform people's lives.
💡 34:50 | Taking a 'crawl, walk, run' approach to cloud technologies and digital transformation in Japan.

🇬🇧
💡 38:45 | Leveraging cloud technologies to drive collaboration with your colleagues and clients in Japan

To find out more about Uehara-san, follow him on LinkedIn.

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts and comments on social media!

The Business Karaoke Podcast, sponsored by Design Thinking Japan, modernizes the dialogue around doing business in and with Japan for the modern global leader. Through sharing stories of both failure and success, we give global leaders with a passion for Japan, and Japanese leaders with a passion for the global market, the tools they need to operate more effectively and with impact.

In this episode we are joined by Joshua Flannery, CEO of Rainmaking Innovation Japan. Josh describes their work as unleashing the power of entrepreneurship to solve big problems with the world’s leading companies. We dive into Rainmaking’s flagship program, Startupbootcamp Scale Osaka, an equity-free innovation program for high growth Smart City companies to expand globally, increase their revenues, and access significant funding opportunities in Japan, the world’s 3rd largest economy.

This conversation is full of Josh’s insights on leveraging and building global networks in Japan, managing uncertainty in Japanese investors, the unique incumbent innovation approach in Japan and how accelerator programs such as SBC are working to solve the innovation "chicken and egg" problem in Japan.

If you’re interested or know someone who may be interested in applying to this world class program, then download the deck here.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did and don’t forget to share your feedback with me on your favourite social platform. 

Below is the list of our conversation so you can quickly navigate to find what is most relevant for you.

💡02:22 | Leveraging & building global networks in Japan
💡07:30 | Managing uncertainty in Japanese investors and incumbent innovation
💡13:36  Startupbootcamp Osaka and solving the innovation "chicken and egg" problem in Japan.
💡21:08 | The flow on positives outcomes of the SBC Osaka success stories in the wider business community in Japan.
💡26:04 | What's next for Japan and Startupbootcamp in the wake of COIVD.

A big thank you to Joshua for so generously donating his time and a big thank you to you, the listener!

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More about Joshua here:

Joshua has just under 20 years of global business experience including being selected as Director of the largest startup hub in the Southern Hemisphere, Sydney Startup Hub launching programs for it’s 480 startup residents in Sydney, as the initiator of one of Australia’s first university based startup programs, supporting over 700 startups since driving it’s launch at the University of New South Wales in 2012 and earlier as an entrepreneur and Managing Director of StudyLink株式会社, conceiving and launching a publication in Japan with a circulation of 480,000. Later he founded the Innovation Dojo, a company specifically connecting Japan and Australia by innovation, serving clients including Hitachi, Tokyo Institute of Technology and Kyushu University. Born and raised in Sydney and currently based in Osaka, Joshua has strong experience with designing and executing programs that connect startups and scaleups to international markets, including the US, China and Japan.  

In his current role as Managing Director of Rainmaking Innovation Japan, Joshua has designed and led a team in executing a customised Proof of Concept program for seven large Japanese corporations including Japan's largest bank, the world's 3rd largest advertising firm, Japan's largest newspaper publisher and two of Japan's largest real estate and transport conglomerates.  

Joshua has been invited as a public speaker on topics related to innovation ecosystems, cross-border entrepreneurship,and startups in Japan and Australia by organisations including Kansai Economic Federation, Kansai

The Business Karaoke Podcast, sponsored by Design Thinking Japan, modernizes the dialogue around doing business in and with Japan for the modern global leader. Through sharing stories of both failure and success, we give global leaders with a passion for Japan, and Japanese leaders with a passion for the global market, the tools they need to operate more effectively and with impact.

In this episode we are joined by the first foreign female to set up her own law practice in Tokyo, Catherine O’Connell. Catherine O’Connell is Principal Founder and CEO of her own boutique, secondment-based flexible NewLaw firm, Catherine O’Connell Law which she founded in 2018. In this conversation, she takes us on her journey from success as an in-house lawyer for companies such as; Panasonic, Olympus and Mitsubishi Motors to her now role of entrepreneur and CEO. We explore her innovative contributions to the business community. We’ll dive deeper into the concept of a legal health check and her belief that a healthy lawyer makes a happy lawyer.

I hope you enjoy this episode as much as did!

Below is the list of our conversation so you can quickly navigate to find what is most relevant for you.

💡 07:35 | Catherine's initial connection to Japan.
💡 12:50 | Gaining trust as a foreign lawyer in Japan and becoming more than a Japanese speaker.
💡 16:30 | How to drive effectively drive the business perspective as an in-house lawyer when there is no rule book
💡 23:35 | Essentials for doing business in Japan and how mistakes may not be as bad as initially thought.
💡 27:30 | Recognizing a gap in the market and delivering an innovative service in Japan
💡 41:10 | A legal health check and how businesses of all sizes benefit of knowing their "legal health."
💡 49:05 | Regulation as barrier to business development and the shift when Japan's hand is forced.
💡 56:42 | Getting involved in a community and re-designing the workplace.

A big thank you to Catherine and a big thank you to you, the listener!

---

Read more about Catherine below or over at her website.

Catherine O’Connell is Principal Founder and CEO of her own boutique, secondment-based flexible NewLaw firm, Catherine O’Connell Law. In 2018, she not only became the first foreign female to set up her own law practice in Tokyo in 2018 but also was a finalist in the British Chamber British Business Awards in the Entrepreneur of the Year category. Catherine has been in Japan 17 years working primarily in In House roles at Panasonic, Olympus and Mitsubishi Motors as well as a Senior Associate at Hogan Lovells Law Firm in the Tokyo and London offices and 10+ years in New Zealand in private practice. Catherine is passionate about giving back to the community and serves as the Vice-Chair of the Australian & New Zealand Chamber of Commerce of Japan and Chair of the Legal Services & IP Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan as well as an active Entrepreneur member of the British Chamber of Commerce in Japan. Catherine also mentors law students and lawyers, speaks on panels and to students embarking on law careers. She believes healthy lawyers make happy lawyers and is focused on lawyer wellness and flexible working. Catherine has double degree in Japanese and Law, and is a Barrister and Solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand (1995) and England & Wales (2009). She is a Foreign Registered Lawyer in Japan the Tokyo Dai-Ichi Tokyo Bar Association.

The Business Karaoke Podcast exists to modernize the dialogue around doing business in and with Japan for the modern global leader. Through sharing stories of both failure and success, we give global leaders with a passion for Japan, and Japanese leaders with a passion for the global market, the tools they need to operate more effectively and with impact.

Thought leadership reports, "Japan Rebooted" and "Unlocking Japan's Potential" by PwC are perfect examples of this kind of conversation. In this episode we have the lead author, Jason Hayes, walk us through the business case for culture, Japanese investment strategy and building attractive organisations for today's talent. Jason is the leader of PwC's Japan practice in the Asia region (ex Japan), a financial assurance partner based in Sydney and non-executive Director with Foundation for Australia-Japan Studies (FAJS). 

Below is the list of our conversation so you can quickly navigate and find what is most relevant for you.

💡 08:05 | Are you paying attention to the culture? 空気を読みます。 
💡 16:50 | Japan's long term play and "Goodwill Capital" in South East Asia 
💡 21:35 | Insights from "Unlocking Japan's Potential." Including; attracting talent in 2020 and challenges of merit based performance management in Japan. 
💡 30:47 | Successfully creating bi-lateral relationships and the different approaches to foreign investment. 
💡 38:50 | The role of accelerators in Japan and impact of leveraging complementary businesses. 
💡 45:05 | Developing levels of "business literacy" both in Australia and Japan to take this relationship to the next level.

If you'd like to know more about Jason, connect with him on LinkedIn or read more below.

A big thank you to Jason and a big thank you to you, the listener!

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Jason Hayes is the leader of PwC’s Asia Pacific Japan Practice (ex-Japan). He is a Financial Assurance Partner and has more than 28 years of international experience providing assurance and advisory services to companies in a wide variety of industry sectors, particularly Entertainment & Media, Technology and Retail & Consumer. He has assisted both Australian & US companies from various sectors with market entry plans into Japan and similarly, he has assisted Japanese companies with market entry plans into Australia and Asia. 

Jason recently spent 8 years on secondment with PwC in Japan up until January 2015 and he is an active member of the Australia Japan Business Cooperation Committee. He is the lead author of PwC’s “Japan Rebooted” series, “Unlocking Japan’s Potential” report and “Our Diaspora’s Got Talent: Australia’s advantage in Asia” report. Jason is a regular commentator in the media and presenter at forums on Japanese trade and investment in Australia. 

Jason is a Board Member of Foundation for Australia-Japan Studies (FAJS), which is an initiative supported by DFAT and Rio Tinto that promotes collaboration between academic institutions, industry and government in Australia and Japan. 

Our "new normal" requires us to build robust ecosystems of collaboration and innovation. We'll need to see partnerships between government and the private sector, as well as, between nations, like never before. 
 
There is no-one more equipped to lead us through the conversation around about building partnerships of diverse perspectives than, Sally Townsend. Sally leads South Australia's trade and investment office to Japan and Korea a currently serves as chair of the Australian and New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in Japan (ANZCCJ), working to support the business communities of these two countries in Japan. 

Below is the list of our conversation so you can quickly navigate and find what is most relevant for you.

--
04:23 Working in COVID-19 and Zoom-Tsukare ズーム疲れ.
07:03 Early Days in Japan and first encounters with the "No Wall."
15:37 Memories of working in a traditional company.
17:40 The role of mentors and life after university.
20:15 A new opportunity for wine in Japan.  
23:18 Challenges of innovation in a conservative market like wine in Japan.
28:00 Different stages of acceptance in Japan for Japanese speaking foreigners.
29:38: Building relationships in Japan on your terms.
31:42 Getting involved in the ANZCCJ (Australian New Zealand Chamber of Commerce).
39:50: Leveraging the ANZCCJ as a small business.
45:10 Next steps for leading trade and investment between Japan and South Australia post COVID-19.
50:29 How to move past the "No Wall."

--
Find out more about Sally and the ANZCCJ on their Website or Facebook page.

This episode of the Business Karaoke Podcast is a first - it is our first episode in Japanese!

The Business Karaoke exists to modernize the conversations around doing business in and with Japan. In order to be authentic to that promise we need to explore today's pressing topics of innovation, people and technology from both sides and in both languages. 

To premier our Japanese dialogue, we were joined by Junji Matsuguma. Junji is cross-products systems architect at IBM, utilizing customer workshops about IT infrastructure optimization, hybrid cloud, IT economics study and Design Thinking for customer's digital transformation. I had the pleasure of getting to know Junji through our mutual interest of evangelizing Design Thinking among Japanese clients. 

Below is the list of our conversation so you can quickly navigate and find what is most relevant for you.

00:53 An introduction to Junji | 自己紹介
02:55 Working at home during COVID-19 | 新型コロナウイルスの時期で在宅で仕事をすること。
08:30 Tips for video conferencing | ビデオカンファレンスのチッピス。
13:56 Changes in the IT industry | ITインダストリーの変化。
18:00 Role of Design Thinking | デザインシンキングの役割。
20:15 How are traditional Japanese companies responding to Design Thinking? | 日本の伝統的な会社はデザインシンキングを受けれるでしょうか？
23:41 Junji's personal 'wow' points of Design Thinking | 個人的にデザインシンキングのいいポイント。
27:55 Benefits of Design Thinking with customers | お客さんとデザインシンキングの利益。
38:00 The world after COVID-19 | 新型コロナウイルス後の世界。
46:50 Hopes for the future| 将来の希望。

As usual, a big thank you to YOU for listening and an even bigger thank you to Junji for his time.
--

Read more on Junji Matsuguma before or connect with him on LinkedIn. 

Junji joined IBM in 1988 and worked as a hardware engineer for product development from gate array modules to IBM PCs and ThinkPads. Junji changed his role to pre-sales technical specialist for engineering workstation and blade servers. He now works as cross-products systems architect utilizing customer workshops about IT infrastructure optimization, hybrid cloud, IT economics study and Design Thinking for customer's digital transformation.

His hobby is handcraft. He is learning “relieur”, or book binding in traditional European way from 2005 and now in advanced course.

The Business Karaoke exists to lead and inspire unconventional conversations around business and innovation in Japan. By sharing these bi-lateral stories, we aim evoke confidence in today's global professionals in expanding their businesses to Japan, as well as, elevating Japan as a viable place for a meaningful career for global professionals.

In this episode, we are joined by Akio Fujii, an independent Management Consultant specializing in bi-lateral strategic corporate transformations. I was eager to have Akio share insights on bi-lateral and bi-lingual business turnarounds as he is one of the, if not THE, most competent a global professionals leading change in a modern world.

If you're leading strategic corporate transformation with a complex network of stakeholders or experiencing challenges in mobilizing your Japanese team, this is the episode for you!

This episode experience is enhance with the accompanying slideshow. Please download the slides here.

Here are the show notes for you to find exactly what you are looking for... FAST.

01:30    Introduction to Akio
03:15    Shinzo Abe's babysitting career
04:30    Being bi-lingual are tools not weapons
07:35    5 elements differentiating Japanese and American culture
12:59    How to recognize these 5 elements in the workplace
19:50.   Cycles of business in Japan and the West, inspired by Ray Dalio
24:28    The Problem vs. Responsibility dichotomy in Japan and
25:26    Why this can lead to your Japanese partners hiding problems
27:23.   Why Japanese baseball aim for a batting average over 300
29:25    Case 1: Resolving USJ’s Traffic Problem
53:28    Case 2: Merger of gaming companies, Bandai and Namco
1:04:32 Case 3: Turnaround of Namco’s US Subsidiary
1:16:56 Reflecting on the influence of COVID-19 in a business context
1:23:27 Hopes for the future for Japan, a Japanese perspective

A big thank you to you, the listener, and to Akio Fujii.

Akio is a principled and capable M&A, PMI, and turnaround specialist. Connect with or learn more about Akio on linkedin.com/in/akiofujii.

The Business Karaoke exists to lead and inspire unconventional conversations around business and innovation in Japan. By sharing these bi-lateral stories, we aim evoke confidence in today's global professionals in expanding their businesses to Japan, as well as, elevating Japan as a viable place for a meaningful career for global professionals. 

In this week's episode, Anthony-James Owen, founder of Guerrilla Marketing Group,  shares his journey from student of karate and zen to founding a global marketing and sales firm. Join us as we explore the life lessons that exist in karate, zen and business.

00:34 An introduction to Anthony, his connection with karate and a surprise visit from his cat, Jack!
06:20 Studying in Japan as a foreign karate student in 1980.
09:39 Convincing your parents to let you travel alone before the age of the internet.
13:43 The extreme of modern Japan and ancient Japan.
18:59 Lessons from living in a Zen monastery.
28:02 Transitioning from Zen to career in IT.
33:12 Translatable Zen and karate skills for a successful sales career
35:45 One call can change your priorities
39:45 Building a business inspired by a life in Zen and karate
44:38 Zen lens on for today's managers
50:42 The benefits of teaching children one of the Japanese martial arts and implementing a simple meditation practice in your life

_________

More on Anthony-James Owen

I started my education in Karate being age 5 and a half years old in 1969. First as a Judoka but moving fast into one of the first Karate classes in Germany. 

My formal Karate education had a first major milestone when I was allowed to run my first classes on my own as a 2. Kyu starting at age 13. I went into numerous Karate competitions and won regional and national championships in the Kumite section of the tournaments. At tis time I did spent 6 days a week to improve my Karate skills.

After being selected to fight for the German national team (youngsters) I was intensively prepared by the national coach - which was Sensei Hideo Ochi at the time and later also by Sensei Tatsuo Suzuki. I was invited to go to Japan and study Karate Do there in 1980. After coming back to Germany to finish high school I won the Youngster European Championship and went back to Japan in 1982 for another 1,5 years. 

Coming back from Japan in 1982 I started to fight in one of the first professional Karate leagues in the UK and retired offically as a competitor in 1988 because of my demaninding job in the IT industry. But never stopped training in Karate since then.

Now, in 2020 the Karate-Do is part of my life for more than 51 years now.

Connect with Anthony on LinkedIn.

The Business Karaoke Podcast exists to lead unconventional business conversations in Japan. In this episode Dex van Hunen, marketing lead for IWC Japan, shares his insights about marketing in Japan and the psyche of the Japanese customer, particularly in the segment of luxury goods. Dex is the definition of a modern global marketer; he harmonizes a deep empathy for the Japanese customer, fluency in technology and a handful of  languages, seven to be exact!

If you're into marketing and into Japan, you'll love this episode. I've created a minute by minute breakdown of our conversation in the description box so you can maximize your time.

1:30 Dex's Japan Story and how languages
5:29 Reflections on living in Japan in 2004 and 2020
6:54 The "Gaijin" Card
9:12 Benefits as Tokyo as city for global professionals 
11:05 Characteristics of the Japanese customer
13:55 What makes an effective marketing story in Japan?
16:05 Strategies for new brands to effectively tell their story in Japan
18:18 Adapting your global strategy when launching in Japan
21:13 Legacy marketing in Japan and how traditional is still very much alive
24:32 Navigating a slow pace environment as a fast mover
26:00 Breaking down barriers by leveraging the Japanese love for Tom Cruise
28:25 Proof that Japanese customers are developing a taste for innovative marketing
29:19 Cultivating trusted parters from scratch and brand leverage in Japan
31:30 "The Match" for successful storytelling in Japan
33:20 How to market your way out of a scandal in Japan
37:29 A product over brand focus as step 1 post scandal.
38:26 Why the Japanese customer and the love for the next best food spot
42:03 2 year projection on how luxury brands can remain revenant
45:55 Lessons from the past and marketing luxury goods in a world of TikTok and geo-targeting
50:10 Motivation behind passion for marketing in Japan.

A big thank you to you and to Dex for his insights on marketing in Japan.

Connect with Dex on LinkedIn or Instagram. 

The Business Karaoke Podcast exists to lead unconventional business conversations.

This week, Peter Rogers, a bilingual, global leader in additive manufacturing, joins us to share his experience on building a meaningful career in Japan, identifying and marketing real value and how Kaizen can actually get in the way of innovation.

Whether you're a Japan veteran of simply, interested in what it is like to work in Japan as a foreigner go ahead and enjoy this episode.

00:12 Peter's role in additive manufacturing at Autodesk
02:30 Connection to Japan and first encounter with Japan
08:14 Transitioning from student to professional
10:41 Building a business case for a company abroad to move to Japan
12:18 Thoughts on moving to Japan as a new graduate 
13:37 What's your real value in Japan
17:08 Positioning yourself as unique value to employers
19:38 Selling value over selling function
22:53 Experience working at a Japanese company and surprising benefits
26:02 Integration and the "gap" between foreign and Japanese staff 
31:40 Managing issues of trust as a foreigner in Japanese in companies
35:52 Self branding to traditional Japanese management in a global company
44:28 3 barriers to innovation in Japan
49:19 Kaizen as a barrier to innovation
55:42 Connection between innovation and international experience 
57:41 Closing words on working in Japan.

Thank you to Peter and thank you to you!

Brittany Arthur specialises in innovation and design thinking, and advises Japanese companies and individuals on how to ignite creativity in the workplace. With a career spanning several continents, she speaks English, Japanese and German and has extensive experience presenting in her non-native language. Brittany understands that connecting with one’s audience is not a matter of language proficiency – an effective presentation is built on the specific needs of your audience. In this webinar, she will share her insights on how to present with confidence in your non-native language and culture.

If you're interested in our Business Karaoke Series go over and sign up to received newsletter and podcast updates at:

https://www.designthinkingjapan.com