Lori Henderson MBE
Executive Director
Lori Henderson MBE has been BCCJ executive director since February 2011.
Contributions
Journeying forward
Brave Conversations, Positive Transformations
New horizons
Transform the norm
Into new terrain
Notes from the Executive Director’s desk
The difference one year makes
B2B Collaboration
Shaping the twenties
Legacy and leverage
Big events, big impact
Positive impact
Defining the future of business
Excited about BBA
Summer sets the stage to honour excellence
Be responsible
Bringing BCCJ 5.0 to life
Collaborative growth
Use Member Gets Member to spur opportunities
Look back, look forward
Annual General Meeting sets the tone
Hello, Reiwa!
Riding the waves of change
Partners for progress
Bringing UK and Japanese firms together for the common good
Seat at the table
B20, W20 and Excom elections
New Year notes
Step up your participation in 2019
Milestone Memories
And a mega year ahead
What’s coming up?
Life after the BBA
Business contingency …
Competitive edge
How rugby and same-sex marriages can support Japan’s globalisation
Be in it to win it
2018 BBA nominations now open
A platinum event
Celebrating the best of the UK-Japan relationship
Beyond events
Community, cooperation, change—and a values-driven organisation
Votes and vision
Your new Executive Committee
Innovation hub
Stay ahead of the times
Ever evolving
Results of our membership review
Pressing for progress
Women, be bold; Men, get ready
A new year, a new era
Standing on the shoulders of giants
Reflect and resolve
Big plans for the chamber in 2018
Give and take
On the clock
Making the most of a 40 hour week
Passing the baton
Maternity leave plan
Showcase your success
9th annual British Business Awards
Going the distance
Interest in global sports continues to grow
Time, treasure and talent
Who’s doing what at the BCCJ?
New chamber year begins
AGM highlights
Communitarians
Stewards with a shared mission
Are you engaged?
Raise your profile via BCCJ channels
Leadership vote
New financial year on the horizon
Energise your networks
Events in 2016
What a year!
Reflecting on our achievements
All hands on deck
Preparing for the 2015 BBA
The best of British
Nominate your favourite firms for a BBA trophy
Agents of change
Progress on diversity and inclusion
Diversity
Where are we now?
The lifeblood of the BCCJ
Sharing event feedback and intel
An effective platform
Business exchange and networking high on agenda
New chamber year begins
Excom elected for 2015–16
Election time
Cast your vote for BCCJ excom and president
Spotlight on Tohoku
The Duke of Cambridge visits Back to Business sites in the region.
Learning together
Big business, entrepreneurs and Japanese culture provide role models.
Making connections for members
Forging new relationships is key to the BCCJ's ongoing development.
BCCJ people
The commitment and energy of our people have brought about a record-breaking year for the chamber.
Cultural and commercial bridges
BCCJ ACUMEN is a resource for education; bilingual posts on the BCCJ website cater to a wider audience
Record-breaking month of events
Offerings included social gatherings and events to support business and government initiatives.
Snapshots from the BCCJ ecosystem
Tapping into lessons learned to offer value to firms, and embrace opportunities to address diversity in business.
Your trophy awaits
Nominations are open for the 8th British Business Awards, which celebrate and reward the best of UK-Japan business.
Getting creative
BCCJ events; Quake zone latest; British Business Awards 2014
Creating a level playing field
Upcoming sporting events present a great opportunity for the transfer of knowledge between the UK and Japan.
RECORD-BREAKING YEAR
BCCJ rolls out its most competitive election in its 65-year history at its best ever attended annual meeting.
Good governance; going to the polls
I encourage all BCCJ members to attend the AGM on 23 April, to welcome your new excom and president.
Time to take stock
Over the past year, our current excom has seen rising membership numbers, a boost in event attendance and a steady organic increase in online engagement.
A Global Education at the BCCJ
With global jinzai such a hot topic on the road to 2020, education and innovation are never far from our minds at the BCCJ.
Alive and Kicking
Currently just over 9% of our corporate members are Japanese—the highest percentage in our 65-year history.
Diversity in Action
The BCCJ plays an important role in highlighting the cultural and commercial diversity of the UK.
Back to Business for Tohoku
Immediately following the emergency relief phase of the 11 March 2011 disasters, the BCCJ established the Back to Business (B2B) Initiative for Tohoku.
Strategic, Emotional Impact of the 2020 Tokyo Games
We were truly delighted to see Tokyo announced as the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games host city on 8 September.
A Meaningful Contribution
We are delighted to report that, after a summer of book drives organised by BCCJ member firms, our Books For Smiles (BFS) social responsibility initiative has now raised a total of ¥1,611,942!
The Importance of Sport
With the Tokyo 2020 Olympic bid now entering its final stretch, not to mention the tremendous excitement surrounding Andy Murray’s Wimbledon win, the British Lions’ victory in Australia, a great start to the Ashes, and Chris Froome lifting the Tour de France trophy, sport has not been far from my mind this month.
From Dundee to MBE
Accompanied by my parents and brother, I collected my MBE (Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) at Buckingham Palace on 7 June.
A Great Year for Anniversaries
We will host 400 Night at the Conrad Tokyo on 18 July. The special event will celebrate the 400th anniversary of diplomatic, trading and cultural relations between the UK and Japan.
Our First Contested Election
In recent years, the BCCJ has enjoyed a measure of success and a number of new developments: membership has risen steadily and organically, attendance at our events has continued to grow, while online engagement across seven digital platforms is at an all-time high.
Honouring Heritage, Embracing the Future
Supported by the BCCJ’s Back to Business Initiative for Tohoku, Megumi Hikichi—a civil servant before the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami—has built a community-based enterprise in her hometown of Watari, Miyagi Prefecture.
Books for Smiles Update
Thank you to all those who have contributed so far to our Books for Smiles initiative.
BCCJ Organisational Plan for 2013
In addition to our monthly executive committee meeting in January, members of the executive committee were invited to the British Embassy Tokyo to participate in the BCCJ Away Day—a forum for exchanging ideas on this year’s organisational strategy.
Thank You for Your Help
Immediately on the heel of the Great East Japan Earthquake, we became a hub of information, disseminating to our extended networks requests from Japanese and foreign non-profit organisations, volunteers and survivors. We co-ordinated donations from individuals and firms here and abroad, with members showing great solidarity to the cause.
Stay in Touch!
The British Chamber of Commerce in Japan is now serving our membership through eight up-to-the-minute communications channels, which are designed to support, promote and engage with member firms and the greater UK–Japan relationship.
Books for Smiles
To build on our record of executing impactful social responsibility (SR) initiatives, the BCCJ is creating a simple yet effective multi-stakeholder programme.
Moving Forward
I’m delighted to report that in August, after 18 happy years in Iidabashi’s Eigo Centre Building, the BCCJ office moved to a more convenient central Tokyo location: Mori Building Co., Ltd’s ARK Hills complex in Tameike-sanno.
British Business Awards
From the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, to the UK government’s GREAT campaign and the World Shakespeare Festival 2012—this year presents the UK with a once-in-a-generation opportunity to showcase capabilities, enhance international relations and maximise global reach.
Uniting the UK and Japan
On 22 June, members of the BCCJ travelled to Aizumisato-machi, Fukushima Prefecture, to open a community centre in one of the area’s temporary housing complexes, accommodating 250 households who fled Naraha-machi due to the threat of radiation following the 3/11 disasters.
So What Do You Actually Do?
Interview with Graham Davis.
Meet Your Executive Committee
At the BCCJ annual general meeting on 26 April, attendees elected a new executive committee, comprising 15 members, to serve the membership during the 2012–13 chamber year.
Back to Business: Update
Following the success of our “Special 51 Night—Road to Recovery” event on 8 March, at which BCCJ member firms and friends raised more than ¥3.5mn for our Back to Business (B2B) Initiatives, we are now working to allocate funds to suitable projects in Tohoku, and continue facilitating micro-economic growth there.
Special Event: Road to Recovery
On 8 March 2012, the BCCJ will hold a special event to observe the first anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake. Supported by the British Embassy Tokyo, and held at the residence of Ambassador Sir David Warren, the event will celebrate UK–Japan solidarity on the road to recovery.
Communication key to BCCJ in 2012
Our presence has grown organically over the past months, and now includes active Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn pages. A new intern from Temple University Japan will join us at the end of January
Our Last Trip to Ishinomaki for 2011
Upon becoming executive director on 1 February, I would have struggled to pinpoint Ishinomaki on a map; in the nine months since the 11 March disasters, the city—where more than 3,000 residents died and some 2,700 are still missing—has become an indelible part of the BCCJ landscape.
Recovery Update: Helping fishermen, farmers and traders to market goods for the community
For the past five months, the BCCJ’s work in Tohoku has been driven by a simple mantra: we are supporting a recovery, not a disaster area. The time for donations—food, clothing, water, blankets—has long passed. Since June, all BCCJ cash donations have been spent on the provision of enabling resources to support local, stakeholder-led projects that have the potential for development, growth and sustainability.
Social Responsibility a Key Mission of the BCCJ
By the time this edition of BCCJ ACUMEN goes to print, we will have reached the nomination deadline for the 2011 British Business Awards (BBA), although tables and seats may be reserved by all guests until 24 October.
BCCJ and UK Firms Helping Tohoku
The BCCJ continues to be active in communities affected by the 11 March earthquake and tsunami, and recognises that the expertise of those who have been directly affected by the disasters is key to the planning and delivery of a successful recovery.
A Divided Community
Despite tensions and barriers, some locals are back in business Almost five months after the 11 March disaster, some Ishinomaki locals are taking reconstruction efforts into their own hands. During our most recent mission to the tsunami-ravaged city which suffered a heart-wrenching loss of almost 6,000 people, we met some small business owners we’d encountered in June. Sprouts of hope are emerging, but there is still a long way to go.
BCCJ Visit to Earthquake Zone
The main point of our recent trip to Tohoku, led by disaster-recovery NPO Relief 2.0, was to meet key contacts in the Ishinomaki business community and learn what they need to re-open their firms, and identify measurable and sustainable ways that BCCJ members could support the recovery of the local economy.
“Business as Usual in Unusual Circumstances”
Throughout April, thanks to the generosity of members and the counsel of our NPO colleagues, the BCCJ was in a position to provide direct emergency aid to groups and individuals working in Tohoku. This aid came in many forms, including water, underwear, nappies, fresh fruit, batteries and tinned tuna.
Keeping You Connected
Since the tragic events of 11 March the BCCJ, like many organisations in Japan, has been presented with an extraordinary situation. One of the key challenges centres on the dissemination of information.