My mother is Japanese and I was actually born here before moving to the United States to be educated, so my first encounter with Japan came with my first breath.

The people I respect and admire most take ownership of everything in their world — holding themselves to high standards, being accountable for their actions and not making excuses when they fail — for me, this is a worthwhile way to try to live, even if I frequently fall short of the goal.

I cannot achieve anything in my position without the hard work, dedication, and support of my staff and colleagues, so it makes me proud to see how much our business has grown over the years through their passion and efforts and how that represents career development and business growth for our customers.

I am fortunate to have the opportunity in my work to help professionals with a global mindset develop careers with multinational companies that are seeking bilingual and bicultural talent. While the considerable challenges we face in today’s labor market in Japan will undoubtedly become more acute in the future, my goal is to remain on the front lines of the issue, helping candidates and clients alike to achieve their professional goals.

The community of foreign professionals in Japan is richly varied and unfailingly supportive, and one’s professional network is often also a network of friends. This is a great thing, but it also means that one has to make the effort to explore Japan beyond the safety and comfort of the foreign community to connect with locals. My advice is to seek out unfamiliarity; fortunately, that is easy to find here.