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  • 2021.11.24

    Participants can access Video Archives.
    Please login with steps instructed in the email from Secretariat on November 24. If you have any trouble, please contact the secretariat by email.

    Video Archives

  • 2021.11.24

    Video Archives Pass on sale now.

    Registration for Video Archives Pass

  • 2021.11.10

    The 23rd Nikkei Global Management Forum ended with a success on November 10(Wed), 2021. We deeply thank all of your participation.
    The outline of the forum and overview of the lectures are posted on The Nikkei (paper and digital edition), Nikkei Asia (an English news site).
    Video Archives will open on Nov. 24 (JST, Tentative).
    For viewing URL and how to watch, please check an email sent from the secretariat at a later date.
    Next year's 24th Nikkei Global Management Forum (NGMF2022) is scheduled to be held on November 8 (Tue) -9 (Wed), 2022.

The 23nd Nikkei Global Management Forum

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If you have any trouble, please contact the secretariat by email. For new registration, click here.

Video Archives
THEME OF THIS YEAR’S FORUM

World Economic Revival and
Corporate Management in the New Normal

The world economy, which was hit by COVID-19, has begun to recover, driven by the U.S. and China, with the spread of vaccinations and other positive factors.

However, it is still far from normalization, and the unprecedented pandemic has brought about a new normal, and corporate management continues to search for answers.

What kind of strategy should companies draw up for the next stage of growth?
What impact will the altered work styles and the consumer behavior have on corporate management?

Renowned executives from Japan, the U.S., Europe, and Asia will engage in heated discussions.
We sincerely look forward to your participation.

７ Take-aways

Leaders who transformed their business structures through great determination.
Tough challenges make a company strong.

How DTP leader Adobe changed its ecosystem to succeed
Shiseido's commitment to luxury: Decisions and attitudes that will lead to further growth beyond Covid-19
Becoming a Mega-Pharma from Japan: What is Takeda's next move after acquiring Shire?

A philosophy set forth by the founder is an intangible value of a company.
Sharing the corporate culture will enhance the overall strength of the team and is the first step to proposing new values to the world.

The belief in the common good that led to the creation of Roomba, the world's most familiar robot
What is the Iris Group's user-in philosophy?
The compassionate heart supported by "cheering consumption" Makuake

Japan's organizational culture is incompatible with startup culture: Decision-making takes time, zero-risk orientation. Japan's organizational culture is incompatible with startup culture, and an open ecosystem is needed to nurture talented entrepreneurs who can bring about change.

Why DeNA is encouraging its next leaders to spin off
The new challenge of the president of Mercari: Supporting society through both social and business activities

In order for giant corporations to compete on the global stage, it is essential they remodel their organizations to be agile and free of ties.

Generational change and the challenge of new businesses at Samsung Electronics, a leader in Asian manufacturing
ValueAct, activist shareholder, pushes reforms at Japanese companies
Japanese and U.S. business experts: Lake, chairman of Aflac, on the art of corporate governance
KPMG's vision of Japanese-style management innovation that generates creativity

The threat of climate change will hit people in the form of increasingly severe natural disasters.
How will corporate activities change in order to realize a sustainable energy society?

Why is Australian resource giant BHP abandoning oil?
Saudi Aramco's vision for the future of a low-carbon, hydrogen society
Mr. Karvinen, chairman of Finnair and a renowned European business executive, talks about his approach to a sustainable society

Recognizing the value of diversity in terms of gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, age, disability, individuality and values will lead to the realization of a society that accepts and welcomes differences.

The mother-type leader who helped Sanrio Puroland return from the doldrums
IBM's 100-year diversity initiative
Waffle aims to close the gender gap through IT education for girls
Philanthropy at BofA Securities, where two women lead the firm

The way we used to work and live will change. Will data utilization and AI breathe new life into traditional industries?

Mr. Taylor, the Salesforce CEO who created the 👍like button and acquired Slack, changed the way we work
Kubota's vision of the future of smart agriculture, cultivating the world with IT
Unlock Japan’s potential as people’s partner: Mr. Okuyama, President of Google Japan reveals its new vision

Speakers

※As of October 29, 2021
※Honorifics and titles omitted.

Tomoko Namba

Founder and Executive Chairman

DeNA

Shantanu Narayen

Chairman, President and CEO

Adobe

Amin H. Nasser

President and CEO

Saudi Aramco

Kentaro Ohyama

Chairman

IRIS Group

Masahiko Uotani

President and CEO, Representative Director

Shiseido

Colin M. Angle

Chairman, CEO and Founder

iRobot Corporation

Bret Taylor

President and COO

Salesforce

Shintaro Yamada

CEO

Mercari

Christophe Weber

President and CEO

Takeda Pharmaceutical Company

Jouko Karvinen

Chairman

Finnair

Aya Komaki

President

Sanrio Entertainment

Hyun-Suk Kim

President and CEO

Samsung Electronics

Kana Bougaki

Co-Founder and Director

Makuake

Mike Henry

CEO

BHP

D. Robert Hale

Partner

ValueAct Capital

Sachiko Kuno

Serial Entrepreneur

Co-Founder, Phoenixi

Yuichi Kitao

President

Kubota Corporation

Reiko Hayashi

Director and Deputy President

BofA Securities Japan

Asumi Saito

Co-Founder

Waffle

Shinji Okuyama

President

Google Japan

Charles D. Lake II

Chairman

Aflac Life Insurance Japan

Toshiya Mori

Chairman

KPMG Japan

Akio Yamaguchi

General Manager and President

IBM Japan

Jean-François Manzoni

President

IMD

Dominique Turpin

Professor

IMD

Kazuo Ichijo

Professor

IMD

Hirotaka Takeuchi

Professor

Harvard Business School

Forum Outline

Date
November 9 (Tue) - 10 (Wed), 2021
Venue
IMPERIAL HOTEL, TOKYO
(TEIKOKU HOTEL) Access >
Organizers
Nikkei Inc. IMD Harvard Business School
Corporate Sponsors
Google Japan
Kubota Corporation
KPMG Japan
Takeda Pharmaceutical Company
ValueAct Capital
BHP
Sponsor
IBM Japan
Special Supporter
Financial Times
Contact
Secretariat of the 23rd Nikkei Global Management Forumreg_ngmf2021@nikkei-ngmf.jp
Media coverage
Covering the Forum requires advance registration and permission from the organizers. For further details, please contact Secretariat of the 23rd Nikkei Global Management Forum.

Tickets

Virtual Pass
JPY 55,000 - (including tax)

  • Access to live streamings

    Day 1 Day 2

    Available full access

  • Access to full video archives

    Day 1 Day 2

    Available until the end of May 2022

  • Nikkei Asia subscription

    6-month

    * Nikkei Asia subscription instructions will be sent via email upon your registration for the forum.
    - Registration by the end of September: Instructions will be sent by early October.
    - Registration by the end of October: Instructions will be sent by early November.
    - Registration by the end of the event: Instructions will be sent by mid-November.

Register
Visitor Pass
JPY 93,500 - (including tax)
*Limited to first 100 seats

  • Attending all sessions (on-site)

    Day 1 Day 2

  • Special sessions (on-site)

    Day 1 Day 2

  • Lunch vouchers

    Day 1 Day 2

    Available in the venue.
    (We will not provide Buffet Lunch this year)

  • Access to live streamings

    Day 1 Day 2

    Available full access

  • Access to full video archives

    Day 1 Day 2

    Available until the end of May 2022

  • Nikkei Asia subscription

    6-month

    * Nikkei Asia subscription instructions will be sent via email upon your registration for the forum.
    - Registration by the end of September: Instructions will be sent by early October.
    - Registration by the end of October: Instructions will be sent by early November.
    - Registration by the end of the event: Instructions will be sent by mid-November.

Please note that we may cancel or change the event, or stop accepting visitors, due to guidelines by the national and local governments.

Register

Program

November 09(Tue)

09:00 - 09:05

Opening

09:05 - 09:50

 1-1

Technology, Finance and Sustainability: The future of stakeholder capitalism

Colin M. Angle

Chairman, CEO and Founder, iRobot Corporation

Reiko Hayashi

Director and Deputy President, BofA Securities Japan

Moderator Kaori Takahashi

Manager, News Department, Nikkei CNBC Japan Inc.
Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

10:00 - 10:30

 1-2

Value creation through corporate transformation

D. Robert Hale

Partner, ValueAct Capital

Moderator Jo Kawakami

NIKKEI Financial Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Nikkei Inc.

10:40 - 11:10

 1-3

Changing industrial landscape -- The future of the resources business

Mike Henry

CEO, BHP

Moderator Kaori Takahashi

Manager, News Department, Nikkei CNBC Japan Inc.
Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

11:20 - 11:50

 1-4

Expanding overseas markets in the COVID-19 era

Kentaro Ohyama

Chairman, IRIS Group

Moderator Naofumi Nakamura

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

11:50 - 13:30

Break

11:50 - 12:20

 1-S

【Special Session】Secrets of Ohyama's idea management
※Only available with Visitor Pass

Kentaro Ohyama

Chairman, IRIS Group

Moderator Naofumi Nakamura

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

13:30 - 14:15

 1-5

Fostering STEM talent is key to growth

Akio Yamaguchi

General Manager and President, IBM Japan

Asumi Saito

Co-Founder, Waffle

Moderator Natsuko Nakamura

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

14:25 - 14:55

 1-6

Corporate management beyond COVID-19

Masahiko Uotani

President and CEO, Representative Director, Shiseido

Moderator Hirotaka Takeuchi

Professor, Harvard Business School

14:55 - 15:25

 1-7

Re-evaluating value: Enhance your strengths

Toshiya Mori

Chairman, KPMG Japan

Moderator Makoto Kajiwara

Commentator, Nikkei Inc.

15:25 - 15:55

Break

15:55 - 16:25

 1-8

How should we respond to new consumer trends?

Kana Bougaki

Co-Founder and Director, Makuake

Moderator Keiichi Murayama

Commentator, Nikkei Inc.

16:35 - 17:05

 1-9

What are the strategies of the world's largest energy company?

Amin H. Nasser

President and CEO, Saudi Aramco

Moderator Hirofumi Matsuo

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

17:15 - 17:45

 1-10

Essentials innovator for supporting life

Yuichi Kitao

President, Kubota Corporation

Moderator Atsushi Nakayama

Commentator, Nikkei Inc.

17:55 - 18:25

 1-11

The long journey in the new world

Jouko Karvinen

Chairman, Finnair

Moderator Jean-François Manzoni

President, IMD

18:35 - 19:05

 1-12

Business transformation and climate change: A global perspective

Kazuo Ichijo

Professor, IMD

Jean-François Manzoni

President, IMD

November 10(Wed)

09:00 - 09:30

 2-1

Secret of successful DX

Shantanu Narayen

Chairman, President and CEO, Adobe

Moderator Akito Tanaka

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Asia Chief business news correspondent, Nikkei Inc. (Based in Singapore)

09:40 - 10:10

 2-2

Google's next vision upon its 20th anniversary in Japan

Shinji Okuyama

President, Google Japan

Moderator Yo Tanaka

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

10:20 - 10:50

 2-3

The future of work in the post-pandemic era

Bret Taylor

President and COO, Salesforce

Moderator Akito Tanaka

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Asia Chief business news correspondent, Nikkei Inc. (Based in Singapore)

11:00 - 12:15

 2-4

The new challenge to open up organizations and empower people

Tomoko Namba

Founder and Executive Chairman, DeNA

Yasunori Beppu

Co-Founder and CEO, mish

Yuzuki Fukuzawa

Co-Founder and COO, Matilda

Shun Hashimoto

CEO, BASE FOOD

Moderator Takashi Sugimoto

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

12:15 - 13:15

Break

13:15 - 14:00

 2-5

World-class entrepreneurs from Japan

Shintaro Yamada

CEO, Mercari

Sachiko Kuno

Serial Entrepreneur, Co-Founder, Phoenixi

Moderator Takashi Sugimoto

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

14:00 - 14:45

 2-6

Traditional companies growing worldwide: Leadership through succession and innovation

Christophe Weber

President and CEO, Takeda Pharmaceutical Company

Masahiko Uotani

President and CEO, Representative Director, Shiseido

Moderator Akio Fujii

Chair of Editorial Board, Nikkei Inc.

14:45 - 15:05

Break

15:05 - 15:35

 2-7

Leadership and diversity in synergy

Aya Komaki

President, Sanrio Entertainment

Moderator Sawako Oiwa

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

15:35 - 16:15

Break

15:35 - 16:05

 2-S

【Special Session】Business succession and beyond
※Only available with Visitor Pass

Aya Komaki

President, Sanrio Entertainment

Moderator Sawako Oiwa

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

16:15 - 16:45

 2-8

New Home, New Life

Hyun-Suk Kim

President and CEO, Samsung Electronics

Moderator Makoto Kajiwara

Commentator, Nikkei Inc.

16:55 - 17:25

 2-9

The new normal and stakeholder capitalism

Charles D. Lake II

Chairman, Aflac Life Insurance Japan

Moderator Yoichi Takita

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

17:35 - 18:05

 2-10

Summary Session

Dominique Turpin

Professor, IMD

Hirotaka Takeuchi

Professor, Harvard Business School

Moderators

Kaori Takahashi

Manager, News Department, Nikkei CNBC Japan Inc.

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

Jo Kawakami

NIKKEI Financial Deputy Editor-in-Chief

Nikkei Inc.

Naofumi Nakamura

Senior Staff Writer

Nikkei Inc.

Natsuko Nakamura

Senior Staff Writer

Nikkei Inc.

Makoto Kajiwara

Commentator

Nikkei Inc.

Keiichi Murayama

Commentator

Nikkei Inc.

Hirofumi Matsuo

Senior Staff Writer

Nikkei Inc.

Atsushi Nakayama

Commentator

Nikkei Inc.

Akito Tanaka

Senior Staff Writer
Chief business news correspondent Nikkei Asia

Nikkei Inc. (Based in Singapore)

Yo Tanaka

Senior Staff Writer

Nikkei Inc.

Takashi Sugimoto

Senior Staff Writer

Nikkei Inc.

Akio Fujii

Chair of Editorial Board

Nikkei Inc.

Sawako Oiwa

Senior Staff Writer

Nikkei Inc.

Yoichi Takita

Senior Staff Writer

Nikkei Inc.

Latest Business News from NIKKEI ASIA

March 22, 2023, 18:10 JST

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Archives

Nikkei Inc. IMD Harvard Business School

Kentaro Ohyama

Chairman IRIS Group

Kentaro Ohyama took over his family business when he was nineteen years old and became a representative of Ohyama Blow Industry (current name: IRIS OHYAMA).
He built 15 plants in Japan, and then established local subsidiaries in the United States (1992), China (1996), the Netherlands (1998) and in other countries to expand their business by promoting local production and sale. He has grown the company from a regional company to a global "glocal" company.

Ohyama is lifetime director of Sendai Association of Corporate Executives, Vice Chairman of New Business Conference Association and Vice Chairman of Tohoku Economic Federation.
He received Honorary Citizen of Dalian, China in January 2004, the Medal Honor with Blue Ribbon in May 2009 and the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star in November 2017.
His publication includes "Manufacturers’ and Vendors’ Marketing Strategies" (Diamond, Inc.), "A mechanism to generate profits in any environment" (Nikkei Business Publications, Inc.) and "Iris-Oyama's Management Philosophy: My Personal History" (Nikkei Publishing Inc.)

Tomoko Namba

Founder and Executive Chairman DeNA

Tomoko Namba is the Founder and Executive Chairman of DeNA. Namba served as the company's CEO since its founding in 1999 until June 2011.

Prior to founding DeNA, she was a partner at McKinsey & Co.

She obtained an MBA at Harvard Business School in 1990.

Amin H. Nasser

President and CEO Saudi Aramco

Amin Nasser is the president and chief executive officer of Saudi Aramco, the world’s leading integrated energy and chemicals enterprise, and the largest provider of crude oil to global markets. He is also a member of the company’s Board of Directors.
During a company career that spans more than three decades, Nasser has served in a number of leadership positions, including as senior vice president of Upstream. In that role, he led Saudi Aramco’s largest capital investment program in its integrated oil and gas portfolio. The company is now building on its upstream leadership position by expanding its presence in the downstream and chemicals segments of the petroleum value chain, with significant investments and joint-venture partnerships in the Kingdom and overseas markets.

Nasser is actively engaged in the advancement of people through education and training, and advancing the company’s innovation and technology strategy. Nasser is a champion of Saudi youth advancement and development and keenly supports the company’s Young Leader’s Advisory Board (YLAB), a program designed to link Saudi Aramco leadership with the voice of its young professionals.
At the same time, Nasser is leading Saudi Aramco’s efforts to produce cleaner energy and products through investments in promising technologies such as next-generation fuel-engine interfaces, crude oil-to-chemicals processes, and renewable energy applications; entrepreneurial start-ups focused on cleaner energy solutions; and industry-wide efforts to minimize greenhouse gas emissions, such as the Oil and Gas Climate Initiative (OGCI).

He is also an advocate for an efficient, accessible, and world-class supply chain ecosystem that includes small-to-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to support Saudi Aramco's growing procurement needs.
In addition to his corporate responsibilities, Nasser is a member of the International Advisory Board of the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals; the World Economic Forum’s International Business Council (IBC); the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Presidential CEO Advisory Board; and the JP Morgan International Council.
As a longtime member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE), Nasser received the SPE's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017, as well as the SPE's Charles F. Rand Memorial Gold Medal awarded for distinguished achievement in mining administration, including metallurgy and petroleum in 2015.

Nasser holds a bachelor's degree in petroleum engineering from the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals in Dhahran. He completed the Saudi Aramco Management Development Seminar in Washington, D.C., in 1999; the Saudi Aramco Global Business Program in 2000; and the Senior Executive Program at Columbia University in 2002.

Aya Komaki

President Sanrio Entertainment

Aya Komaki joined Sanrio in 1983. Left the company after marriage and childbirth, and returned to work at a Sanrio-related company. She was appointed as Advisor at Sanrio Entertainment in 2014 and as Director in 2015. She is President of Sanrio Entertainment from June 2019 and Director of Sanrio Puroland from 2016.

She is also Chairperson of the cervical cancer prevention & awareness project "Hello Smile", Representative Director of the NPO Hello Dream Executive Committee, Representative Director of the SDGs Platform, and Director of Shochiku Co.

Born in Tokyo.

She received a Master's degree from the Graduate School of Education, the University of Tokyo.

Jean-Claude Biver

Former Chairman, Hublot Former President of the Watch Division, LVMH Group

Born in Luxembourg, Jean-Claude Biver obtained his maturité at the Lausanne Business School and completed his studies at the University of Lausanne. After honing in his business skill with passion for watchmaking and watchmakers through renowned brands such as Audemars Piguet, Omega, Blancpain, and Swatch Group, he has joined Hublot as CEO in 2004.

The watch guru is known for miraculously resurrecting Swiss mechanical watches from quartz crisis in 1980s, as well as catapulting several famous watch brands’ success to unprecedented levels.

As CEO of Hublot, Biver has developed a new brand concept "The Art of Fusion", and introduced new collection, aptly named "Big Bang", in 2005. Since its rebirth with Biver, Hublot has grown exponentially.

In 2010, Biver received the "2010 Entrepreneurship" Gaia Award for "his career as a whole and his qualities as a visionary businessman and marketing genius". After taking his role as Chairman of Hublot from January 2012, Biver was appointed as President of the Watches Division, LVMH Group 2 years later, to overview not only Hublot, but also TAG Heuer and Zenith. After an extraordinary career spanning over 40 years in watchmaking, Jean-Claude Biver, together with LVMH, has decided end of 2018 to relinquish his operational responsibilities and assume the role of Honorary Chairman of the LVMH watchmaking division.

Today, he is actively making speech at universities and business school around the world, sharing and passing his knowledge and experience to nurture the leaders of tomorrow.

Aside from his passion for watches and watchmaking, he is known by many as cheesemaker, as his farm in the Swiss Alps produces few tons of cheese annually.

Colin M. Angle

Chairman, CEO and Founder iRobot Corporation

Colin M. Angle, a co-founder of iRobot, has served as chairman of the board since October 2008, as chief executive officer since June 1997, and prior to that, as our president since November 1992. He has served as a director since October 1992.
As a co-founder and chief executive officer, Colin provides a critical contribution to the board of directors with his detailed knowledge of the Company, our employees, our client base, our prospects, the strategic marketplace and our competitors. Colin previously worked at the National Aeronautical and Space Administration’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory where he participated in the design of the behavior controlled rovers that led to Sojourner exploring Mars in 1997.

Colin holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and an M.S. in Computer Science, both from MIT.

Mike Henry

CEO BHP

Mike Henry has been Chief Executive Officer of BHP since January 2020 and a member of the Executive Leadership Team since 2011.

In his previous role, Henry was responsible for BHP’s iron ore, coal, copper and nickel assets in Australia, leading nearly 40,000 people across six assets, with revenues of US$29 billion, EBITDA of US$16 billion and capital spend of US$3billion.

Under his leadership, there was a 60 percent reduction in the frequency of high potential injuries in Minerals Australia. BHP has become the lowest cost major iron ore producer in the world. A turnaround of Nickel West led to the decision to return the business to core in the BHP portfolio. He delivered major capital projects, including South Flank, at half the capital intensity of prior major projects in West Australian Iron Ore, and implemented BHP’s first full-scale autonomous haulage system at Jimblebar.

Henry has designed and implemented a BHP-wide operating system and the Maintenance and Engineering Centre of Excellence, which has delivered material cost savings and improved uptime across key classes of equipment. He has established a new employment model and approach to skills building in Australia through Operations Services.

Henry has previously held roles accountable for health, safety and environment, technology, capital projects, supply, logistics and marketing and trading. He has also worked as an executive in the BHP Mitsubishi Alliance. His 30-year resources career has spanned four continents and all of BHP’s commodities. He has led teams in 18 countries.

Prior to joining BHP, Henry worked at Mitsubishi Corporation for 11 years.

Mike Henry was born in Canada and has Japanese heritage. He holds a Bachelor of Science (Chemistry) from the University of British Columbia.

Shantanu Narayen

Chairman, President and CEO Adobe

Shantanu Narayen is chairman, president, and chief executive officer of Adobe, one of the largest and most diversified software companies in the world. He joined Adobe in 1998 as vice president and general manager of its engineering technology group. He became president and COO in 2005, CEO in 2007, and chairman of the board in 2017. Before joining Adobe, Shantanu held product development roles at Apple and Silicon Graphics before cofounding an early photo-sharing startup, Pictra.
Adobe’s mission is to change the world through digital experiences, serving a large customer base from students to business communicators to the world’s largest enterprises. As CEO, Shantanu has transformed the company into an industry innovator by pioneering a cloud-based subscription model for its creative suite, establishing the global standard for digital documents, and creating and leading the explosive digital experience category. Today, he’s driving the company’s strategy to unleash creativity for all, accelerate document productivity, and power digital business. Under Shantanu’s leadership, Adobe has achieved record revenue and industry recognition for its inclusive, innovative, and exceptional workplace, including being continuously named a Great Place to Work and a Most Admired Company by Fortune.

Shantanu is vice chairman of the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum and sits on the board of Pfizer. He previously served as a director of Dell and is a past member of the U.S. President’s Management Advisory Board.
He has been recognized by several publications as one of the world’s leading executives, including Barron’s World’s Best CEOs and Fortune Businessperson of the Year lists, and named a Top CEO by Glassdoor based on employee feedback.
He is a recipient of India’s civilian honor Padma Shri and the Economic Times Global Indian of the Year award.
Shantanu holds five patents. He has a bachelor’s degree in electronics engineering from Osmania University, a master’s degree in computer science from Bowling Green State University and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of California at Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. Shantanu once represented India in sailing at an Asian regatta.

Shintaro Yamada

CEO Mercari

After graduating from Waseda University, Shintaro Yamada established Unoh Inc., where he launched various internet services including "Movie Life," "Photozou," and "Machitsuku!". In 2010, he sold Unoh to Zynga. After leaving Zynga in 2012, he went on a trip around the world. In February 2013, he established Mercari, Inc.

Kana Bougaki

Co-Founder and Director Makuake

After graduating from Doshisha University, Kana Bougaki started her career joining CyberAgent, Inc. in 2006 where she helped establish subsidiaries Cyber Buzz, Inc. and two gaming companies.
In 2013, she co-founded Makuake, Inc. and joined as Board Director. She is in charge of the Curator Department, overseer of PR, and is often travelling and giving lectures across Japan. Most recently she published a new book sharing her sales expertise and how it pertains to Makuake, Inc.’s success thus far. In parallel to her leadership roles she also manages cooperation with distribution channels, local governments and financial institutions.

Kana Bougaki strives to promote gender diversity within the firm and seeks to build a culture that fosters young leaders.

In addition to the above, she works as an advisor for XTalent, Inc., Kyushu University and Sojo University. She also has experience as a judge for the design and creativity awards TBDA and ACC and has worked as a visiting professor for iU which is a school that specializes in innovation.

Shinji Okuyama

President Google Japan

Prior to Google, Shinji Okuyama worked for 30 years in the consumer goods and food business as an executive. Previously, he was Senior Corporate Officer of Marketing at Ezaki Glico, a daily food manufacturer in Japan/Overseas operation celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2022. Shinji was responsible for the total Japan P/L and Marketing organization, on top led to develop mid-long term company strategies and talent development plans. Shinji also worked at Procter & Gamble for 26 years, starting from a Marketing career. He became president of P&G Korea in 2008, and appointed as President of P&G Japan in 2012 (retired in 2015). Japan is one of the top 10 priority countries of P&G globally. He has led to reposition the role of Japan from the application market of US/Europe led premium innovations to the lead innovation market for the globe (e.g. Lenoa Aroma Beads, Ariel gel-ball detergent). Delivered record high sales results for 3 consecutive years, overtook No.1 market share position of Fabric Softener category.

On the organization front, he has championed to drive D&I program, selected as the No.1 Company to work for as the new hire among female students at top schools. P&G Japan was also selected as the Best Company to Work for among international companies (Randstad) in 2014 and 2015.

Shinji graduated from Waseda University with a bachelor's degree of English Literature and Linguistics.

Shinji was born in Fukuoka, married with a son.

Akio Yamaguchi

General Manager and President IBM Japan

Akio Yamaguchi joined IBM Japan in 1987 as a system engineer. After participating in multiple system development and maintenance projects for financial institutions, he led the Y2K program office for IBM Asia Pacific and subsequently worked on strategy planning for IBM Japan as the Management & Planning Officer. He has also joined Marketing, led the Software Technical Sales team, and worked in the United States for the IBM Corporation as the Executive Assistant to a senior technical sales executive in 2005.

After returning to Japan in 2007, Akio took on various leadership roles in Global Business Services, an organization that drives clients’ transformation through IT services such as consulting, system development & maintenance, and business process outsourcing. During this time, he gained extensive experience in large-scale, complex system development and integration including next-generation financial systems, and in 2017, was appointed Managing Partner (Torishimariyaku Senmu Shikko Yakuin) of Global Business Services.

In May 2019, Akio was appointed General Manager of IBM Japan and has been driving digital transformation with clients using innovative technologies such as AI, Cloud, and Quantum Computing. He has also been involved in global strategy planning as a member of IBM’s Executive Committee since 2017.

Outside of IBM, Akio was appointed Representative Director of Accessibility Consortium of Enterprises, a general incorporated association that aims to establish a new hiring model for persons with disabilities. Also appointed as the Chairperson for the Corporate Management Committee organized by the Japan Association of Corporate Executives (DOYUKAI) in 2021.

Akio was born in Wakayama Prefecture.

Hyun-Suk Kim

President and CEO Samsung Electronics

H.S. Kim has held key executive roles during Samsung’s rise to the global No. 1 position in the TV and refrigerator markets, which it has held for 15 and 9 consecutive years respectively, overseeing the growing success of Samsung’s TV and Digital Appliances business.

Kim joined Samsung Electronics as a Senior Researcher in 1992 and developed several breakthrough technologies throughout the years. He was the lead developer of the Bordeaux TV in 2006, which introduced an innovative new design to the TV industry and remains one of Samsung’s best-selling TV models to date. He also played an integral role in the development of Samsung’s LED TV, 3D TV, Smart TV, UHD TV, Curved TV, QLED TV, as well as the full lineup of differentiated premium products which reinforce Samsung’s leadership in the TV market.

To create new value that makes people’s lives easier and more convenient with Samsung products, Kim was appointed President of Samsung’s Consumer Electronics Division, as well as the Head of Samsung Research in November 2017. He has been serving as President & CEO of the Consumer Electronics Division since 2018.

Kim’s contributions have strengthened the premium leadership of Digital Appliances through market-changing innovations such as the Bespoke range of appliances, which are driving Samsung’s position as a leader in the category. He has also focused on expanding Samsung’s B2B business, including built-in products and system air conditioners.

During his tenure at Samsung, Kim has built an enduring record of award-winning accomplishments. Among the most notable is the Gold Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit in 2020, awarded by the Korean government to business leaders who have made extraordinary contributions to the development of national industries. Kim also served as Chairman of the Korea Telecommunications Technology Association’s Smart TV Forum from 2012-2015.

Kim received a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Portland State University in 1987 and a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Hanyang University in 1983.

Asumi Saito

Co-Founder Waffle

Asumi Saito is a co-founder of Waffle.org, a nonprofit that provides tech education to girls in middle school and high school in Japan.
She is also a board member of L'Oreal Japan "Women's Empowerment Advisory Board", Forbes Japan 30 under 30 2020, and a former data scientist.
She received MS in Econometrics and Data Analysis from the University of Arizona.

Jouko Karvinen

Chairman Finnair

Jouko Karvinen has worked as Chairman of the Finnair Board of Directors since 2017 and Vice Chairman since 2016. He is independent of the company and its largest shareholders.

He was CEO of Stora Enso Oyj between 2007 and 2014. From 2002 to 2006 CEO of the Medical Division of Royal Philips, and previously several executive positions within ABB Asea Brown Boveri Ltd.
Karvinen is also a member of the Foundation and Supervisory Boards of IMD Business School, Lausanne, Switzerland.

He was the board member and vice chairman of the Board of Valmet Corporation 2016-2018, the board member and member of Personnel Committee of SKF AB 2010-2016, the board member of Nokia 2011-2016, Vice chairman of Nokia 2013-2016, and was a chairman of Audit Committee and member of Corporate Governance and Nomination Committee 2012-2016, and a member of International Advisory Board of Komatsu Corporation of Japan.

Born in 1957, M.Sc. (Tech.), Finnish citizen.

Yuichi Kitao

President Kubota Corporation

Yuichi Kitao joined Kubota Corporation in 1979, he started his career as a tractor engineer to improve products while tirelessly listening farmer’s concerns. After gaining both engineering and management experiences, he worked his way up to the General Manager of tractor division in 2009. He later became a president of Kubota Tractor Corporation in 2011 to contribute to the business expansion in the United States. In 2019, he was named Representative Director and Executive Vice President of Kubota Corporation as a representative of farm and industrial machinery business and became the General Manager of Innovation Center where Kubota makes collaborative creations for R&D with external partners around the world.

Kitao was appointed President and Representative Director of Kubota Corporation in 2020 and announced Kubota’s Long-Term Vision named "GMB2030" in 2021. To confront the increasingly serious social issues and to protect sustainability in our everyday lives, Kubota indicated the roles and guidelines for group-wide efforts.

D. Robert Hale

Partner ValueAct Capital

Rob Hale is a Partner at ValueAct Capital and leads the firm’s investing activities in Japan.

ValueAct Capital, established in 2000 and based in San Francisco, CA, is an investment firm managing over $14 billion on behalf of some of the world's largest institutional investors. ValueAct Capital seeks to invest in high quality companies with underappreciated growth opportunities, and to collaborate with boards and management teams to support their efforts to focus and transform into "21st century global champion" companies. ValueAct Capital's own partners have built a track record serving on 49 public company boards in North America, Europe and Asia. Since 2017, ValueAct Capital has invested over $3.5 billion in Japan primarily into four companies: Olympus Corporation, Nintendo Co. Ltd., JSR Corporation and Seven & i Holdings Co., Ltd.

Hale is currently an Outside Director of Olympus Corporation and JSR Corporation. He was formerly outside director of Bausch Health Companies Inc. and MSCI Inc. Prior to joining ValueAct Capital in January 2011, Hale was a Principal with The Parthenon Group, working in both the Boston and Mumbai offices of Parthenon’s strategic consulting practice, as well as in an investment role at Parthenon’s long-short investment fund, Strategic Value Capital.

He has an A.B. from Dartmouth College and has collaborated with Stanford University’s Rock Center for Corporate Governance and the Haas School of Business, University of California Berkeley as an author and guest lecturer.

Reiko Hayashi

Director and Deputy President BofA Securities Japan

Reiko Hayashi is director and deputy president of BofA Securities Japan Co., Ltd. In these roles, she oversees the firm’s interactions with regulators and government departments in Japan and is responsible for overseeing the governance framework across the business.

Reiko is also responsible for driving Environmental, Social and Governance client initiatives for the business. As chair of the Japan Philanthropy Committee and co-chair of the LGBT Pride employee network in Japan. Reiko has been with the firm since 2000 and has held a number of senior positions in investment banking, including head of Japan Global Capital Markets.

In 2015, Reiko was featured in FinanceAsia’s list of influential women in finance. In 2016, she became a non-executive auditor at National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS). Reiko served as a member of governmental working groups such as Expert Panel on Sustainable Finance. She is also a member of the Council for Promoting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the Japan Securities Dealers Associate (JSDA) as well as Board Member of International Capital Market Association (ICMA)

Reiko holds a bachelor’s degree in International Relations from The University of Tokyo and a master’s degree in Educational Sociology from The Graduate School of The University of Tokyo.

Charles D. Lake II

Chairman Aflac Life Insurance Japan

Charles Lake joined Aflac in 1999. After serving as General Counsel and, later, Deputy President, Lake became President and Representative in Japan in 2003; Vice Chairman and Representative in Japan in 2005; and Chairman and Representative in Japan in 2008. In 2014, he also assumed the position of President, Aflac International. Upon the establishment of Aflac Life Insurance Japan Ltd. (Aflac Japan) on April 2, 2018, Lake became Aflac Japan’s Chairman and Representative Director.

Lake currently serves as an independent outside director on the boards of Tokyo Electron Ltd. and Japan Post Holdings Co., Ltd. He also serves as a director on the board of the Peterson Institute for International Economics, trustee of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives (Keizai Doyukai), and member of the Japan Fair Trade Commission’s Antimonopoly Study Group. Lake has previously served in positions including, director on the board of the Tokyo Stock Exchange and the Japan Exchange Group, Inc. (2006-2016), and chairman of the U.S.-Japan Business Council (2011-2013). His publications include "The Art of War for Outside Directors – Guide to Good Governance & Best Practices" (Nihon Keizai Shimbun Publishing, Inc., 2020).

Christophe Weber

President and CEO Takeda Pharmaceutical Company

Christophe Weber is President, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Representative Director of Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Ltd. He joined the company in April 2014 as Chief Operating Officer, was named President and Representative Director in June 2014, and was subsequently appointed CEO in April 2015. Weber has focused on Takeda’s R&D transformation and globalization, creating a diverse and inclusive working environment while strengthening its ethical values and corporate governance. Through this transformation, Takeda became one of the leading global biopharmaceutical companies in the world.
Prior to joining Takeda, Weber spent 20 years at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), where he held senior leadership roles in Europe, Asia and the United States.

Outside of Takeda, Weber is member of The Business Council, the World Economic Forum’s International Business Council, the Singapore Economic Development Board’s International Advisory Council, the New York Stock Exchange’s NYSE Board Advisory Council and the MIT CEO Advisory Board. He also serves on the Board of Trustees of Northeastern University.
Weber holds a doctorate in pharmacy and pharmacokinetics, master’s degrees in pharmaceutical marketing and in accounting and finance and a degree in statistics, from the University of Lyon, France.
Weber lives in Tokyo with his wife and has two children.

Masahiko Uotani

President and CEO, Representative Director Shiseido
1977
Joined the Lion Dentifrice Co., Ltd. (currently Lion Corporation)
1988
Manager, Citibank, N.A.
1991
Representative Director, Vice President, Kraft Japan Limited (currently Mondelēz Japan Limited)
1994
Director, Executive Vice President and Chief Officer of Marketing, Coca-Cola (Japan) Co., Ltd.
2001
Representative Director, President, Coca-Cola (Japan) Co., Ltd. (Global Officer)
2006
Representative Director, Chair, Coca-Cola (Japan) Co., Ltd.
2007
Representative Director, Chief Executive Partner, BrandVision Inc.
2011
Outside Director, ASKUL Corporation
2012
Director (part time), Citibank Japan Ltd. (previously)
2013
Outside Chief Marketing Advisor of the Company
Apr. 2014
President and CEO of the Company [incumbent]
Jun. 2014
Representative Director of the Company [incumbent]
Jan. 2020
Japan Region CEO of the Company Representative Director, Chair and President, Shiseido Japan Co., Ltd.
Oct. 2020
Representative Director, Chair and CEO, Shiseido Japan Co., Ltd.
Jan. 2021
Executive Officer of the Company [incumbent]
Jul. 2021
Director and Chair of Shiseido Japan Co., Ltd. [incumbent]

Toshiya Mori

Chairman, KPMG Japan CEO, KPMG AZSA

Toshiya joined KPMG Minato Audit Corporation in 1986. Since returning from a three-year secondment to KPMG US in 1993, he has acted as audit engagement partner for major clients including a general trading company and global manufacturers, among others. In the advisory area, he has led a variety of projects related to business transformation, performance improvement, governance and M&A.

He later assumed concurrent roles as Executive Board Member of KPMG AZSA LLC and Chairman of KPMG Consulting. In October 2018, he was appointed Chairman of KPMG Japan and Chairman of Global Japanese Practice (GJP). Currently, he is a Chief Executive Officer of KPMG AZSA LLC. and member of the KPMG Global Board and Council and the ASPAC Board.

Bret Taylor

President and COO Salesforce

As President and Chief Operating Officer, Bret Taylor leads Salesforce’s global product vision, engineering, security, marketing and communications.

A respected software engineer and executive with an impressive history of building widely used and loved products, Bret was most recently the co-founder and CEO of Quip, the innovative collaboration platform Salesforce acquired in 2016. Prior to founding Quip, Bret served as the Chief Technology Officer of Facebook and saw the company through its successful IPO in 2012. Credited with the invention of the "Like" button, Bret joined Facebook in 2009 after it acquired his social networking company, FriendFeed. Prior to FriendFeed, Bret started his career at Google, where he co-created Google Maps.

Bret is a member of Twitter's board of directors.

He graduated from Stanford University in 2003 with a B.S. and M.S. in Computer Science and now lives in the Bay Area.

Dominique Turpin

Professor (Marketing, Strategy) and Dentsu Chaired Professor IMD

Dominique Turpin is currently the Dentsu Chaired Professor of Marketing and the Dean of External Relations. He served as IMD President from 2010 to 2016. During his presidency IMD not only continued to secure and its worldwide reputation as a top school in executive education, but also ventured into research and education of the digital business transformation and enhanced its presence in Asia.

Turpin has widespread executive seminar and consulting experience for clients in Europe, Asia and Latin America. He has directed various customized programs for companies such JTI, Kao, and Panasonic and many other global companies around the world. He also serves on the board of various companies in Asia and Europe.

His current research focuses on brand management, and he has been widely published in more than 100 books, articles and case studies. Turpin has also been listed among the Case Center's world top-40 best-selling case authors for several years in a row.

The book he co-authored with Mr. Naoshi Takatsu (IMD representative in Japan) in 2012 on the challenges of Japanese corporations in the global era made a tangible impact on the discussions in the Japanese business community.

Dominique Turpin received his master's degree from ESSCA in France and earned a doctorate in economics from Sophia University in Tokyo.

Hirotaka Takeuchi

Professor Harvard Business School

Professor Takeuchi received his B.A. from International Christian University in Tokyo and M.B.A. and Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley.

He was an Assistant Professor at the Harvard Business School from 1976 to 1983, where he taught courses in marketing and retailing in the MBA program. He joined Hitotsubashi University in Tokyo as an Associate Professor in 1983 and became Professor in 1987. In 1998, he became the Founding Dean at Hitotsubashi University Graduate School of International Corporate Strategy (ICS). In 2010, he returned to Harvard Business School as a Professor of Management Practice in the Strategy Unit. In 2019, he became Chair, Board of Trustees at his alma mater International Christian University. He currently teaches a field course in the second-year MBA curriculum at HBS (Japan Immersive Field Course: Fusion of Digital and Analog) and is the Faculty Chair for two customized programs in Executive Education.

Professor Takeuchi’s current research interests are focused on (a) the knowledge creation process within organizations, (b) knowledge-based strategy, (c) practical wisdom as the basis of continuous innovation, and (d) agile innovation methods.

He is the author of "The Best Practice Revolution" (Diamond-sha, 1994, in Japanese) and the co-author of the following books: (1) "Corporate Self-Innovation: Managing Chaos and Creation" (H. Takeuchi et al., Chuo Koron-sha, 1986, in Japanese); (2) "Managing Heterogeneity: The Path to Global Management" (H. Takeuchi and Yoko Ishikura, Diamond-sha, 1994, in Japanese); (3) "The Knowledge-Creating Company" (Ikujiro Nonaka and H. Takeuchi, Oxford University Press, 1995), which won the 1995 "Best New Book of the Year" Award for the Business and Management category by the Association of American Publishers; (4) "Can Japan Compete?" (M. Porter, H. Takeuchi, and M. Sakakibara, 2000, London: McMillan in English, and Diamond-sha in Japanese), (5) "Hitotsubashi on Knowledge Management" (I. Nonaka and H. Takeuchi, John Wiley & Sons, 2004), (6) "Extreme Toyota" (E. Osono and N. Shimizu and H. Takeuchi, John Wiley & Sons, 2008), (7) "The Wise Company" (I. Nonaka and H. Takeuchi, Oxford University Press, 2019), and others.

His business experience includes marketing research and account service work with McCann-Erikson in Tokyo and San Francisco, and management consulting work with McKinsey & Company in Tokyo. He is an advisor/trustee to a number of organizations and an external board member of several Japanese companies.

Jean-François Manzoni

President IMD

Jean-François Manzoni is the President of the International Institute for Management Development (IMD), where he also serves as the Nestlé Chaired Professor (Leadership, Organizational Development).

Under his presidency from 2017, IMD redefined its purpose, invested in technology-mediated pedagogies, enhanced research on areas such as digital transformation and sustainability, and strengthened governance and organizational unity. Despite the pandemic, IMD has further enhanced its position as a world’s leader in executive education and an enabler of corporate transformation.

Manzoni’s research, teaching and advisory activities are focused on leadership, the development of high-performance organizations and corporate governance.

At the organisational level, he studies the content of change, the management of the change process and the role of leaders therein. His work in this area has appeared in several books, articles and over 30 cases.

At the individual level, he studies how leaders can create a caring, high-performance work environment. This stream of research has led to several articles and the award-winning book entitled The Set-Up to Fail Syndrome: How good managers cause great people to fail.

On the corporate governance side, Manzoni focuses on interpersonal dynamics within the Boardroom and between management and the Board.

A Fellow of the Singapore Institute of Directors, he has served on multiple boards, and currently serves on the Board of Keppel Corp., an international diversified group listed on the Singapore stock exchange.

A citizen of Canada and France, Manzoni received his Doctorate from Harvard Business School.

Sachiko Kuno

Serial Entrepreneur

Co-Founder, Phoenixi

Sachiko Kuno is the co-founder and Chair of Halcyon, a nonprofit dedicated to the power of human creativity. Kuno also serves as CEO of S&R Foundation, a 501(c)(3) she co-founded in 2000 to support talented individuals with great potential and high aspirations in the arts, sciences, and social entrepreneurship. Capitalizing on the success of the Washington-based Halcyon Incubator, she co-founded Phoenixi Co Ltd in Japan, a Kyoto-based residential incubator for social entrepreneurs and intrepreneurs, in a bid to bring about social impact from across the innovation ecosystem in Kyoto and beyond.

Kuno was the founding CEO of Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCMP) until she stepped down in 2012. She currently sits on the Board of Directors for numerous organizations including Johns Hopkins Medicine and The Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation, and serves as Kyoto University Executive Vice-President for International Liaison and International Alumni Affairs.

Kuno has been most recently recognized as Harvard Business School of Japan’s 2016 Stateswoman of the Year, AVON Awards to Women (‘16), and among Washingtonian’s 2017 Tech Titans and Forbes 2020 American's Self-Made Women (2015 and 2020).

Kazuo Ichijo

Professor (Innovation, Leadership) IMD

Kazuo Ichijo is currently Dean and Professor of School of International Corporate Strategy, at Hitotsubashi University, Tokyo. His research interests focus on innovation through the process of organizational knowledge creation. His areas of expertise are the development of knowledge-based competence of a firm, the management of innovation and corporate transformation.

Ichijo has published a number of papers in these research areas. His book, “Enabling Knowledge Creation: How to Unlock the Mystery of Tacit Knowledge and Release the Power of Innovation”, won the Best Business Book of the Year award 2000 from the Association of American Publisher's Professional and Scientific Publishing division. He has published a number of academic papers, business journal articles, and books worldwide. “Business Despite Borders: Capitalism in the Age of Populist Anti-Globalization” (Santiago Iñiguez de Onzoñ and Kazuo Ichijo (editors), Palgrave Macmillan, 2018) is one of his recent publications.

Ichijo has been involved in many corporate transformation activities initiated by leading companies as a consultant and an outside board member.

From April 2022, Ichijo will become a full-time member of IMD’s Faculty, extending the business school’s international reach, growing its ties with Japan’s business community, and helping drive the development of its future leaders.

He is the holder of a BA (social sciences) and MS (social sciences) from Hitotsubashi University and PhD (business administration) from the University of Michigan.

Kaori Takahashi

Manager, News Department, Nikkei CNBC Japan Inc.
Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

Kaori Takahashi is a manager of News Department at Nikkei CNBC Japan Inc. She is also a senior staff writer at Nikkei Inc. Before taking the role in 2020, she was deputy editor of International News for two years. She spent five years from 2013 as Nikkei's first female Sydney Bureau chief, covering politics, global resources and international trade issues across the Pacific and East Asia.

Entering Nikkei in 1994, Takahashi has reported for the City News, International News, Lifestyle, and Business News sections. Her period as Sydney Bureau chief brought two editor's prizes for breaking news: one for groundbreaking concessions that secured Japan’s first broad trade agreement with a major agricultural exporter, and the other for Toyota's withdrawal from production in Australia. She commentated on Asia issues for Australian media.

Kaori graduated from Tokyo University of Foreign Studies. Between 1990 and 1991 she studied at St. Anne’s College, Oxford University.

Jo Kawakami

NIKKEI Financial Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Nikkei Inc.

Jo Kawakami is a Deputy Editor-in-Chief for NIKKEI Financial. He joined NIKKEI Inc. in 2000 and covered capital market and corporate finance news as a Staff Writer. He was a correspondent in New York from 2010 to 2014 and covered investment banks, hedge funds and private equity. He was assigned as a Deputy Editor of Capital Market News Department in 2018.

He is the author of "Risk Takers: The money managers who beast the market".

Naofumi Nakamura

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

Naofumi Nakamura served as a senior staff writer and editorial writer from 2019. Prior to this, he was a senior staff writer from 2018. He joined Nikkei Inc. as a staff writer after graduating from Kanazawa University, School of Economics in 1989.

He held positions at Business News Department, Commodity News Department, Economic and Business News Department at Osaka Head Office, and Editorial Department at Sapporo Branch Office.

From 2014 to 2016, he worked as a senior staff writer and deputy editor-in-chief for the Nikkei MJ (marketing journal), Tokyo Editorial Bureau. From 2016 to 2018, he was editor-in-chief for the Nikkei MJ (marketing journal).

Natsuko Nakamura

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

After graduating from Ochanomizu University, Natsuko Nakamura joined Nikkei as a journalist in 1993 to cover various corporations in Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya, concurrently to write stories on consumer trends. From January to July 1998, she was nominated to be a member of a project team to run a series of front-page stories focusing on women. The column, “Quiet Revolution of Women,” was the first of its kind and Nakamura found her own position in reporting on women and women related issues. From2017 to 2019, she was the founding Editor-in-Chief for NIKKEI The STYLE, Nikkei’s lifestyle magazine on print and digital. From 2019 to 2021, she was the Editor of Working Women's section. Since April 2021, she has been the senior staff writer. Mainly covers career development, diversity, consumption, and marketing.

Nakamura is also a consumer life advisor and career consultant.

Makoto Kajiwara

Commentator, Nikkei Inc.

Makoto Kajiwara is a commentator for Nikkei. His focus is global capital markets and corporate news.

In 2007 Kajiwara became the Nikkei’s youngest editorial writer. From 2009 to 2011 he was on special assignment in New York to cover the post-crash American economy. From 2015 to 2017, he was a Hong Kong based columnist covering economic news across Asia. He returned to Tokyo in 2017.
From 2002 to 2006 he was the Nikkei’s chief New York correspondent, where he was responsible for covering capital markets and corporate news.
Previous to that, he served as a staff writer in the Capital Market and Corporate News Department in Tokyo from 1997 to 2002 and as a correspondent in the newspaper’s Seoul bureau from 1994 to 1997.

Kajiwara graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Japan’s Waseda University in 1988 and joined Nikkei in the same year. He also studied Korean at Yonsei University in South Korea from 1992 to 1993.

Keiichi Murayama

Commentator, Nikkei Inc.

Keiichi Murayama formerly served as the U.S. Silicon Valley bureau chief of Nikkei Inc., and was a senior staff writer and an editorial writer of Nikkei. After earning his undergraduate degree at Tohoku University in 1992, he joined the Business News Department of Nikkei in Tokyo as a staff writer. He covered technology, medical, automotive, and financial news. After he joined the Program on US-Japan Relations of Harvard University, he went on to oversee the U.S. Silicon Valley Bureau for a few years.

He's authored “Rise and Fall of the IT Empire - Steve Jobs Revolution” and “STARTUP - Real of Entrepreneurs”.

Hirofumi Matsuo

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

Hirofumi Matsuo is Editorial Writer and Senior Staff Writer, covering the energy crisis, infrastructure exports, the Middle East and Africa.

He joined Nikkei Inc. in 1989. Specific areas covered include energy, plants and large-scale machinery, trading companies, METI and MOFA. He was previously stationed in Tehran, Cairo and Dubai, where he covered political situation of the Middle East and the strategies of oil countries. He has been in his current position since 2011.

His most recent book is titled “The End of Oil: The Great Energy shift”.

Matsuo was born in Hyogo Prefecture in 1964.

Akito Tanaka

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Asia Chief business news correspondent, Nikkei Inc. (Based in Singapore)

Akito Tanaka is a senior staff writer for Nikkei and Nikkei Asia's Chief business news correspondent, covering the technology sector from Singapore. Tanaka has twenty years of reporting experience and has also been covering global companies in both Japan and the United States. Tanaka graduated from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, with BA in political science. He spent his childhood years in Lisbon, Portugal, attending the American International School.

Yo Tanaka

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

Yo Tanaka is a senior staff writer of the Economic Commentary Department, Nikkei Inc. He graduated from Keio University in 1985 and joined Nikkei Inc. in the same year. In 1990, he became a staff writer for the Marketing News Department.

Tanaka reported on department stores, supermarkets, convenience stores, and foodservice companies for a long time. From 2002, he worked as a senior staff writer in the Marketing News Department (2002), Nikkei Business (2006), consumption industrial Department (2009) and Business News Department (2009). He has held the current position since 2015.

He was also the commentator for “Nikkei plus 10” on BS JAPAN and an anchor on “Evening Express” on Nikkei CNBC. He is an adjunct instructor at Tokyo Institute of Technology as well.

Tanaka is the author of “SEVEN-ELEVEN Endless Innovation” and “Survival of Department Stores”, the co-author of “New Pricing Revolution”, “Fall of the Daiei Castle”, and “A Very Easy-to-understand Guide to the Japanese Economy”, and the co-translator of “My Life with Marketing” by Philip Kotler, among other publications.

Takashi Sugimoto

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

Sugimoto joined Nikkei in 2002 as a reporter in the Business News Department. From 2011 to 2015 he worked as a correspondent in New York. He has covered Business news since he entered Nikkei.

Recently he published a book about IT start-up.

Sawako Oiwa

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

After graduating from university, Sawako Oiwa joined Nikkei Inc. in 1996. She was first assigned to the Marketing News Department and reported on specialty stores, restaurants, convenience stores, and consumer products companies for a long time. When Oiwa was a desk editor of Nikkei MJ, she widened her coverage range to Net business, service industry among other areas. When a new service is launched or a new store opens up, her motto is to actually try it out. In addition, she gained coverage experience of the autonomy of citizens and communities through reporting local governments for a long time. Oiwa became a Senior Staff Writer and Editorial Writer in April last year. She’s expanding her activities to lectures and speeches, besides writing articles.

Yoichi Takita

Senior Staff Writer, Nikkei Inc.

Yoichi Takita is a senior staff writer for Nikkei. He is a specialist in the fields of economics and finance, and his columns have appeared in the Nikkei, the Nikkei Online Edition, the Nikkei Veritas, the Nikkei Money, and other publications. He is also a commentary anchor for TV Tokyo's World Business Satellite (WBS).

He joined Nikkei Inc. in 1981. Worked in the Capital Market and Corporate News Department, Zurich Bureau, the Economics Department, and the Editorial Headquarters for the Americas (New York). He has been a senior staff writer since 2011 after serving as a deputy chief editorial page editor, and has been a commentary anchor for WBS since 2018.

He was awarded the Bourne-Ueda Memorial International Press Award in 2008.

Takita is the author of "Corona Crisis", "The Game of Chicken Trap in the World Economy", "Now is the Bubble Economy", "The World Economy, the Age of Surprises", "The Great Turmoil in the World Economy", "Sins of Omission in the Japanese Economy" and "Twenty Years of Truth in U.S.-Japan Currency Negotiations", all published by Nikkei Business Publications, Inc.

Atsushi Nakayama

Commentator, Nikkei Inc.

Atsushi Nakayama is an expert in industrial and managerial trends in the automotive, transport, and electronics industries. He worked as a senior staff writer and as an editorial writer before starting his current position in February of 2017. He has performed lectures on topics such as “GE and Toshiba” and “The Future of Mobility”. He was stationed in New York during the 9/11 terror attacks and provided reporting on them.

Akio Fujii

Chair of Editorial Board, Nikkei Inc.

Since joined in 1985, Akio Fujii has held various positions with Nikkei, including being the Bank of Japan and Ministry of Finance correspondent, New York Bureau Correspondent, Chief Correspondent for economic affairs at Washington Bureau from 1998 to 2002, London based Senior Writer from 2009 to 2011 and Washington Bureau Chief from 2012 to 2014.

He has also served as Senior Editor for International News Department, Editor-in-Chief for Nikkei Asian Review from 2015 to 2016, Senior Managing Editor, Head of Global News Operations from 2016 to 2017, Senior Editorial Writer from 2017 to 2020.

He covered issues related to global governance, economic policy and international finance.

Fujii obtained his BA in Economics from Waseda University in Tokyo.

Main publication: “G20-The Great Game in 21st Century” (2011, Nikkei Business Publications, Inc.), “Yellen’s Federal Reserve” (2013, Nikkei Business Publications, Inc.), “Introduction for Japan’s Economy” (2018, Nikkei Business Publications, Inc.), “Ambition of Libra” (2019, Nikkei)