September 2011
Should I Stay or Should I Go?
Good places for foreigners to start gauging the state of a country they are considering living in are international schools and relocation services—and that’s the focus of our two “disaster aftermath” special features, on pages 14 and 28. Education and accommodation are key issues for many expatriates and the articles offer valuable insights to help them make the right choices.
Midlands a Magnet for Foreign Direct Investment
Birmingham is the UK’s second most attractive area for foreign direct investment (FDI), according to Ernst & Young’s 2011 European attractiveness survey, the London Press Service reported on 16 August.
Drinking Japan: A Guide to Japan’s Best Drinks and Drinking Establishments
This unusual book is a look at life in Tokyo from the perspective of commuting to and from the city on the Odakyu line. The author, a British academic who taught English at Nihon University from 1997 to 2011, rode the line to work from his station at Mukougaoka Yuuen.
Parliament: BCCJ and UKTI Unite in Quake Relief Efforts
The British Chamber of Commerce in Japan and the British Embassy Tokyo’s UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) teams worked closely together after the 11 March earthquake to match requests for emergency supplies to what firms could offer, Hansard reported on 7 June.
An Autumn to Look Forward to
With summer coming to a close, what can you look forward to as we enter the final third of the year? Our events programme has some exciting speakers signed up until the end of the Chamber year in March, so please see our schedule on the BCCJ website.
News in Brief
Your monthly digest of UK-Japan news.
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.
Book Reviews
This month: Tokyo Commute: Japanese Customs and Way of Life Viewed from the Odakyu Line, English in Japan in the Era of Globalization, and Japan as a ‘Normal Country’?—A Nation in Search of Its Place in the World
The Straight-talking Scouser
Taking over as president of Olympus Corporation on 1 April, Michael Woodford MBE joined the small but growing group of foreign bosses at Japanese firms. Based in Tokyo and known as the man who turned around Olympus’ European operations, the 51-year-old Liverpudlian talks about being an insider, an outsider and making changes.
School Report
After a bad case of the jitters in the immediate aftermath of the 11 March earthquake and tsunami, life is returning to normal across the Kanto region. Six months later, firms are operating at full tilt once more. And so it is with the schools charged with giving hundreds of children the best international-oriented education possible.
Success in Business English
Foreign business people often complain about the low level of spoken English among their Japanese contacts, while human resources managers at Japanese firms complain that employees’ English is inadequate. However, on the basis of having taught English and run corporate training programmes in Japan over the past six years, I know this is not true.
Sir James Dyson
Japan has a special place in the heart of Sir James Dyson. It was where some of his first vacuum cleaners were sold, providing him with the money to start the firm back in the UK which bears his name. It’s also somewhere he feels his firm’s products are truly appreciated.
UK’s Tough New Anti-corruption Law
On 1 July, there came into force the UK Bribery Act, probably the world’s most ambitious and far-reaching anti-corruption law to date.
Firms Moving Fast to Grab Top Talent
In preparing our July–September Quarterly Report, we found that employers in Japan have been reacting to the major shortage of candidates by speeding up recruitment and making offers of employment to suitable candidates more quickly than in the past, to avoid losing talented applicants to a competitor.Staff Jumping Ship
It could be a board of directors’ worst nightmare—a mass exodus of key executives to a rival firm. Losing key people in unanticipated and dramatic circumstances creates a crisis that tests the ability and resolve of senior management and, if not handled correctly, it can threaten the future of an enterprise.
Corporate Volunteers
The windows on two floors of the Tokyo offices of GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Japan are blacked out. Most of the lights are turned off in the spacious lobby, while the air-conditioning has clearly been set to operate at a higher temperature than might be expected in summer—although it is still comfortable. And, instead of a throng of employees coming through the front door shortly before 9am on a regular working day, there is only a steady trickle.
New Dynamics Six Months after the Earthquake and Tsunami
Partly obscured by the sound of tannoys announcing flight departures, the message over the phone was terse and to the point: the key to the house was under the mat, and the relocation team should let themselves in, pack everything and send it to the family’s home overseas.Retaining Your Best Talent
So you’ve secured the perfect candidate for the position and they start next week. Considering the time and money invested in recruitment, you will want the individual to remain engaged in a productive career with your firm for the long term. This is particularly important if they have bilingual skills, which in Japan are in extremely high demand and short supply.
Recruiting Using Social Media
Although social networks such as Facebook and LinkedIn now boast over 600 million users combined, while micro-blogging services such as Twitter offer a similarly large audience, it is not these numbers that have caught the attention of the recruitment industry.
New Strategy for Exporters and Investors
A new initiative by UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) marks a step-change in the government’s support for exporters and investors. As never before, Britain is open for business.
Hyper Japan 2011
London hosted all that is cool, creative, cute and crazy in Japan with cuisine, cosplay, culture, comedy, community, clothes, competitions and more at Hyper Japan 2011.
