23: Markus Baron, President & Representative Director of SGL Carbon Japan

Markus Baron, member of the Board of Directors of the German
Chamber of Commerce, and President and Representative Director of
SGL Carbon Japan, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of
products from carbon, talks about his journey from the IT world
into sales and leadership. In 2003, while still a university
student studying Mechanical Engineering in Germany, Mr. Baron
founded the start company Eastbeam Co., which expanded to Japan,
then founded Wazap AG in 2006. These early experiences working in
both Germany and Japan gave Mr. Baron a strong foundation to be
the leader of a multinational enterprise.


 


Mr. Baron is half-German, half-Japanese and speaks both the
native languages as well as English. Through his experiences and
his heritage, Mr. Baron shares his insights about the cultural
and corporate differences between his two mother countries. Mr.
Baron explains how in Germany, people have a strong sense of
responsibility toward their own work and function according to
their job description whereas in Japan, “the general principle is
to basically be on one ship and help each other…but not always
constructive in terms of how the company achieves it goals.” Mr.
Baron also talks about overcoming the challenge of being a young
leader and building credibility through his IT background and
language skills. He additionally seeks advice from senior leaders
within and outside of the company, including members of the
German Chamber of Commerce.


 


Furthermore, with SGL being a small company of 55 people, Mr.
Baron discusses his experiences of gaining trust from his staff
through transparency, delegation and supporting employee
engagement.  He is mindful of giving praise and showing
appreciation to create a safe space for innovation. Mr. Baron is
also careful to take a step back from leadership when necessary
so that his staff can take charge themselves.


 


Mr. Baron advises newcomers in Japan to learn the language and
any form of Japanese art such as martial arts or sado to gain a
deeper understanding of the culture and Japanese mindset. He also
recommends interacting with local Japanese people by going to
places like Shimbashi to find out “what the average employee
talks about after five.”