36: Glen Fukushima Ex-CEO Airbus Japan

Once on the Board of Governors for the American Chamber of
Commerce Japan, being Vice-President for six years and President
for two, Glen Fukushima has an incredible wealth of knowledge in
business, government and law. Studying at the prestigious
Stanford and Harvard university, Mr. Fukushima worked in
government including the Office of the United States Trade
Representative where he was heavily involved in US-Japan trade
negotiations. He then transitioned into the private sector,
becoming Vice-President of AT&T Japan, President and CEO of
Arthur D. Little, President and Chairman of Cadence Design
Systems Japan, President, CEO, Chairman and Director of Airbus
Japan, and now Senior Fellow at Center for American Progress.


 


Despite his experience in negotiation, Mr. Fukushima explains
that leading a Japanese organization with a global headquarter
had many challenges, largely due to different expectations and
way of operation. For example, Mr. Fukushima recalls his struggle
to convince headquarters to adjust the performance evaluation
system in Japan and avoid firing people for being bad performers
like they did in the US. He also found difficulty navigating
between headquarters who expected detailed reports from him on
business in Japan, and his direct reports, who only expected him
to manage higher-level matters.


 


To deal with such challenges, Mr. Fukushima notes the importance
of understanding Japanese values and respecting long-term
relationships, as well as producing results. Mr. Fukushima also
drew heavily on his diverse experience working in other American
and European companies to persuade headquarters on how things are
done differently in Japan. Additionally, Mr. Fukushima encouraged
his Japanese team to interact with others outside of Japan on
occasions such as regional meetings and visiting headquarters to
establish better relations and broaden both cultures’
perspectives.


 


To encourage innovation, Mr. Fukushima worked on changing the
Japanese risk-averse mind-set by rewarding those who would try
out new ideas. Moreover, in leading multi-national organizations
in Japan, Mr. Fukushima explains: “I think one of the selling
points is that we're more innovative, we have new ideas, and to
succeed in Japan, we can't do what the entrenched Japanese
companies are already doing. Because unless we do something
different and something better, we're not going to succeed.”


 


Mr. Fukushima gives fantastic advice for any foreigner who is
going to Japan for the first time and will be leading a Japanese
team. Firstly, he indicated the importance of understanding
differences between Japan and the US and adjusting one’s actions
to respect Japanese culture. Secondly, Mr. Fukushima advises to
learn from others and seek those who are experienced in working
in Japan such as joining study groups (benkyokai). Thirdly, he
emphasizes that respecting continuity, consistency, and
precedence are all very important in Japan. Therefore, it is
important to understand and respect the history, instead of
trying to change everything. Lastly, he notes the increasing
diversity of Japan during recent times. Mr. Fukushima states: “On
the one hand, you could talk about large traditional Japanese
companies from the pre-war period, they've been around for a
hundred years…And then on the other hand, you've got these newer
companies that are…similar to Silicon Valley companies…So, one
caution I would add is that you need to realize that there's
tremendous diversity in Japan and know what kind of organization
you're dealing with. “