Younger, bilingual sales and marketing professionals are acting as inadvertent change agents for an industrial sector in Japan that is facing greater challenges in fending off competition from mainland China, South Korea and Taiwan.
Sales and marketing professionals are in demand from employers across a range of areas including:
Automotive manufacturers
Importers, suppliers and manufacturers of chemicals, materials and machinery
Electrical employers including semiconductors, electrical manufacturers and energy companies.
Japan has historically prided itself on producing high quality products in these sectors while competitors in mainland China, South Korea and Taiwan were better known for mass production and lower prices.
However, these countries are now closing the quality gap while maintaining their ability to react to changing consumer demands and trends faster than companies in Japan.
This is forcing Japan’s industrial sector to look for younger, ambitious but still highly skilled and educated sales and marketing candidates to help them innovate and become more agile and responsive to market trends.
We are also seeing an increased need for managers reporting to regional or global headquarters in Europe or the US, to be proficient in English with the ability to combine their language and technical skills to deliver engaging presentations to clients and colleagues.
Recent developments impacting the recruitment market include the latest Bank of Japan tankan report showing confidence amongst Japan’s largest manufacturers is at its highest level since 2014. This includes an uptick amongst electrical machinery and production machinery companies off the back of strong demand amongst Asian countries including mainland China.
The bank survey of 10,000 companies, released in July 2017, shows confidence amongst manufacturers has increased for the third quarter in a row.
Japan’s economy more generally has benefitted this year from a weaker currency boosting strong exports plus solid levels of investment in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic games.
Japan is also been buoyed by a new free trade pact with the EU billed as the world’s largest open market, which could benefit automakers in particular. The deal, which was four years in the making, was launched in July 2017 so we will have to watch and see if it lives up to its promise. Discussions about tariffs on Japanese cars into Europe are yet to be finalised.
A 2011 free trade agreement between the EU and South Korea removed tariffs on South Korean cars imported into Europe so Japan is hoping to receive the same benefit. Meanwhile, Japan’s imports of automobiles rose 3.6 per cent in June 2017 – the 15th consecutive monthly increase – with luxury cars from Germany leading the way.
Regardless of the outcome of the new free trade agreement, automotive employers are on the hunt for candidates to fill a variety of sales and marketing roles. These include after sales people at the mid to senior management level for suppliers and importers of parts.
In the chemical arena, materials and machinery manufacturing sector employers companies are looking for sales professionals with chemical engineering qualifications, plus eight to ten year’s experience who are also commercially savvy. The successful candidate must also understand general distribution channels and possess excellent technical product knowledge to converse easily with clients.
Candidates for roles in companies producing organic and refined products need solid technical backgrounds, plus five to eight years experience and a master’s or doctorate in chemistry or chemical-related studies. They also need a strong command of business English.
Finding candidates with these combinations of skills is challenging, but increasingly important if companies are to innovate and increase their ability to adapt to new market conditions.
Many sales and marketing professionals in the industrial sector are reluctant to move jobs. Large Japanese companies traditionally offered careers for life and while this is no longer a given, candidates remain attracted to stability and a clear career path. As promotions have also been based on seniority in the past, candidates are reticent about giving up on the years they have put in with one firm. Offers from foreign-owned companies are also seen as risky.
However, the mindset is slowly changing with more young candidates willing to explore their options rather than remain in one job for life. They also welcome an opportunity to be exposed to an international business environment.
Another sign of change in the sector is the increasing demand for digital specialists including; digital marketers and web managers. Public relations and event management professionals are also in demand as companies must build and maintain their brand in the domestic and international market.
However, as operations become leaner, companies are increasingly looking for all rounders such as PR professionals able to plan and run events and digital marketers with hands on web knowledge and skills.
Companies are using traditional marketing but are also investing more in digital platforms including Facebook, Linkedin and Instagram to promote their products.
Higher salaries are being offered to secure candidates who have both the right technical knowledge and strong communications and social media skills.
If you would like to discuss this report in more depth or you wish to discuss your job search or recruitment needs, please email Francois Fleury, Hays recruiting manager for sales & marketing at
[email protected].