The Power of Embracing Diversity

Takamasa Kawasaki, 35, is chief executive officer of Redhorse Corporation and Founder and Chairman of Odigo. Living in Hong Kong, he manages several business lines across several countries.

Prior to being the management of both companies, Takamasa served as General Manager of China office in one of the top-tier consulting firms in Japan. He has established its China business and has led the group’s focus on growth in emerging markets, led double-digit growth of its China business. In addition, Takamasa worked for KPMG Tokyo as a CPA.

Takmasa holds a Master degree of Business Administration of Hong Kong Universty of Science and Technology as well as Bachelor of Agricultural management from Tokyo University.

Bilateral Insight: Your autobiography is coming out this month. Please tell us a little about it and what motivated you to write one?

With the help of numerous people, I am thankful that I am able to publish my book, "The Power of Embracing Diversity" (異質を巻き込む力). In the book, I introduce the tools necessary to fully utilize and manage diversity: leadership, communication and language. I wanted readers to be able to maximize the Japanese mindset but not be restricted by it. I believe that to be globally competitive, we have to integrate ourselves in diversity but also remember our individuality. I've worked in many companies with people from different nationalities and backgrounds; it’s rare to have someone at my age leading people. The publishing company was curious about what made me the person I am today, particularly as what I do is unlike your typical Japanese person.

BI: Being a successful native Japanese entrepreneur in China/Hong Kong, what challenges have you faced?

To establish a relationship of mutual trust is always a challenge. When I began working in China and Hong Kong as an entrepreneur, I didn’t work for a famous company, I had no history there, and all my achievements, education and work experience in Japan simply didn’t translate. It was a difficult period since I was constantly having to prove myself and my product to people, and also to show that I was more than capable of succeeding.

BI: In your book you mentioned strengthening Sino-Japanese relationships. Can you elaborate?

My dream is to bridge the two cultures to create opportunities. For example, while working with two companies in the tourism industry in Japan, I realized that there was a big market for them in the Greater China region. I’ve been working to bring those ideas from Japan and to learn from the Chinese market as well.

BI: With the 2020 Tokyo Olympics coming, how do you think Japan should prepare itself?

For the Olympics, Tokyo should be prepared to grab opportunities in inbound tourism. In fact, the Japanese government is making a big push for the Olympics in this sector. While I believe that the infrastructure and tourist attractions are fully developed, we do lack quality in the information available to tourists. There is much room for improvement in English guides, explanations of cultural differences, and general information for visitors. Take a good ramen (noodle) restaurant: visitors ask, “What does this vending machine say?”, “How do we change the taste of the soup?”, “Why do some people get more than one bowl of noodles?” This is because most of the information and services are designed for the local population, not for visitors. By 2020, we need to improve the experience for tourists and locals alike.

BI: What are your plans for your new Japanese venture “Odigo”?

Odigo is an online community tool that connects travelers with local information on a worldwide scale. We can create exceptional trips using the tool and the information available on the system. We’re launching it later this year. In Japan, as the number of inbound tourists is expected to increase, we’ve been focusing on major cities in the country before opening up in other cities. After we establish a scalable model, we’ll roll it out to the rest of the world.

BI: As a successful entrepreneur and leader, what advice would you give to someone going into a leadership position for the first time?

As long as you’re willing to learn something new from both success and failure, you’re eligible to be a leader. Don’t be afraid of mistakes. Just get out of your comfort zone. If you steep yourself in diversity, then you’ll be able to have more choices and enhance the quality of your decision-making. I believe in this way you’ll be able to broaden your perspective in the business world.

© Japan Today