interview=Ken Mitsui | Text=Aya Rikitake | Photographs=Kohei Nishiyama
Japanese affiliated companies will evolve if they put more trust in the local staff and delegate authority.
The growing need for labor in APAC is unstoppable. The human resources services company established by PERSOL Holdings and Kelly Services in response to this is called PERSOLKELLY. We interviewed Ms. Yuko Otsuka, who came to Indonesia from Japan when the company was established and is now in charge of the Thailand office, about the hiring mindsets and improvement measures necessary for Japanese affiliated companies to acquire human resources overseas.
RA and CA are irrelevant for the service to realize “Work, and Smile”.
―Could you start by giving us an overview of your company?
PERSOLKELLY is a joint venture established in 2016 by PERSOL Holdings (formerly Temp Holdings) and Kelly Services as a comprehensive human resources services company in the APAC (Asia Pacific region). We operate in 13 markets: Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. In Thailand, where I work, 60 percent of our business is in recruitment, of which 30-40 percent is Japanese-affiliated and 60-70 percent is non-Japanese-affiliated. We also provide labor and HR consulting.
In the future, we would like to expand our share of temporary staffing and grow to become one of the top-ranked businesses in Thailand.
―What are some of the fields and industries that have been growing in Thailand in recent years?
The Covid pandemic was marked by the digitalization of banking and the increase in e-commerce. The development of fintech, such as virtual currency, was also significant, and related occupations were in great demand. If we limit ourselves to Japanese-affiliated companies, logistics-related transactions have increased due to the impact of the pandemic.
Recently, there have been many Chinese companies, mainly in the electric vehicle industry, entering the market, and we have received an increasing number of requests to hire Chinese nationals and Chinese speakers. In both cases, one of our strengths is that we can use the resources of “doda”, which is operated by our group company.
―Does your company separate RA and CA?
We separate RA (Recruiting Advisor/Corporate account) and CA (Career Advisor/Individual account), but ultimately more than 90% of our support involves a 180-degree approach. When considering a customer-first approach, RAs not only acquire job opportunities and handle companies but also focus on candidates and work alongside companies, often fulfilling both roles. The Group’s mission is to provide high-quality services and realize a society where people “Work, and Smile”, so we leave it up to the individual to decide what actions to take based on their personal initiative.
RA and CA are roles at our company, not job titles. Some people are 90% RA and 10% CA, while others may be half RA and half CA on their daily work.
My mission is to be a role model for female global talent.
―Please provide us with your background.
I joined Intelligence (now PERSOL CAREER) in 2011 after graduating from university. I was initially assigned to the Advertising Department of doda, where I was in charge of job ads on doda’s job search website, job fairs, and sales of corporate websites for about three years. However gradually I became more interested in the recruitment process and transferred to the recruitment department.
I had been looking for a chance to work overseas since the beginning. I applied for our Global Challenge Program and moved to Jakarta, Indonesia in 2016. Three years later, I became a Branch Manager in the Cikarang industrial park area in eastern Jakarta, and from 2021 I became responsible for the Japanese affiliated market in Thailand.
―What made you decide to work overseas?
As Japan’s population continued to decline, the belief that Japan would not survive without strengthening business with overseas markets grew during my working career. In particular, since I was mainly in charge of the IT industry in Japan, there was a serious shortage of engineers, and offshore development (outsourcing the development of software and applications overseas) was increasing, and this feeling became stronger day by day.
When I thought about whether I would be responsible for talent exchange in Japan or from abroad, and what role I could play overseas, I decided to set the milestone of going overseas to work in my twenties.
―What are your management principles?
I believe that the important point in managing an organization is to have the entire organization aim for the same objective. My role is to keep the company and individual missions aligned, and to maintain the organization running side by side toward the same goal.
―Please tell us about your own mission.
One of my missions is to realize the goal of “creating a future where each individual can shine”, which was my reason for joining the human resources industry. In addition, I am committed to serve as a role model for a society in which women are empowered and continuing to be a top runner for women who are active globally, while also focusing on increasing the number of Japanese women following similar paths.
It is quite a personal mission, but at the same time, it’s also the future that our company aims to achieve.
―Has the situation changed for Japanese people expanding overseas?
When I started working abroad, which was around 2016, my impression was that most of the people who came overseas were either in their 20s, eager to experience life abroad, or in their late 50s who had gained enough experience in Japan and wanted to take on more challenges.
Later, as work styles became more diverse following the Covid pandemic, I feel that a wider range of people are going abroad, such as couples in their 30s with children relocating with their families. Recently, the weakening of the yen has also made overseas salaries seem more attractive, which I believe has had an impact.
Our strength lies in being able to combine business strategies with a thorough knowledge of Asia in terms of recruitment.
―Please tell us about the hiring trends in Thailand.
Since the end of the pandemic, the number of new companies entering the market has increased. Currently, 40 percent of Japanese affiliated companies are in the manufacturing sector, which we also consider as an area of expansion. In addition, the field of digitalization and factory automation is on the rise. The need for digital marketing and IoT is also growing.
―We heard that there are also Thai personnel working at the Japan Desk. Are there any differences in management between Japan and Thais?
Although there are differences in language and culture, everyone shares common goals, objectives and individual KPIs within the organization, so we do not consciously focus on any differences in management based on nationality.
―Do you provide post-employment support to hiring companies for Thai nationals?
We always conduct interviews and feedback sessions after joining the company. Regardless of nationality, there are always situation of some kind of incompatibility. There are various causes for this, such as difficulties in communication, inability to speak because Japanese decision-makers are absent in the office, or the creation of a community of only Japanese speakers. We conduct interviews from both Japanese and Thai perspectives and provide feedback.
―What are your company’s strengths in human resources services?
Our strengths include our regional versatility with respect to APAC, our breadth in supporting Thailand as a whole regardless of whether the client is Japanese or non-Japanese, and the ability to incorporate recruitment into business strategies by being involved not only in hiring but also in labor and HR systems.
―Do you provide consulting on labor and HR systems primarily aimed at Japanese affiliated companies?
Currently, our main customers are Japanese affiliated companies, but recently we have been receiving an increasing number of inquiries from companies newly expanding into Thailand from countries such as Korea and Singapore.
Localization of human resources and delegation of authority are challenges for Japanese affiliated companies
―Some people are pointing out that the presence of Japanese affiliate companies is declining. Please share your thoughts.
Personally, I believe that presence is an individual matter and cannot be generalized by country. This is because it depends on how strong the will to conduct business is. Based on this premise, Japanese affiliated companies can attract excellent human resources and grow overseas by trusting in local talents and delegating authority to them.
Japanese companies once grew through routine jobs in the manufacturing industry, and there was a time when GDP was the second largest in the world. Because of the long continuity of that successful model, Japan has been slow to develop new businesses and human resources. The way business is done then and now has changed, as has the national strength of Japan and the economic power of other countries. Trust the local people, adapt to the culture of the country, and empower the people working there.
I believe this is one way for Japanese affiliated companies to make a leap forward. Although it is very important for the head office and representatives to have the mindset to control everything, but it is impossible for one person to grasp every corner of overseas branches while being in Japan. It is also important to entrust the parts that cannot be grasped to those who can.
―Would you give us specific examples of Japanese affiliated companies that are unable to delegate authority?
For example, there are cases where mismatches occur due to a lack of clarity in terms of recruitment purposes and hiring points. Suppose the hiring decision maker in Japan gives vague instructions, such as “interview and screen for the time being”. If a Thai person is in charge of the first interview and a Japanese person the second interview, the selection will be based on the hiring criteria of each country, which will lead to inconsistencies in the final interview.
In such cases, we advise that instead of having the first interview as screening process, conduct it with Japanese interviewers to clarify the perspectives and then the second round with Thai interviewers. Ultimately, we aim to hire candidates who fit into the Thai culture.
―Please share any other pieces of advice you would like to give to companies for interviews.
It is necessary to clarify what kind of abilities and skills are required for the job before conducting recruitment. For example, if there are many opportunities to write reports in English on the job, it would be a good idea to conduct a report writing test in English. Assessing writing skills during interviews can be challenging.
To ensure that candidates possess the required abilities and skills for the position being recruited, it is important to clearly define the competencies needed and employ methods during the selection process to accurately identify those skills, in order to avoid situations where individuals struggle to write reports after being hired. This is something that a person in charge who is familiar with recruiting would realize, but since there are many cases where people without experience in recruiting can be tasked with hiring overseas, we are often asked for advice on such basic know-how.
―Finally, please provide a message to Japanese affiliated companies conducting recruitment overseas.
As is true in all business areas, Japanese affiliated companies need to localize their human resources and company operations more. Rather than unilaterally imposing the Japanese way of doing things, I feel it is important to learn about local customs and people to incorporate the best aspects of each other.
I think that by hiring locally recruited Japanese or locally developed talent and delegating authority, companies can achieve stability and growth. By shifting from a mindset of “Japan and other countries” to a global perspective, we can collectively nurture markets. I believe this is the way of thinking that Japanese affiliated companies need for the future.
PERSOLKELLY HR Services Recruitment (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
27th Floor Empire Tower 3 Unit 2707 1 South Sathorn Road Bangkok 10120 Thailand
https://www.persolkelly.co.th/
As an overseas subsidiary of the PERSOL Group, it is one of the largest human resources service companies in APAC, embracing diverse values under the vision of “Work and Smile”.
After graduating from Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, she joined PERSOL CAREER (formerly Intelligence) as a new graduate. She was assigned to Indonesia in 2016 as a sales representative and later as Cikarang Branch Manager, and then to Thailand in 2021 as the Head of Japan Desk.
In order to support Japanese affiliated companies from a human resources perspective, she provides a wide range of proposals including recruitment, labor consultation, HR system, personnel restructuring, training, and cultural training for M&A.
