110: Per Rasmussen, President and Representative Director for Millet Mountain Group, Japan

Per Rasmussen is currently the President and Representative
Director for Millet Mountain Group, Japan. Mr. Rasmussen is
originally from Denmark, and he studied Business at University of
Southern Denmark. His first introduction to Japan was through his
Japanese wife who was based in Denmark when they first met and
his first job after graduating was with the Lego Group in the
marketing side of strategic product development. After working in
Denmark for 4 years, Mr. Rasmussen transferred to the Tokyo
office and in Tokyo he worked in progressive marketing roles over
the years with various companies. This led him to working in
senior leadership roles such as Managing Director and President
in recent years.  


Mr. Rasmussen talks about bringing change through his work with
the Danish Toy Company, The Lego Group. He says that in parents’
minds education is one of the most conservative things and
specifically in the Japanese market, as they do not want to take
risks with their children’s future. At the time in Japan,
education was more closely associated with knowledge and not so
much with creativity. They worked to change the product slightly
and the commercials to try and market Lego to the Japanese
market. He says that trying to increase sales of the products and
increased revenue to the company brought about some resistance
from employees. Many employees said they had joined for the
stability of the organization and were not in favour of change.
One of their most popular products was a large bucket full of
Lego Bricks which some people thought was boring. After some
tough negotiations with headquarters, they introduced The
Elephant Bucket to the Japanese market. While most toys last only
3-6 months, the Elephant Bucket was so popular that it lasted on
the market for 20 years.


 


In terms of getting engagement in Japan, making the distinction
between success and failure is important in understanding
success. Success is spoken of as non-failure. Mr. Rasumussen
emphasizes not singling people out if a mistake is made and
trying new ways, or new things in the workplace works differently
in Japan. In Japanese workplaces, it is okay not to try. But if
someone tries to do something, they must succeed. Thus, if
someone doesn’t try, that is alright with everyone, but they
would prefer not trying rather than trying and failing. Japanese
work culture can be seen as risk-averse in this regard. Being
mindful of this when trying to bring about change can be
important.


 


Mr. Rasmussen would advise newcomers to Japan to come with an
open mind, understand that Japan works differently, and do not
try to tell Japan how Japan works. He gives an example of his
early years, where he would become frustrated because Japan
worked at a slower pace. This pace of innovation and change was
slower than he was used to. He would also advise investing the
time and energy in learning Japanese only if the intention is to
stay 15 or more years in Japan as it is a significant time
commitment.